1–4 Maccabees

by

Jan W. van Henten

Introduction

Several ancient versions of the Old Testament contain four books named after the Maccabees, which are not part of the Hebrew Bible. Hippolytus of Rome mentions for the first time several of these Books of the Maccabees in a reference to 1 Maccabees in his Commentary on Dan. (4.3). Manuscripts of the Septuagint include sometimes two and sometimes three or four of these Maccabean books. The Codex Alexandrinus from the 5th century CE is the oldest manuscript that contains all four books. The obvious reason for the development of a cluster of Books of the Maccabees is that three writings are devoted to Maccabean heroes, either the five sons of a priest from Modein called `Mattathias or the Maccabean martyrs who died during the persecution of Antiochus IV Epiphanes. The name “Maccabee” itself comes from the surname of Mattathias’s oldest son Judas: the Maccabee (o9 Makkabai = oj) and probably derives from the Hebrew Maqqabi, meaning “Hammer” or “Hammerer.” This may refer to the physical appearance of Judas or to his military success. There is no direct connection between a group of Maccabees and 3 Maccabees, which is sometimes called “About the Ptolemies.” However, the narrative of 3 Maccabees concerns a deliverance from Greek oppression as the other three Maccabean books do, and the related content as well as certain connections with 2 Maccabees explains why the Third Book became part of this small collection of Hellenistic-Jewish writings.

General Overviews

Apart from many short entries in various encyclopedias, dictionaries, and handbooks (Fischer and Anderson 1992), there are only a few general treatments of the Books of the Maccabees, or at least several of the books. One explanation of this situation concerns the different status of the books in connection with the various canons of Holy Scripture. 1 and 2 Maccabees belong to the Deuterocanonical or apocryphal books of the Old Testament. Dörrie 1937 indicates why 3 and 4 Maccabees never reached a canonical status in any church. Another explanation concerns the different origins of the books. 1 Maccabees was probably written in Jerusalem, but 3 and 4 Maccabees derive from the diaspora. The origin of 2 Maccabees is debated. Collins 2000 discusses 2, 3, and 4 Maccabees in its study of Jewish identity constructions in the diaspora in the Hellenistic period. Mittmann-Richert 2000 offers so far the most detailed introduction to the historiographical books (1–3 Maccabees). DiTommaso 2001 and Lehnhardt 1999 deal with apocryphal and pseudepigraphical writings with entries on 1–4 Maccabees, and Xeravits and Zsengellér 2007 is a collection of essays devoted to various aspects of the Maccabean books.

• Collins, John J. Between Athens and Jerusalem: Jewish Identity in the Hellenistic Diaspora. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2000.

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  Monograph about various identity constructions within diaspora Judaism in the Hellenistic era includes good discussions of 2, 3, and 4 Maccabees and puts these books in the broader cultural context of diaspora Judaism.

• DiTommaso, Lorenzo. A Bibliography of Pseudepigrapha Research 1850–1999. Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha Supplement Series 39. Sheffield, UK: Sheffield Academic Press, 2001.

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  Bibliography with entries on 3 and 4 Maccabees, listing publications on the various versions of the text, translations and commentaries, as well as general and specific studies.

• Dörrie, Heinrich. “Die Stellung der vier Makkabäerbücher im Kanon der griechischen Bibel.” Nachrichten von der Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen, Philologisch-Historische Klasse Fachgruppe 5, 1.2 (1937): 45–54.

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  Classical discussion of the canonical status of all four books in the Greek version of the Old Testament.

• Fischer, Thomas, and Hugh Anderson. “Books of the Maccabees.” In The Anchor Bible Dictionary. Vol. 4. Edited by David N. Freedman, 439–454. New York: Doubleday, 1992.

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  More elaborate survey than usual for a dictionary article, with good introductions to all four books and bibliographies (including references up to c. 1990).

• Lehnhardt, Andreas. Bibliographie zu den Jüdischen Schriften aus hellenistisch-römischer Zeit. Jüdische Schriften aus hellenistisch-römischer Zeit 6.2 Supplementa. Gütersloh, Germany: Gütersloher Verlagshaus, 1999.

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  Bibliography with entries on 1–4 Maccabees, listing publications on editions, translations, and commentaries, as well as articles and monographs on specific topics in these books.

• Mittmann-Richert, Ulrike. Einführung zu den historischen und legendarischen Erzählungen. Jüdische Schriften aus hellenistisch-römischer Zeit 6.1.1. Gütersloh, Germany: Gütersloher Verlagshaus, 2000.

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  Elaborate introductions to 1, 2, and 3 Maccabees, focusing on introductory issues, composition, and content of these books.

• Xeravits, Géza, and József Zsengellér, eds. The Books of the Maccabees: History, Theology, Ideology. Papers of the Second International Conference on the Deuterocanonical Books, Påapa, Hungary, 9–11 June, 2005. Journal for the Study of Judaism Supplements 118. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2007.

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  Collection of essays devoted to various aspects of the Maccabean books, mainly 1 and 2 Maccabees.