11 Facts About Alcimus

Alcimus was a moderate Hellenizer who favored the ruling government of the Seleucid Empire and opposed the Maccabean Revolt which was in progress at the time.

Alcimus is described as a leader of the Hellenizing faction of Hellenistic Judaism that favored more enthusiastic adoption of Greek practices and less adherence to Jewish law.

Alcimus was a descendant of the Biblical Aaron, brother of Moses, and possibly himself was in the high-priestly line.

Alcimus was of the Hellenizing party, and therefore bitterly opposed by the Maccabees.

The favor with which Alcimus was received by the Jews at Jerusalem on account of his Aaronic descent was turned to hate by his cruelties.

Related searches

Alcimus ordered the arrest and execution of 60 Jews, apparently members of the Hasideans.

Alcimus returned to Demetrius I to ask for more troops to fight the rebels.

Nicanor at first attempted to make a peace deal with Judas; 2 Maccabees reports that Alcimus sabotaged the deal by complaining to Demetrius I Nicanor then attempted to arrest Judas and eventually went into the countryside to fight the Maccabees; he was defeated and killed, however.

Alcimus did not long enjoy his triumph, since he died soon after.

The author of 1 Maccabees describes any who worked with Alcimus as godless traitors, but it seems that there was a branch of moderates caught in the middle - moderate Hellenists who were happy to work with Alcimus as long as religious protections were guaranteed and Antiochus IV's decrees stayed repealed.

One theory of Alcimus's successor is that it was the Righteous Teacher, a mysterious figure described in the Qumran Habakkuk Commentary, one of the Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in 1947.