Victor L. Parker, «Judas Maccabaeus' Campaigns against Timothy», Vol. 87 (2006) 457-476
Both 1 and 2 Maccabees mention various campaigns of Judas Maccabaeus against
an opponent called Timothy. The author argues that although 1 Maccabees in
several instances does provide more accurate detail, 2 Maccabees’ presentation
of these campaigns as chronologically discrete has the greater historical
plausibility. Additionally, 2 Maccabees alone preserves a record of a third,
historically plausible campaign against Timothy. Overall, 2 Maccabees deserves
more esteem as an historical source than it commonly receives.
Judas Maccabaeus’ Campaigns against Timothy 469
made turgid what had been a pellucid connexion between two
events (49). Still, the lack of any clear connexion between v. 30 and
what precedes it must disturb. To proceed, however: v. 31 mentions the
rebels’ transport of booty to Jerusalem (50). V. 33 follows on from that
when it speaks of the ensuing victory celebrations in the native city (51)
(49) Some examples: Florus, Epitoma de Tito Livio, I 36,10-18, abruptly
introduces Marius (13) into the account of the Jugurthine War with no indication
of the bitter quarrel between Marius and Metellus or of the political manoeuvring
whereby Metellus lost his command to Marius: indeed, Florus recounts Metellus’
success in chasing Jugurtha from Numidia and across Mauretania and Gaetulia
(12). In the next paragraph, however, we suddenly read of the new commander
Marius. Surely Livy had explained Marius’ assumption of the command better.
Eutropius, Breuiarum, IV 11 (based, in the main at least, on Livy) states in one
sentence that King Massinissa of Numidia died and left behind 44 sons. The next
sentence states that Scipio received the task of dividing the kingdom up amongst
these sons. Since Eutropius adds nothing farther to this, the reader naturally
assumes that all 44 inherited the kingdom. In fact (see Appian, Libyca, 106; cf.
Zonaras, IX 27; cf. Sallust, Bellum Iugurthinum, 5,4-6) only three sons of
Massinissa’s succeeded him. Again, Livy surely had explained this properly;
Eutropius simply copied out the notice on the number of Massinissa’s male
progeny and set after this an originally unconnected (or at any rate better
connected) statement on the division of the kingdom after Massinissa’s death.
Justin, Epitoma Historiarum Philippicarum Pompei Trogi, XI 14, 10-12, recounts
Alexander’s taking of Persepolis and then moves straight to Darius III’s captivity
and death (15,1-5). The other accounts of Alexander’s expedition make clear that
Darius III did not fall victim to his erstwhile supporters’ coup-d’état until after he
had fled from Ecbatana (whither Alexander marched from Persepolis) and had
thereby shown that he could mount no farther effective resistance against
Alexander. Finally, Diodorus, XV 76, offers us four utterly unconnected
statements on events in the year 366/365 B.C.: the seizure of Oropus from Athens
first by Eretria, then by Boeotia; the transfer of the city of Cos to a new site; a
renewal of the King’s Peace; and, finally, a list of notable intellectuals of the
period. Surely, Ephorus’ history, which Diodorus was abridging, had had some
sort of a connected narrative here, several salient sections of which Diodorus
simply summarised briefly without any attempt at achieving narrative coherence.
(50) Some scholars (e.g. BUNGE, Untersuchungen, 280; BAR-KOCHVA, Judas,
510-511) have felt that the reference to the transport of the booty to Jerusalem
presupposes that Judas had already taken possession of the city. This may be so,
but it does not tell us how long Judas had held the city nor how exactly he took it.
(51) On the sense of patriv" see ABEL, Livres, 395. BUNGE, Untersuchungen,
281 (whom HABICHT, 2. Makkabäerbuch, 242 note b to verse 33, follows), argues
that patriv" here must mean “home†as opposed to “native city,†but finds it
“kaum glaubhaft†when he comes to the word’s concrete interpretation, that
“Judaea†– the only other conceivable possibility – could be meant (284). The
aporia out of which he then seeks escape is entirely of his own making.