1.11 The Legacy of Mattathias and the Maccabean Revolts The Seleucid persecution of Jews under Antiochus Epiphanes sparked a massive outcry and protest from the Jewish people When Mattathias took the life of “one of his own” as well as the life of the king’s officer, he became a feared and respected leader to his people – he would not necessarily have been seen as a murderer!

The Maccabean revolt put the Jewish people to a test: would they follow God, or an earthly ruler? Judas Maccabeus, who took over the revolt from his father, Mattathias, was able to regain Jewish freedom of religion and restoration of their temple in Jerusalem

However, over time (between around 160 BC and the early 60’s BC), Jews were divided amongst themselves when it came to whom or what they felt their promised “Messiah” should be – a spiritual leader or a military conqueror? The result of this was that the Jews divided into new groupings Those who desired a political Messiah were the Sadducees and the Zealots, and those who were more spiritually minded were the Pharisees and the Essenes

This is the world into which Jesus came, and these Jewish divisions allowed yet another world empire, the Romans, to conquer and put them under occupation once again. Their freedom had lasted about 100 years