Go to main content

The books of Maccabees

01/02/21

The books of Maccabees

The origin of the tradition of Chanukkah is attributed and recounted in the books of Maccabees. The books describe the Jewish rebellion and the struggle against the Seleucids in the years approximately 180 to 150 BC. The Seleucids were originally a Macedonian ruling family that took power in the Asian parts of the Persian Empire after Alexander the Great died in 312 BC. In the 2nd century, the empire consisted of parts of Asia Minor and the Middle East. At that time, the ruler of the empire, Antiochus IV, decidedly initiated persecutions and suppression of Jewish life and culture. Among other things, the death penalty was introduced for circumcising male children. This led to resistance and finally an actual uprising in the 4s led by Judas the Maccabee. The nickname means something like 'the war hammer'.

In any case, he struck hard against both fellow believers who submitted to the government's new rules, and not least the empire. Led by Judas Maccabeus, the Jewish warriors captured Jerusalem, eradicated pagan customs, and cleansed and rededicated the temple by lighting the sacred seven-branched candlestick. Chanukkah actually means "consecration". When they wanted to light the eternal candle that was to burn in the seven-armed candlestick (Menorah) as a symbol of the Jews' eternal faith in God, there was only one jar of oil. One jar only lasted one day, and it will take a minimum of 8 days to make new oil. The stake was lit anyway, and then the miracle happened - the oil burned for the eight days it took to get new oil. This is the myth and miracle celebrated at Chanukkah.

The story is actually longer in the Maccabees, and you follow the continuing wars and battles under the new Jewish ruling dynasty. The Maccabees themselves actually consist of 8 texts or books. However, the first two, written some decades after the events they describe, are the only ones officially considered to belong to the biblical scriptures. They are each written by a different author and both cover, with a small overlap, the events of the period with each having their own perspective, but both describe the struggles of the Maccabees who are spoken of as God's chosen people. This is most significant in book 2, which at the same time places great emphasis on the warriors' willingness to give their lives and become martyrs in the fight for the true faith. In that capacity, they actually also became role models for imitation in the Middle Ages in Denmark.

The books of Maccabees were probably originally written in Hebrew, but are known only from later translations into Greek. They are not part of the Torah. On the other hand, they form part of the Catholic and Greek Orthodox Bibles and are counted among the so-called apocryphal writings of the Protestant Bible. They were actually read quite a bit in the Middle Ages, i.e. before Denmark became Protestant in 1536. The story of the Maccabees' battles at God's command, where they gave their lives and became martyrs for the true faith, were important and absolutely central role models for, for example, the Christian crusaders as well in Denmark. One read about their exploits both in Latin and in translation into the vernacular languages. The Danes who set off on the Third Crusade in 1187, for example, deliberately followed in the footsteps of the Maccabees.

Judas Maccabeus was one of the 9 great heroes of the Middle Ages in Denmark. There were three ancient, three Jewish and three Christian heroes, which together made up the 9. The ancient were: Hector of Troy, Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar. The Jews were Joshua, David and Judas the Maccabee. Finally, there were the Christians: King Arthur, Charlemagne and Godfred of Bouillon, who was one of the leaders of the first crusade. They are only pictured together in a very few places in Europe's Middle Ages. One of the places is Dronninglund Church in Thy in a large fresco from the beginning of the 1500th century.

Here Judas Maccabeus is seen in friendly competition with Godfred of Bouillon - together the two most significant figures in God's war for the true faith in medieval Europe. In Denmark, you could count Holger Danske, but that is another story.

One of the striking examples of a true knight who gave his life for God was the story of Elezar Averan. He was one of those who accompanied Judas Maccabeus in battle against the war elephants of the Persian king Antiochus. The elephants had wooden towers on their backs, from which four men fought the enemy in addition to the driver. Each war elephant was also surrounded by 1000 men in armor and bronze helmets plus a cavalry of 500 men when the Persian king attacked Judea and Jerusalem. The pagans, as they are referred to in the books, incited the elephants to war by showing them the blood-red juice of grapes and mulberries. Judas Maccabeus had set out from Jerusalem to meet the Persian army. When Elazar Averan saw that one of the elephants towered over all the others and was equipped with armor emblazoned with the symbol of the Persian king, he thought that the king himself was riding it. He ran straight towards the elephant while slashing left and right, scattering the enemies to all sides. He threw himself under the elephant and killed it with a thrust to the belly. It crashed to the ground on top of him and he was killed on the spot. The stories of Judas Maccabeus' battles against God's enemies, and his knight, Elazar, who sacrificed himself to save his people and gain eternal fame, were examples of how a true knight should behave in Denmark, and therefore Judas Maccabeus was depicted in a Danish church. But above all, in this context, it is the story of the Maccabees' conquest of Jerusalem and the rededication of the temple that is celebrated and marked for Chanukkah.

Back