2,634 related texts · Page 133 of 293
The Letter of Aristeas, a fascinating text that purports to describe how the Septuagint – the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible – came to be, gives us a glimpse into just such ...
More than just inspiration, more than just beautiful writing. Sometimes, it takes a good old-fashioned curse. I’m talking about the story of the Septuagint, the Greek translation o...
The Letter of Aristeas tells us all about it. Our story involves Ptolemy Philadelphus, the King of Egypt in the 3rd century BCE, and his grand plan to include Jewish law in his fam...
Manasseh, King of Judah. Not exactly a role model. The Bible paints a pretty grim picture: idol worship, child sacrifice, all sorts of wickedness. You can read about it in 2 Kings ...
Mattathias, father of the Maccabees, certainly felt that way. Our story isn't from the Hebrew Bible we know as the Tanakh. This comes from the First Book of Maccabees, part of the ...
What would you do? Where would you go? This is precisely the situation facing Mattathias and his sons in the Book of Maccabees I, Chapter 2. They've just made a monumental decision...
Our story takes us to Idumea, a region south of Judea. Here, the forces of the Seleucid Empire, under the command of King Antiochus V, were making their way through the land. Their...
Oaths! These weren't just casual promises; they were serious, binding agreements. People were released from a stronghold, probably feeling a sense of relief and maybe even a little...
The story of the Maccabees, as recounted in the Book of Maccabees I, is filled with such moments. And Chapter 7 gives us a glimpse into the raw, brutal realities of leadership in a...
