Upon the death of Alexander the Great, under whose reign the Jews
enjoyed freedom and peace, his kingdom was divided among his generals,
one of whom took Egypt and another, Syria. There was continual strife
between the kings of these two countries, for each wanted to subject the
other to his rule. Palestine, being situated between Syria and Egypt,
became the battlefield upon which their armies fought. At times, the
kings of Syria would be victorious, and at times the kings of Egypt
would gain the upper hand. For a long time the armies of Egypt were
victors, and so it happened that many of the Jews went to live in
Alexandria, where they acquired many of the Greek customs practiced
there. Judea, in the meantime, became a tributary to Egypt. The Jews
were treated well by the Egyptians; they were allowed to appoint their
own governors; and their religion was not interfered with.
About 100 years after the death of Alexander, Antiochus III., surnamed
the Great, ascended the throne of Syria. He conquered Egypt and with it
Palestine. The position of the Jews, however, was not changed; they were
mildly ruled, and their government was left in their own hands.
Antiochus was succeeded by his oldest son, Seleucus Philopater.
In the tenth year of the reign of Seleucus, something happened in Judea
that caused him to turn his attention to the treasures deposited in the
Temple at Jerusalem. A violent quarrel broke out between Onias III., who
was at that time the High Priest in Judea, and Simon, who had been
appointed governor of Jerusalem. In order to injure Onias, Simon told
the King that there were great riches in the Temple. Seleucus received
this news with joy, for he was at this time hard pressed for money to
pay his annual tribute to the Romans. He sent out his treasurer,
Heliodorus, to plunder the Temple, and bring back these riches to
Antioch.