Prof. Daniel R. Schwartz is the Herbst Family Professor emeritus of Judaic Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he did his Ph.D. He specializes in the history, and especially the historiography, of the Second Temple period. His books include Agrippa I: The Last King of Judaea and Studies in the Jewish Background of Christianity (Mohr Siebeck, 1990 and 1992); 2 Maccabees (De Gruyter 2008); Judeans and Jews: Four Faces of Dichotomy in Ancient Jewish History (Univ. of Toronto Press 2014), and 1 Maccabees (Anchor Yale Bible, vol. 41B; New Haven: Yale University Press, 2022).
Last Updated
December 6, 2023
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The family of Onias long controlled the high priesthood before the persecution of Antiochus IV and the Hasmoneans’ (“Maccabees’”) rebellion. When the dust settled, the Hasmoneans found themselves in charge of the priesthood and the Oniads had relocated to Egypt. 1 Maccabees, a pro-Hasmonean work, defends the legitimacy of the Hasmonean accession to the high priesthood, and the fact that it went to the family of Judah Maccabee’s brother, Simon.
The family of Onias long controlled the high priesthood before the persecution of Antiochus IV and the Hasmoneans’ (“Maccabees’”) rebellion. When the dust settled, the Hasmoneans found themselves in charge of the priesthood and the Oniads had relocated to Egypt. 1 Maccabees, a pro-Hasmonean work, defends the legitimacy of the Hasmonean accession to the high priesthood, and the fact that it went to the family of Judah Maccabee’s brother, Simon.
Ancient tensions between Judaism and the Jewish state can be seen by comparing 1 Maccabees, a book that serves the interest of the Hasmonean dynasty, and 2 Maccabees, a work of the diaspora whose focus is on Judaism.
Ancient tensions between Judaism and the Jewish state can be seen by comparing 1 Maccabees, a book that serves the interest of the Hasmonean dynasty, and 2 Maccabees, a work of the diaspora whose focus is on Judaism.
