To learn about Mattathias, we need to learn about Joarib. Joarib (spelled Jehoiarib in 1st Chronicles) was part of the 24 priestly divisions that served at the First Temple, which Solomon had built (1 Chronicles 24:7). After the Babylonian exile, Joarib (no doubt from the Joarib priestly division) was a priest who was one of first settlers to return to Jerusalem around 538 BC. Mattathias was descended from that Joarib. So Mattathias had some priestly lineage.
Mattathias
Read 1 Maccabees 2:1-14
Again, we see the writer use poetry to describe how deeply the blasphemies taking place in Judea bothered Mattathias.
Woe is me!
Why was I born to see the ruin of my people,
the ruin of the holy city?
The people sat idly by
when it was given over to the enemy
and the sanctuary to the stranger.
Her Temple has become like someone stripped of honor
and its glorious furnishings have been taken into captivity.
Her infants have been slain in the streets
and her youth by the sword of the foe.
What nation has not usurped her sovereignty
and seized her spoils?
She has been stripped of her adornment.
In place of freedom, she has become a slave.
Look and see! Our holy place, our beauty,
have all been destroyed.
The Gentiles have profaned it!
What have we left to live for?
– What is the state of Israel?
– When Mattathias says, “[the Temple’s] glorious furnishings have been taken into captivity,” what is he implying has happened to the people?
– What does the last line of the lament tell us?
The Action at Modein
Read 1 Maccabees 2:15-18
– What did the king’s officers demand of Mattathias and his sons?
Read 1 Maccabees 2:19-28
– How did Matthias respond to the events that unfolded there?
– How did this force Mattathias’ hand to begin a revolt?
– Where did Mattathias and his sons flee?
The Occupiers Respond
Read 1 Maccabees 2:29-41
– What started to happen with what Mattathias and his sons began?
– What happened to a group that had gone into the wilderness to protest Antiochus’ decrees?
– What does Mattathias conclude about refusing to fight on the Sabbath?
NT Tie-In: In Mark 3, Jesus, surrounded by Pharisees, healed a man with a withered hand on the Sabbath. Before He healed the man, Jesus asked: “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” When Jesus said that, He hailed back to Israelite history, in particular 1 Maccabees 2:34-41. That’s when the Jews temporarily suspended the Sabbath observance, when needed, to permit defensive warfare. That was the “doing good” that needed to be done on the Sabbath. For the enemy had learned that if they attacked on the Sabbath, the Jews wouldn’t fight back. Jesus was, in effect, saying, “If Israel didn’t observe the Sabbath when needed to “do good,” then can I not “do good” to heal a man’s hand on the Sabbath?”
Read 1 Maccabees 2:42-48
We find a group joining the Maccabees. They are the Hasideans (Greek), which in Hebrew would be Chasidim (or Hasidim). This named is based on the Hebrew root word Chesed, which means something like “loyal, faithful, and enduring love.” This group wanted to be loyal and faithful to God.
These Chasidim first banded together following the return from the Babylonian exile to encourage one another in the study and practice of the Law. Because remaining true to God’s Law meant much to them, they joined with the Maccabees against the Seleucids who tried to force them to become culturally and religiously Greek.
These Chasidim were not interested in the politics of the Maccabees, as long as they strictly observed the Law of Moses. Later, when the Maccabees become priests serving in the Temple, the Chasidim withdrew their support. They then became known as the Perushim or “separated ones.” It is from Perushim where we get the word “Pharisee.” We first hear of the Pharisees during the reign of John Hyrcanus, mentioned at the end of 1st Maccabees. The historian Josephus mentions the Pharisees already existing by about 150 BC.
– Who joined the ranks of the Maccabees?
– What happened when the Maccabees made their way through Judea?
The Death of Mattathias
Read 1 Maccabees 2:49-60
NT Tie-In: Before his death, following Israelite tradition, Mattathias verbally delivers his last will and testament. We see this with Jacob in Genesis 49, Moses in Deuteronomy 33, Joshua in Joshua 23, Samuel in 1 Samuel 12, and David in 1 Kings 2. However, Mattathias’ last will and testament differs. He lists whom he considers to be heroes of the faith and tells his sons to be faithful like them.
The writer of the NT book of Hebrews draws from Mattathias’ “death speech” for Hebrews chapter 11. In that chapter, Hebrews also lists heroes of the faith. Yet, when the readers of Hebrews saw such a list, it would do more than encourage simply because it listed heroes of the faith. It would also encourage because the readers would see that they were current-day sons of Mattathias also contending for the faith. They would see themselves as “true Jews” unlike the majority of the Jews who continued to follow the Old Covenant.
Mattathias’ Heroes of the Faith
Abraham: Genesis 22:1-18: Remained faithful even when tested concerning his son, Isaac.
Joseph: Genesis 39, 41:39-44: Did not have sex with Potiphar’s wife and ended up in jail because of it.
Phineas: Numbers 25:1-13: Remained zealous for the Lord when Israel began adopting pagan practices.
Joshua: Numbers 27:18-23; Joshua 1:1-9: Completed the task given him.
Caleb: Joshua 14:6-15: One of two spies (the other was Joshua) who recommended to the Israelites that they go into the Land of Canaan.
David: 1 Samuel 24:1-7; 2 Samuel 7:16: Showed mercy to Saul and did not kill him when Saul went into a cave.
Elijah: 1 Kings 19:1-14; 2 Kings 2:11: Elijah showed zeal for God when most of the Israelites had adopted pagan worship. Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal. He was taken directly into heaven and did not die.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: Daniel 3:8-30: Continued to believe in God instead of committing acts of worship to King Nebuchadnezzar, even though they were thrown into a furnace to be burned alive. God spared them.
Daniel: Daniel 6:10-23; Bel and the Dragon: Although we would think of Daniel remaining faithful and still praying as he always did, with his window open facing Jerusalem, Mattathias was not only referring to that. By his word “innocent,” Mattathias also points us to Daniel remaining “innocent” when he exposed corruption among the pagan priests, which also contributed to him being thrown into the den of lions.
– Through bringing the life stories of these particular people to mind, Mattathias is reminding his sons who they are and how they are to live. Discuss.
Read 1 Maccabees 2:61-64
1 Corinthians 10:12-13: Whoever thinks he is standing securely should watch out so he doesn’t fall. No temptation has overtaken you that is not faced by others. God is faithful, and he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you can bear. Instead, with the temptation, he will also provide a way out so you can endure it.
– What will God do for those who hope in Him?
– In contrast to the one who trusts in God (in Mattathias’ day who also trusted in the Messiah to come), what is the end “of the sinner”?
– What is the last word of encouragement that Mattathias gives?
Read 1 Maccabees 2:65-70
– What will be Simon’s role?
– What will be Judas’ role?
