History
An important component of the Hebrew Scriptures is the set of histories
that trace the great events of Israel’s sacred and not so sacred past (Genesis,
Exodus, Numbers, Joshua, Judges, 1-2 Samuel, 1-2 Kings, 1-2 Chronicles,
Ezra, Nehemiah). Writing in this vein continued in early Judaism. The
most prominent example is 1 Maccabees. It is likely that the work was writ-
ten in Hebrew. It presents a historical review of the period from Alexander
the Great to the death of the Hasmonean Simon (from the late fourth cen-
tury to 134b.c.e.), but it covers the first centuries of this period in a few
sentences and concentrates its attention on the approximately forty years
from about 175 to 134. The author is an advocate of the Hasmonean family,
beginning with Mattathias, who sounded the call to revolt against the poli-
cies of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and continuing with his sons Judas, Jona-
than, and Simon, who led the nation in its struggle for the right to practice
their traditional religion and to freedom from foreign rule. At first they led
forces that were opposed to the suppression of ancestral religious practices
and to the desecration of the Temple. After regaining the Temple Mount
from Seleucid and renegade Jewish control, they purified the Temple and
inaugurated the festival of Hanukkah to commemorate the event (it lasts
eight days, beginning on 9/25). After Judas died in battle, leadership of the
Hasmonean forces fell to Jonathan, who, in 152b.c.e., was appointed the
high priest. He held the office until his capture and death in 142, when his
brother Simon assumed the leadership and the high priesthood. Simon
was killed in 134, and the book ends with a notice about the reign of his son
John Hyrcanus I. Despite its strong pro-Hasmonean bias, the book is a
profoundly important history for the period covered. The author quotes
official documents and offers a careful chronology of events. The book was
written no later than 104b.c.e.(the death of John Hyrcanus); it was trans-
lated into Greek and became a part of the Greek Bible (it is in Roman
Catholic and Orthodox Bibles today but is considered apocryphal by Prot-
estants and Jews).
The other major histories of the period that are extant are Josephus’s
Wa randAntiquities,although, as indicated above, they were not written in
Judea.Wa ris primarily an account of the First Jewish Revolt against Rome
(66-70c.e.) with a long prologue beginning just before Hasmonean times.
Antiquitiesbegins with the scriptural stories (from the beginning of Gene-
sis) and follows them to the end (Esther, Ezra-Nehemiah material) before
continuing with events until Josephus’s own time. His coverage of large86james c. vanderkamEERDMANS -- Early Judaism (Collins and Harlow) final text
Tuesday, October 09, 2012 12:03:54 PM