Early Judaism- A Comprehensive Overview

tage in Rome created, in effect, a potential usurper “waiting in the wings.”

Dynastic rivalry resulting from this heightened the claimants’ need to so-

licit support from their subjects. The factionalism fueled by this dynamic

would prove to be one of the central engines of Jewish history during the

second half of the second centuryb.c.e.

Antiochus IV

Upon the death of Seleucus IV, his younger brother Antiochus IV seized

power. Our principal source for Jewish history during the early years of the

new Antiochus’s reign is 2 Maccabees, which focuses on events in Pales-

tine. Central to this narrative is the Seleucid-backed acquisition of the high

priesthood by two successive candidates, and the civil strife ensuing from

their rivalry. The first of these, Jason, secured not only the high priesthood

but also the king’s permission “to establish, through his authority, a gym-

nasium and anephebeion,and to enroll the Antiochenes in Jerusalem”

(2 Macc. 4:9). Having been granted these requests in exchange for a hefty

donation to the royal coffers, Jason proceeded to promote a Greek way of

life in Jerusalem among “the noblest of the young men” and among his fel-

low priests (2 Macc. 4:11-15).

No scholarly consensus exists as to the meaning of the petition con-

cerning “the Antiochenes in Jerusalem.” This group is mentioned on only

one other occasion, in the context of a delegation sent by Jason to an ath-

letic competition held in the Phoenician city of Tyre (2 Macc. 4:19). The

dominant view is that Jason was requesting a Greek city to be founded

within Jerusalem (“Antioch in Jerusalem”), and that the ephebic institu-

tions he established were intended for the training of a citizen body for the

newpolis.This interpretation trades on Antiochus’s attested reputation

elsewhere in the empire as aktist 3 s(city-founder). However, given its un-

usual wording, other readings of this line are possible. Whatever the nature

of Jason’s actions as high priest, the key historical issue is whether these ac-

tions contributed to the political strife that erupted a decade later.

It is not at all obvious that they did. When Jason’s high-priestly tenure

was terminated three years later by the bribe of one Menelaus, the author

of 2 Maccabees attributes this to the latter’s corruption, not to any dissatis-

faction with Jason’s policies (4:23-25). Having lost royal support, Jason

took refuge in Transjordan, leaving Menelaus in possession of the high

priesthood. For his part, Menelaus, finding himself unable to pay off his

39

Jewish History from Alexander to Hadrian

EERDMANS -- Early Judaism (Collins and Harlow) final text
Tuesday, October 09, 2012 12:03:50 PM