The harsh decrees of Antiochus Epiphanes against the Jews had the opposite effect from what he had intended. When he forbade religious practices and had the temple dedicated to a pagan deity, he sparked a Jewish struggle for freedom that lasted for over two decades, ushering in the Hasmonean dynasty. This brief companion to the study of one of the most significant eras in the Second Temple period is a great resource for students desiring to contextualize one of the many ancient struggles for the existence of the Jewish people and the Jewish identity.
