Encore Post: The Jewish people prospered under the rule of Ptolemy and his descendants in Egypt. For a while, they ruled Palestine and more or less allowed the Jews to govern themselves. However, the Ptolemies lost Palestine in a war with the Seleucids — descendents of the Greek ruler of Syria, Babylon and Persia. At first, the Seleucids continued the policy of the Ptolemies. However, King Antiochus IV Epiphanes decided to unify his emperor under Greek culture.
Antiochus intervened in a civil war between Hellenizing Jews (those who favored adopting Greek culture) and traditional Jews, who favored the obedience to the law of God. He outlawed Judaism and enforced it with a severe persecution. He executed women who allowed their sons to be circumcised, forced Jews to sacrifice to Greek gods and participate in their festivals and forced the eating of unclean foods. The last straw for Jews, however, is when he erected an altar to Zeus in the Holy of Holies in the temple, sacrificed pigs to it and brought temple prostitution into it.
The Jews rebelled under the direction of the priest Matthias and his sons, Judas and Simon. They became known by the nickname Maccabees (“hammer”) and the story of the war of independence they fought is told in the apocryphal books of 1 and 2 Maccabees. The feast of Hanukkah celebrates the re-dedication of the temple after it had been cleansed of the pagan altars and sacrifices by the Maccabees.
For one hundred years, more or less, the Jews ruled themselves under the descendants of Matthias, known as the Hasmoneans. They gained neighboring territories, including the Galilee. Jews from Judea, including towns like Bethlehem, resettled these areas. Likely, the great-grandparents and grandparents of Mary and Joseph were among them.
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Nice, Bob, a good refresher for me. Orthography is a bit off, but spell check’s at hand. Seleucids and descendents, my friend.😁
Thanks! I never trust spell check on ancient place and people names.
10~4
Thank you, pastor. A brief but very precise summary to help the memory. I enjoy these writings a lot.
I want to follow the church history as you place it here. I am Rev. Patrick F. Nanning, Senior of the St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church-Liberia.
I visited Fort Wayne Lutheran Seminary in 2017 and develop love to enroll.
Thanks
Thank you! If you scroll down the left column of the post, you’ll see a place where you can subscribe. As far as studying in Ft. Wayne, check with your bishop. The LCMS works with church bodies to bring students to the US.