The document discusses the history of Judea from the time of Alexander the Great to the Maccabees. It notes the families of the Maccabees who led revolts against the Seleucids, including Mattathias and his sons Judah, John, Simon, Eleazar, and Jonathan. It also mentions the two main Jewish parties, the Sadducees who controlled the Temple but did not believe in an afterlife, and the Scribes who followed the Oral Torah. A list of the Hasmonean rulers who controlled Judea from the second century BC to its conquest by Rome is also provided.
3. The Maccabees
• FATHER: Mattathias
• SONS:
– John
– Simon
– Judah
– Eleazar
– Jonathan
(NOTE: All Hebrew names)
4. Parties
• Sadducees (Tzadokites)
– Jerusalem Temple and Priesthood
– No afterlife or Reward and Punishment
– No such thing as Oral Torah
• Scribes (Pharisees)
– Oral Torah given with written Torah
– Sanhedrin
– No combining the crowns of priesthood and king
5. Hasmonean Rulers
• Jonathan Maccabaeus 153–142 BC
• Simon Maccabaeus 142–134 BC
• John Hyrcanus I 134–104 BC
• Aristobulus I (also King) 104–103 BC
• Alexander Jannaeus (also King) 103–76 BC
• Alexandra Salome (Queen) 76–67 BC
• John Hyrcanus II
– High Priest 76–66 and 63–40 BC
– Governor of the People 63–57 BC
– Ethnarch of Judaea 47–40 BC
• Aristobulus II 66–63 BC
• Antigonus 40–37 BC
