In 167 B.C., Antiochus IV decreed “that all should be one people
and that all should give up their particular customs.” The Jerusalem
Temple was rededicated to the worship of the Greek god Zeus, and
the practice of Judaism was now outlawed-a crime punishable by death.
Antiochus IV’s edict sparked the outbreak of a Jewish revolt, led by the
Maccabees. In this lecture, we cover the turbulent period in Judea before
and during the Maccabean Revolt. We conclude by considering the Book
of Daniel, which was written around the time of the revolt, and examine
the term “desoIating sacriIege,” which occurs in Daniel and is repeated
in Jesus’s prophesies about the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem.
The Decree of Antiochus IV
1. In 172 B.C., Jason sent Menelaus to Antiochus IV to make a
payment in order to maintain his position as high priest in the
Temple of Jerusalem. However, Menelaus betrayed Jason and
secured the high priesthood for himself, outbidding Jason by 300
talents of silver. Menelaus was from a priestly family, but he was
not from the Zadokite line-the family that had traditionally held the
high priesthood in the Jerusalem Temple. The Zadokites lost control
of the high priesthood, and Jason was driven out of Jerusalem.
2. According to 1 Maccabees, Antiochus IV issued a decree to all
his people, in which he directed them to:
a. follow customs strange to the land, to forbid burnt offeringsand sacrifices and drink offerings in the sanctuary, toprofane Sabbaths and festivals, to defile the sanctuary andthe priests, to build altars and sacred precincts for idols,to sacrifice swine and other unclean animals, and to leavetheir sons uncircumcised. They were to make themselvesabominable by everything unclean and profane so thatthey would forget the law and change all the ordinances.Whoever does not obey the command of the King shall die.3. As a result of Antiochus lV’s decree, the Temple of Jerusalem
was rededicated to the worship of the Greek Olympian god Zeus,
and the Samaritan temple on Mount Gerizim was rededicated
to Zeus Hellenios. Judaism was outlawed-a crime punishable
by death.
The Maccabean Revolt
1. Antiochus lV’s edict sparked the outbreak of a Jewish revolt,
led by members of a family called the Hasmoneans. The revolt
began when Mattathias, patriarch of the Hasmonean clan,
executed a king’s officer, tore down an altar, and fled with his
sons to the hills. Recruits soon joined the rebels, who were
led by one of Mattathias’s sons, Judah, also called Maccabee,
meaning “The Hammer.”
2. Judah and his companions secretly entered the villages,
summoned their kinsmen, and enlisted those who had continued
in the Jewish faith. They gathered about 6,000 men. The first
phase of the Maccabean Revolt was actually a bloody civil
war, in which the Hasmoneans used terrorist tactics and armed
warfare against their opponents.
3. According to 1 Maccabees, “He, Judah, searched out and
pursued the lawless. He, Judah, burned those who troubled
his people. Lawless men shrank back for fear of him. All the
evildoers were confounded, and deliverance prospered by his
hand. He went through the cities of Judah. He destroyed the
ungodly out of the land. Thus he turned away wrath from lsrael.”
The author of 1 Maccabees describes the Jews who did not
observe Jewish law as “lawless.” These are the people who
were persecuted and wiped out by Judah and his followers. At
the same time as this civil war within Judaism, the Hasmoneans
also conducted guerrilla warfare against the Seleucids and were
able to defeat the Seleucids in several crucial battles.
The Decree of Antiochus V
1. In 164 B.C., Antiochus IV died and was succeeded to the throne
by his son Antiochus V. Antiochus V, still a young boy, issued an
edict that reversed his father’s decree. He wrote: “We have heard
that the Jews do not consent to our father’s change to Greek
customs but prefer their own way of living and ask that their
customs be allowed them. Accordingly, since we choose that this
nation should also be free from disturbance, our decision is that
their temple be restored to them and that they live according to
the customs of their ancestors.”
2. Antiochus V’s decree allowed the Jews to return to the practice
of Judaism and to live according to the laws of the God of Israel,
without fear of persecution or death. Furthermore, Antiochus V
returned the Temple of Jerusalem to the Jews, allowing them to
rededicate it to the worship of the God of Israel.
3. The Temple of Jerusalem was ritually purified, and the Jewish
sacrificial cult was restored there. This event took place on the
25"‘ day of the Jewish month of Kislev, which is approximately the
middle of December, in the year 164 B.C. This occasion became
the basis for the Jewish festival later known as Hanukkah.
The Book of Daniel and the “DesoIating SacriIege”
1. These events had a deep impact on the Jews of Judea and
are reflected in contemporary literature, including the Book of
Daniel, one of the major works of this turbulent period in Jewish
history. For example, in Daniel 9:26-27, we read, “Desolations
are decreed. He, Antiochus IV, shall make a strong covenant
with many.”
2. The “many” here refers to Hellenized Jews. Indeed, there were a
great many Jews in Jerusalem who were eager to adopt Greek
culture. These were the Hellenized Jews who were opposed by
the Hasmoneans and condemned by the author of 1 Maccabees.
These Hellenized Jews were even members of the priestly families.
3. There are repeated references in Daniel to an abomination of
desolation, a desolating sacrilege, or a transgression. The
Hebrew term is shikkutz shomem. The desolating sacrilege
is mentioned not only in Daniel but also in 1 Maccabees 54:
“Now on the 15"‘ day of Kislev, in the 145"‘ year, they erected a
desolating sacrilege on the altar of burnt offering.”
4. The “desolating sacrilege” in the books of Daniel and 1
Maccabees seems to refer to an altar to Zeus that was erected
by Antiochus IV in the Temple of Jerusalem. Sources indicate
that the cult of Zeus in the Jerusalem Temple would have been
accompanied by many customs that not only were foreign to
Judaism but would have been considered abominations because
they transgressed Jewish law-for example, the offering and
consumption of pork or sacred prostitution.
5. According to the Gospel accounts, Jesus foretold the destruction
of the Temple of Jerusalem and described signs of the end of
days. For example, Matthew 24:15-16 says, “So when you
see the desolating sacrilege standing in the holy place, as was
spoken of by the prophet Daniel, let the reader understand. Then
those in Judea must flee to the mountains.” Notice the explicit
reference to Daniel’s prediction.
6. Mark 13:14 says, “But when you see the desolating sacrilege,
set up where it ought not to be. Let the reader understand. Then
those in Judea must flee to the mountains.” There is a similar
passage in Luke 21.
7. The prophecy that Jesus reportedly makes in the Gospel
accounts draws explicitly on the Book of Daniel. lt implies that
the prophecy of the “desolating sacrilege” in Daniel 9:27 is about
to be fulfilled. ln other words, the authors here draw on the
prophecies in the Book of Daniel in setting up the arrival of the
end of days.
8. In Daniel, the “desolating sacrilege” probably refers to an altar
that Antiochus IV set up to Zeus in the Temple of Jerusalem. But
what does the term mean in the New Testament? lt is difficult to
answer this question, because the answer depends on the date
of the composition of the Gospel accounts-specifically, whether
they were written before or after 70 A.D.
a. Notice a crucial difference in the passages of Mark andMatthew. Mark says, “But when you see the desolatingsacrilege, set up where it ought not to be.” Matthews says,“So when you see the desolating sacrilege standing in theholy place.”Suggested Reading
b. Mark is generally thought by scholars to be the earliest ofthe canonical Gospels, written either shortly before 70A.D. or soon aftenNard, whereas Matthew is usually datedby scholars somewhere around 80 to 90 A.D. Thus, thewriters of these two Gospels did not necessarily understandthe “desolating sacrilege” to be the same phenomenon.Their contexts were different because they wrote atdifferent times.
c. The author of the Gospel of Mark might have thought that thedesolating sacrilege was a statue that the Romans would setup in the temple in the future-just as the Roman emperorCaligula had intended to do several decades earlier, around40 A.D. The author of the Gospel of Matthew, in contrast,might have thought that the desolating sacrilege was theRoman general Titus standing in the temple in 70 A.D.
Nickelsburg, Jewish Literature between the Bible and the Mishnah,
chapter 3, “Reform-Repression-Revolt,” pp. 67-69, 77-83.
VanderKam, An Introduction to Early Judaism, chapter 1, “The Time of
the Second Temple,” pp. 12-24.
Questions to Consider
1. What were the consequences of the edict issued by Antiochus
IV Epiphanes?
2. What is the “desolating sacrilege” of the Book of Daniel and the
Gospel accounts?
