A Journey Through The Old Testament - Elmer Towns

Antiochus Epiphanes was predicted in Daniel 8:9ff as the “little horn” who persecuted
the Jews and plundered the Promised Land. He is a type of “the Beast,” antichrist, who will
persecute the Jews in the Great Tribulation.
The excesses of Antiochus sparked a popular and patriotic revolt among the people. The
revolt was begun by Mattathias Maccabee, a priest with an apparent genuine concern for the
holiness of God. He led a band of Zealots into a campaign to free Israel and restore the worship
of the temple in accordance with the Law of Moses. He did little more than rally enthusiasm. His
son and successor Judas regained possession of Jerusalem and purified and rededicated the
temple. This purification of the temple is still celebrated by Jews each December and is the only
celebration of the Jews which has a historic background outside of the Old Testament (cf. John
10:22).
The Maccabean revolt was one of the most heroic in all history but failed to achieve a
lasting victory against the imperial power of Rome. Judas was killed in battle but was succeeded
by his brother Jonathan. Though they maintained control of a few major centers for some time,
Rome soon conquered and reigned over Palestine again. By the time the Romans and Zealots met
at Massada, the revolt had come to an end. For some time the Zealots continued as an
underground group of freedom fighters, but they never again posed a serious threat to Rome.
The civil war in Judea came to an end with the conquest of Judea and Jerusalem by
Pompey in 63 B. C. Though John Hyrcanus was given a nominal leadership role, the real ruler of
Judea was Antipater. In 47 B.C., he was formally made procurator of Judea by Julius Caesar. In
that role, he made his son Herod governor of Galilee.
But Rome was not without its own civil problems. News of the assassination of Caesar
resulted in another outbreak of disorder in Judea. For his own security, Herod went to Rome.
While there, he was appointed king of the Jews. Two years later (38 B. C.), he married the
granddaughter of John Hyrcanus and appointed the Maccabean Aristobulus III as high priest. As
a further gesture of goodwill to the Jews, Herod began a major restoration of the temple, which
amounted to a building of a third temple. This was the temple where Jesus worshiped.
For 400 years the Jews lived and died in a changing world without a fresh revelation from
God. It was inevitable that the religion of Israel would experience changes during this time. The
Captivity seemed to have cured Israel of its tendency toward idolatry. It also resulted in the
establishing of synagogues in every center where there were Jews. The synagogue was vastly
different from the temple. Some have called the synagogue (i.e., assembly of teaching) a symbol
of defeat. Whereas they met God in the temple between the seraphim when they brought a blood
sacrifice, they retreated to the synagogue to learn and reinforce their sectarian identity.
During the 400 silent years, the Jews built synagogues everywhere to hear the Old
Testament Scriptures read to them. During those years when there were no prophets, the vital
faith of Israel became increasingly institutionalized. Whereas in the Old Testament the Jews
were mostly illiterate, during the intertestamental period they became a reading people; that
helped preserve Jewish identity while other cultures disappeared. Religious literature was written
and revered in the synagogue until the traditions, comments, and interpretations recorded in the
Talmud, Midrashim, and Cabala were considered as authoritative as the Scriptures they
commented on. Sects began forming within Judaism including both the Sadducees and Pharisees.
For 400 years, God did not speak to His people. They had the record of what He had
already said, but it was increasingly ignored. But one would be wrong to assume that God had
abandoned His people. He was silent, but He was about to speak as loudly and clearly as He
would ever speak to any people. “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His