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Antiochus IV Epiphanes

 
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: Antiochus IV Epiphanes
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(born c. 215 — died 164 BC, Tabae, Iran) Seleucid king of the Hellenistic Syrian kingdom (175 – 164 BC). Son of Antiochus III, he was taken hostage in Rome (189 – 175), where he learned about Roman institutions. On his release, he ousted a usurper to take over Syria. He conquered Egypt except Alexandria (169) and ruled Egypt as regent for his nephew Ptolemy VI. The Roman defeat of his Macedonian allies neutralized his victories in Cyprus and Egypt (168), and he was forced to leave both, though he kept southern Syria. He took Jerusalem (167) and enforced its Hellenization; Jewish rites were forbidden on pain of death. In 164 Judas Maccabaeus and the anti-Greek Jews conquered Judaea except for the Acra in Jerusalem (164), tore down the altar of Zeus, and reconsecrated the Temple. Antiochus then turned to defending his empire against the Parthians in the east, regained Armenia, and went on to the Arabian coast before dying in Persis.

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Biography: Antiochus IV
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Antiochus IV (ca. 215-163 B.C.), called Epiphanes, or "God on Earth," was a king of Syria. He attempted to impose Hellenic culture on the Jews and thus precipitated the rebellion of the Maccabees.

The third son of Antiochus III, Antiochus IV succeeded his brother Seleucus IV as ruler of the Seleucid empire in 175 B.C. Nicknamed Epimanes, or "Goon on Earth," for his eccentric behavior, Antiochus proved an energetic and capable ruler.

He maintained a vigorous foreign policy. In 169, in response to a planned invasion of Israel and Lebanon by the Egyptian king Ptolemy VI, Antiochus moved first, defeated the Egyptians in the Negeb, and advanced to the Nile at Memphis. He accepted Ptolemy's submission, and when a separatist movement crowned the Egyptian king's brother as Ptolemy VII in Alexandria, he left Ptolemy VI to deal with the usurper. Antiochus withdrew, keeping only Pelusium, the frontier fortress east of the Nile Delta, as pawn. The Ptolemaic brothers united in 168, and Antiochus again invaded Egypt while another of his armies took the Egyptian island of Cyprus. Antiochus was about to besiege Alexandria when an ultimatum from the Roman Senate ordered him to evacuate both Egypt and Cyprus. No match for Rome, Antiochus accepted and had to be satisfied with a "victory over Egypt" festival at Daphne.

Early in his reign Antiochus strengthened his control of Cilicia (modern district of Mersin and Adana), and he reduced Artaxias, the independent ruler of Armenia (modern eastern Turkey), to the status of a client king. In the later years of his reign, Antiochus campaigned in the eastern provinces. He strengthened Media in central Iran against the rising power of Parthia, farther to the northeast. He also attempted an unsuccessful invasion of Susiana in southern Iran, allegedly in order to loot the temple of Anaitis, and an exploration of the Persian Gulf fell short of an invasion of Arabia.

Antiochus relied on Macedonians and Greeks to man his kingdom's administrative services and the armed forces. He tried to increase the reservoir of talent by drawing native peoples into Hellenized cities and by reorganizing native cities along Greek lines, often renaming them Epiphania or Antiochea. These cities included Babylon, Uruk, Ecbatana, and Jerusalem. Asserting his divinity, Antiochus claimed temple treasures and imposed Greek cults. The policy proved disastrous in Judaea, where confiscation of some temple funds and enforced worship of Zeus Olympius in place of Jehovah caused an uprising and guerrilla warfare by the Maccabees from 167 to 164. Antiochus abandoned the policy before his death in Media in 163, but the tide of Asian reaction to Hellenism was rising, and the circle of Syria's enemies was closing in.

Further Reading

Antiochus IV is discussed in S. K. Eddy, The King Is Dead (1961). J.D.C. Pavry, ed., Oriental Studies in Honor of Cursetji Erachji Pavry (1933), contains a biography of Antiochus by C. A. Kincaid. There is an extensive treatment of Antiochus in W. W. Tarn, The Greeks in Bactria and India (1938; 2d ed. 1951), and a shorter account of his reign in M. Rostovtzeff, The Social and Economic History of the Hellenistic World (3 vols., 1941).

Additional Sources

Price, Walter K., The coming antichris, Chicago, Moody Press 1974.

 
Columbia Encyclopedia: Antiochus IV
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Antiochus IV (Antiochus Epiphanes) (āntī'əkəs ēpĭf'ənēz), d. 163 B.C., king of Syria (175 B.C.-163 B.C.), son of Antiochus III and successor of his brother Seleucus IV. His nephew (later Demetrius I) was held as a hostage in Rome, although still claiming the throne. Antiochus is best known for his attempt to Hellenize Judaea and extirpate Judaism-a policy that instigated the rebellion of the Maccabees. Antiochus invaded Egypt, which was torn by strife between Ptolemy VI and his brother (later Ptolemy VII), and would probably have conquered that region if the Romans had not intervened in his siege of Alexandria (168). Antiochus was briefly succeeded by his son, Antiochus V, a boy king who was overthrown by Demetrius I.
Wikipedia: Antiochus IV Epiphanes
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For other uses, see Epiphanes.
Antiochus IV Epiphanes
King of the Seleucid Empire
AntiochusIVEpiphanes.jpg
Coin of Antiochus IV. Reverse shows Apollo enthroned on an omphalos. The Greek inscription ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ ΘΕΟΥ ΕΠΙΦΑΝΟΥ ΝΙΚΗΦΟΡΟΥ means ("of Antiochus, God Manifest, Bearer of Victory").
Reign 175 BC – 164 BC
Born 215 BC
Predecessor Seleucus IV Philopator
Successor Antiochus V Eupator
Wife Laodice IV
Offspring Antiochus V Eupator
Laodice VI
Alexander Balas (spurious)
Dynasty Seleucids
Father Antiochus III the Great
Mother Laodice III

Antiochus IV Epiphanes ("Manifest (God)"[1], "the Illustrious"; Greek: Ἀντίοχος Ἐπιφανὴς, pronounced [ænˈtɑi̯əkəs ɛˈpɪfəniːz]; born c. 215 BC; died 164 BC) ruled the Seleucid Empire from 175 BC until his death in 164 BC. He was a son of King Antiochus III the Great and the brother of Seleucus IV Philopator. His original name was Mithridates; he assumed the name Antiochus after he assumed the throne.

Notable events during the reign of Antiochus IV include his near-conquest of Egypt, which led to a confrontation that became an origin of the metaphorical phrase, "line in the sand" (see below), and the rebellion of the Jewish Maccabees.

He assumed divine epithets, which no other Hellenistic king had done, such as Theos Epiphanes (Greek: ΘΕΟΣ ΕΠΙΦΑΝΗΣ mean "God Manifest") and after his defeat of Egypt, Nikephoros (Greek: ΝΙΚΗΦΟΡΟΣ mean "Bearer of Victory")[2]. But his often eccentric behavior, capricious actions and even insanity led some of his contemporaries to call him Epimanes ("The Mad One"), a word play off of his title Epiphanes.[3][1]

Contents

Rise to Power

As the son and a potential successor of King Antiochus III, Antiochus became a political hostage of the Roman Republic following the Peace of Apamea in 188 BC. When his older brother, Seleucus IV followed his father onto the throne in 187 BC, Antiochus was exchanged for his nephew Demetrius I Soter (the son and heir of Seleucus). After King Seleucus was assassinated by Heliodorus, an usurper, in 175 BC, Antiochus in turn ousted him. Since Seleucus' true heir, Demetrius I Soter, was still a hostage in Rome, Antiochus, with the help of King Eumenes II of Pergamum, seized the throne for himself, proclaiming himself co-regent for another son of Seleucus, an infant named Antiochus (whom he then murdered a few years later).[4]

Wars against Egypt

Main article: Sixth Syrian War

When the guardians of King Ptolemy VI of Egypt demanded the return of Coele-Syria in 170 BC, Antiochus launched a preemptive strike against Egypt, conquering all but Alexandria and capturing King Ptolemy. To avoid alarming Rome, Antiochus allowed Ptolemy VI to continue ruling as a Puppet-king. Upon Antiochus' withdrawal, the city of Alexandria chose a new King, one of Ptolemy's brothers, also named Ptolemy (VIII Euergetes). Instead of fighting a civil war, the Ptolemy brothers agreed to rule Egypt jointly.

In 168 BC Antiochus led a second attack on Egypt and also sent a fleet to capture Cyprus. Before reaching Alexandria, his path was blocked by a single, old Roman ambassador named Gaius Popillius Laenas, who delivered a message from the Roman Senate directing Antiochus to withdraw his armies from Egypt and Cyprus, or consider themselves in a state of war with the Roman Republic. Antiochus said he would discuss it with his council, whereupon the Roman envoy drew a line in the sand around him and said, "Before you cross this circle I want you to give me a reply for the Roman Senate" - implying that Rome would declare war if the King stepped out of the circle without committing to leave Egypt immediately. Weighing his options, Antiochus wisely decided to withdraw. Only then did Popillius agree to shake hands with him.[5]

Sacking of Jerusalem and Persecution of Jews

While Antiochus was busy in Egypt, a false rumor spread that he had been killed. The deposed High Priest Jason gathered a force of 1,000 soldiers and made a surprise attack on the city of Jerusalem. An official Antiochus appointed as High Priest, Menelaus, was forced to flee Jerusalem during a riot. On the King's return from Egypt in 167 BC enraged by his defeat, he attacked Jerusalem and restored Menelaus, then executed many Jews. [6]

“ When these happenings were reported to the king, he thought that Judea was in revolt. Raging like a wild animal, he set out from Egypt and took Jerusalem by storm. He ordered his soldiers to cut down without mercy those whom they met and to slay those who took refuge in their houses. There was a massacre of young and old, a killing of women and children, a slaughter of virgins and infants. In the space of three days, eighty thousand were lost, forty thousand meeting a violent death, and the same number being sold into slavery. ”
 
— 2 Maccabees 5:11-14

To consolidate his empire and strengthen his hold over the region, Antiochus decided to Hellenize the Jews by outlawing Judaism and by ordering the worship of Zeus as the supreme god.[7] This was anathema to the Jews and when they refused, Antiochus sent an army to enforce his decree. Because of the resistance, the city was destroyed, many were slaughtered, and a military Greek citadel called the Acra was established.[8]

“ Not long after this the king sent an Athenian senator to force the Jews to abandon the customs of their ancestors and live no longer by the laws of God; also to profane the temple in Jerusalem and dedicate it to Olympian Zeus, and that on Mount Gerizim to Zeus the Hospitable, as the inhabitants of the place requested...They also brought into the temple things that were forbidden, so that the altar was covered with abominable offerings prohibited by the laws. A man could not keep the sabbath or celebrate the traditional feasts, nor even admit that he was a Jew. At the suggestion of the citizens of Ptolemais, a decree was issued ordering the neighboring Greek cities to act in the same way against the Jews: oblige them to partake of the sacrifices, and put to death those who would not consent to adopt the customs of the Greeks. It was obvious, therefore, that disaster impended. Thus, two women who were arrested for having circumcised their children were publicly paraded about the city with their babies hanging at their breasts and then thrown down from the top of the city wall. Others, who had assembled in nearby caves to observe the sabbath in secret, were betrayed to Philip and all burned to death. ”
 
— 2 Maccabees 6:1-11

Rebellion of the Maccabees

Main article: Maccabean Revolt

Most modern scholars argue that the king was in fact intervening in an internal civil war between the traditionalist Jews in the country and the Hellenized Jews in Jerusalem.[9][10][11] According to Joseph P. Schultz:

Modern scholarship on the other hand considers the Maccabean revolt less as an uprising against foreign oppression than as a civil war between the orthodox and reformist parties in the jewish camp.[12]

These competed violently over who would be the High Priest, with traditionalists with Hebrew/Aramaic names like Onias contesting with Hellenizers with Greek names like Jason and Menelaus. [13] Other authors point to possible socio/economic motives in addition to the religious motives behind the civil war. [14]

What began in many respects as a civil war escalated when the Hellenistic kingdom of Syria sided with the Hellenizing Jews in their conflict with the traditionalists. [15] As the conflict escalated, Antiochus took the side of the Hellenizers by prohibiting the religious practices the traditionalists had rallied around. This may explain why the king, in a total departure from Seleucid practice in all other places and times, banned the traditional religion of a whole people.[16]

Final years

Taking advantage of Antiochus' western problems, King Mithridates I of Parthia attacked from the east and seized the city of Herat in 167 BC, disrupting the direct trade route to India and effectively splitting the Greek world in two.

Recognizing the potential danger in the east, but unwilling to give up control of Judea, Antiochus sent a commander named Lysias to deal with the Maccabees, while the King himself led the main Seleucid army against the Parthians. After initial success in his eastern campaign, including the reoccupation of Armenia, Antiochus died suddenly of disease in 164 BC.

Legacy of Antiochus IV

The reign of Antiochus was the last period of real strength for the Seleucid Dynasty, but in some ways his rule was also fatal to the Empire. Technically Antiochus IV was a usurper, and he left an infant son named Antiochus V Eupator as his only heir. The result was a series of civil wars between rival claimants to the throne, effectively crippling the Empire during a critical phase in the wars against Parthia.

In Jewish tradition

Antiochus IV ruled the Jews from 175-164 BC. He is remembered as a major villain and persecutor in the Jewish traditions associated with Hanukkah, including the books of Maccabees and the "Scroll of Antiochus." [17] Rabbinical sources refer to him as הרשע harasha ("the wicked").[18]

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b Encyclopædia Britannica Online: Antiochus IV Epiphanes
  2. ^ Rome and the Mediterranean to 133 B.C. By A. E. Astin, F. W. Walbank, M. W. Frederiksen, p. 341
  3. ^ Polybius 26.10
  4. ^ M. Zambelli, "L'ascesa al trono di Antioco IV Epifane di Siria," Rivista di Filologia e di Istruzione Classica 38 (1960) 363-389
  5. ^ Polybius 29.27.4, Livy 45.12.4ff.
  6. ^ Josephus,Wars of the Jews 1:1:1-2
  7. ^ Supported by Beavan's numismatic research showing that under Antiochus IV, Zeus replaced Apollo, who had been the main deity depicted on earlier Seleucid coinage.
  8. ^ 1 Maccabees 1:30-37; Witherington
  9. ^ Telushkin, Joseph (1991). Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know about the Jewish Religion, Its People, and Its History. W. Morrow. p. 114. ISBN 0688085067. 
  10. ^ Johnston, Sarah Iles (2004). Religions of the Ancient World: A Guide. Harvard University Press. p. 186. ISBN 0674015177. 
  11. ^ Greenberg, Irving (1993). The Jewish Way: Living the Holidays. Simon & Schuster. p. 29. ISBN 0671873032. 
  12. ^ Schultz, Joseph P. (1981). Judaism and the Gentile Faiths: Comparative Studies in Religion. Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press. p. 155. ISBN 0838617077. "Modern scholarship on the other hand considers the Maccabean revolt less as an uprising against foreign oppresion than as a civil war between the orthodox and reformist parties in the jewish camp" 
  13. ^ Gundry, Robert H. (2003). A Survey of the New Testament. Zondervan. p. 9. ISBN 0310238250. 
  14. ^ Freedman, David Noel; Allen C. Myers, Astrid B. Beck (2000). Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. p. 837. ISBN 0802824005. 
  15. ^ Wood, Leon James (1986). A Survey of Israel's History. Zondervan. p. 357. ISBN 031034770X. 
  16. ^ Tchrikover, Victor. Hellenistic Civilization and the Jews.
  17. ^ Vedibarta Bam — And You Shall Speak of Them: Megilat Antiochus The Scroll of the Hasmoneans
  18. ^ Jewish Encyclopedia
Antiochus IV Epiphanes
Born: 215 BC Died: 164 BC
Preceded by
Seleucus IV Philopator		 Seleucid King
175–164 BC		 Succeeded by
Antiochus V Eupator


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