Judas hears of the Romans: their victories over the Galatians, in Spain, over Philip and Perseus and over Antiochus the great; their faithfulness to their friends; and a senate of three hundred and twenty men in which no one wears a crown or purple. He sends Eupolemus and Jason to Rome to make a league of amity and to take the Greek yoke off Israel. The senate answers on tables of brass: each people will help the other if attacked, without taking anything for it, and Rome warns Demetrius that it will fight him by sea and by land if the Jews complain again.
1 Maccabees 8 - Summary
Summary
Read 1 Maccabees Chapter 8 Summary
Original
Characters in This Chapter
Mattathias
Priest of Modin who refuses to sacrifice to idols, launches the revolt and on his deathbed names Judas captain
Judas Maccabeus
Son of Mattathias and leader of the revolt, who wins at Emmaus, rededicates the Temple and falls at Eleasa
Antiochus IV Epiphanes
Seleucid king who plunders the Temple, outlaws the law and sets up the abomination of desolation, then dies in Persia
Philip
Apostle from Bethsaida
Lydia
Seller of Purple, First European Convert
John the Baptist
Forerunner of the Messiah
Places in This Chapter
Jerusalem
View on MapCity plundered and garrisoned by Antiochus, won back by Judas, rebuilt by Jonathan and freed of its Syrian tower by Simon
The Temple
View on MapSanctuary profaned by the abomination of desolation in the 145th year and rededicated by Judas three years later to the day
Modin
View on MapTown of Mattathias, where the revolt begins and where the family is buried under Simon's monument
Antioch (Syria)
View on MapRoyal city of the Seleucid kings, from which the armies set out, and where Jonathan's soldiers save Demetrius from a rising
Rome
View on MapRome was the capital of the Roman Empire and became a significant center of early Christianity. The apostle Paul wrote his most theological letter to the church in Rome and eventually traveled there as a prisoner. Both Peter and Paul are traditionally believed to have been martyred in Rome. Paul's Letter to the Romans is foundational to Christian theology, addressing salvation, grace, and the relationship between Jews and Gentiles.
Position in Book
Persecution under AntiochusChapters 1
Mattathias Takes a StandChapters 2
Judas and the RededicationChapters 3-4
Wars Around JudeaChapters 5-6
Nicanor's Day and the Roman AllianceChapters 7-8
Alcimus and Nicanor are sent against Judas, Nicanor falls on the thirteenth of Adar, and Judas makes a league with Rome.
The Death of Judas and the Rise of JonathanChapters 9-12
Simon and IndependenceChapters 13-14
Simon's Last YearsChapters 15-16