Greece and Hellenistic Judah
In 331 B.C., Judah was conquered by Alexander the Great, who had adopted Greek culture. Upon his death, his empire was split among three of his generals: Ptolemy, Lysimachus, and Seleucus. Judea (the Greek name for Judah), along with Egypt, was placed under the control of Ptolemy, who was a tolerant ruler and treated Jews well.
At this time, many Jews immigrated to Egypt, where they received jobs as agricultural laborers, metalworkers, weavers, and merchants, and were favored for their work. Others served as soldiers in the Ptolemaic army.
Another large portion of Jews established Diasporic communities along the Mediterranean, in what is now Greece and Turkey (as shown in the map below). These Jews lived close to one another and organized praying houses together. Throughout this period, Jews started to adapt to Greek culture. However, they maintained their ties to Judaism and didn't adopt the Greek religion and system of many gods.
In 200 B.C., another of Alexander's generals, Seleucus, conquered Judea. When Seleucus's successor, Antiochus Epiphanes, came to power, a Roman named Jason became his high priest. As a Hellenist, Jason strived to make Jerusalem more Greek, though he still respected the holiness of the Temple and did not interfere with religious rituals. However, a new and more extreme priest named Menelaus soon stepped in, offering Antiochus a large bribe to take Jason's place as high priest. Menelaus stole money from the Temple treasury to pay his bribe, resulting in total outrage among Jews, and setting off a Jewish rebellion. Antiochus responded with deadly force, sweeping through Jerusalem and either slaughtering or selling the protesters as slaves. He looted the Temple and entered the Holy of Holies, a place absolutely forbidden for anyone but the high priest on the annual holiday Yom Kippur. Next, he outlawed the study of the Torah and turned the Holy Temple into a Greek temple, placing a statue of Zeus near the altar.
For the next two years, a Jewish priest named Mattathias the Hasmonean led a guerrilla style war against the Seleucids, using his group's knowledge of Judea to trap and ambush their enemy. After the death of Mattathias, the control of the rebels fell to his son Judah, nicknamed Maccabee, or "the hammer." In 164 B.C., the Maccabees, as the rebels became known, captured Jerusalem and purified the Temple, leading to the celebratory festivals that later became the holiday Hanukkah. After a long struggle, Jews finally won back their independence and were free once again.
At this time, many Jews immigrated to Egypt, where they received jobs as agricultural laborers, metalworkers, weavers, and merchants, and were favored for their work. Others served as soldiers in the Ptolemaic army.
Another large portion of Jews established Diasporic communities along the Mediterranean, in what is now Greece and Turkey (as shown in the map below). These Jews lived close to one another and organized praying houses together. Throughout this period, Jews started to adapt to Greek culture. However, they maintained their ties to Judaism and didn't adopt the Greek religion and system of many gods.
In 200 B.C., another of Alexander's generals, Seleucus, conquered Judea. When Seleucus's successor, Antiochus Epiphanes, came to power, a Roman named Jason became his high priest. As a Hellenist, Jason strived to make Jerusalem more Greek, though he still respected the holiness of the Temple and did not interfere with religious rituals. However, a new and more extreme priest named Menelaus soon stepped in, offering Antiochus a large bribe to take Jason's place as high priest. Menelaus stole money from the Temple treasury to pay his bribe, resulting in total outrage among Jews, and setting off a Jewish rebellion. Antiochus responded with deadly force, sweeping through Jerusalem and either slaughtering or selling the protesters as slaves. He looted the Temple and entered the Holy of Holies, a place absolutely forbidden for anyone but the high priest on the annual holiday Yom Kippur. Next, he outlawed the study of the Torah and turned the Holy Temple into a Greek temple, placing a statue of Zeus near the altar.
For the next two years, a Jewish priest named Mattathias the Hasmonean led a guerrilla style war against the Seleucids, using his group's knowledge of Judea to trap and ambush their enemy. After the death of Mattathias, the control of the rebels fell to his son Judah, nicknamed Maccabee, or "the hammer." In 164 B.C., the Maccabees, as the rebels became known, captured Jerusalem and purified the Temple, leading to the celebratory festivals that later became the holiday Hanukkah. After a long struggle, Jews finally won back their independence and were free once again.