All citations are taken from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV).
Important content in the book
DeSilva points out that the “The title of this work is a misnomer, since the events it describes are supposed posed to have occurred fifty years before the Maccabean Revolt and mostly in Egypt rather than in Israel.”[1]
The story begins in the middle of a sentence: Ptolemy insists on going into the Jewish sanctuary. Yet he is beaten up and sent to Egypt. He offers Diaspora Jews citizenship in return for worshipping Pagan gods. Those who disagree were sent to be killed—trampled by war elephants drunk on wine and frankincense.
The faithful Jews execute the apostate Jews.
The purpose of this book is to show that God delivers faithful people in the Diaspora, even though they’re away from the Temple.
Manuscripts
Codex Alexandrinus and Codex Venetus contain the book. Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus do not contain this book.[2]
Date
The book could date as earlier as 217 BC, or as late as AD 70.[3] DeSilva writes, “One cannot be dogmatic about the date of the composition of the book.”[4]
Historical or theological problems
The book is “historical romance” or “Greek Romance.” DeSilva writes, “The author was seeking to write not history but an edifying tale loosely anchored in history.”[5] He continues, DeSilva writes, “The view of the majority of scholars, however, is that 3 Maccabees is largely a piece of historical fiction—well-informed historical fiction when it comes to the details that produce verisimilitude, to be sure, but, as concerns an enforced forced assimilation and persecution of the Jews under Ptolemy IV, not a reliable source.”[6]
[1] David A. deSilva, Introducing the Apocrypha (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2002), 306.
[2] David A. deSilva, Introducing the Apocrypha (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2002), 306.
[3] David A. deSilva, Introducing the Apocrypha (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2002), 307.
[4] David A. deSilva, Introducing the Apocrypha (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2002), 309.
[5] David A. deSilva, Introducing the Apocrypha (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2002), 310.
[6] David A. deSilva, Introducing the Apocrypha (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2002), 314.