The Maccabean Revolution

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The Maccabean Revolution

Between the books of Malachi and Matthew, the Maccabees fought for the rights and freedom of the Jewish nation. At that time the Jews were under massive oppression by the Seleucid rulers. One in particular was Antiochus, he tormented the Jews in the hope of Hellenizing them, and to top it off he used their own religious beliefs against them in massive slaughter and humiliation. The Maccabees however, against all odds, freed the nation of Judah, and successfully regained their rights. This is the Maccabean revolution.

It all began in 166 BC when Antiochus, the king of the Seleucids sent out an order for pigs to be sacrificed on the altars of the Jewish temples. This disgraced the beliefs of the Jews, because pigs were unclean for a Jew to even touch, yet they were to be sacrificed on the altars of their Lord. In the small village of Modi’in, when a small group of soldiers arrived at the Temple there to carry out Antiochus’ order. They sought out the High Priest, who was Mattathias, and ordered him to sacrifice a pig on the altar in the temple. Though the soldiers pleaded and bribed, Mattathias stayed true to the Lord, and refused to do the sacrifice. However because of Mattathias’ rejection a villager offered to do the sacrifice himself. At these words Mattathias was enraged. He grabbed the sacrificial knife and killed the man. Because the soldiers were caught off guard, Mattathias, his five sons, and several villagers succeeded in killing the soldiers, taking their gear, and retreating up into the hills. The revolt had begun.

Many of the surrounding villages joined in the revolt, and the band of men created a small guerilla force, that attacked at night. Since Mattathias died early in the revolut...

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... in the village of Modi’in the revolution expanded and grew. The Maccabees proved to be good leaders, and led the people to a spiritual awakening from idols back to the Lord. Their freedom was hard fought, and well earned from the clutches of one cruel king to the next.

Bibliography

Cohen, Shayne J.D., From the Maccabees to the Mishnah, Philadelphia, Pensylvania: The Westminster Press, 1989

Kimbrough, Majorie L., Stories Between the Testaments, Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press, 2000

Rattey, B.K., The Hebrews, Oxford, London: Oxford University Press, 1964

Stevenson, John, “The Intertestamental Period”,

Surburg, Raymond F., Introduction to the Intertestamental Period, St Louis, Missouri: Concordia Publishing House, 1975

NA, http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/353838/The-Books-of-the-Maccabees

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