2 Maccabees
About this date: Dates are broad scholarly estimates of composition or final editing, not dates of the events narrated. Traditional attributions and scholarly assessments can differ.
2 Maccabees is an epitome of Jason of Cyrene's work, with letters and a rhetorically shaped account of the temple crisis and Judas's struggle. Martyrdom, resurrection hope, prayer, and divine judgment receive more explicit attention than in 1 Maccabees.
Historical context
The book overlaps part of 1 Maccabees rather than continuing where it ends. The epitomist identifies a larger source, but that source no longer survives as a complete independent work.
Key points
- The preface explains the task of condensing a larger history.
- The martyrs' speeches explicitly connect bodily suffering with hope of restoration by God.
- Prayer for the dead is a major Orthodox and Catholic reception point; Protestants dispute its canonical authority and later doctrinal use.
Scripture
- 2 Maccabees 2:19-32 — The epitomist names Jason's five books and describes the work of abridgment.
- 2 Maccabees 7:1-42 — The mother and seven brothers express resurrection hope within the martyr narrative.
- 2 Maccabees 12:38-45 — The account interprets the offering for fallen soldiers through resurrection hope; it does not supply a full later doctrinal system.
- Hebrews 11:35-40 — The reference to torture and a better resurrection is often compared with Maccabean martyr traditions; Hebrews does not name 2 Maccabees.
Sources and further reading
- 2 Maccabees: complete public-domain WEB text
- Anglican Thirty-Nine Articles: canonical books and Apocrypha
- Catholic Catechism §120: canon and book list
- Orthodox Church in America: canon of Scripture
- Orthodox Church in America: Old Testament historical books
- USCCB Bible introductions: historical and literary notes