Fascinating: The Miracle That Stopped Heliodorus from Taking the Temple Treasures
Heliodorus indeed came to Jerusalem and demanded from Onias the High Priest the keys to the treasury chambers. He demanded access to any place where money was kept, and had already brought transport animals and a guard to take the money to the kingdom.
- יהוסף יעבץ
- פורסם כ"ב כסלו התשפ"ה
#VALUE!
In 187 BCE, Antiochus the Great (III), king of the Seleucid Empire, which ruled from Israel to India, died, and his son Seleucus IV became king. He continued his father's tradition of supporting the Jews because they were loyal to him. He regularly sent special gifts to the Temple in Jerusalem.
What changed the situation was an internal conflict in Jerusalem. Shimon the Yemenite was a Temple treasurer, responsible for receiving and recording funds, but he wanted to also take the position of agronomos, the officer for measurements and weights in Jerusalem's markets. Onias the High Priest decided he would not receive the position. Burning with anger, Shimon went to Apollonius, the Greek governor in Syria, and told him it was a waste of the king's income to give to the Temple in Jerusalem, as the Temple had endless treasures, accumulating far beyond the needs of sacrifices and the Temple.
Apollonius, seeing an opportunity to gain favor with the king and make money, immediately approached King Seleucus and informed him of Shimon the treasurer's words. The message arrived at a significant moment: Seleucus had a huge debt to the Roman kingdom and saw this as an opportunity to solve the issue.
King Seleucus announced he was appointing his trustee Heliodorus as overseer of all the temples in Syria and that he would oversee the funds, meaning he could take funds at will from the Temple for "all the temples," and if money was lacking, he would ensure the needs were met. This was how he planned to seize the Temple treasures.
Several decades ago, an antiquities dealer approached American philanthropist Michael Steinhardt and offered him a Greek inscription from the Second Temple period, which the dealer refused to disclose the source of. Steinhardt purchased the inscription, and a team of researchers launched an undercover operation to identify its origin. The investigation concluded it was stolen from a cave in Beit Guvrin in the lowlands. This inscription was written in 178 BCE, describing the order appointing Heliodorus as overseer of the temples, signed by Seleucus IV. The inscription is called "Heliodorus Inscription," and it is currently located in the Israel Museum. Its original purpose was to place its copy in every temple to make it clear the funds did not belong to the temples but only to the king's envoy.
Heliodorus indeed came to Jerusalem and demanded from Onias the High Priest the keys to the treasury chambers. Onias replied that there were many deposits of reputable people's funds in the Temple, as well as funds designated for widows and orphans, but Heliodorus refused to listen. He demanded access to any place where money was kept, and had already brought transport animals and a guard to take the money to the kingdom.
Heliodorus held the keys he received from the High Priest and began ascending the steps from the Women's Court. The moment his feet touched the threshold, he saw a chariot and horses of fire descending from the heavens. Boys came down and started beating him until he fainted. When he regained consciousness, he gathered his men and fled Jerusalem in shame, while informing Seleucus that the Jewish funds could not be touched.
The name of the Jews and the God of Israel grew. At that time, Areus, king of Sparta and leader of the Lacedaemonians, sent a letter to Onias, the High Priest, in these words: "King of the Lacedaemonians, Areus, to Onias, greetings. We came across a document and found that the Jews and the Lacedaemonians are of the same lineage, from the house of Abraham. Therefore, it is right that you send us messengers to inform us of your wishes, for we are brothers. We will also do the same and regard yours as ours."
But Shimon the Yemenite did not give up on his malicious plans. He sent messengers to King Seleucus, describing how Onias the High Priest insulted the king's envoys, embezzled funds, and more. Onias resolved to travel to the capital Antioch to present the truth to the king and demand Shimon's dismissal from the Temple's treasurer position. In 175 BCE, Onias set out to Antioch but, unfortunately, when he arrived, it turned out that King Seleucus IV had died, and his brother Antiochus IV, son of Antiochus the Great (III), had taken the throne.