Historical Overview of 1st Maccabees: Key Events and Characters
17-18 Bible Study #14
1 23 18
The Book of 1
st
Maccabees
Key Dates
•
1
st
return from Babylonian captivity– 538 B.C.
•
Zerubbabel
was the governor
•
Jeshua
was the high priest
•
The
Altar was built 536 B.C.
(construction on the rest if temple
halted for 20 years)
•
536 B.C. Foundation of the Temple was laid
•
Youth rejoiced
•
Elderly wept
•
534 – 520 B.C.
work stopped
due to Samaritan
harassment
Key Dates (Cont)
•
2
nd
return 525-457 BC
•
The prophet
Haggai
and
Zechariah
called for the people
to return to the construction of the Temple
•
Temple was
dedicated – 515 B.C.
•
3
rd
return 444 B.C.
•
Nehemiah
led the
rebuilding of walls of Jerusalem
–
444
B.C.
•
Ezra
returned and taught in Jerusalem in 458 B.C.
•
Persians remain in control of region
Key Dates (Cont)
•
Alexander the Great 356-323 B.C
.
•
Defeated
King Darius III of Persia in 330 B.C.
•
Died in 323 B.C. at age 38
•
Succeeded by four generals who divided the empire:
•
Ptolemy I - VI 323- 170 B.C.
•
Controlled Egypt
•
Defeated by a Seleucus king
•
Seleucus I- IV - 305-175 B.C.
•
Controlled Syria
•
Antiochus Epiphanes
d
efeated
Ptolemy VI
in
175 B.C
.
•
Controlled Palestine
Review of 1
st
Maccabees 1
•
Sets the historical background by focusing on the
death
Alexander the Great
and the division of his
empire
•
Introduces
Antiochus Epiphanes
who defeats the
Ptolemy dynasty in Egypt and then plundered the
temple in Jerusalem
•
King Antiochus
sent a force in 141 B.C. to collect
taxes, established and occupied a citadel in
Jerusalem,
and imposed a terrible religious
persecution on the Jews
Review of 1
st
Maccabees 1 (Cont)
•
Mattathias
was a
Levitical
priest in the line of
Aaron
(Levite)
who settled in the town of
Modein
•
This is important because he ruled even though he was
not in the line of David (Judah)
•
Yet he and his sons did many David-like things
•
This lead some to believe that one of his sons might be
the Messiah
•
He witnessed the blasphemies being committed in
Judea
and he refused to offer a pagan sacrifice *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 2:1-6
•
Mattathias
had five sons:
•
John died
•
Simon became the counselor
•
Judas Maccabeus (the hammer) led the army
•
Eleazar died
•
Johathan founded Hazmonean Dynasty *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 2:7-15
•
Earlier in
1
st
Maccabees 1:51
we heard about
King
Antiochus Epiphanes
appointing inspectors to go to
all of the towns and villages of the country to
insure that the people offered sacrifices to the
Greek gods
•
At this point one of the inspectors, with a small
contingent of soldiers, arrived at
Modein
where
Mattathias
and his sons were hiding out in a
somewhat faithful city *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 2:16-18
•
The people of the city were gathered together, the
officials of
Antiochus Epiphanes
built a pagan altar in the
city square, and announced that it was time to offer a
sacrifice to their gods
•
The officials looked to see who would keep the king’s
law by forsaking the Torah
•
When they saw
Mattathias
and his sons (prominent
members of the community), they called upon
Mattathias
to go first so that the rest of the community
would follow *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 2:19-22
•
Where did
Mattathias
get this confidence?
•
First, he had several grown sons and brothers who were
carrying swords
•
He and his family also controlled
Modem
•
The Greek inspector only had a few soldiers with him
while all that
Mattathias
had to do was turn his forces
on them and take control*
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 2:23
•
Mattathias
was standing there defying the king’s laws
and suddenly a “lawbreaking” Jew stepped forward to
sprinkle a little incense on the altar
•
He said that he would be happy to take some silver or
gold for this act
•
Mattathias
did not take kindly to this act so he killed the
Jew and then followed by killing the royal official*
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 2:24-26
•
Remember what happened when Moses’ leadership was
condemned by the people of Israel in the wilderness?
(Numbers 25:1-14*
)
•
The
Midianites
sent their girls into the Hebrew camp to
get the Jewish men to join in their cult prostitution as a
part of their pagan worship
•
After Moses condemned the people for their apostasy,
a man
(named
Zimri
)
came to the “tent of meeting”
with a Midianite woman
•
Phinehas
came forward with a spear and killed them
both
•
This was seen as an act of righteous anger
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
Mattathias
committed a similar righteous act and
then fled to the hills with family and followers
•
In doing this he put his full trust in the Lord *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 2:27-41
•
At the outset of this rebellion, while hiding in caves, the
Jews refused to fight on the Sabbath
•
Therefore, the Greeks decided that they would
always
attack on the Sabbath
•
Many Jews were killed when they refused to fight on the
Sabbath
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
So
Mattathias
determined that it would not be
unlawful for them to defend themselves on the
Sabbath
•
We have an allusion to this event in the Synoptic
gospels when Jesus asks the Pharisees if it was all
right to heal a sick person, or to do good on the
Sabbath (
Matthew 12:9-14
) *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 2:42-50
•
Matthaeus
was joined by a company of
Hasideans
•
The
Hasideans
were the
holy or pious ones/mighty
warriors
of Israel (some see them as the forefathers of
the
Pharisees
)
•
Their support strengthened
Mattathias’
movement
•
This new group began to roam all over the country
cleaning the land of the “lawless men” (Jews)
•
Mattathias
will begin to catechize his sons from his
death bed
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
Here we see an example of biblical catechesis or
teaching of the faith based on stories of salvation history
•
Examples of this type of catechesis can be found in both
Old and New Testament *
1
st
Maccabees (Con)
•
1
st
Maccabees 2:51-60
•
Matthaeus
was reminding his sons of the stories that he
had taught them since their childhood
•
This passage can be seen as a “cliff notes” of all the
education that he had given them since they were first
able to understand his fatherly words *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 2: 61
•
Here he moves from the past to the present and future
•
His sons were going to be asked to step into this story
and become characters in Salvation History just as we
are every time we are asked to exercise our faith *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 2:62-70
•
Just before his death,
Mattathias
reminded his sons in
an abbreviated form of all that he had given them about
Salvation History with emphasis on what God had done
for Israel in the past
•
He identified the roles his sons would play in this
endeavor
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
His sons knew what God had done for Israel from the
stories they had learned in their youth
•
So their father asked them, using reason, to put their
faith in God who would save them as He had saved
those who preceded them in Salvation History
•
He blessed his sons and died at
Modein *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 3:1-9
•
Here we meet
Judas Maccabees
, the son of
Mattathias
,
who:
•
Took command of the army
•
Defeated and killed the Greek General
Apollonius
•
Became a great and successful warrior
•
Defeated
Seron
the commander of the Syrian army
•
Prepared to fight the mighty Army of King Antiochus under the
direction of Lysias at
Emmaus
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
Again, we see the text moving back to poetry
implying that it might have been sung before it
returns to the historical setting
•
Look at what
Judas
does with the information he
was taught by his father *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 3:10-12
•
The
Greeks,
under the leadership of
Apollonius
,
decided
to gather Gentiles and Samaritans to capture and
destroy
Judas
and his forces
•
Instead
Judas
renders them a massive defeat
•
To “take the sword of your enemy” was a great insult
•
Those defeated in this battle were not only the Gentiles
and Samaritans but also the “lawless” Jews who had
forsaken the
Torah
and joined forces with the Greeks *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 3:13-15
•
Next
Seron
, the commander of the
Syrian Army
,
decided to make a name for himself by defeating
Maccabeus
•
He gathered a strong organized army of ungodly
men *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 3:16-26
•
This was like what
Moses
said to the people of Israel
who were standing in front of the Red Sea with the most
powerful army in the world coming upon them with
horse and chariot (
Ex 14:13-14)
•
Judas
called them to be still and wait for God to fight for
them!
•
Look at what
Judas
does next *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
Judas
had so much zeal that after his pep talk he drew
his sword and rushes the enemy alone
•
Of course his army followed
•
Can’t you hear them say “there he goes again, okay lets follow
him
•
Judas
was not afraid because he knew the promise God
made to Israel: that one man could put to flight a
thousand enemy soldiers
•
The enemy was crushed and learned to fear the great
warrior
Judas Maccabaeus **
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 3:27-31
•
King
Antiochus
suddenly realized that the taxes were no
longer coming into his treasury
•
This was a problem because his entire army was a paid force
•
who did not believe in the king and had to be paid to fight for
him
•
If the pay stubs ceased his army would stop fighting
•
On the other hand the
Maccabees
were fighting for their lives
and the lives of their families
•
They were also fighting for their faith in the Torah
•
This situation led King
Antiochus
to divide his army and take
one half into
Persia
to collect the tribute from the
Persians
in
order
to acquire enough money to pay for the fight against
the
Maccabees *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 3:32-33
•
Lysias
was in control from the
Euphrates
down to the
border of
Egypt
•
He was left in charge of the other half of the army when
the King went to Persia
•
He was also charged with taking care of
King Antiochus’
son
•
In this passage we see another reference to the use of
elephants
as a weapon of war *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 3:34-44
•
As mentioned,
King Antiochus
divided his army, leaving
half under
Lucius
to finish off the rebellion in
Judea
while he led the rest to enforce taxation in Persia
•
Look at the numbers
Lucius
brought against the
Maccabees
in Judea
•
40,000 Infantry
•
7,000 Cavalry
•
Plus forces from
Syria
and the
Philistines
•
Up to this point the
Maccabees
had been primarily
fighting against local Gentile forces
•
But this was a sizable and professional army *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 3:45-47
•
At this point
Jerusalem
was under Greek control
•
Notice that the
Maccabees
were not sharpening their
swords, counting the size of their force, or wondering if
they were strong enough to defeat such a large force
•
Instead, they were doing the only thing that mattered –
they were praying and fasting as they prepared
spiritually for the battle *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 3:48-53
•
The Gentiles were occupying the temple in Jerusalem
while Judas Maccabees and his men were consulting the
Torah
•
Notice that the Maccabees did not rely upon their own
military might
•
Look at what they had already accomplished
•
But instead of believing , based on their past victories,
that they could do it again, they turned to Yahweh in
prayer
•
They knew that the odds were greatly against them, but
they also knew that God was on their side *
1
st
Maccabees (Cont)
•
1
st
Maccabees 3:54-60
•
Here
Judas
reminded his men of the exemptions for
going into battle found in the Torah to include release
of:
•
The newly married
•
Those who recently planted a vineyard
•
Those who were afraid
(Du 20:1-9)
•
In the end they simply put themselves in the hand of
God
•
The battle is described in the next chapter6y*
The content provides a historical background on the book of 1st Maccabees, focusing on key dates such as the return from Babylonian captivity, construction of the Temple, and the reign of Alexander the Great. It introduces important figures like Mattathias and his sons, highlighting their role in resisting religious persecution. The narrative covers significant events such as the division of Alexander's empire and the Maccabean revolt against oppressive rulers.
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Presentation Transcript
17-18 Bible Study #14 1 23 18
The Book of 1st Maccabees
Key Dates 1streturn from Babylonian captivity 538 B.C. Zerubbabel was the governor Jeshua was the high priest The Altar was built 536 B.C. (construction on the rest if temple halted for 20 years) 536 B.C. Foundation of the Temple was laid Youth rejoiced Elderly wept 534 520 B.C. work stopped due to Samaritan harassment
Key Dates (Cont) 2ndreturn 525-457 BC The prophet Haggai and Zechariah called for the people to return to the construction of the Temple Temple was dedicated 515 B.C. 3rdreturn 444 B.C. Nehemiah led the rebuilding of walls of Jerusalem 444 B.C. Ezra returned and taught in Jerusalem in 458 B.C. Persians remain in control of region
Key Dates (Cont) Alexander the Great 356-323 B.C. Defeated King Darius III of Persia in 330 B.C. Died in 323 B.C. at age 38 Succeeded by four generals who divided the empire: Ptolemy I - VI 323- 170 B.C. Controlled Egypt Defeated by a Seleucus king Seleucus I- IV - 305-175 B.C. Controlled Syria Antiochus Epiphanes defeated Ptolemy VI in 175 B.C. Controlled Palestine
Review of 1stMaccabees 1 Sets the historical background by focusing on the death Alexander the Great and the division of his empire Introduces Antiochus Epiphanes who defeats the Ptolemy dynasty in Egypt and then plundered the temple in Jerusalem King Antiochus sent a force in 141 B.C. to collect taxes, established and occupied a citadel in Jerusalem, and imposed a terrible religious persecution on the Jews
Review of 1stMaccabees 1 (Cont) Mattathias was a Levitical priest in the line of Aaron (Levite) who settled in the town of Modein This is important because he ruled even though he was not in the line of David (Judah) Yet he and his sons did many David-like things This lead some to believe that one of his sons might be the Messiah He witnessed the blasphemies being committed in Judea and he refused to offer a pagan sacrifice *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 2:1-6 Mattathias had five sons: John died Simon became the counselor Judas Maccabeus (the hammer) led the army Eleazar died Johathan founded Hazmonean Dynasty *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 2:7-15 Earlier in 1stMaccabees 1:51 we heard about King Antiochus Epiphanes appointing inspectors to go to all of the towns and villages of the country to insure that the people offered sacrifices to the Greek gods At this point one of the inspectors, with a small contingent of soldiers, arrived at Modein where Mattathias and his sons were hiding out in a somewhat faithful city *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 2:16-18 The people of the city were gathered together, the officials of Antiochus Epiphanes built a pagan altar in the city square, and announced that it was time to offer a sacrifice to their gods The officials looked to see who would keep the king s law by forsaking the Torah When they saw Mattathias and his sons (prominent members of the community), they called upon Mattathias to go first so that the rest of the community would follow *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 2:19-22 Where did Mattathias get this confidence? First, he had several grown sons and brothers who were carrying swords He and his family also controlled Modem The Greek inspector only had a few soldiers with him while all that Mattathias had to do was turn his forces on them and take control*
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 2:23 Mattathias was standing there defying the king s laws and suddenly a lawbreaking Jew stepped forward to sprinkle a little incense on the altar He said that he would be happy to take some silver or gold for this act Mattathias did not take kindly to this act so he killed the Jew and then followed by killing the royal official*
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 2:24-26 Remember what happened when Moses leadership was condemned by the people of Israel in the wilderness? (Numbers 25:1-14*) The Midianites sent their girls into the Hebrew camp to get the Jewish men to join in their cult prostitution as a part of their pagan worship After Moses condemned the people for their apostasy, a man (named Zimri) came to the tent of meeting with a Midianite woman Phinehas came forward with a spear and killed them both This was seen as an act of righteous anger
1stMaccabees (Cont) Mattathias committed a similar righteous act and then fled to the hills with family and followers In doing this he put his full trust in the Lord *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 2:27-41 At the outset of this rebellion, while hiding in caves, the Jews refused to fight on the Sabbath Therefore, the Greeks decided that they would always attack on the Sabbath Many Jews were killed when they refused to fight on the Sabbath
1stMaccabees (Cont) So Mattathias determined that it would not be unlawful for them to defend themselves on the Sabbath We have an allusion to this event in the Synoptic gospels when Jesus asks the Pharisees if it was all right to heal a sick person, or to do good on the Sabbath (Matthew 12:9-14) *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 2:42-50 Matthaeus was joined by a company of Hasideans The Hasideans were the holy or pious ones/mighty warriors of Israel (some see them as the forefathers of the Pharisees) Their support strengthened Mattathias movement This new group began to roam all over the country cleaning the land of the lawless men (Jews) Mattathias will begin to catechize his sons from his death bed
1stMaccabees (Cont) Here we see an example of biblical catechesis or teaching of the faith based on stories of salvation history Examples of this type of catechesis can be found in both Old and New Testament *
1stMaccabees (Con) 1stMaccabees 2:51-60 Matthaeus was reminding his sons of the stories that he had taught them since their childhood This passage can be seen as a cliff notes of all the education that he had given them since they were first able to understand his fatherly words *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 2: 61 Here he moves from the past to the present and future His sons were going to be asked to step into this story and become characters in Salvation History just as we are every time we are asked to exercise our faith *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 2:62-70 Just before his death, Mattathias reminded his sons in an abbreviated form of all that he had given them about Salvation History with emphasis on what God had done for Israel in the past He identified the roles his sons would play in this endeavor
1stMaccabees (Cont) His sons knew what God had done for Israel from the stories they had learned in their youth So their father asked them, using reason, to put their faith in God who would save them as He had saved those who preceded them in Salvation History He blessed his sons and died at Modein *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 3:1-9 Here we meet Judas Maccabees, the son of Mattathias, who: Took command of the army Defeated and killed the Greek General Apollonius Became a great and successful warrior Defeated Seron the commander of the Syrian army Prepared to fight the mighty Army of King Antiochus under the direction of Lysias at Emmaus
1stMaccabees (Cont) Again, we see the text moving back to poetry implying that it might have been sung before it returns to the historical setting Look at what Judas does with the information he was taught by his father *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 3:10-12 The Greeks, under the leadership of Apollonius, decided to gather Gentiles and Samaritans to capture and destroy Judas and his forces Instead Judas renders them a massive defeat To take the sword of your enemy was a great insult Those defeated in this battle were not only the Gentiles and Samaritans but also the lawless Jews who had forsaken the Torah and joined forces with the Greeks *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 3:13-15 Next Seron, the commander of the Syrian Army, decided to make a name for himself by defeating Maccabeus He gathered a strong organized army of ungodly men *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 3:16-26 This was like what Moses said to the people of Israel who were standing in front of the Red Sea with the most powerful army in the world coming upon them with horse and chariot (Ex 14:13-14) Judas called them to be still and wait for God to fight for them! Look at what Judas does next *
1stMaccabees (Cont) Judas had so much zeal that after his pep talk he drew his sword and rushes the enemy alone Of course his army followed Can t you hear them say there he goes again, okay lets follow him Judas was not afraid because he knew the promise God made to Israel: that one man could put to flight a thousand enemy soldiers The enemy was crushed and learned to fear the great warrior Judas Maccabaeus **
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 3:27-31 King Antiochus suddenly realized that the taxes were no longer coming into his treasury This was a problem because his entire army was a paid force who did not believe in the king and had to be paid to fight for him If the pay stubs ceased his army would stop fighting On the other hand the Maccabees were fighting for their lives and the lives of their families They were also fighting for their faith in the Torah This situation led King Antiochus to divide his army and take one half into Persia to collect the tribute from the Persians in order to acquire enough money to pay for the fight against the Maccabees *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 3:32-33 Lysias was in control from the Euphrates down to the border of Egypt He was left in charge of the other half of the army when the King went to Persia He was also charged with taking care of King Antiochus son In this passage we see another reference to the use of elephants as a weapon of war *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 3:34-44 As mentioned, King Antiochus divided his army, leaving half under Lucius to finish off the rebellion in Judea while he led the rest to enforce taxation in Persia Look at the numbers Lucius brought against the Maccabees in Judea 40,000 Infantry 7,000 Cavalry Plus forces from Syria and the Philistines Up to this point the Maccabees had been primarily fighting against local Gentile forces But this was a sizable and professional army *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 3:45-47 At this point Jerusalem was under Greek control Notice that the Maccabees were not sharpening their swords, counting the size of their force, or wondering if they were strong enough to defeat such a large force Instead, they were doing the only thing that mattered they were praying and fasting as they prepared spiritually for the battle *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 3:48-53 The Gentiles were occupying the temple in Jerusalem while Judas Maccabees and his men were consulting the Torah Notice that the Maccabees did not rely upon their own military might Look at what they had already accomplished But instead of believing , based on their past victories, that they could do it again, they turned to Yahweh in prayer They knew that the odds were greatly against them, but they also knew that God was on their side *
1stMaccabees (Cont) 1stMaccabees 3:54-60 Here Judas reminded his men of the exemptions for going into battle found in the Torah to include release of: The newly married Those who recently planted a vineyard Those who were afraid (Du 20:1-9) In the end they simply put themselves in the hand of God The battle is described in the next chapter6y*
