Judas Maccabeus

Judas Maccabaeus or Maccabeus (/ˌmækəˈbiːəs/ MAK-ə-BEE-əs), also known as Judah Maccabee (Hebrew: יהודה המכבי, romanized: Yehudah HaMakabi), was a Jewish priest (kohen) and a son of the priest Mattathias. He was an early leader in the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire, taking over from his father around 166 BCE, and leading the revolt until his death in 160 BCE.

The Jewish holiday of Hanukkah ("Dedication") commemorates the restoration of Jewish worship at the Second Temple in Jerusalem in 164 BC after Judah Maccabee removed all of the statues depicting Greek gods and goddesses and purified it.

Judah was the third son of Mattathias, the Hasmonean, a Jewish priest from the village of Modi'in. In 167 BCE, Mattathias, together with his sons Judah, Eleazar, Simon, John, and Jonathan, started a revolt against the Seleucid ruler Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who since 169/8 BC had issued decrees that forbade Jewish religious practices. After Mattathias died in 166 BC, Judah assumed leadership of the revolt per the deathbed disposition of his father. The First Book of Maccabees praises Judah's valor and military talent, suggesting that those qualities made Judah a natural choice for the new commander.

In the early days of the rebellion, Judah received the surname Maccabee. It is not known whether this name should be understood in Greek, Hebrew, or Aramaic. Several explanations have been put forward for this name. One suggestion is that the name derives from the Aramaic maqqaba ("makebet" in modern Hebrew), "hammer" or "sledgehammer" (cf. the cognomen of Charles Martel, the 8th century Frankish leader), in recognition of his ferocity in battle.

According to Jewish folklore, the name Maccabee is an acronym of the verse Mi kamokha ba'elim Adonai (YHWH), "Who is like you, O God, among the gods that are worshiped?", the Maccabean battle-cry to motivate troops (Exodus 15:11) as well as a part of daily Jewish prayers (see Mi Chamocha). Some scholars maintain that the name is a shortened form of the Hebrew maqqab-Yahu (from naqab, "to mark, to designate"), meaning "the one designated by God." Although contextualized as a modern-day "surname" (Jews didn't start having surnames until the Middle Ages) exclusive to Judah, Maccabee came to signify all the Hasmoneans who fought during the Maccabean revolt.

Mindful of the superiority of Seleucid forces during the first two years of the revolt, Judah's strategy was to avoid any engagement with their regular army and resort to guerrilla warfare to give them a feeling of insecurity. The strategy enabled Judah to win a string of victories. At the battle of Nahal el-Haramiah (wadi haramia), he defeated a small Seleucid force under the command of Apollonius, governor of Samaria, who was killed. Judah took possession of Apollonius's sword and used it until his death as a symbol of vengeance. After Nahal el-Haramiah, recruits flocked to the Jewish cause.

Shortly after that, Judah routed a larger Seleucid army under the command of Seron near Beth-Horon, largely thanks to a good choice of battlefield. Then, in the Battle of Emmaus, Judah proceeded to defeat the Seleucid forces led by generals Nicanor and Gorgias. This force was dispatched by Lysias, whom Antiochus left as viceroy after departing on a campaign against the Parthians. By a forced night march, Judah succeeded in eluding Gorgias, who had intended to attack and destroy the Jewish forces in their camp with his cavalry. While Gorgias was searching for him in the mountains, Judah attacked the Seleucid camp, taking the Seleucids by surprise, and defeated them at the Battle of Emmaus. The Seleucid commander had no alternative but to withdraw to the coast.

The defeat at Emmaus convinced Lysias that he must prepare for a serious and prolonged war. He accordingly assembled a new and larger army and marched with it on Judea from the south via Idumea. After several years of conflict, Judah drove out his foes from Jerusalem, except for the garrison in the citadel of Acra. He purified the defiled Temple of Jerusalem and, on the 25th of Kislev (December 14, 164 BCE), restored the service in the Temple. The reconsecration of the Temple became a permanent Jewish holiday, Hanukkah, which continued even after the Temple was destroyed in 70 CE. Hanukkah is still celebrated annually. The liberation of Jerusalem was the first step on the road to ultimate independence.