Hypertext Bible

Polyglot Bible: 2 Macabees: 2 Macabees 6

Book of ActsGreek New TestamentPolyglot Bible

Summary only - full text stays on its own separately-gated source. Read the full text at the source »

This is a passage from 2 Maccabees chapter 6, a deuterocanonical Jewish historical text from the Hellenistic period, presented here in three parallel versions: an English translation, the Greek Septuagint, and the Latin Vulgate. The passage describes the Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes' systematic persecution of Jews in Judea: the Temple in Jerusalem was desecrated and rededicated to Zeus Olympius, observance of Jewish law was outlawed on pain of death, and Jews were compelled to participate in pagan rites. The text documents specific atrocities, including women being executed for circumcising their sons and Sabbath observers being burned alive in caves. The second half centers on Eleazar, an elderly scribe who refuses to eat pork even when given a private escape — he could secretly eat his own kosher food while pretending to comply. His notable argument for refusal is not primarily theological but pedagogical: he fears that young Jews would be deceived into apostasy by his pretended compliance, and that hypocrisy to save a few more years of life would dishonor his entire reputation. The text frames the persecution not as divine abandonment but as corrective chastisement, arguing that God punishes Israel promptly and in proportion — a sign of ongoing care — rather than letting sins accumulate as with other nations.

Polyglot Bible: 2 Macabees: 2 Macabees 6

Related pages View as graph →