PORTRAIT

from page 71

his empire the Greek culture, includ-
ing its religion. To that end, he pub-
licly identified with the Greek god,
Zeus. That was the beginning of his
trouble with the Jews.
Antiochus meddled in internal
Jewish affairs. He replaced the High
Priest with Jason, a kohen, who strong-
ly identified with Hellenistic (Greek)
culture.
Jason immediately set up a Greek
gymnasium where athletes exercised in
the nude. Later, Jason was replaced
with Menelaus, a pro-Greek fanatic
who brought even more Hellenization
to Jerusalem and Judea.
In 168, returning from another war
with Egypt, Antiochus was convinced
the Jews had rebelled against him. He
stormed Jerusalem, killing thousands •
of Jews and selling more into slavery.
Next, he brought in Greeks to estab-
lish a community in Jerusalem. He
stripped the Temple of its treasures.
Giving further vent to his extremely
violent personality, he ordered the
Jews, under penalty of death, to cease
the practice of Judaism.
As the Book of Maccabees records,
Antiochus set up the worship of
Olympian Zeus in the Jerusalem
Temple; this included the erection of a
statue of Antiochus himself. Under his
orders, Torah scrolls were burned,
pagan altars and idols were set up
throughout the country, and pigs, rab-
bits and other treif (not kosher) ani-
mals were sacrificed upon the altars.
Any Jewish newborn found to have
been circumcised was killed, while the
baby's mother and the mohel who per-
formed the circumcision also were
murdered, with the baby hung from
the mother's neck.
The Jews were not the only people
to witness Antiochus' violent outbursts
and eccentric behavior. Behind his
back, gentiles called him Epimanes
("madman") instead of Epiphanes.
Antiochus did not stay in Judea to
oversee the implementation of his
anti-Jewish policies. Nor did he wit-
ness the revolt led by Judah Maccabee.
In 166, Antiochus left Syria to
reconquer eastern provinces. For the
most part, he was successful.
In the winter of 163, Antiochus
died of tuberculosis in Tabae (Isfahan),
Persia. He was succeeded by his 9-
year-old son, Antiochus V Eupator, in
whose name the empire was ruled by
a group of secret advisers. Their gov-
ernment was feeble and corrupt, no
match for the heroic Hasmoneans.

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