Daily Bible Reading: 1 Maccabees 11:38-74 and 2 Peter 3

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1 Maccabees 11:38-74 - The politically complex situation around which the Books of Maccabees are constructed is not easy for modern readers to understand. Generally, in school, history teachers focus on the rise of the Roman Empire in the years we are discussing here. The details of the Hellenistic world simply do no make it into the history books. What is happening here is that the Hellenistic rulers - Ptolemies and Seleucids - are trying hard to expand and consolidate their power in the face of growing Roman power. And the smaller kingdoms of the region - the Jews, for example - are caught up in the larger conflict, using whomever to build local strength. While the Maccabees rise in Jewish history as a force to battle the Hellenists, they soon begin to manipulate the situation for their own benefit as well.

King Demetrius II is unpopular with his own people and with his own troops largely because he does build up the local groups; he depends on Cretan mercenaries. His own troops - the veterans who served his father especially cannot stand him. A man named Trypho [Diodotus Tryphon], formerly a supporter of Alexander Balas, goes to the person who is raising Alexander's young son - whose name is Antiochus, and tries to convince him that young Antiochus could displace the unpopular king.

Jonathan tries to use the situation - the challenge to Demetrius - to get even more favors from him. He wants the Hellenist troops removed from the Citadel in Jerusalem and in other strongholds because they continue to challenge his [Jonathan's] authority. Demetrius promises Jonathan pretty much anything he wants, so Jonathan sends him 3000 men to join his fighting force. Certainly this is only going to make the anti-Demetrius group even angrier.  These troops, along with the other mercenaries working for Demetrius, kill 100,000 people. "They set fire the the city [Antioch] and seized a large amount of spoil . . . and saved the king" (11:48). The people of Antioch surrender to Demetrius, and the Jews return to Jerusalem with lots of loot. But Demetrius doesn't keep all the promises he made to Jonathan when he was trying to get him on his side. 

Meanwhile, Trypho returns with the young challenger to Demetrius - Antiochus VI. He sets the poor kid up as king and gets all the discontented veteran troops to rally to him. They attack Demetrius' troops and rout them from Antioch. Then it says that "the young Antiochus wrote to Jonathan" (11:57), confirming him in the high priesthood and setting him up as chief authority over the four districts the Jews claimed were theirs. He also appoints Jonathan's brother Simon "governor from the Ladder of Tyre to the borders of Egypt" (11:59). He gathers forces together without any trouble until he gets to Gaza, but there the people resist his authority. "So he besieged it and burned its suburbs with fire and plundered them. Then the people of Gaza pleaded with Jonathan, and he made peace with them, and took the sons of their rulers as hostages and sent them to Jerusalem" (11:61-62). 

Jonathan and his troops finally confront Demetrius' forces. At first he does badly; his troops mostly desert him. He "tore his clothes, put dust on his head, and prayed" (11:71), and this seems to turn things around for him. When he returns to battle, things go better and they win the day. Jonathan returns to Jerusalem. 

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2 Peter 3 - Peter associates some of the worldly temptation issues with prophecies of the “last days.” He says, “in the last days some people will appear whose lives are controlled by their own lusts. They will make fun of you and will ask, ‘He promised to come, didn’t he? Where is he? Our ancestors have already died, but everything is still the same as it was since the creation of the world!’” (3:4).

It is understandable, I think, that people who heard Christ say he would return would at some point begin to doubt that these words could be trusted. And if it was hard back in the first century, it is a great hurdle today, two thousand years later. But he reminds us “There is no difference in the Lord’s sight between one day and a thousand years; to him the two are the same” (3:8).  

“The Lord is not slow to do what he has promised, as some think. Instead, he is patient with you, because he does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants all to turn away from their sins” (3:9).

“The Day of the Lord will come like a thief. On that Day, the heavens will disappear with a shrill noise, the heavenly bodies will burn up and be destroyed, and the earth with everything in it will vanish” (3:10).

So what does this mean for how we should live? We look not for the destruction, but for the “new heavens and new earth, where righteousness will be at home” (3:13). As we wait for that day, we must do our best to “be pure and faultless in God’s sight and to be at peace with him” (3:14). We need to “continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (3:18).

We are asked to appreciate the great patience God shows us and we are warned against getting confused by people who distort the church’s teaching or the words of Scripture

Daily Bible Reading: 1 Maccabees 11:1-37 and 2 Peter 2

Maccabees 11:1-37 – Ptolemy VI tries to take possession of Alexander’s kingdom even though he is Alexander’s father-in-law. Ptolemy tries to win Demetrius’ cooperation by promising to give his daughter [Alexander’s wife at this time] to be his wife instead. The next sentence says that this actually happens right away.

Next, Ptolemy enters the city of Antioch and “assume[s] the crown of Asia” (11:13). When Ptolemy and Alexander finally engage in a decisive battle near the Lake of Antioch, Ptolemy’s forces are victorious even though Ptolemy himself is mortally wounded. He dies three days later. Alexander flees to Arabia and someone there kills him, cuts off his head and sends it to Ptolemy [now deceased]. So now both kings – Ptolemy and Alexander - are dead.

Demetrius becomes king of the Seleucid Empire in 145 BC.

Meanwhile, in Jerusalem, Jonathan musters the “mean of Judea for an assault on the Citadel in Jerusalem” (11:20). The Citadel is a fortress of the Seleucid empire, which has now fallen into the hands of Demetrius, a ruler not allied with him as Alexander had been.  Demetrius writes to Jonathan and asks to meet with him in Ptolemais. Jonathan continues to besiege the Citadel, but takes “the deliberate risk of taking silver and gold, clothing and numerous other presents, and going to Ptolemais to face the king, whose favor he succeeded in winning” (11:24). “The king, Demetrius, “treated him as his predecessors had treated him, and promoted him in the presence of all his friends” (11:26).  Furthermore, “Jonathan claimed that the king should exempt Judaea from tribute, with the three Samaritan provinces, promising him three hundred talents in return. The king consented, and wrote Jonathan a rescript covering the whole matter” (11:28-29). Clever man, this Jonathan. 

2 Peter 2 – The church will face what the gathered people of God under the Old Covenant faced, “false teachers, who will insinuate their own disruptive views and disown the Master who purchased their freedom” (2:1).  This kind of departure from the road God wants us on has been part of the story from the beginning. Even the angels rebelled from God’s way. God did not spare them even.

Then there was the flood, then Sodom and Gomorrah. But in all these stories, God also show he “rescues the good from the ordeal” (2:9).

People who “insult what they do not understand are not reasoning beings” (2:12). They will suffer for the evil they do. They are “dried-up rivers, fogs swirling in the wind, and the dark underworld is the place reserved for them. With their high-flown talk, which is all hollow, they tempt back the ones who have only just escaped from paganism, playing on their bodily desires with debaucheries” (2:17-18).

Those who have been won to the Lord must be careful not to permit the “world” to entangle them again. It will go hard with those who relapse.

The tone of this letter is not “Pauline” at all. It is much more designed to raise fear in those of the community about these false teachings they are fighting. I think Paul’s approach is more encouraging, more from his own experience of Christ’s saving power and less “us and them,” but it is true that the problem of false teaching is ALWAYS a problem. The question remains how to create any human endeavor that is “fool-proof.” I don’t think it’s possible.

Daily Bible Reading: 1 Maccabees 10:51-89 and 2 Peter 1

1 Maccabees 10:51-89 - Despite the fact that Demetrius defeats the forces of Alexander Balas, Demetrius himself is killed by the end of the day. Alexander then sends agents to Ptolemy VI, king of Egypt, claiming victory over Demetrius and asking for his daughter in marriage.

Ptolemy writes him and arranges to meet him in the city of Ptolemais, where Akko is today on the Mediterranean. It is 150 BC when the marriage occurs.

Alexander writes to Jonathan, the brother of Judas Maccabeas, and asks him to join them in the meeting. In the struggle to obtain the loyalty of the Jews against Demetrius – a very unpopular Seleucid leader – Alexander had established Jonathan Maccabeas as High Priest in Jerusalem. Jonathan comes and gives gifts of silver and gold and makes a good impression on Kings Alexander and Ptolemy VI.

If you are confused by this story, join the club. Jonathan is a Maccabean and here he is making peace with a man who is now head of the Seleucid government. He gains advantages from the power struggle going on in the region, and his alliance with Alexander permits him to unite his very divided people and make Judea stronger. It’s just hard to follow the political machinations he had to employ.

They reward Jonathan by making him “military commissioner and governor-general” of Judea. By accepting this title, he establishes the Hasmonean dynasty, which will endure until 37 BC.

Demetrius’ son, Demetrius II, comes to power and challenges Jonathan to battle on the plains. Jonathan wins and is rewarded again rewarded with honor by King Alexander.

2 Peter 1 – This letter is addressed to a very wide audience – to all “those who through the righteousness of our God and Savor Jesus Christ have been given a faith as precious as ours” (1:1). Christ has offered us a way of knowing God and sharing in the divine nature.

But he notes, “to attain this, you will have to do your utmost yourselves, adding goodness to the faith that you have, understanding to your goodness, self-control to your understanding, patience to your self-control, true devotion to your patience, kindness towards your fellow men to your devotion, and, to this kindness, love” (1:5-7).

Peter believes it is his duty “to keep stirring [the faithful] up with reminders” (1:14). We are not “in this tent” [our bodies} for a long time; life is short. But he assures them he “shall take great care that after my own departure you will still have a means to recall these things to memory” (1:15).

He says it is not through “cleverly invented myths” (1:16) that knowledge of God is transmitted. The note I have here says that this is a reference to Gnostic teachings about the “parousia” [Christ’s return] that seemed to Peter too elaborate.  Peter claims a knowledge of Christ that came “when the Sublime Glory itself spoke to him and said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favor’” – words they heard “when we were with him on the holy mountain” (1:17-18). This is apparently a reference to the transfiguration experience recounted in Matthew 17.

Peter refers believers back to scripture and to prophecy, but warns us that interpretation of our religious history and texts is not meant to be the work of any one individual.