Antlochus IV. Antiochus VI.
THE
.IKWISII
for im restrictions in tliis rppiitl were iiiiposcd l)cforr Aiilimlnis Kiiiplmiiis; and WclUmiisen ("Isniclitisclic ii. .Ju(iis<lic Gcscliiclilo," p. '2'SH) iisj;s liow tlic Syrians could liavc Jcwisli prisoners at lliis ])eriod (alllioii^'li in jioint of fact Jews (iglitiiij; in lielialf of llie Eiryptians may liave liciii incaiil). lint the whole tone of the decree. eei-lainly in its piisent form, stamps it as a Jewish-ilillenic faliriealion. annolironi.siii.
i>n tlje model of Persian and Koman jiulilie proelainalions. Equally dillieult is it to aceoiiiit for the origin of the second decree, proninliraled throusfhout the entire empire, according to.Iosephus It deas a hiMiv Trpiiyjiauita (sacred |iroelamation). liars heathens from entering the .Sanrtnary at Jenisjilem, forhids the introduction of |irohiliited meat into the city, as well as the keeping of luiclcan animals there, under a penalty of three thousand silver dnulmia' to lie ))aid to the priests. No prohibition of iIk' u.se of horses, asses, etc., in the streets of .lerusalem ever existed, and it is hard to imagine any reason Hi'ichlcr's for the fahrication of such a prohibition. suggestion, in his "Tobiaden >inrl Oniaden." that these ordinances refer to the Samaritan saiicluarjdoes not remove the difticidty. The .Mishnah, 15. K. vii. 7 (see also Ab. ]{. N.. ed. SclK'chler. ...v. KKi), forbade the maintenance of poultry and sheep in the city; and probably .losephus' decree may be connected with this prohibition, vvhicli was considered an ancient ordinance. Even more unintelligible is the third of these decrees, touching "two thou.sjin<l .Jewish families" brought by Antiochus from Mesojiotamia and Babylonia to Phrvgia and Lydia for the paeilication of those districts. The settlement of .lews there by Aniioclius may well be hislorical, but that passage of the edict is surely lie! it ions in which he says: "1 am convinced that they, the Jews, will be well-disposed guardians of our interests, because of their piety toward God, and I know that they have reci'ived an example of fidelity and willing obedience from theirancestors." Antiochus was hardly in a Jio sition to kn<iw much about Jewish piety, nor was their loyalty to the >Scleucid liouse of very ancient date.
KNCYCLOI'KDIA
634
dant informntion is extnnt concerning the character of this monarch, who exercised great inlluence il|)on Jewish history and the development of the Jewish religion. Since Jewish anil heathen sources agree in their characterization of him. their porAntiochus combined ill tniyal is evidiritly coriccl. himself the worst faults of the Greeks and the Koniiins, and but veiy few of their good qualities.
dniwn np
liuclilcr, Tnliiwicti vnd 0»iViil<'ii, pp. 14:^-172;
Ijniyscn, Gesrh. il. liilU ;om/i«.v. ii, (see index); Kwald, liitf(see inile.x); Flat he. fiisih. Mithulimii ns; (Jrjitz, Ucufh. inde.x Srhiirer, (^isih. inile.x; Wcltliaiisfn, /. ./. ti. 2d ed., i'h tn, ill (ii'lthtun- tj'trltrli: J.H2*'i(/(';), pp. 222, 22:t. 2:51, 2:>1 i.su.'), p. 9iVi; Willriiii, ./i/«/*/( itii'l (irii'clti'tu pp. '^ et .•«(/.: idem, Jruttiiat isf-t- itnli-xi; further litetTiture mentioned in
liiiii.ioi;RAriiv tin'i)
- allly-Wiss»>Vii*s
U'
'!l-Kiir}i(l"i>'.<lit s.v.
ANTIOCHUS trious):
164.
IV.,
L. G.
EPIPHANES ("the Illus-
King of Syria; leigned from ITon.c.
He was
died a sou of Antioclius the Great, and,
Tetrndmehm dltvn'y^'
i*iiver
Head
Coin o( Antioebus IV.
of Antiochus as
Zeus, laureated.
fieirrnr:
BASlAEnS ANTIOXOY ©F.OY Ent*ANOY5 NIKH't'OPOY. Zeus seated on
ttirone,
buldioe Nilie.
(AfWr Oanlu^r, " Catalopue "i SelruoIJ
Colni,*')
after the murder of his brother Seleucus, took possession of the Syrian throne which rightly belonged to his nepliew Demetrius. This Antioclius is stvlcd in nibbinical sources Viinn, "the wicked." Abun-
Head
of AntliKhiis IV.
of , tloclins ns Zeus,
ANTIOXOY eEOY
BA:£IAEtlS ZeiLs sealed
on Un-one.
liinrenti'd.
FIII*A.N()V5
licvrt'iti':
MKH+OFOY.
tioldlnir Nlk^.
(Aft.T Cnr.iiirr. " C«ui"L'"i.- of
He was
Silpti,
i.l
C..ln».")
vainglorious and
fond of di.splay to the verge of ecceiUricity, libeiiil to extravagance; his sojourn in Rome had taught him how to cajitivate the common people with an appearance of geniality, but in his heart he had all a cruel tynint's contempt
The attemjit of modern pliilfor his fellow men. Hellenes to explain Antiochus' altitude toward the Jews as an endeavor "to reform a stiff-necked jieople " receives no contirmalion from the fact that a Tacitus
tii-sl
formulated
il.
Aniinehus had no wish
to Ilelleni/.c his con(|Uered sulijeels, but to denationalize them entirely; his Aramean subjects were far
from becoming Hellenes simi)ly because they had .surrendered their name and .some of their Semilic His attempt to level all differences among gods. the nations he rided aro.se not from a conviction of the superiority of Greek culUn-e. the true essence of which he can scarcely Ix' said to have aiipreciated, bill was simply a ]iroducl of his eccentricity. The Jews themselves alTorded Aniioclius the tirst o])portunity to interfere in their domestic aiTairs. The struggle of the Toiu.vDs against the high priest Onias 111. originally a |iersonal matter, gradThe To- iially assumed a religio-political phase. biads and The conservatives siding with the legitimale high ])riest apiimached Ihe Oniads. king of Egyjit; for they relied more on that monarch than on Antiochus. somclimes nicknamed 'E-i/iavi/c (madinan). while tlu' Tobiads well understood that Antiochus' favor was to be purchased with gold. The Tobiads caused the deposition of Onias (ITS), and the appointment of their own partizan. Jason. In order to ingratiate himself with the king, this new high [iriesl ivslablislied an arena for public games close by the Temjile. But the king cared ver_v much more for gold than for tlii' lellenizing of Palestine, and a certain Jlenelaus made use of the fact so shrewdly that he received the highpriesthood in place of, lason. in the year 171. But wlien false tidings came to Jerusalem that Antiochus had died on a campaign in Egypt, Menelaiis could not maintain himself in the city, and together with the Tobiads fled to Egypt. On his return homeward, Antiochus came to .leriisalem to reinstate Menelaus, and then the trueeharacterof the Hellenism that Antiochus desired was revealed to the Jews. He entered the Temple precincts, not out of curiosity, but to plunder the treasury, and carried away valuable utensils, such as the golden candlestick upon the altarand the sliowliread table, likewise of gold. This spoliation I
Ohver^e
