The Death of Antiochus the Fourth

(2 Macc 1.11–17; 9.1–29; 10.9–11)

1As King Antiochus the Fourth was passing through Mesopotamia, he heard of a city in Persia, named Elymais, which was famous for its riches in silver and gold. 2The temple was very rich, containing gold shields, armour, and weapons left there by Alexander, son of King Philip of Macedonia, who was the first to rule over the Greek Empire. 3Antiochus came and tried to take the city and loot it, but he didn't succeed, because the citizens had learnt what he was planning to do, 4and they drew up their troops to resist him. In great frustration he withdrew to return to Babylonia.

5In Persia a messenger reached him with the news that the armies he had sent into Judea had been defeated. 6Lysias and his strong army had been forced to flee from the Jews, who were now reinforced by the additional weapons, supplies, and loot they had taken from the defeated armies. 76.7: 1 Macc 1.54The Jews had pulled down the thing they called “The Awful Horror” that Antiochus had built on the altar in Jerusalem. They had also surrounded the Temple with high walls, as it had been before, and had taken and fortified the town of Bethzur, one of the king's own towns.

8When the king heard this report, he was so dumbfounded and terribly shaken that he went to bed in a fit of deep depression because things had not turned out as he had hoped. 9He remained ill for a long time, as waves of despair swept over him, until he finally realized that he was going to die. 10He called together all those to whom he had given the title “Friends of the King” and said to them, “I cannot sleep, and my heart is broken with grief and worry. 11At first I asked myself why these great waves of trouble were sweeping over me, since I have been kind and well-liked during my reign. 12But then I remembered the wrongs I did in Jerusalem when I took all the silver and gold objects from the Temple and tried without any good reason to destroy the inhabitants of Judea. 13I know this is why all these terrible things have happened to me and I am about to die in deep despair here in this foreign land.”

14Then he called Philip, one of his most trusted advisers, and put him in charge of his whole empire. 15He gave him his crown, robe, and official ring, and authorized him to educate his son Antiochus the Fifth and bring him up to be king. 16King Antiochus died there in the year 149.6.16 the year 149: This corresponds to 163 bc.

17When Lysias heard that the king had died, he made the young Antiochus king in place of his father. He had brought up Antiochus from childhood and now gave him the name Eupator.

The Campaign of Antiochus the Fifth and Lysias

(2 Macc 13.1–26; 11.22–26)

18Meanwhile, the enemies at the fort in Jerusalem had been blockading the people of Israel in the area round the Temple, constantly causing them trouble and giving support to the Gentiles. 19So Judas decided to get rid of them and called all the people together to besiege the fort. 20The people assembled and laid siege to the fort in the year 150.6.20 the year 150: This corresponds to 162 bc. They built siege-platforms and battering-rams.

21But some of the men under siege escaped, and together with some of the renegade Jews, they went to the king and said, 22“How long are you going to wait before you take revenge for what was done to our countrymen? 23We were willing to serve your father, follow his orders, and obey his decrees. 24But what good did it do us? Now our own countrymen have become our enemies.6.24 enemies; some manuscripts add and besieged the fort. In fact, they have killed as many of us as they could find and have stolen our possessions. 25But we are not the only ones they have harmed; they have attacked all their neighbours. 26And now they have laid siege to the fort in Jerusalem and are planning to take it. They have also fortified the Temple and Bethzur. 27Unless you act immediately, they will do even more, and you will not be able to stop them.”

28When the king heard this, he was furious. He brought together all the army commanders, the cavalry officers, and his most trusted advisers. 29He also hired mercenary soldiers from other countries and from the Greek islands. 30His forces numbered 100,000 infantry, 20,000 cavalry, and 32 elephants trained for war. 31The king and his army passed through Idumea and laid siege to Bethzur, where they fought for a long time. They built battering-rams and siege-platforms, but the defenders fought bravely and came out of the town and burnt down the platforms.

32Then Judas withdrew his troops from the fort in Jerusalem and set up his camp at Beth Zechariah, blocking the advance of the king's army. 33Early the next morning, the king rapidly moved his army along the road to Beth Zechariah, where his troops took up battle positions and blew trumpets. 34They got the elephants ready for battle by showing them grape juice and mulberry juice. 35The huge animals were distributed among the infantry units. A thousand men, protected by chain armour and bronze helmets, were stationed with each elephant. Each animal was also accompanied by a special force of 500 cavalry, 36which always remained with the elephant. 37A strong, protected wooden platform was securely fastened by a special harness to the back of each elephant. Three6.37 Probable text Three; Greek Thirty or 32. soldiers rode on each animal, in addition to the elephant driver. 38Lysias placed the rest of the cavalry on the two flanks of the army where they could be protected by the infantry while harassing the enemy. 39The sunlight, reflected off the bronze and gold shields, shone on the mountains and flashed like burning torches. 40Part of the king's army was spread out over the higher ground of the mountain slopes and part over the lower land, but they all moved forward steadily and in good order. 41All the people were terrified when they heard the noise made by the clashing of weapons and the marching of that great and powerful army.

42Judas and his army advanced into battle, and immediately killed 600 of the king's army. 43When Eleazar Avaran saw that one of the elephants was larger than the others and that it was covered with royal armour, he thought that the king was riding on it. 44Eleazar sacrificed his life to save his people and to gain eternal fame. 45He ran boldly towards the elephant, which was in the middle of a battalion of infantry. He rushed forward killing men to the right and left, so that the enemy soldiers fell back before him on both sides. 46He slipped in under the elephant and stabbed it to death, and it fell on him and killed him. 47But when the Jews realized how strong the royal army was and how determined it was to fight, they retreated.

48The king and his army advanced to fight the Jews at Jerusalem and laid siege to the whole of Judea and Jerusalem. 49He made peace with the Jews of Bethzur, who then left the town. There had not been enough food in the town for them to withstand the siege because it was the sabbatical year, when no fields were sown. 50The king occupied Bethzur and stationed a whole body of troops there to guard it. 51Then he surrounded the Temple and besieged it for a long time. He set up siege-platforms, battering-rams, catapults for throwing fire and stones, and other weapons to throw spears and rocks. 52The defenders also made war machines to oppose those of the enemy, and so the battle went on for a long time. 53But there was no food left in the Temple storage bins because it was the sabbatical year, and the people who had fled from the Gentiles and taken refuge in Judea had eaten up all the food that had been stored there. 54The shortage of food had been so severe that many people had scattered to their homes, and only a few men were left in the Temple.

55Meanwhile, Philip, who had been appointed by King Antiochus before his death to educate his son to be king, 56returned from Persia and Media. He had come back with the royal army and planned to take control of the government. When Lysias heard this news, 57he made rapid preparations to depart. He said to the young king, to his officers, and to his men, “We are growing weaker each day; we are short of provisions, and this place we are besieging is strong. Besides, there are pressing government affairs which need our attention. 58So now let's arrange a truce and make a peace treaty with the Jews and their whole nation. 59We will allow them to follow their own laws and customs as they did before. All this trouble started when we provoked them by abolishing their laws and customs.”

60This recommendation was well received by the king and the officers, so Lysias proposed peace terms to the Jews, and they accepted them. 61When the king and his officers solemnly agreed to abide by these terms, the Jews came out of their fortress. 62But when the king entered the Temple area on Mount Zion and saw the strong fortifications, he broke his word and ordered the walls surrounding the Temple to be torn down. 63Then he hurriedly left and returned to Antioch, where he found Philip in control of the city. The king attacked the city and took it by force.