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Antiochus IV Epiphanes

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Antiochus IV Epiphanes
Bust of Antiochus IV at theAltes MuseuminBerlin.
Basileusof theSeleucid Empire
Reign3 September 175 – November/December 164 BC
PredecessorAntiochus, son of Seleucus IV
SuccessorAntiochus V Eupator
Bornc. 215 BC
DiedNovember/December 164 BC (aged 50–51)
Wife
Issue
DynastySeleucid
FatherAntiochus III the Great
MotherLaodice III
ReligionGreek polytheism

Antiochus IV Epiphanes[note 1](c. 215 BC– November/December 164 BC)[1]was a GreekHellenistickingwho ruled theSeleucid Empirefrom 175 BC until his death in 164 BC. He was a son of KingAntiochus III the Great.Originally named Mithradates (alternative formMithridates), he assumed the name Antiochus after he ascended the throne.[2]Notable events during Antiochus's reign include his near-conquest ofPtolemaic Egypt,his persecution of theJewsofJudeaandSamaria,and therebellion of the Jewish Maccabees.

Antiochus's accession to the throne was controversial, and he was seen as a usurper by some. After the death of his brotherSeleucus IV Philopatorin 175 BC, the "true" heir should have been Seleucus's sonDemetrius I.However, Demetrius I was very young and a hostage in Rome at the time, and Antiochus seized the opportunity to declare himself king instead, successfully rallying enough of the Greek ruling class in Antioch to support his claim. This helped set a destabilizing trend in the Seleucid Empire in subsequent generations, as an increasing number of claimants tried to usurp the throne. After his own death,power struggles between competing lines of the ruling dynastyheavily contributed to the collapse of the empire.

Antiochus's often eccentric behavior and capricious actions during his interactions with common people, such as appearing in the publicbathhousesand applying for municipal offices, led some of his contemporaries to call himEpimanes(Ἐπιμανής,Epimanḗs,"The Mad" ), a wordplay on his titleEpiphanes.

Biography[edit]

Rise to power[edit]

Antiochus, born around 215 BC, was a son of theSeleucidkingAntiochus III the Great.[3][4]As a potential successor to the throne, he became a politicalhostageof theRoman Republicunder the terms of theTreaty of Apamea,concluded in 188 BC. After his older brotherSeleucus IV Philopatorsucceeded their father onto the throne in 187 BC, Antiochus was exchanged for his nephewDemetrius,the son and heir of Seleucus. After this Antiochus lived in Athens and was there when his brother was assassinated in 175 BC by the government ministerHeliodorus.

Heliodorus proclaimed himself regent afterward, essentially giving himself control of the government. This arrangement did not last long. With the help of kingEumenes IIof Pergamum, Antiochus IV traveled from Athens through Asia Minor and reached Syria by November 175 BC. Seleucus' legitimate heir Demetrius was still a hostage in Rome, so Antiochus seized the throne for himself, proclaiming himself co-regent with another son of Seleucus, an infant namedAntiochus.(Antiochus, son of Seleucus IV would later die in 170 BC, possibly murdered by Antiochus IV).[5][6]

Ruling style[edit]

Antiochus IV cultivated a reputation as an extravagant and generous ruler. He scattered money to common people in the streets of Antioch; gave unexpected gifts to people he did not know; contributed money to theTemple of Zeus at Athensand the altar atDelos;put all hisWestern military forceson a massive parade atDaphne,a suburb of Antioch; and held opulent banquets with the aristocracy using the best spices, clothing, and food.[7]He also supplemented the Seleucid army with mercenaries. All of this cost the Seleucid treasury, but the Empire was apparently able to raise enough taxes to pay for it. His eccentric behavior and unexpected interactions with common people such as appearing in the public bath houses and applying for municipal offices led his detractors to call himEpimanes(Ἐπιμανής,Epimanḗs,"The Mad" ), a word play on his titleEpiphanes( "God Manifest" ).[8][7]

Wars against Egypt and relations with Rome[edit]

Main article:Sixth Syrian War
Sidoncoinage of Antiochos IV, depicting a victorious galley.

After his ascension Antiochus took care to maintain good relations with the Roman Republic, sending an embassy to Rome in 173 BC with a part of the unpaid indemnity still owed from the 188 BCTreaty of Apamea.While there the embassy secured a renewed treaty of friendship and alliance with Rome, greatly helped by the fact Antiochus had come to power with the help ofEumenes II,Rome's principal ally in the region.

The guardians of KingPtolemy VI Philometordemanded the return ofCoele-Syriain 170 BC, declaring war on the Seleucids on the assumption that the kingdom was divided after Antiochus' murder of his nephew. However, Antiochus had warning of the attack and had prepared more thoroughly. He had already built his forces and moved them into position; as soon as the Egyptian forces leftPelusiumthey were attacked and defeated by Antiochus IV and his Seleucid army. The Seleucids then seized Pelusium, giving them supplies and access to all of Egypt. He advanced into Egypt proper, conquering all butAlexandriaand capturing King Ptolemy. This was partially achieved because Rome (Ptolemaic Egypt's traditional ally) was embroiled in theThird Macedonian Warand was not willing to become involved elsewhere.[9]

To avoid alarming Rome, Antiochus allowed Ptolemy VI to continue ruling as apuppet kingfrom Memphis. Upon Antiochus' withdrawal, the city of Alexandria chose a new king, one of Ptolemy's brothers, also namedPtolemy (VIII Euergetes).The Ptolemy brothers reconciled and agreed to rule Egypt jointly instead of fighting a civil war.[10]

In 168 BC, Antiochus led a second attack on Egypt and also sent a fleet to captureCyprus.Before he reached Alexandria, his path was blocked by a single elderly Roman ambassador namedGaius Popillius Laenaswho delivered a message from theRoman Senatedirecting Antiochus to withdraw his armies from Egypt and Cyprus or consider himself 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 Antiochus and said: "Before you leave this circle, give me a reply that I can take back to the Roman Senate." This implied Rome would declare war if the King stepped out of the circle without committing to leave Egypt immediately. Weighing his options, Antiochus decided to withdraw. Only then did Popillius agree to shake hands with him.[11]Ancient sources and traditional historiography describe this "Day of Elesius" as a great humiliation for Antiochus IV that unhinged him for a time. Some more modern historians conjecture that Antiochus may have been more reconciled to this than ancient sources indicate, as the Roman intervention meant that Antiochus had been given an excuse to not undertake a potentially long and costly siege of Alexandria. He could instead return with treasure and loot having weakened the Egyptian state at little risk and cost compared to a larger-scale invasion.[10][12]

Persecution of the Jews and the Maccabean revolt[edit]

Coin depicting Antiochus IV adorned with aradiate crown,Greek inscription readsΘΕΟΥ ΕΠΙΦΑΝΟΥΣ ΝΙΚΗΦΟΡΟΥ / ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ(King Antiochus, God manifest, bearer of victory)

The Seleucids, like thePtolemiesbefore them, held asuzeraintyoverJudea:they respected Jewish culture and protected Jewish institutions. This policy was drastically reversed by Antiochus IV, seemingly after what was either a dispute over leadership of the Temple in Jerusalem and the office ofHigh Priest,or possibly a revolt whose nature was lost to time after being crushed.

Minaof Antiochus IV Epiphanes.

Local revolts against the Seleucid Empire were not unusual, but most were not successful. The revolt that Antiochus IV ultimately triggered in Judea was unusually well chronicled and preserved, however. According to the book of2 Maccabees,the crisis had its origins in the years leading up to theSixth Syrian War.In 171 BC, Antiochus had deposed the High PriestJasonand replaced him withMenelaus,who had offered Antiochus a large bribe to secure the office. In 168 BC, when Antiochus was campaigning in Egypt, a rumor spread in Judea that he had been killed. Jason gathered a force of 1,000 soldiers and made a surprise attack on the city ofJerusalem.Menelaus was forced to flee Jerusalem during the ensuing riot.[13]Jason's intention may have been to retake his former office by force and present his reassumption of power asfait accomplito the regency that would take power in the wake of the king's death, assuming that they would allow him to stay in power rather than invite further conflict during a delicate political moment.[14]But Antiochus was still alive, and returned from Egypt enraged by the reverse he had suffered at the hands of the Romans and by the Jews' rejection of his chosen candidate for High Priest; he attacked Jerusalem and restored Menelaus, then executed many Jews.[15]

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 Maccabees5:11–14[16]

After restoring Menelaus, Antiochus IV issued decrees aimed at helping the most enthusiastically pro-Greek faction of Jews (usually called "Hellenizers" ) against the traditionalists. He outlawedJewish religious rites and traditionsand the Temple in Jerusalem was changed to a syncretic Greek-Jewish cult that included worship ofZeus.The Greek historianDiodoruswrote that Antiochus "sacrificed a great swine at the image of Moses, and at the altar of God that stood in the outward court, and sprinkled them with the blood of the sacrifice. He commanded likewise that the books, by which they were taught to hate all other nations, should be sprinkled with the broth made of the swine's flesh. And he put out the lamp (called by them immortal) which burns continually in the temple. Lastly he forced the high priest and the other Jews to eat swine's flesh."[17]

These decrees were a departure from typical Seleucid practice, which did not attempt to suppress local religions in their empire,[18]though they may be similar to other instances in the Hellenistic era when local polities were punished for revolt against their imperial suzerain by having their autonomy and local laws repealed and local shrines removed from their control.[14]The city of Jerusalem was sacked a second time in the disorder. Antiochus established a military Greekcitadelcalled theAcrain Jerusalem to serve as a stronghold for Hellenized Jews and a Greek military garrison. This happened from 168–167 BC.[19]

Such steps triggered a revolt against his rule, known as theMaccabean Revolt.[20]Scholars ofSecond Temple Judaismtherefore sometimes refer to Antiochus' reign as the 'Antiochene crises' for the Jews.[21]Traditionally, as expressed in theFirstand Second Books of the Maccabees, the Maccabean Revolt was painted as a national resistance to a foreign political and cultural oppression. In modern times, however, scholars have argued that Antiochus IV was more intervening in acivil warbetween the traditionalist Jews in the country and the Hellenized Jews in Jerusalem.[22][23]

Scholars think the revolt also led to the writing of theBook of Daniel,where a villain called the "King of the North" is generally considered to be a reference to Antiochus IV.[note 2]The portrayal of Antiochus there attacking the holy city of Jerusalem but eventually meeting his end would influence later Christian depictions of theAntichrist.[25]

Final years[edit]

Antiochus falling from his chariot, painting byNoël Hallé,ca. 1738

KingMithridates IofParthiatook advantage of Antiochus' western problems and attacked from the east, seizing the city ofHeratin 167 BC and disrupting the direct trade route to India, effectively splitting the Greek world in two.[citation needed]

Antiochus recognized the potential danger in the east but was unwilling to give up control of Judea. He sent a commander namedLysiasto deal with theMaccabees,while Antiochus himself led the main Seleucid army against the Parthians. Antiochus had initial success in his eastern campaign, capturing kingArtaxias[26]and reconquering theKingdom of Armenia.[27]His campaign went throughEcbatanaand he and his forces attackedPersepolisbut were driven off by the populace.[28]On his return home, he died atIsfahanin 164 BC.[29]

Various religious explanations exist for Antiochus IV's death. Apparently, he attacked a temple of the Mesopotamian deityNanayain Persia shortly before his demise, and his death was possibly attributed to impiety and punishment by Nanaya in some quarters.[30]Jewish sources gave credit for Antiochus's death to his earlier impiety at the Temple of Jerusalem. According to 2 Maccabees, he died from divinely-inflicted disease:

But the all-seeing Lord, the God of Israel, struck him with an incurable and invisible blow. As soon as he stopped speaking he was seized with a pain in his bowels, for which there was no relief, and with sharp internal tortures—and that very justly, for he had tortured the bowels of others with many and strange inflictions. Yet he did not in any way stop his insolence, but was even more filled with arrogance, breathing fire in his rage against the Jews, and giving orders to drive even faster. And so it came about that he fell out of his chariot as it was rushing along, and the fall was so hard as to torture every limb of his body. Thus he who only a little while before had thought in his superhuman arrogance that he could command the waves of the sea, and had imagined that he could weigh the high mountains in a balance, was brought down to earth and carried in a litter, making the power of God manifest to all. And so the ungodly man's body swarmed with worms, and while he was still living in anguish and pain, his flesh rotted away, and because of the stench the whole army felt revulsion at his decay.

— 2 Maccabees9:5–9 (NRSV)[31]

According to the later rabbinical work, the scroll of Antiochus (Megillat Antiochus), when Antiochus heard that his army had been defeated in Judea, he boarded a ship and fled to the coastal cities. Wherever he came the people rebelled and called him "The Fugitive," so he drowned himself in the sea.[32]This story is from the 2nd century, however, much further removed from the event than Polybius or 2 Maccabees. It is generally considered secondary and unlikely to be accurate.[33]

Legacy[edit]

Jewish tradition[edit]

Woodcut depicting Antiochus byGeorg Pencz

Antiochus IV is remembered as a major villain and persecutor in the Jewish traditions associated withHanukkah,including theBooks of the Maccabeesand the "Scroll of Antiochus".[34]Rabbinical sources refer to him as הרשעharasha( "the wicked" ).The Jewish Encyclopediaconcluded that "[s]ince Jewish and heathen sources agree in their characterization of him, their portrayal is evidently correct", summarizing this portrayal as one of a cruel and vainglorious ruler who tried to force on all the peoples of his realm aHellenic culture,"the true essence of which he can scarcely be said to have appreciated".[35]Whether Antiochus' policy was directed at extermination ofJudaismas a culture and a religion, though, is debatable on the grounds that his persecution was limited to Judea and Samaria (Jews in thediasporawere exempt), and that Antiochus was hardly an ideologically motivated Hellenizer.Erich S. Gruensuggests that, instead, he was driven more by pragmatics such as the need to gather income from Judea.[36]

Divine epithets[edit]

Antiochus was the first Seleucid king to use divine epithets on coins, perhaps inspired by theBactrianHellenistic kings who had earlier done so, or else building on the ruler cult that his father Antiochus the Great had codified within the Seleucid Empire. These epithets includedΘεὸς Ἐπιφανής"manifest god", and, after his defeat of Egypt,Νικηφόρος"bringer of victory".[37]

Historiography[edit]

The most important ancient non-Jewish source on Antiochus IV is the Greek historianPolybius,generally considered one of the highest-quality sources on the time period. Polybius paints a negative picture of him, and other surviving accounts have as well. The negative accounts of the Jews in the Books of the Maccabees are also influential. On the basis of this, Antiochus IV has generally been judged poorly.[38][39]

There are historians who think that these hostile depictions deserve some skepticism, however. Not all ancient accounts are hostile; the historianAppiandoes not say anything particularly bad about Antiochus IV, in contrast. Polybius does not appear to be neutral on this issue, as he was good friends with Antiochus IV's nephew and rivalDemetrius I;the two both spent years in exile in Rome. TheAchaean Leaguewhich Polybius hailed from was also traditionally hostile to the Seleucid Empire. Polybius was, like many of the educated upper class, something of an elitist. So stories related by Polybius such as those of Antiochus IV frolicking with commoners at taverns may have soured his reputation in antiquity, even though modern values would find this kind of behavior unobjectionable. The historian Dov Gera writes in defense of Antiochus IV that he was a "talented and accomplished politician" and that "the negative portrait of him painted by Polybius was influenced by political considerations of his friends... and should not be trusted."[38]There is also some evidence on this: historianNick Sekundanotes thatAlexander Balassuccessfully challenged King Demetrius for leadership of the Seleucid Empire decades later in 152 BC while claiming to be an unknown son of Antiochus IV. This claim appears to have been useful to him, suggesting Antiochus IV was remembered fondly by at least some. Even 1 Maccabees, an extremely hostile source, has Antiochus IV wonder on his deathbed why calamity has struck him when he was "well-loved in the day of my power".[40][39]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^/ænˈtaɪ.əkəsɛˈpɪfəniːz,ˌæntiˈɒkəs/;Ancient Greek:Ἀντίοχος ὁ Ἐπιφανής,Antíochos ho Epiphanḗs,"God Manifest"
  2. ^SeeBook of Danielfor details. In general, scholars fall into two camps: some argue that some form of chapters 2–6 of Daniel circulated in the 6th, 5th, or 4th centuries BC, shortly after the events of the book, and only the first and final six chapters were written during the Maccabean period (such asLester L. GrabbeandJohn J. Collins). Other scholars argue that the entire work was created in the Maccabean period, although presumably loosely influenced by older legends of the Babylonian period.[24]Some traditionalist scholars defend that the entire work was written during or shortly after the life of the Prophet Daniel; of the traditionalists, some say that the prophecies therein have not yet been fulfilled, which would render it unrelated to Antiochus IV Epiphanes, while others of the traditionalist bent see the work as loosely foretelling Antiochus IV.

References[edit]

  1. ^"Antiochus IV Epiphanes".Livius.org.
  2. ^Hojte, Jakob Munk (22 June 2009).Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom.ISD LLC.ISBN978-87-7934-655-0.
  3. ^Nelson, Thomas (2014).NIV, The Chronological Study Bible, eBook.Thomas Nelson Incorporated. p. 1078.ISBN9781401680138.Antiochus IV—Epiphanes or Epimanes? (da 11:21–31) Thirteen kings of the Greek Seleucid dynasty from Syria bore the name of Antiochus. Antiochus III (223–187 B.C.), the great conqueror…
  4. ^Samuels, Ruth (1967).Pathways through Jewish history.Ktav Pub. House. p. 98.OCLC899113.Antiochus IV spared no pains to defend his empire against the growing power of Rome. Proud of his Greek ancestry and determined to unite all the peoples of the ancient world under his rule, he had sought to force his subjects to follow the Greek way of life to the exclusion of all others.
  5. ^M. Zambelli, "L'ascesa al trono di Antioco IV Epifane di Siria,"Rivista di Filologia e di Istruzione Classica38 (1960), pp. 363–389
  6. ^Grainger, John D. (2010).The Syrian Wars.Brill. pp. 292–293.ISBN9789004180505.The claim that Antiochus was murdered by his uncle Antiochus IV is from theBabylonian astronomical diaries,although should be taken with some skepticism.
  7. ^abBar-Kochva, Bezalel(1989).Judas Maccabaeus: The Jewish Struggle Against the Seleucids.Cambridge University Press. pp. 230–231.ISBN0521323525.
  8. ^Polybius 26.1a.See also Polybius 30.
  9. ^Grainger, "The Fall of the Seleucid Empire," pp. 20–23.
  10. ^abGrainger, John D. (2010).The Syrian Wars.Brill. pp. 297–308.ISBN9789004180505.
  11. ^Polybius 29.27.4,Livy 45.12.4ff.
  12. ^Portier-Young, Anathea (2011).Apocalypse Against Empire: Theologies of Resistance in Early Judaism.Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. pp. 130–134.ISBN9780802870834.
  13. ^2 Maccabees 5:5
  14. ^abMa, John (9 July 2013)."Re-Examining Hanukkah".Marginalia.
  15. ^Josephus,The Jewish War1:1:1–2
  16. ^2 Maccabees 5:11–14
  17. ^Diodorus 34:1(4)
  18. ^Tchrikover, Victor.Hellenistic Civilization and the Jews.
  19. ^Newsom, Carol Ann; Breed, Brennan W. (1 January 2014).Daniel: A Commentary.Presbyterian Publishing Corp. p. 26.ISBN978-0-664-22080-8.
  20. ^Hengel, Martin(1974) [1973].Judaism and Hellenism: Studies in Their Encounter in Palestine During the Early Hellenistic Period(1st English ed.). London: SCM Press.ISBN0334007887.
  21. ^Stuckenbruck, Loren T.; Gurtner, Daniel M. (2019).T&T Clark Encyclopedia of Second Temple Judaism Volume One.Bloomsbury Publishing.ISBN9780567658135.Retrieved5 January2021.
  22. ^Telushkin, Joseph (1991).Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know about the Jewish Religion, Its People, and Its History.W. Morrow. p.114.ISBN0-688-08506-7.
  23. ^Schultz, Joseph P. (1981).Judaism and the Gentile Faiths: Comparative Studies in Religion.Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press. p. 155.ISBN0-8386-1707-7.
  24. ^Grabbe, Lester L.(2008).A History of the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period: The Coming of the Greeks: The Early Hellenistic Period (335–175 BCE).Library of Second Temple Studies. Vol. 68. T&T Clark. pp. 103–107.ISBN978-0-567-03396-3.
  25. ^Hengel, Martin(1974) [1973].Judaism and Hellenism: Studies in Their Encounter in Palestine During the Early Hellenistic Period(1st English ed.). London: SCM Press. p. 306.ISBN0334007887.
  26. ^Debevoise, Neilson C. (1938).A Political History of Parthia.University of Chicago Press. p. 20.
  27. ^Kosmin, Paul J. (2014).The Land of the Elephant Kings: Space, Territory, and Ideology in the Seleucid Empire.Harvard University Press. p. 21.
  28. ^Debevoise, Neilson C. (1938).A Political History of Parthia.University of Chicago Press. pp. 20–21.
  29. ^Debevoise, Neilson C. (1938).A Political History of Parthia.University of Chicago Press. p. 21.
  30. ^Kosmin, Paul(2016). "Indigenous Revolts in 2 Maccabees: The Persian Version".Classical Philology.111(1): 32–53.doi:10.1086/684818.S2CID162983934.
  31. ^2 Maccabees 9:5–9
  32. ^"The Megillah of Antiochus – The Scroll of the Hasmoneans (Per translation by Phillip Birnbaum, 1974 with some modifications)".Chabad.org.Retrieved4 December2022.
  33. ^Safrai, Ze'ev(2006). "Appendix: The Scroll of Antiochos and the Scroll of Fasts".The Literature of the Sages: Second Part: Midrash and Targum Liturgy, Poetry, Mysticism Contracts, Inscriptions, Ancient Science and the Languages of Rabbinic Literature.CRIaNT. Royal Van Gorcum, Fortress Press. pp. 238–241.ISBN90-232-4222-X.
  34. ^"Vedibarta Bam – And You Shall Speak of Them: Megilat Antiochus The Scroll of the Hasmoneans".Archived fromthe originalon 1 February 2008.Retrieved4 December2022.
  35. ^"Antiochus IV., Epiphanes".Jewish Encyclopedia.Vol. I: Aach–Apocalyptic literature. Funk and Wagnalls. 1925. pp. 634–635.
  36. ^Gruen, Erich S.(1993). "Hellenism and Persecution: Antiochus IV and the Jews". In Green, Peter (ed.).Hellenistic History and Culture.University of California Press. pp. 250–252.
  37. ^C. Habicht, "The Seleucids and their rivals", in A. E. Astin,et al.,Rome and the Mediterranean to 133 B.C.,The Cambridge Ancient History,volume 8, p. 341
  38. ^abGera, Dov (1998).Judaea and Mediterranean Politics 219 to 161 B.C.E.Leiden: Brill. p. 320.ISBN90-04-09441-5.
  39. ^abSekunda, Nicholas Victor (2001). "Polybius on Antiochus IV".Hellenistic Infantry Reform in the 160's BC.Studies on the History of Ancient and Medieval Art of Warfare 5. Oficyna Naukowa MS. pp. 159–171.ISBN83-85874-04-6.
  40. ^1 Maccabees 6:11

External links[edit]

Media related toAntiochus IVat Wikimedia Commons

Antiochus IV Epiphanes
Born:215 BCDied:164 BC
Preceded by Seleucid King
(King of Syria)
175–164 BC 		Succeeded by
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