II Maccabees Vol. 41A : A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary

II Maccabees continues the chronicle of the "Time of the Troubles" (167-64 B.C.E.), begun in I Maccabees. It recounts the stories of conflict between militant Jews, led by Judas Maccabaeus, and their Hellenistic oppressors. Aside from the story of the struggle to control the temple and the holy city of Jerusalem, though, II Maccabees shares little in common with I Maccabees. The second volume of reflections of Jewry in the generation following the Maccabaean revolt presents and evaluates the experience from its own unique perspective.

How these events came to be written, who told the stories, and what reasons motivated such divergent yet parallel interpretations are the questions Jonathan A. Goldstein, translator and commentator on both Maccabaean histories, addresses here. Goldstein utilizes the full array of scholarly tools to examine the critical issues raised by II Maccabees. By examining its language and style, its Hellenic yet Jewish flavor, its comparison and relationship to I Maccabees, its use of sacred writings (Torah and Prophets), its historical context, and the role of the miraculous, Goldstein thoroughly elucidates this powerful account of a pivotal period in Jewish history.

As the commentary makes clear, II Maccabees focuses on certain themes: miracles as God's tools for shaping history; the holiness of the Jerusalem temple; the dynamic relationship between the Hasmonaean rulers and their pious opponents; praise of martyrdom; the doctrine of resurrection. An abridgment of Jason of Cyrene's work, II Maccabees advances its own theological perspective to its Greek-speaking audience, refuting the Hasmonaean partisan's view that pervades I Maccabees.

Jonathan A. Goldstein, author of I Maccabees, is Professor of History and Classics at the University of Iowa. He earned bachelor's and master's degrees at Harvard, and a doctorate at Columbia University.

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Francis I. Andersen, University of Queensland, Australia (Emeritus). C24, C24A

Markus Barth, University of Basel. C34, C34A, C34B [d. 1994]

Adele Berlin, University of Maryland. C25A

Helmut Blanke, Doctor of Theology from the University of Basel. C34B

Joseph Blenkinsopp, University of Notre Dame. RL5

Robert G. Boling, McCormick Theological Seminary. C6, C6A

John Bright, Union Theological Seminary, Richmond. C21

Raymond E. Brown, S.S., Union Theological Seminary, New York (Emeritus). C29, C29A, C30, RL1, RL8

George W. Buchanan, Wesley Theological Seminary. C36

Edward F. Campbell, Jr., McCormick Theological Seminary. C7

James H. Charlesworth, Princeton Theological Seminary. RL4

Mordechai Cogan, Hebrew University, Jerusalem. C11 John J. Collins, University of Chicago. RL11

James L. Crenshaw, Duke Divinity School. C24C

Mitchell Dahood, S.J., The Pontifical Biblical Institute. C16, C17, C17A [d. 1982]

Alexander A. Di Lella, O.F.M., Catholic University of America. C23, C39

Joseph A. Fitzmyer, S.J., Jesuit Community, Boston College. C28, C28A, C33

J. Massyngberde Ford, University of Notre Dame. C38

David Noel Freedman, University of Michigan (Emeritus) and University of California, San Diego. General Editor. C24, C24A

Victor P. Furnish, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University. C32A

Jonathan A. Goldstein, University of Iowa. C41, C41A Moshe Greenberg, Hebrew University, Jerusalem. C22

Louis F. Hartman, C.SS.R., Catholic University of America. C23 [d. 1970]Delbert R. Hillers, Johns Hopkins University. C7A

Luke Timothy Johnson, Candler School of Theology, Emory University. C37A

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P. Kyle McCarter, Jr., Johns Hopkins University. C8, C9

John L. McKenzie, De Paul University. C20 [d. 1991]

C. S. Mann, formerly Coppin State College. C26, C27

Amihai Mazar, Institute of Archaeology of Hebrew University, Jerusalem. RL2

John P. Meier, Catholic University of America. RL3, RL10

Doron Mendels, Hebrew University, Jerusalem. RL6

Carol L. Meyers, Duke University. C25B, C25C

Eric M. Meyers, Duke University. C25B, C25C

Jacob Milgrom, University of California, Berkeley (Emeritus). C3, C3A

Carey A. Moore, Gettysburg College. C7B, C40, C40A, C44

Johannes Munch, Aarhus University. C31 [d. 1965]

Jacob M. Myers, Lutheran Theological Seminary, Gettysburg. C12, C13, C14, C42 [d. 1991]

Jacob Neusner, University of South Florida at Tampa. RL9

Jerome H. Neyrey, University of Notre Dame. C37C

William F. Orr, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. C32 [d. 1993]

Brian Peckham, Regis College, Toronto University. RL7

Marvin H. Pope, Yale University (Emeritus). C7C, C15

Jerome D. Quinn, St. Paul Seminary. C35, C35A [d. 1988]

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William C. Wacker, Master of Theology, St. Johns University. C35A

James Arthur Walther, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary (Emeritus). C32

Moshe Weinfeld, Hebrew University, Jerusalem. C5

David Winston, Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley (Emeritus). C43

G. Ernest Wright, Semitic Museum, Harvard University. C6 [d. 1974]