2 Maccabees 1:9-11

New Catholic Bible

Footnotes

1. 2 Maccabees 1:10 This much longer letter was in reality to precede the first one because it was written in 164 B.C., a little before the temple was purified. It is addressed to Aristobulus, a Jew of Alexandria renowned for his commentary on the first five Books of the Bible and for his defense of Judaism. The document is complex and intermingles in the history of the time the legend that arose almost contemporaneously with the event. The author of the Second Book of Maccabees had no reason to exclude this amplification, which corresponded with the taste of his readers, who loved to find allegories either in history or in legend. He wished above all to invite them to celebrate the Feast of the Dedication of the year 164 B.C. (2 Mac 10:1-8; 1 Mac 4:36-59).
2. 2 Maccabees 1:10 Aristobulus: a Jewish so-called philosopher of Alexandria, who was said to be a tutor of Ptolemy VI Philometor (180–145 B.C.) because he dedicated a book to the king showing that the Law and the Prophets were the source of the Greeks’ wisdom and philosophy. King Ptolemy: Ptolemy VI Philometor, who is mentioned in 1 Mac 1:18; 10:51-59.
3. 2 Maccabees 1:11 The king: Antiochus IV Epiphanes of Syria, the persecutor of the Jews. He perished in 164 B.C. while leading a Persian invasion.