3 Maccabees

Synopsis

Like I, II and IV Maccabees, III Maccabees derives its name from the Jewish hero, Judas Maccabeaus (nicknamed "The Hammer"); however, nowhere in this book is he mentioned, nor is it even about the Maccabean (Hasmonean) dynasty. This book describes the attempt of Ptolemy IV Philopator (reigned 222-204 B.C.) to enter the Sanctuary of the Temple, his anger at being denied entry, his unsuccessful attempt to exact vengeance on the Jews of Egypt, and their deliverance from certain death. The book's design was to comfort the Alexandrian Jews in their persecution.

Language of composition

The book appears to have been written in Greek, most likely by a Jew of the Greco-Egyptian city of Alexandria between 100 B.C. and 70 A.D.

Who, where and when?

The book has a dual setting in Ptolemaic Palestine and Hellenistic Egypt during Ptolemaic rule. It deals with the relationship between Jews and gentiles, emphasizing the differences. There is a great confusion of sources.

Canonicity

III Maccabees appears to have been held in high esteem in the Early Church, but is not considered canonical by the Western Church. The Greek Orthodox church includes the book in its canon of the Bible; however, it is regarded by Protestants as part of the pseudepigrapha and by Roman Catholics as part of the Apocrypha. None of the four Maccabee books is included in the Hebrew Bible.

Outline and Highlights of III Maccabees

	1:1-3 -- Dositheus Saves Philopator's Life
	1:4-6 -- The Egyptians Defeat the Syrians
	1:8-2:24 -- King Ptolemy IV visits Jerusalem and is foiled when he attempts to enter the 
Jerusalem Temple.  This leads him to try and destroy Egyptian Jewry, aided by others hostile 
to the Jews.
	2:1-20 -- Simon the High Priest Prays
	2:21-24 -- God Punishes Philopator
	2:25-33 -- Philopator Mistreats the Jews in Alexandria.  The Jews are offered a choice of 
slavery and branding with a pagan symbol or else being initiated into the pagan mysteries 
and being rewarded with full Alexandrian citizenship.  A few accepted his offer but most 
stand fast in their ancestral religion.  Despite this, the Jews continued to hope for relief even 
in the face of their persecution. 
	3:10 -- A few neighbors, friends, and business associates pledged secretly to help the Jews. 
	3:25 -- Ptolemy publishes a royal decree sentencing the Jews to be fettered and executed 
cruelly. 
	5:11-20, 25-34; 6:18-21 -- The book narrates three divine rescues from destruction:
	The king oversleeps on the day appointed for the mass execution, so it is rescheduled for 
the next day
	The next day, the king forgot the plan entirely and was outraged by it when he heard of it.  
But later on the same day he forgot that he had forgotten it and commanded that the 
executions be carried out the next morning, swearing that he would also destroy the 
temple in Jerusalem. 
	When the king finally actually tried to carry out the genocide, two angels rescued all the 
Jews and turned the elephants back on the king's troops.
	6:1-15 -- The venerable priest Eleazar protests the innocence of the Jews in his prayer. 
	6:19, 21, 33, 34 -- Their enemies were terrified by the deliverance of the Jews, but the cowed 
king holds a banquet and gives thanks for their rescue. 
	6:24-29; 7:7-8 -- The Jews are vindicated and absolved of all blame by the king himself. 
	6:28; 7:6-9 -- The Jews and their God receive acclamation from the king. 
	6:21, 23; 7:6 – Instead of the Jews, the king's army is trampled by the elephants and the 
accusers of the Jews were harshly reprimanded by the king. 
	7:10-23 -- The Jews are honored by the king, given permission to kill hundreds of their own 
who had apostasized, and they are held in awe by their enemies.

Genre

Davila refers to III Maccabees as an example of a sapiential (an adjective referring to "containing, exhibiting, or affording wisdom" or "characterized by wisdom) text, although he leaves this categorization open to debate. Likewise, its contents correspond well to the genre of "Hellenistic romance." Charlesworth puts it in the category of "Wisdom and Philosophical Literature." It has also been categorized as fitting into the genre of "Vindication of the Righteous Sufferer." Nickelsburg argues that III Maccabees shows a literary dependence on the Wisdom of Solomon's formulation of the Isaianic tradition, even though it reverts to the other scenario where vindication and punishment occur in this life.

Resources

	Cross, F.L. (Ed.). The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. London: Oxford 
University Press
	Comay, Joan and Ronald Brownrigg. Who's Who in the Bible: The Old Testament and 
the Apocrypha. New York: Wing Books, 1971.
	Davila, J.R.  from Summary of a lecture by J. R. Davila on 13 March, 1997. 
	New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha, New Revised Standard Version. 

	Nickelsburg, George W.E. Jr. Resurrection, Immortality, and Eternal Life in 
Intertestamental Judaism.  Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1972. pp. 90-92
	Encarta
Author of this page: Oscar P. Seara
Copyright is claimed jointly by the author, the instructor, and Nashotah House, 2001.

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This page last modified 24 April 2001.