The Struggle for the High Priesthood: How Greek Culture Entered Jerusalem
Besides desecrating the position of the high priest and turning it into a post bought with money, Yeshua was generally inclined towards Greek culture. He changed his name to Jason and began preparing to turn Jerusalem into a Greek 'Polis'.
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In 175 BCE, Onias the high priest traveled to Antioch to clear his name from the accusations spread against him by Jewish traitors, led by Shimon the Yemini. Upon his arrival in Antioch, he discovered that King Seleucus had died, and now the king was Antiochus IV. The new king, who was busy with the affairs of his kingdom, had no time for the Jewish high priest, and Onias waited patiently.
Meanwhile, the younger brother of Onias, named Yeshua, arrived at the king. Yeshua claimed that Onias was neglecting the Temple, not serving as a priest but rather sitting in Antioch... he supports Ptolemy, embezzles funds, and more. Therefore, he proposed that the king appoint him, Yeshua, as high priest, and in return he would pay 440 talents of silver.
The greedy king signed the appointment immediately, and Yeshua returned to Jerusalem and made it official. It was the first time a high priest left his position and another took over, and under such disgraceful circumstances. Besides desecrating the position of the high priest and turning it into a post bought with money, Yeshua was generally inclined towards Greek culture. He changed his name to Jason and began preparing to turn Jerusalem into a Greek 'Polis'. He established a gymnasium and ephebeum, institutions for Greek culture, and began registering citizens who wished to become citizens of Greece. Thus, the priests would offer the morning sacrifice, and in the afternoon, they would descend to the valley at the foot of the City of David (near today's Sultan's Pool) to practice gymnastics immodestly.
For three years Jason ruled Jerusalem. In 172 BCE, a Greek Olympic event was held in Tyre, and all the Polis cities sent delegations to compete in various sports. From Jerusalem came, to much shame, a delegation of priests to compete as well. Jason sent a monetary gift from the Temple to the Tyrian idol, Heracles, but the priests refused to betray Hashem to that extent and gave the gift to renovate the port of Tyre.
Jason's brother, Onias, who was deposed from the high priesthood by him, remained in Antioch. He feared the long reach of his corrupt brother. Immediately after the Tyrian Olympic event, Jason sent his Hellenized friend Menelaus (Simon the Yemini's brother) to settle the payments promised to Antiochus. They systematically transferred money from the Temple to the king, thereby securing control over Judea. On this trip, Menelaus was supposed to apologize for the late payments and compensated the king's official with gold items stolen from the Temple. Onias, who was in the city and heard about it, could not restrain himself and protested strongly against the desecration and embezzlement of the Temple items. Menelaus hired a Greek official named Andronicos to kill Onias, and thus the last high priest from the house of Zadok was murdered.
Onias' son (according to one version), Onias IV, believed he deserved the priesthood, and seeing he had no chance as the priesthood in Jerusalem continued to deteriorate, he left for Egypt and established a Jewish temple there, which later became known as the Temple of Onias.
The fate of a traitor is that he is betrayed. Menelaus, Jason's official, asked himself: if I'm already betraying the sacred, cheating, stealing, and bribing the king and his officials, why do it for Jason? I'll offer the money for my own appointment! He said and did, and on his next trip to Antioch, he transferred a large sum from the Temple treasures to the king, in exchange for a promise to appoint him as the high priest.
In 170 BCE, Menelaus returned to Jerusalem at the head of a guard, expelled his former friend Yeshua from the city, and warned him that if he approached Jerusalem, he would hang him. He took the high priesthood for himself and appointed Lysimachus as a plunderer in the service of the high priest, who roamed the shops and estates, taking whatever he desired to please the king and his officials. Menelaus was even worse than Yeshua. He trampled on the commandments of the Temple and the people of Judea and Jerusalem.