[Sidenote: [166-165 B.C.]]
The Hebrews had not only their Exodus but also their War of
Independence. Their Garibaldi bore the name of Judas, from which his
memory should take some of the stain. To this name was added the
epithet of “Hammer” or “Maccabæus.”
[Illustration: HEBREW WARRIOR
(After Bardon)]
The ancient Hebrew valour was at last aroused from its deathlike
slumber. Those Jews who would rather endure wrong from man than do
wrong in the sight of God, were not all willing nor in the long run
able to maintain an attitude of patient suffering. They saw that war
was not always one-sided, and that when their escape was cut off
they must at last be brought by despair to defend themselves. So the
sluggish mass gradually became thoroughly leavened, until even cowards
took heart, and the national spirit was stirred to its very depths.
This was not to be a war for independence, distorted by priests into a
war of faith; but Israel from the start was fighting for its religion,
the root of its national existence. This origin of the war ennobled it
also in its continuation, when it aimed at and gained political freedom.
The beginning of resistance to the oppression of conscience, the first
active opposition to violence, was made by Mattathias, a priest who,
to avoid unreasonable demands and persecution, had retired to his
birthplace, Modin. But hither came also the servants of the king. When
commanded to sacrifice to the heathen gods and thus set a good example
to others, Mattathias steadfastly refused. When a Jew prepared to make
such a sacrifice before his eyes, he struck him down at the altar, and
also slew the Syrian captain. Then he escaped to the mountains with
his five sons and his followers. His flight was the signal for many
orthodox families to flee to the desert and take up their abode in the
caverns of the mountains.
An armed force was sent out against them from Jerusalem. As they
would not lift their hands in self-defence on the Sabbath, about
one thousand, including women and children, were slaughtered. Then
Mattathias took counsel with his followers, and it was decided that
henceforth, though they would themselves make no attack on the Sabbath,
they would nevertheless, if attacked, defend themselves. As the forces
of Mattathias grew, raids were undertaken in all directions, altars
were overthrown, newborn boys were circumcised, and apostates and
heathen without distinction were punished with the sword.
Within a year Mattathias died (166 B.C.), leaving the leadership to his
third son Judas, with his elder brother Simon as adviser.
The conduct of the war could not but gain in rapidity and reckless
determination under Judas, who was a man of great personal bravery and
had already shown great qualities of leadership. He was very skilful in
choosing time and place of battle. He made much use of the night for
sudden surprises, setting fire to the enemy’s camp and intimidating
the masses of the Syrians. His surname Maqqabi, “the hammer,” was long
afterwards applied to the whole family, who at this time were called
Asmonæans. Their party called themselves Assideans or Chasidees (the
pious).
Apollonius was sent against Judas with a large force, among them
auxiliaries from Samaria, which had made peace with Antiochus. He was
probably over-confident of his superiority and advanced incautiously,
for he was defeated and killed. Judas gained a second victory
immediately afterwards. Seron, commander of the Syrian militia,
thinking he saw an opportunity to gain honour by suppression of the
rebellion, now marched against Judas. Near the pass of Beth-horon
he was suddenly attacked on the march by Judas. As he was unable to
manage his forces properly they became disordered, were driven down the
mountain-side, and fled with great loss to Philistia.
Such tidings from Judea were not calculated to put the king in a good
humour, especially as the whole affair came at a most inopportune
time for him. An instalment of his war debt to Rome was due; but his
treasury had been exhausted by the equipment of his great army, and his
income was inadequate, owing to the difficulty of collecting taxes in
the remote provinces of the east and to the disruption he had rashly
provoked among the Jews. So with half of his army he set out for Persia
to collect tribute and raise money by any means possible. The rest of
the army was left in command of Lysias, who received peremptory orders
to make an end of the Jews, bring foreign settlers into the country,
and divide the lands among them by lot. (166 B.C.)
Since the defeat of Seron there had been no force in Judea able to
cope with Judas’ little army of six thousand men, and he had remained
undisputed master of the country. Philip, the governor, finding himself
confined in Jerusalem under the protection of the garrison of the
citadel, appealed in distress to Ptolemæus, governor of Cœle-Syria
and Phœnicia. The latter perhaps at the same time received orders
from Lysias. He sent out an army under Nicanor and Gorgias, which was
augmented by Syrian and Philistine militia to a strength of perhaps
twenty thousand men. Nicanor, confident of victory, had proclaimed in
the coast cities that he would sell Jewish slaves at one talent each;
so there were many traders with money and chains in the train of the
army which encamped at Emmaus, fifteen Roman miles from Jerusalem.
Judas and his followers saw that there would be a decisive battle.
Unable to implore divine help in the temple at Jerusalem, they
assembled in an old sanctuary at Mizpah, fulfilled their religious
duties as far as possible, and opening the “Book of the Law” for a
prophecy, obtained the watchword “Eleazar,” “God hath stood by.” Judas
organised his army and purged it of its weak elements in accordance
with the Law, his force being thus reduced to only about three thousand
men.
Meanwhile the enemy had approached the foot of the mountain south
of Emmaus. Gorgias set out by night with foot and horse to surprise
Judas. But the latter got news of the movement, and Gorgias found the
camp empty. At daybreak Judas stood face to face with the main army,
now weakened by the absence of Gorgias’ division. Without hesitation
he began the attack. The Syrians were utterly defeated, and driven to
the south and west. When Gorgias returned, he saw the camp burning
from afar, and the Jews, whom their leader had forbidden premature
plundering, drawn up in battle array against him. At this sight, the
courage of his men deserted them, and they took to flight. The Syrian
general hastened directly across country to Antioch to report the
wretched outcome of the campaign. The Jews, returning from pursuit,
found immeasurable booty in the enemy’s camp.
For this year the war was at an end. In the following year (165 B.C.),
however, Lysias himself, at the head of a much greater force, crossed
to the east of Jordan, and marched around the Dead Sea into Idumæa,
in order to attack and crush his opponent from the rear. But on the
boundary near Bethzur he found his way barred by Judas with an army of
ten thousand men. The resistance offered by the Jews was so stubborn
that Lysias was obliged to give up the whole undertaking as hopeless.
He set out on his return to Antioch, with the intention of raising a
still larger army and again trying his luck. He took the same route
by which he had come. Judas, following closely, and harassing him
continually, was victorious in a number of battles, and after taking
the city of Jaser returned to Judea.
Judas now proceeded with all his forces to Jerusalem, in order to
restore the temple and the orthodox worship of God. The garrison in the
citadel was harassed and worried by incessant attacks. All traces of
heathen worship were wiped out, the great altar was rebuilt with new
stones, and new sacred vessels were procured. On the anniversary of
the day when, three years before, the altar had first been desecrated
by heathen sacrifice, the first orthodox worship was held again as the
beginning of an eight days’ dedication festival.[b]
This ceremonial has been enthusiastically described by the patriotic
Josephus: “When, therefore, the generals of Antiochus’ armies had been
beaten so often, Judas assembled the people together, and told them
that after these many victories which God had given them, they ought
to go up to Jerusalem, and purify the temple, and offer the appointed
sacrifices. But as soon as he, with the whole multitude, was come to
Jerusalem, and found the temple deserted, and its gates burnt down, and
plants growing in the temple of their own accord, on account of its
desertion, he and those that were with him began to lament, and were
quite confounded at the sight of the temple; so he chose out some of
his soldiers, and gave them order to fight against those guards that
were in the citadel, until he should have purified the temple. When
therefore he had carefully purged it, and had brought in new vessels,
the candlestick, the table (of shew-bread), and the altar (of incense),
which were made of gold, he hung up the veils at the gates, and added
doors to them. He also took down the altar (of burnt-offering), and
built a new one of stones that he gathered together, and not of such
as were hewn with iron tools. So on the five and twentieth day of the
month Kislev, which the Macedonians call Apelleus, they lighted the
lamps that were on the candlestick, and offered incense upon the altar
(of incense), and laid the loaves upon the table (of shew-bread), and
offered burnt-offerings upon the new altar (of burnt-offering). Now it
so fell out, that these things were done on the very same day on which
their divine worship had fallen off, and was reduced to a profane and
common use, after three years’ time; for so it was, that the temple
was made desolate by Antiochus, and so continued for three years. This
desolation happened to the temple in the hundred forty and fifth year,
on the twenty-fifth day of the month Apelleus, and on the hundred and
fifty-third olympiad: but it was dedicated anew, on the same day, the
twenty-fifth of the month Apelleus, in the hundred and forty-eighth
year, and on the hundred and fifty-fourth olympiad. And this desolation
came to pass according to the prophecy of Daniel, which was given four
hundred and eight years before; for he declared that the Macedonians
would dissolve that worship (for some time).
[Sidenote: [165-164 B.C.]]
“Now Judas celebrated the festival of the restoration of the sacrifices
of the temple for eight days; and omitted no sort of pleasures thereon:
but he feasted them upon very rich and splendid sacrifices; and he
honoured God, and delighted them, by hymns and psalms. Nay, they were
so very glad at the revival of their customs, when after a long time
of intermission, they unexpectedly had regained the freedom of their
worship, that they made it a law for their posterity, that they should
keep a festival, on account of the restoration of their temple worship,
for eight days. And from that time to this we celebrate this festival,
and call it Lights. I suppose the reason was, because this liberty
beyond our hopes appeared to us; and that thence was the name given to
that festival. Judas also rebuilt the walls round about the city, and
reared towers of great height against the incursions of enemies, and
set guards therein. He also fortified the city Bethsura, that it might
serve as a citadel against any distresses that might come from our
enemies.”[c]
The news of the Jews’ military successes had been received by their
enemies with fierce wrath; those who had been so lately scourged by
Judas were breathing revenge; and now the report of the restoration of
the Jewish religion made their cup full. The heathen peoples all about
fell upon their Jewish neighbours, so that defence had continually to
be made on all sides, and Judas was unable to lay down arms at all.
Finally the Assideans decided in council to divide their army into
three parts. Simon with three thousand men was sent into Galilee to
drive out the enemies there. Judas and his brother Jonathan with the
main army were to cross the Jordan to the aid of the besieged garrison
in Gilead, while the remaining force was to defend Judea from attack.
Simon completed his task first. Victorious in numerous battles, he
drove the forces of the heathen out of the district and brought the
Jewish population of Galilee in safety to Judea.
[Sidenote: [164-163 B.C.]]
Judas, with his usual rapidity of movement and promptness in availing
himself of opportunities, overran the whole district of Gilead, winning
battle after battle and siege after siege, and destroying temples and
altars as well as fortifications. With regard to the Jews of Gilead he
pursued the same policy that Simon had carried out in Galilee, leading
them across into Judea, where he could the more easily defend them from
the raids of the heathen. The Jewish armies returned home crowned with
victory, and the country was left in peace for a short time, unmolested
by the Syrian government, which had its hands full with its own affairs
after the death of King Antiochus on his Persian campaign. (164 B.C.)
The warrior Judas was now in such honour among his people that he
could assume the leadership in time of peace. He had now to consider
the reorganisation of the unsettled commonwealth. Support had to be
provided for the families brought from Galilee and Gilead, not an easy
task, as the following year was a sabbatical one. Furthermore, the
hostile citadel beside the temple remained a thorn in the side of
Israel. At first Judas had only time to attend to the collection of the
scattered sacred books.
[Sidenote: [163-162 B.C.]]
In 163 he began the siege of the citadel. Some of the garrison escaped
and were joined by recreant Jews, who went to Antioch to make complaint
against their own people. On the death of Antiochus Epiphanes his son,
the child Antiochus, surnamed Eupator, had succeeded to the throne. The
regency, to which the father had appointed Philip, had been seized by
Lysias. In him the messengers from Jerusalem found a willing listener,
for he was not likely to forget how he had been put to shame two years
before. Besides, the new kingdom could not allow itself to be defied.[b]
The death of the relentless Antiochus Epiphanes could not but seem to
the Israelites a divine dispensation. So we find Josephus explaining
it and declaring that it was not because of his sacrilege towards the
Persian Diana, but towards the Hebrew Yahveh. His account of this event
and his stirring picture of the following conflicts we quote at some
length.[a]
“About this time it was that King Antiochus, as he was going over the
upper countries, heard that there was a very rich city in Persia,
called Elymais; and therein a very rich temple of Diana, and that it
was full of all sorts of donations dedicated to it; as also weapons
and breast-plates, which, upon inquiry, he found had been left there
by Alexander, the son of Philip, king of Macedonia; and being incited
by these motives, he went in haste to Elymais, and assaulted it, and
besieged it. But as those that were in it were not terrified at his
assault, nor at his siege, but opposed him very courageously, he was
beaten off his hopes; for they drove him away from the city, and
went out and pursued after him, insomuch that he fled away as far as
Babylon, and lost a great many of his army; and when he was grieving
for this disappointment, some persons told him of the defeat of his
commanders whom he had left behind him to fight against Judea, and what
strength the Jews had already gotten. When this concern about these
affairs was added to the former, he was confounded, and, by the anxiety
he was in, fell into a distemper, which, as it lasted a great while,
and as his pains increased upon him, so he at length perceived he
should die in a little time; so he called his friends to him, and told
them that his distemper was severe upon him, and confessed withal, that
this calamity was sent upon him for the miseries he had brought upon
the Jewish nation, while he plundered their temple and contemned their
God; and when he had said this, he gave up the ghost. Whence one may
wonder at Polybius of Megalopolis, who, though otherwise a good man,
yet saith that ‘Antiochus died, because he had a purpose to plunder
the temple of Diana in Persia’; for the purposing to do a thing, but
not actually doing it, is not worthy of punishment. But if Polybius
could think that Antiochus thus lost his life on that account, it is
much more probable that this king died on account of his sacrilegious
plundering of the temple at Jerusalem. But we will not contend about
this matter with those who may think that the cause assigned by this
Polybius of Megalopolis is nearer the truth than that assigned by us.
“However, Antiochus, before he died, called for Philip, who was one
of his companions, and made him the guardian of his kingdom; and gave
him his diadem, and his garment, and his ring, and charged him to
carry them, and deliver them to his son Antiochus; and desired him
to take care of his education, and to preserve the kingdom for him.
This Antiochus died in the hundred forty and ninth year; but it was
Lysias that declared his death to the multitude, and appointed his son
Antiochus to be king (of whom at present he had the care), and called
him Eupator.
[Sidenote: [162-161 B.C.]]
“At this time it was that the garrison in the citadel at Jerusalem,
with the Jewish runagates, did a great deal of harm to the Jews: for
the soldiers that were in that garrison rushed out upon the sudden, and
destroyed such as were going up to the temple in order to offer their
sacrifices, for this citadel adjoined to and overlooked the temple.
When these misfortunes had often happened to them, Judas resolved to
destroy that garrison; whereupon he got all the people together, and
vigorously besieged those that were in the citadel. This was in the
hundred and fiftieth year of the dominion of the Seleucidæ. So he made
engines of war, and erected bulwarks, and very zealously pressed on to
take the citadel. But there were not a few of the runagates who were in
the place, that went out by night into the country, and got together
some other wicked men like themselves, and went to Antiochus the king,
and desired of him that he would not suffer them to be neglected, under
the great hardships that lay upon them from those of their own nation;
and this because their sufferings were occasioned on his father’s
account, while they left the religious worship of their fathers, and
preferred that which he had commanded them to follow: that there was
danger lest the citadel, and those appointed to garrison it by the
king, should be taken by Judas and those that were with him, unless he
would send them succours. When Antiochus, who was but a child, heard
this, he was angry, and sent for his captains and his friends, and gave
order that they should get an army of mercenaries together, with such
men also of his own kingdom as were of an age fit for war. Accordingly
an army was collected of about a hundred thousand footmen, and twenty
thousand horsemen, and thirty-two elephants.
“So the king took this army, and marched hastily out of Antioch, with
Lysias, who had the command of the whole, and came to Idumæa, and
thence went up to the city Bethzur, a city that was strong, and not to
be taken without great difficulty. He set about this city, and besieged
it; and while the inhabitants of Bethzur courageously opposed him, and
sallied out upon him, and burnt his engines of war, a great deal of
time was spent in the siege; but when Judas heard of the king’s coming,
he raised the siege of the citadel, and met the king, and pitched
his camp in certain straits, at a place called Bethzachariah, at the
distance of seventy furlongs from the enemy; but the king soon drew his
forces from Bethzur, and brought them to those straits; and as soon
as it was day, he put his men in battle-array, and made his elephants
follow one another through the narrow passes, because they could not
be set sideways by one another. Now round about every elephant there
were a thousand footmen and five hundred horsemen. The elephants also
had high towers (upon their backs), and archers (in them); and he also
made the rest of his army to go up the mountains, and put his friends
before the rest; and gave orders for the army to shout aloud, and so he
attacked the enemy. He also exposed to sight their golden and brazen
shields, so that a glorious splendour was sent from them; and when they
shouted, the mountains echoed again. When Judas saw this, he was not
terrified, but received the enemy with great courage, and slew about
six hundred of the first ranks. But when his brother Eleazar, whom they
called Auran, saw the tallest of all the elephants armed with royal
breast-plates, and supposed that the king was upon him, he attacked
him with great quickness and bravery. He also slew many of those that
were about the elephant, and scattered the rest, and then went under
the belly of the elephant, and smote him, and slew him; so the elephant
fell upon Eleazar, and by his weight crushed him to death. And thus did
this man come to his end, when he had first courageously destroyed many
of his enemies.
“But Judas, seeing the strength of the enemy, retired to Jerusalem,
and prepared to endure a siege. As for Antiochus, he sent part of his
army to Bethzur, to besiege it, and with the rest of his army he came
against Jerusalem; but the inhabitants of Bethzur were terrified at his
strength; and seeing that their provisions grew scarce, they delivered
themselves up on the security of oaths that they should suffer no hard
treatment from the king. And when Antiochus had thus taken the city,
he did them no other harm than sending them out naked. Fie also placed
a garrison of his own in the city; but as for the temple of Jerusalem,
he lay at its siege a long time, while they within bravely defended
it; for what engines soever the king set against them, they set other
engines again to oppose them. But then their provisions failed them;
what fruits of the ground they had laid up were spent, and the land
being not ploughed that year, continued unsowed, because it was the
seventh year, on which, by our laws, we are obliged to let it lie
uncultivated. And withal, so many of the besieged ran away for want of
necessaries, that but a few only were left in the temple.
“And these happened to be the circumstances of such as were besieged
in the temple. But then, because Lysias, the general of the army, and
Antiochus, the king, were informed that Philip was coming upon them out
of Persia, and was endeavouring to get the management of public affairs
to himself, they came into these sentiments, to leave the siege, and to
make haste to go against Philip; yet did they resolve not to let this
be known to the soldiers or the officers; but the king commanded Lysias
to speak openly to the soldiers and the officers, without saying a word
about the business of Philip; and to intimate to them that the siege
would be very long; that the place was very strong; that they were
already in want of provisions; that many affairs of the kingdom wanted
regulation; and that it was much better to make a league with the
besieged, and to become friends to their whole nation, by permitting
them to observe the laws of their fathers, while they broke out into
this war only because they were deprived of them, and so to depart
home. When Lysias had discoursed thus with them, both the army and the
officers were pleased with this resolution.
“Accordingly the king sent to Judas, and to those that were besieged
with him, and promised to give them peace, and to permit them to make
use of and live according to the laws of their fathers; and they gladly
received his proposals; and when they had gained security upon oath
for their performance, they went out of the temple: but when Antiochus
came into it, and saw how strong the place was, he broke his oaths, and
ordered his army that was there to pluck down the walls to the ground;
and when he had so done, he returned to Antioch.”[c]
The defenders of the temple had, however, possessed no authority to
make a treaty for others. Judas and the Assideans were not bound by
it nor included in it. So negotiations had to be continued after the
withdrawal of the hostile army. The principal in these negotiations
seems to have been the notorious Menelaus, who had been made high
priest by Antiochus Epiphanes, and whose shameless plundering and
desecration of the temple had been one of the main causes of the
popular uprising. During the progress of the negotiations, Lysias,
apparently fearing that Menelaus might undermine his influence with
the king, accused him of being the cause of all the mischief and had
him put to death. As the execution of this wretch seemed to give proof
that Lysias and the king sincerely desired peace, an agreement was soon
arrived at.
Demetrius, the uncle of Eupator, who had for years been held as a
hostage at Rome, now managed to make his escape. Landing at Tripolis
with a small force, he soon got control of the army, and was thus
easily enabled to take possession of the government. He had the young
king and Lysias put to death, and assumed the royal title (162 B.C.).
Immediately Jews of the Hellenistic party under the leadership of
Alcimus, an aspirant for the high-priesthood, approached the new king
with complaints of the Assideans. As Alcimus had been guilty of heathen
excesses, Judas and his followers had denied him access to the altar
which they had restored. Demetrius listened to his complaint, appointed
him high priest, and sent a considerable force under Bacchides to
establish him in office by violent means. The learned aristocracy were
disposed to come to terms with Alcimus; and as the services of the
temple were no longer interfered with by the soldiers of the citadel
and religion was not threatened with any disturbance, Judas could not
reckon upon sufficient support to resist the command of the king in
violation of the treaty.
So Bacchides led Alcimus without opposition to Jerusalem, transferred
the government of the country to him, and left a body of troops for his
protection. Alcimus sought to strengthen his hold on his position; but
proving faithless to the learned caste, sixty of whom he caused to be
put to death, he soon began to lose influence, and the Assideans again
got the upper hand. Alcimus finally found his position quite untenable
and journeyed to Antioch a second time.
It was probably during this time that Judas sent an embassy to Rome to
propose a protective alliance (1 Maccabees viii. 17). This proposal of
course had particularly in view protection against Demetrius, for Judas
certainly must have known that the Senate was not favourably disposed
towards the king. The embassy brought home a treaty which left it to
the judgment of each of the two parties as to whether circumstances
required the performance of military service. But the assistance of the
Jews could not be of much use to Rome at this time; and as the treaty
did not bind Rome strongly enough, it was of but little benefit to the
Jews. However, the alliance had at least the appearance of reality, and
it is likely that the Senate sent Demetrius a warning.
In response to the complaint of Alcimus, the king sent a strong force
under Nicanor, former master of elephants, to Judea. Although a
bitter hater of the Jews, this leader first tried the way of friendly
negotiation. Judas consented to a meeting after his brother Simon had
suffered a defeat. But Nicanor could not retreat from the demand that
Alcimus be acknowledged, and Judas suspecting treachery, withdrew.
Soon after this, Nicanor, defeated in a first skirmish, vented his
ill-humour on the priests, whom he suspected of Assidean sympathies. In
spite of their burnt-offerings for the king, he derided and insulted
them, and threatened to destroy the temple upon his return.
[Sidenote: [161 B.C.]]
A battle took place at Adasa, not far from Guphna. Nicanor was
reinforced by Syrian militia and impressed Jews, but neither could
have been a very reliable kind of troops, so that it was probably
necessary for the general to set an example of great bravery. After a
severe conflict, Nicanor fell fighting gloriously; his troops turned
in flight, and were pursued a day’s journey with great slaughter. (161
B.C.) The head and arm were cut from Nicanor’s body and exposed in
Jerusalem; and that day was long annually celebrated as the “day of
Nicanor” (2 Maccabees xv.).
But the land was not to enjoy peace long. Such a triumph of rebellious
subjects was not easily overlooked. The king once more placed his
reliance in the faithful Bacchides, who was now sent a second time
with Alcimus. Passing through Galilee to Jerusalem without opposition,
he reinstalled Alcimus and then marched to Berea in search of Judas.
The latter was encamped at Elasa, a place which, like Berea, appears
to be situated in the mountain wastes of southern Judea. Judas, then,
had chosen a position in a wild mountainous region, and there he was
attacked. The sight of the hostile army disheartened Judas’ followers,
and only eight hundred remained by him. Nevertheless, Judas would
not yield to the superior force but inspired his handful of men to
desperate battle. The position was favourable to defence, and flight
was probably impossible except to individuals.[b]
For the account of the last brave fight of Judas we turn again to the
pages of his countryman, Josephus.
“Now when Judas was deserted by his own soldiers, and the enemy
pressed upon him, and gave him no time to gather his army together, he
was disposed to fight with Bacchides’ army, though he had but eight
hundred men with him; so he exhorted these men to undergo the danger
courageously, and encouraged them to attack the enemy. And when they
said they were not a body sufficient to fight so great an army, and
advised that they should retire now and save themselves, and that when
he had gathered his own men together, then he should fall upon the
enemy afterwards, his answer was this: ‘Let not the sun ever see such
a thing, that I should show my back to the enemy; and although this be
the time that will bring me to my end, and I must die in this battle,
I will rather stand to it courageously, and bear whatsoever comes upon
me, than by now running away, bring reproach upon my former great
actions, or tarnish their glory.’ This was the speech he made to those
that remained with him, and whereby he encouraged them to attack the
enemy.
“But Bacchides drew his army out of their camp, and put them in array
for the battle. He set the horsemen on both the wings, and the light
soldiers and the archers he placed before the whole army, but was
himself on the right wing. And when he had thus put his army in order
of battle, and was going to join battle with the enemy, he commanded
the trumpeter to give a signal of battle, and the army to make a shout,
and to fall on the enemy.
“And when Judas had done the same, he joined battle with them; and as
both sides fought valiantly, and the battle continued till sunset,
Judas saw that Bacchides and the strongest part of the army was in the
right wing, and thereupon took the most courageous men with him, and
ran upon that part of the army, and fell upon those that were there,
and broke their ranks, and drove them into the middle, and forced them
to run away, and pursued them as far as to a mountain called Aza:
but when those of the left wing saw that the right wing was put to
flight, they encompassed Judas, and pursued him, and came behind him,
and took him into the middle of their army; so not being able to fly,
but encompassed round about with enemies, he stood still, and he and
those that were with him fought; and when he had slain a great many of
those that came against him, he at last was himself wounded, and fell,
and gave up the ghost, and died in a way like to his former famous
actions. When Judas was dead, those that were with him had no one whom
they could regard (as their commander); but when they saw themselves
deprived of such a general, they fled. But Simon and Jonathan, Judas’
brethren, received his dead body by a treaty from the enemy, and
carried it to the village Modin, where their father had been buried,
and there buried him; while the multitude lamented him many days, and
performed the usual solemn rites of a funeral to him.
“And this was the end that Judas came to. He had been a man of valour
and a great warrior, and mindful of all the commands of their father
Mattathias; and had undergone all difficulties, both in doing and
suffering, for the liberty of his countrymen. And when his character
was so excellent (while he was alive), he left behind him a glorious
reputation and memorial, by gaining freedom for his nation, and
delivering them from slavery under the Macedonians. And when he had
retained the high-priesthood three years, he died.”[c]
INDEPENDENCE
If ever praise was deserved by any soldier-patriot, it was earned by
the noble-minded Judas Maccabæus. His sphere of action did not place
nations at his feet, or give him an opportunity of marshalling myriads;
yet, making a proper estimate of his small resources and his great
achievements, the Hebrew hero, during the six years of his martial
career, will not be disparaged, when placed in comparison with any
warrior whose deeds have been heralded by history, or formed the theme
of poetic inspiration.
[Sidenote: [161-153 B.C.]]
After the death of Judas, the apostate Jews, under the protection of
the Syrians, again recovered strength, and were placed by the Syrian
general in possession of all offices of trust throughout the country;
while, at the same time, no mercy was shown by Bacchides to any one
who was known to have been a follower of Judas. In this crisis those
who still adhered to the worship of Jehovah, and were willing to
hazard their lives in his cause, gathered themselves together, and
made Jonathan, the youngest brother of Judas, their captain. Under his
command they withdrew to the wilderness. Bacchides retired to Antioch,
and the Jews had two years of tranquility.
Jonathan and his friends did their utmost during this interval to
strengthen their cause and increase their numbers, until they had
become so formidable, that the apostate Jews sent to inform Demetrius,
king of Syria, of their growing strength, and to invite him to cut them
off. Bacchides was accordingly sent again into Judea with his army; but
Jonathan, having discovered the design of the apostate Jews to seize
his person, and deliver him up to the Syrian general, had fifty of the
principal conspirators put to death. This prevented the others from
attempting anything. The forces of Jonathan did not enable him to meet
Bacchides in the field. He therefore retired to Bethbasi, a fortified
place in the wilderness, which he repaired, and put into such a posture
of defence, that the utmost efforts of the Syrians could not reduce it.
Bacchides, enraged at his failure, raised the siege, and in his wrath
put to death many of those Jews who had invited him to undertake this
disastrous campaign. On his retiring from Bethbasi, Jonathan sent an
embassy after him, with proposals of peace, which were accepted, and
sworn to by both parties.
[Sidenote: [153-142 B.C.]]
The affairs of Syria now afforded some prospect of good for the
Jewish people. Demetrius Soter having made himself obnoxious to the
surrounding states, and given himself up to luxury, a young man
of obscure birth was put forward, who pretended to be the son of
Antiochus Epiphanes, and as such laid claim to the Syrian throne.
Having, by means of this external support, raised an army and made
himself formidable under the title of Alexander Balas, Demetrius was
aroused from his sloth. In those circumstances, the rival parties saw
the importance of winning over the Jews. Demetrius therefore sent to
Jonathan, offering to make him governor of Judea, and ordering all the
hostages detained in the citadel of Jerusalem to be released, giving
him at the same time full power to levy troops. By using this letter,
Jonathan obtained the release of the hostages, and the retirement from
Judea of all Syrian garrisons, except that of Bethzur, and the citadel
of Zion, which were still held for the Syrians, but which were occupied
chiefly by apostate Jews.
Alexander Balas was not behind his rival in his offers. He called
Jonathan his friend and brother, sent him a golden crown and a purple
robe, and appointed him to the high-priesthood. Jonathan accepted these
presents, and entered upon his office as high priest; he did not,
however, openly commit himself to either party.
Demetrius, upon hearing of this, became still more extravagant in his
offers; and in an epistle which has been preserved by Josephus, he
endeavoured to outdo Balas in the extravagance of his promises. All
this was vain: the Jews could not forget what they had suffered, and
ultimately gave their hearty support to Balas, who, having defeated and
slain his rival, ascended the throne. The affairs of Syria, however,
were at this time too uncertain and troubled to allow an occupant of
the throne repose: a short time sufficed to dispossess Balas, and
place Demetrius Nicator, son of the preceding king, at the head of the
government.
While these changes were taking place in Syria, Jonathan again invested
the citadel of Zion. Notice of this being sent to Nicator, he summoned
Jonathan to meet him at Ptolemais. The Jewish chief obeyed the mandate;
and not only succeeded in justifying his conduct, but so pleased the
Syrian king that he placed under the government of Jonathan several
districts which had previously belonged to Samaria. Jonathan, having
returned to Jerusalem, pressed the siege of the citadel; but finding
it impregnable, he petitioned Demetrius that the garrison might be
withdrawn. The king happened to be at this time in great distress:
the citizens of Antioch having raised an insurrection against him, he
solicited aid from the Jewish chief. Jonathan complied, and sent three
thousand chosen men, who restored the city to obedience; when the
faithless king, freed from danger, not only refused to withdraw the
garrison, but insisted upon the payment of the tribute which he had
previously remitted. By this conduct he completely alienated the Jews
from his cause; nor did much time elapse before an opportunity offered
for manifesting this alienation.
Trypho, who had administered the affairs of Syria under Alexander
Balas, managed to obtain the custody of a son of his, who had been
consigned to the care of an Arab chief. With this powerful element of
rebellion, he soon collected an army, and appeared against Demetrius.
So readily was his cause espoused, that Demetrius was defeated, and
compelled to retire into Seleucia. The young prince then assumed the
government, under the profane title of Antiochus Theos, “the God.”
[Sidenote: [142 B.C.]]
As Jonathan had great cause to be dissatisfied with Demetrius, he
joined Antiochus, who, in return, confirmed him in possession of all
his dignities and privileges. In consequence of this arrangement,
Jonathan fought several battles with the soldiers of Demetrius, with
varying success. At this time, however, he sent another embassy
to Rome, which was kindly received, and dismissed with marks of
friendship. The two brothers, Jonathan and Simon, exerted themselves,
in this season of comparative tranquillity, to put the fortresses
of the country in the best condition, and to prepare for any future
circumstances. Nor was it long before dark reverses crossed their way.
Trypho had used Antiochus only as a means to work out his own personal
and ambitious views. But he now found the way so opened, that Jonathan,
the Jewish high priest, was the only apparent obstacle to his views.
He accordingly devised a plan for getting this hero into his power,
and, under pretence of adding Ptolemais to his dominions, Jonathan was
induced to go there with only one thousand men. But immediately on
their entering the gates, his men were cut in pieces, and he thrown
into chains.
This was a terrible stroke to the rising cause of Jewish liberty. But
Simon, the remaining brother, broke its force by taking on himself the
command of the army and the direction of affairs; so that, when Trypho,
immediately on the capture of Jonathan, marched into Judea, he was met
by Simon with such an imposing force, that the Syrian general durst
not hazard a battle. Trypho then pretended that his object in seizing
Jonathan was to obtain the payment of one hundred talents, due for
tribute; and that if this sum was sent him, and Jonathan’s two sons as
hostages, the chief should be released. Although Simon distrusted these
statements, he sent the money and the young men. The perfidious Syrian
received the hundred talents, and retained both Jonathan and his sons
in captivity; and being compelled to retire into Gilead, he there put
the noble Jonathan to death.
Simon now formally assumed the command of the army, and the
high-priesthood, and sent ambassadors to inform the Senate of Rome of
his accession, and of the fate of his brother. They were received with
every demonstration of honour, and returned with a treaty between Rome
and the Jewish priest. During this time Demetrius had still maintained
the war with Trypho; and Simon and the Jewish people, being greatly
incensed against the murderer of Jonathan, thought the friendship of
Demetrius preferable to intercourse with such a perfidious person.
They accordingly sent a present of a golden crown to Demetrius, with
overtures of peace.
This measure was the means of restoring the Jews to political
independence. Demetrius at this moment so greatly needed the aid of the
Jews in his war with Trypho, and was so pleased with their voluntary
adhesion to him, that he accepted their present, consented to bury
in oblivion all past differences, recognised Simon as high priest
and prince of the Jews, and relinquished all future claims on the
Jewish people; and these grants were published as a royal edict. Thus
did Judea again take its place among the independent nations of the
earth.[d]
[Illustration: COINS OF ANCIENT JUDEA]