2 MaccabeesChapter 9

2 Maccabees Chapter 9: Meaning

Antiochus is struck with a terrible disease and dies miserably after threatening to destroy Jerusalem.

Summary

King Antiochus had just been chased out of Persia after trying to rob a temple there. He was furious when he also heard that his general Nicanor had been defeated by the Jews. He shouted that he would turn Jerusalem into a mass grave. But God struck him right away with a horrible illness in his stomach.

Antiochus was still so proud that he kept going. Then he fell out of his speeding chariot and hurt every joint in his body. Worms began to grow in his body while he was still alive. His flesh rotted and the smell was so awful that nobody could stand to be near him. The man who had thought he could command the waves of the sea was now being carried on a stretcher.

Only then did Antiochus start to humble himself. He said it was right to submit to God. He made big promises, he would free Jerusalem, make Jews equal to citizens, rebuild the temple, and even become a Jew himself. But his pain did not stop because God's judgment had already come. He wrote a letter to the Jews begging for goodwill. He asked them to keep supporting his son after he died.

Antiochus died miserably in a foreign land, suffering the same kind of agonies he had inflicted on others. His companion Philip brought the body home but then had to flee to Egypt because he was afraid of what Antiochus's son would do to him.

Historical Context

This chapter describes the death of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, which happened around 164 BC. According to the author, God punished him directly for his crimes against the Jewish people and for his arrogance in plundering their temple.

Antiochus had been the greatest enemy the Jewish people faced in this period. His death was seen as a major sign that God had not forgotten them. Jewish readers would have seen the terrible nature of his death as justice for what he had done.