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Simon Shadowed Tryphon Until Snow Closed the Road to Jerusalem

Jonathan was still alive in Tryphon's camp when the price arrived. Simon paid anyway. Snow, not swords, shut the last road to Jerusalem.

Curated by Arthur · Told by Maggid ·
Table of Contents
  1. Tryphon Came to Destroy
  2. Wherever He Turned
  3. The Price at Adida
  4. Snow on the Road
  5. First Across the Brook
Simon Shadowed Tryphon Until Snow Closed the Road to Jerusalem Click for full size

Tryphon Came to Destroy

Tryphon did not hide the plan. He was going to invade Judea and wreck it. He already held Jonathan Maccabee in ward, a living brother used as a key. A hostage only works if the other side still thinks a door might open. Tryphon's door was already shut.

He came down from Ptolemais with a great force and turned toward Adora, feeling for a seam. Simon did not wait behind a wall. He marched against Tryphon in every place Tryphon went. Ridge for ridge. Camp for camp. Villages on the hills watched a Jewish commander who treated presence itself as a weapon.

Jonathan was still breathing in that column. Simon knew the breath might not last the month.

Wherever He Turned

Tryphon rode toward the Jordan. Simon was already there. Tryphon circled toward Adida, a fortified rise over against the plain. Simon pitched his tents at Adida and faced him. No single battle. No speech from a wall. Two armies grinding through the same country, one hunting a weak point, the other refusing to offer one.

The men in the tower in Jerusalem sent word. Come by the wilderness. Bring food. Hurry. Tryphon readied his horsemen to move that night.

Cold camps. Bad water. Officers guessing in the dark. Simon held the line together while his brother's life sat in another man's tent.

The Price at Adida

Messengers came with a voice that sounded almost polite. Jonathan is alive. He owes money to the king's treasury from the business put in his hands. Send a hundred talents of silver and two of Jonathan's sons as further surety, and the brother will be returned.

Simon knew the lie. He also knew the people. If he refused and Jonathan died, they would say he had been too hard. If he paid and Jonathan died, they would say he had been a fool. He sent the silver. He sent the two boys. He made the gift to a man who meant to kill his brother either way.

"Open the bags," he told the officers. "Send the sons. Do not wait for me to like it."

Tryphon took the money and the boys. He did not send Jonathan back.

Snow on the Road

Before the killing, Tryphon made one more try at the interior. He turned the column toward Jerusalem. The road was open. Simon's force stood opposite him, but a night ride of horsemen can slip a seam if the weather holds.

The snow came down heavy. A very great snow, the kind that fills a pass and makes horses refuse. Tryphon's night ride did not happen. The army that had been threading ridges stood still. Simon had no command over winter. He only found himself on the right side of the one thing Tryphon could not bribe or outmarch.

Tryphon withdrew into Gilead. There he had Jonathan killed. Simon received the body and buried him at Modin, in the family tomb where Mattathias already lay. Jerusalem was not taken. Snow had saved the city that swords had not yet been asked to save.

First Across the Brook

Years later the water was the problem. John, Simon's son, rose in the morning and went down into the plain with his men. A mighty host of foot and horse waited on the other side. A brook ran between them, wide enough that the people stopped at the bank and would not go over.

John looked at their faces. He did not give a speech about courage. He stepped into the water himself. Cold up the shin, then the knee. The men watched him reach the far stones. Then they crossed after him.

He divided them on the other bank, horsemen in the midst of the foot, because the enemy horse were many. Snow had once closed a road and kept a capital. Water had asked a Maccabee to go first, and a son had answered the way his father had answered Tryphon: by being there, in front, before anyone else agreed to move.

The body in Modin did not get up. The road to Jerusalem stayed Jewish that winter because weather had a will, and because one family kept standing in the gap the weather opened.

MaccabeesChanukahProphecySinWarLeadership
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From the tradition

Sources

3 sources

The texts behind this telling. Some cards carry a translation of the source; others are our own retelling of it, and each card says which. Every card links out to the original.

The Book of Maccabees I 13:23The Book of Maccabees I

Retold in our words. Read the original at the link below.Sefaria Community Translation · CC-BY

One such moment from the Book of Maccabees I, a historical text that recounts the Maccabean revolt against the Seleucid Empire.

Our focus is on a character named Tryphon. He wasn’t exactly a nice guy. He had designs on invading the land and causing widespread destruction, circling around towards a place called Adora. But Simon, one of the leaders of the Maccabees, wasn't about to let that happen. Simon and his army shadowed Tryphon, meeting him with resistance at every turn.

Those holed up in the tower – likely Seleucid sympathizers – sent desperate messages to Tryphon. They were running low on supplies. They begged him to hurry, to come to them through the wilderness and bring them food. These folks are banking on Tryphon's arrival, their survival depending on it.

Tryphon, eager to solidify his power and crush the rebellion, immediately mobilized his cavalry, planning a night march. He was ready to ride to their rescue, or so he thought.

But then… bam! A massive snowstorm hit. Seriously, a huge one.

The wind howling, the snow piling up, visibility dropping to near zero. The Book of Maccabees I simply states, "there fell a very great snow, by reason whereof he came not."

That's it. No dramatic embellishment. Just a simple statement of fact. But what a fact! This sudden, unexpected blizzard completely foiled Tryphon's plans.

This powerful military leader, ready to wreak havoc, stopped in his tracks by a snowstorm. You can almost hear the collective sigh of relief from Simon and his forces.

Frustrated and defeated, Tryphon abandoned his rescue mission and instead, rerouted his army to the region of Galaad. The tower was left to fend for itself.

Think about the implications. What if that snowstorm hadn’t happened? What if Tryphon had reached the tower, resupplied his allies, and launched a renewed offensive against the Maccabees? History could have taken a very different turn. The Jewish people may not have won their independence, and the story of Hanukkah might never have been.

Sometimes, it’s the smallest, most unexpected events – a sudden snowstorm, a chance encounter – that change everything. As we read in the Book of Maccabees, history isn't just about grand strategies and powerful armies. It's also about the unpredictable forces of nature and the moments when destiny hangs by a thread.

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The Book of Maccabees I 16:8The Book of Maccabees I

Retold in our words. Read the original at the link below.Sefaria Community Translation · CC-BY

" We all do. It's human. But what happens when leadership means silencing that voice, not just for yourself, but for everyone following you?

Let's picture this scene. It's dawn. The sky is just beginning to lighten, painting the landscape in shades of grey and purple. The Maccabees, a small but determined band of Jewish rebels, are facing a formidable enemy. I Maccabees, chapter 16, tells us of this moment of stark confrontation. As they rise, ready for battle, they see it: a mighty great host arrayed against them, a seemingly endless line of foot soldiers and horsemen stretching across the plain.

There's just one thing between them and the enemy: a water brook. A seemingly insignificant detail. But in that moment, it becomes a symbol of fear, a barrier that tests their resolve. The men are afraid. They hesitate at the edge of the brook.

What would you do? Turn back? Look for another way?

This is where leadership truly shines. Simon Maccabeus, the leader of the Maccabees at this time, doesn't hesitate. He sees the fear in his people's eyes, and he knows he has to act. He doesn't give a rousing speech (at least, not that's recorded here). He doesn't try to reason with their fear. He simply acts.

He went first over himself.

That's it. A simple act of courage. He wades into the water, showing them that it can be done, that the barrier is not insurmountable. And what happens? The men, seeing their leader's unwavering resolve, follow him. They pass through after him.

Once across, Simon, ever the strategist, quickly organizes his forces. Knowing the enemy's strength lies in their numerous horsemen, he cleverly positions his own, intermingling them with the foot soldiers. This tactic would help protect them, limiting the effectiveness of the enemy's cavalry.

That brook, that moment of hesitation… it speaks to something deep within us. We all face our own "water brooks" – obstacles that seem daunting, challenges that make us question our ability to succeed. But sometimes, all it takes is seeing someone else take the first step, to find the courage to follow. And more importantly, a leader willing to show the way.

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The Book of Maccabees I 13:14The Book of Maccabees I

Retold in our words. Read the original at the link below.Sefaria Community Translation · CC-BY

Our story picks up with some serious political maneuvering in the wake of Jonathan's capture. Remember Jonathan? He was one of the heroic Maccabee brothers, leading the Jewish people after Judah. Now, Tryphon, a general who was scheming to take over the Seleucid Empire, has him prisoner.

We read in the First Book of Maccabees (1 Maccabees 13) that Simon, Jonathan's brother, steps up to fill that void. He camps at Adida, a strategically important location overlooking the plains. It's a clear signal: he's ready to defend Judea.

Meanwhile, Tryphon, ever the manipulator, is in Ptolemais. He sends Jonathan, the son of Absalom, and his forces to secure Joppa, a crucial port city. The First Book of Maccabees tells us that they successfully expelled the inhabitants and fortified the city. But his true plan? To invade Judea with a "great power," while holding Jonathan captive. Pretty low. Then comes the really galling part. Tryphon, realizing that Simon isn't going to just sit idly by, sends messengers to Simon. And what does he say? He claims he's holding Jonathan because Jonathan owes the king's treasury money! It's all about "business that was committed unto him," he claims.

It's a classic tactic: using a false pretense to mask a much more sinister agenda. Tryphon is trying to buy time, to weaken Simon's resolve. He’s trying to make it seem like this is just a financial matter, a simple debt. He probably hopes Simon will stand down, maybe even pay the ransom, giving Tryphon the perfect opportunity to strike.

But Simon isn't fooled. He sees through the deception. And what happens next? Well, that’s a story for another time. But I’ll give you a hint: Simon proves himself to be every bit the leader and strategist his brothers were.: how often do we face situations where someone tries to manipulate us with half-truths and convenient lies? It's a timeless struggle, and the story of Simon and Tryphon reminds us to be vigilant, to question the motives of those in power, and to stand firm in the face of injustice. Just like the Maccabees did.

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