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2 Maccabees 3:1-2
New Catholic Bible
2 Maccabees 3:1-2
New Catholic Bible
Heliodorus’s Attempt to Profane the Temple[a]
Chapter 3
Heliodorus Arrives in Jerusalem. 1 While the holy city enjoyed total peace and the laws were strictly observed because of the piety of the high priest Onias[b] and his abhorrence of wickedness, 2 the kings themselves honored the holy place and enhanced the glory of the temple with the most magnificent gifts,
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 2 Maccabees 3:1 This legendary episode about Heliodorus is set forth to stress the inviolability of the temple of Jerusalem. It was only because of the people’s sins that God later allowed it to incur profanation (see 2 Mac 5:17f).
- 2 Maccabees 3:1 The high priest Onias: Onias III, who was high priest from 196–175 B.C. and died in 171 B.C. Sirach 50:1-21 has high praise for his father Simon.
