Transcript Class 6 - Seleucids - West Side Church of Christ

The Intertestamental
Period: From Babylon
To The Birth Of Christ
Seleucid Period
Announcements
Intertestamental Period
Week
Date
Topic
1
05 Mar 14 Overview
2
12 Mar 14 Babylonian Period (605-539 BC)
3
19 Mar 14 Persian Period (539-332 BC)
4
26 Mar 14 Greek Period (332-323 BC)
5
02 Apr 14 Ptolemaic (323-198 BC)
6
09 Apr 14 Syrian (198-168 BC)
7
16 Apr 14 Maccabean Part 1 (168-153 BC)
8
23 Apr 14 Maccabean Part 2 (153-139 BC)
9
30 Apr 14 Independence (139-63 BC)
10
07 May 14 Rome Intervenes (63 – 37 BC)
11
14 May 14 Herod (37 BC – 4 BC)
12
21 May 14 The IT Period and Christianity (4 BC – 70 AD)
13
28 May 14 Review
Today’s Objectives
• Review last week’s lesson
• Learn about Antiochus III and Antiochus IV
Epiphanies ruled over Palestine
• Learn about Roman influence over the Seleucid
empire
• Review the degeneration of Jewish religious
freedom under Antiochus IV Epiphanies
• Discover the seeds of a Jewish revolt in the
actions of Antiochus IV Epiphanies
• Review the key events occurring during the
Seleucid rule of Jerusalem
Last week’s lesson
• Reviewed last week’s lesson
• Reviewed the transition of power between
Alexander and the Diadochoi
• Reviewed key Biblical scriptures
• Learned about the political, social,
economic, cultural, and religious issues
during the Ptolemaic rule over Israel
• Learned about what effect the Ptolemaic
rule had on the Jews
• Learned about the growing influence of the
Roman empire
Reference Material
• KJV (w/ Apocrypha)
– 1st and 2nd Maccabbees
•
•
•
•
•
Josephus – The Complete Works
Herodotus – The History
Intertestamental History – Mark Moore
Ancient Rome – Simon Baker
Harding University – BNEW 112 Course
Notes – Dr. Thompson
War with the Ptolemies
• Fighting initially started in 311 BC as
Seleucus I split from Ptolemy I
• Predicted in Daniel 11
– King of the North represents Seleucids
– King of the South represents Ptolemies
• Seleucids finally garnered enough power
to pull the Palestinian region from the
Ptolemies
• Created a new capital of the Seleucid
empire, called Antioch
Seleucid Rule
• 198-164 BC
• Series of rulers become increasingly harsh
towards Jews
• Building of Antioch
• High priest becomes politicized
• Roman influence grows across the region
• Rise of the Jewish dissidents
Antioch
• Established by Seleucus I as the capital of
the Seleucid Empire
• Honored his father Antiochus
• Sometimes called called Antioch-Syria as
opposed to Antioch-Pisidia
• Located 15 miles from the Orontes River
• Main trade route
• Great city of the Roman Empire
• Center of Paul’s missionary travels – Acts
11:19-26, first called “Christians”
Antiochus III, the Great
• 223-187 BC
• Added the territory of Palestine to his rule
• General of Ptolemy IV defected to
Antiochus III, battle ensued
• Dan 11:11, 3 Macc 1:9-11, 24
• Ptolemy IV dies, succeeded by his young
son and Antiochus III takes advantage
• Antiochus III defeats Ptolemy V in 198 BC
• Begins Seleucid/Syrian rule over Palestine
Antiochus III Coin
Hannibal and Antiochus
• Romans defeat Carthaginians in Second
Punic War (202 BC)
• Hannibal too refuge under Antiochus III
• Hannibal convinces Antiochus III to attack
Greece
• Rome declares war against Antiochus III
• Rome defeats and captures Antiochus III
in 190 BC
• Rome strips Antiochus III of Asia Minor
and force him to surrender his Navy
Compensation to Rome
• Rome demands large payments, equal to
tons of Silver
• Rome takes Antiochus III’s son Antiochus
IV hostage as insurance
• Antiochus III was forced to levy heavy
taxes and plunder temples in order to
meet payments
• Eventually led to Antiochus III’s death
Antiochus IV, Ephiphanes
• 175-164 BC
• Remembered as a very cruel persecutor of
faithful Jews in Jerusalem
• He is what Nero is to the Christians
• Lived 12 years in Rome
• Seleucus IV succeeded him as
• Seleucus IV tries to confiscate items from
the temple in Jerusalem, Onias III
defended
• Seleucus IV is eventualy assissinated and
Antiochus IV becomes king
Antiochus IV Epiphanies Coin
Jason
• Bribes Seleucus IV and is declared the high
priest
• He institutes a policy of pro-Hellenism
• Practices pagan Greek games in Jerusalem
• Many priests corrupted by his leadership
• Many Jews began to openly ridicule Jewish
customs and ordinances
• Wanted to make the new Antioch
• Remained high priest for three years
Hasidim
• Soon many priests and Jews broke away
from Jason – stayed loyal to the law
• Supported Onias III
• This religious party was called the Hasidim
from the Hebrew word chesedh or pious
• Modern Hasidic Jews use the same name
Menelaus
•
•
•
•
•
Replaced Jason as high priest
Even more wicked than Jason
Not of the Levi tribe, but a Benjamite
Has Onias III murdered
Jason returns in 169 BC and retakes rule
when Antiochus IV departs for war in Egypt
• Kills many Jews in the process
• Antiochus IV returns and restores Menelaus
• Syrian soldiers dominated Jerusalem for 25
more years
Great Persecution
• Antiochus IV attempts to take Egypt but
efforts are thwarted by Rome
• Rome did not want Syria to get too strong
• Antiochus IV is forced to return emptyhanded and humiliated
• Two years of Jewish persecution ensues
• He attacks Jerusalem on the Sabbath
• Kills thousands of Jews, destroys the
walls, strips the temple, carries away
10,000 Jewish slaves
Removal of Jewish Religion
• Antiochus IV forces Jews to unit their religion
with pagan Greek worship
• Introduces pagan Greek worship to the temple
• Drunken orgies to Bacchus in the temple
• Erected a statue of Zeus in the temple
– Known as Baal Shamem
• Offers a pig on the altar
• Menelaus and his priest actively participate
• Jews call these events “the abomination of
desolation” (see Dan 11:30-31, 1 Macc 1:54)
Further Degeneration
• Antiochus IV forbids the practice of the
Jewish religion
• Destroys all copies of Scriptures (Ant
12.5.4)
• Forbids observance of Jewish festivals
• Forbids circumcision
• Requires Jews to sacrifice on pagan alters
and eat pig flesh (2 Macc 7)
• Samaritans, meanwhile, assure Antiochus
of their allegiance to him
– Not “Jews” but “Sidonians”
Seleucid Empire Collapse
• Maccabean Uprising (next week)
• 100 BC: Empire encompassed little more than
Antioch and some Syrian cities
• Existed solely because no other nation wished to
absorb them
• Saw as a useful buffer between their other
adjacent nations
• King of Armenia invades in 83 BC and established
himself as ruler of Syria, virtual end to the
Seleucid Empire
• Roman general 69 BC restores the kingdom
• Eventually Roman distrust led to the fall of the
Seleucid empire and it became a Roman province
in 63 BC
Rome Influence Continues
• 198-168 BC – Macedonian Wars
• 195 BC – Hannibal incites Antiochus III to
war with Rome in Macedonia
• 186 BC - Bacchanalia cult prohibited
through Italy
• 168 BC – Rome wins the third
Macedonian War and gains control of
Macedonia, Egypt, and Syria
Review
• Reviewed last week’s lesson
• Learned about Antiochus III and Antiochus IV
Epiphanies ruled over Palestine
• Learned about Roman influence over the
Seleucid empire
• Reviewed the degeneration of Jewish religious
freedom under Antiochus IV Epiphanies
• Discovered the seeds of a Jewish revolt in the
actions of Antiochus IV Epiphanies
• Reviewed the key events occurring during the
Seleucid rule of Jerusalem