chapter three
SOUTHERN LEVANT BETWEEN ANTIOCHUS III AND ANTIOCHUS IV EPIPHANES
. Ant. .–: Seleucids, Ptolemies and Tobiads
In chapter II we have seen that the first decades of the nd century bce, after the end ofthe Ptolemaic rule and before the Maccabean revolt, between th and th Syrian war, were for Samaria and the surrounding regions a period of relative stability and we can observe one of the results of this flowering on Mt. Gerizim. Very precious information about this period is reported by Josephus in book XII of Jewish Antiquities. The period from the conquest of Palestine by Antiochus III to the accession of Antiochus IV Epiphanes is described in Ant. .–. The historical value of some data furnished in this text was often rejected by modern historians because they report for the period between the th and the th Syrian war in Coele- Syria and Phoenicia that there was the existence of some kind of mixture of Ptolemaic-Seleucid system under Seleucid-Ptolemaic administration. At the same time this text is one of the important sources about Coele-Syria and Phoenicia in the first decades of the nd century bce. It is necessary, for this reason, to analyze its historical value. This text significantly illuminates the international political context not only of the former Ptolemaic possessions in the southern Levant but also of Samaria which was integral part of it. Samaria is treated by Josephus several times in Ant. .–. Samaria is mentioned among the regions of which Antiochus III took possession during the th Syrian war.1 Afterwards he gave the taxes from Samaria, Coele-Syria, Judaea and Phoenicia as a dowry to his daugh- ter Cleopatra who married Antiochus III’s adversary Ptolemy V Epiphanes.2 This happened, according to Josephus, in the time of prosperity of the Samarians, when they harmed to the Judaeans.3 Josephus also reports that, after the th Syrian war, the taxes were collected in Samaria and other regions by Joseph the Tobiad, for the period of years.4 The text of Ant. .– concerning the period between the conquest of Antiochus III and the beginning of the rule of Antiochus IV can be divided in two parts: brief summary of the th and the th Syrian wars (Ant. .–), which can be understood as historical introduction to the stories of Joseph and Hyrcanus from the Tobiad family, and the stories themselves about Joseph and Hyrcanus (Ant. .–).
1 Ant. ., . 2 Ant. .–. 3 Ant. .. 4 Samaria is mentioned three times in the story of Joseph the Tobiad. In the beginning of his career, Joseph borrowed money from his friends in Samaria in order to prepare his travel to Alexandria (Ant. .). In Alexandria he bought the right to collect the taxes in Coele-Syria, Phoenicia, Judaea and Samaria (Ant. .–). Joseph controlled the taxes of Syria, Phoenicia and Samaria during years (Ant. .). See the commentary of these texts by R. Pummer, , pp. –. chapter three
.. Ant. .–: th and th Syrian Wars and Their Consequences The text of Ant. .– very briefly summarizes the th Syrian war (–bce) between Antiochus III and Ptolemy IV Philopator.5 Then the text describes—also very briefly—the th Syrian war (–bce) between Antiochus III and Ptolemy V Epiphanes which ended with the annexation of Coele-Syria and Phoenicia to the Seleucid kingdom.6 These brief summaries, illustrated by Josephus’ quotation of Polybius,7 are followed by two letters and one decree ascribed to Antiochus III illustrating the consequences of the victory of Antiochus III for the Judaeans. The first of the letters (Ant. .–) is addressed by Antiochus III to his governor Ptolemy8 and concerns the help of the Judaeans to Seleucids during the conquest and the subsequent privileges attributed by Antiochus III to the Judaeans in the matter of sacrifices, of the reconstruction of the Jerusalem temple, of the administrative autonomy, of fiscal politics, etc. This letter is followed by the decree of Antiochus III (Ant. .–) forbidding foreigners to enter the enclosure of the Jerusalem temple if they do not live in accordance with the local law and other interdictions under the penalty of , drachmas of silver to the priests. The second letter (Ant. .–) is addressed by Antiochus III to Zeuxis, governor of Lydia, with the request to transport , of Jewish families from Mesopotamia and Babylonia to Phrygia.
.. Ant. .–: The Tobiads The texts that follow (Ant. .–), describing the events from the th Syrian war until the beginning of reign of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, are essentially focused on the question of colleting taxes in Coele-Syria with special regard to the persons of Joseph, son of Tobias, and his son Hyrcanus. The stories of Joseph and Hyrcanus are connected and share many features. Joseph is featured in Ant. .– and Hyrcanus in Ant. .–. The text of Ant. .– concerns both of them. The stories of Joseph and Hyrcanus consist of two main elements: a) the chronological and genealogical clues representing the skeleton of the chronological framework of the narration, and b) the narration itself of different stories. Let’s now focus on the chronological frame- work.
. Chronology of Josephus in Ant. .–
The first chronological clue is in Ant. .–. The stories of Joseph, son of Tobias, and of Hyrcanus, son of Joseph, are introduced by the conclusion of the dotal agreement between Antiochus III and Ptolemy V Epiphanes after the th Syrian war. This agreement consisted of the marriage of Cleopatra, daughter of Antiochus III, with Ptolemy V Epiphanes: Cleopatra
5 J.D. Grainger, , pp. –. 6 J.D. Grainger, , pp. –. 7 Ant. .–. 8 Probably Ptolemy, son of Thraseas, who was strategos and chief-priest of Syria and Phoenicia under Ptolemy V and under Antiochus III as well. This Ptolemy is attested in the Hefzibah inscription and other sources. See chapter II...