8
After his death, the generals took control,
9
and each had himself crowned king of his own territory. The descendants of these kings ruled for many generations and brought a great deal of misery on the world.
10
The wicked ruler Antiochus Epiphanes, son of King Antiochus the Third of Syria, was a descendant of one of Alexander's generals. Antiochus Epiphanes had been a hostage in Rome before he became king of Syria in the year 137.
1
11
At that time there appeared in the land of Israel a group of traitorous Jews who had no regard for the Law and who had a bad influence on many of our people. They said, "Let's come to terms with the Gentiles, for our refusal to associate with them has brought us nothing but trouble."
12
This proposal appealed to many people,
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and some of them became so enthusiastic about it that they went to the king and received from him permission to follow Gentile customs.
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They built in Jerusalem a stadium like those in the Greek cities.
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They had surgery performed to hide their circumcision, abandoned the holy covenant, started associating with Gentiles, and did all sorts of other evil things.
2
16
When Antiochus had firmly established himself as king, he decided to conquer Egypt and rule that country as well as Syria.
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He invaded Egypt with a large fleet of ships and a powerful army, including chariots, elephants, and cavalry.