2 Maccabees 3 Notes

2 Maccabees

Summary

During the high priesthood of Onias, Jerusalem enjoyed peace, and the temple was honored, even receiving royal support. A dispute between Onias and Simon, a temple official, led Simon to falsely report to Apollonius, the regional governor, that the temple treasury held vast sums. This prompted King Seleucus to send his minister, Heliodorus, to seize the funds.

Despite protests from Onias, who explained the money belonged to widows, orphans, and Hyrcanus, Heliodorus attempted to confiscate it. The city was in anguish, and the people prayed for divine intervention. As Heliodorus moved to seize the treasury, a miraculous vision appeared: a fearsome horseman and two young men severely beat him, leaving him near death.

At his attendants’ request, Onias prayed for his recovery, and Heliodorus was healed by the same divine figures. Grateful, he offered sacrifices and returned to the king, declaring that Jerusalem was divinely protected and anyone sent there with hostile intent would be struck down. Thus, the treasury was preserved through divine intervention.

See notes by Doran¹ and Goldstein².

Notes

• Re: Temple Mortgages
  • 3:6
    • implication of vast sums of money in the Temple treasury
    • excuse for plundering: these sums are not sacrifices; the king can confiscate them.
  • 3:10
    • priest claims that the money is not available for the king
    • priest does not claim that the money was from sacrifices
    • rather, the money was deposits (παρακαταθήκη) of widows and Hyrcanus the Tobiad.
    • deposits hints at the use of the temple treasury as a bank.
  • 3:12
    • reason given is very economic, “invioable trust”
  • 3:15
    • “Establisher of the laws of deposits” reference to Lev 27?
  • 3:21-22
    • people of all classes join in to entreat against the crime and that the deposits would be kept secure for the depositors
    • all classes interesting since the claim above was that the monies belonged to widows and one wealthy man