Antiochus begins to oppress the Jews
15 After King Seleucus died, his son Antiochus Epiphanes came to power. He was a proud and horrible man.
16
Antiochus removed Onias from the office of high priest and installed Onias' brother Jason in his place.
17
Jason had agreed to pay the king three thousand six hundred sixty talents every year if he were made high priest.
18
So Antiochus appointed Jason to the office of high priest and made him the ruler of the nation.
19
Jason changed the nation's culture and the government so that they completely contradicted the Law.
20
He constructed a Greek school and athletic complex in the heart of the city and abandoned the care of the temple.
21
God's sense of justice was provoked by these things, so God caused Antiochus himself to start a war against the nation.
22
While Antiochus was at war with Ptolemy in Egypt, he heard that the people in Jerusalem had celebrated when they heard a rumor about his death. So Antiochus rushed off to attack them.
23
After he had defeated them, he gave an order that anyone who was caught following the traditional Jewish Law should be put to death.
24
However, his orders had no effect on the people's commitment to keep the Law. He saw that they simply ignored his threats and punishments.
25
Even women were thrown down from a cliff headfirst along with their infants because they continued to circumcise their sons, though they were fully aware that they would suffer the consequences.
26
When Antiochus saw how his orders were despised, he himself tried to use torture to force each and every person in the nation to give up Judaism by eating foods that were unacceptable to Jews.