Gorgias (general)
Encyclopedia
Gorgias was a Syrian
-Seleucid General
of the 2nd century BC, in the service of Antiochus Epiphanes
(1 Macc
3:38; 2 Macc
8:9).
's forces defeated the Seleucid army at the Battle of Beth Horon
, they were determined to send a stronger force against him. According to 1 Maccabees
iii. 38, which Josephus
follows ("The Antiquities of the Jews" xii. 7, § 3), it was the governor Lysias
, who had been left as regent during the absence of Antiochus in Persia, who commissioned the generals Nicanor and Gorgias, sending them with a large army to Judea
; but according to 2 Maccabees
viii. 8, it was Ptolemy, governor of Coele-Syria
and Phoenicia
, who sent them. Nicanor seems to have been the commander-in-chief, although 2 Maccabees viii. 9 describes Gorgias as "a general and a man of experience in military service".
; and Gorgias was sent thence with 5,000 infantry and 1,000 Cavalry
to attack Judas by night (1 Macc 4:1-24), his guides being treacherous Jews
. Judas had been informed of the expedition, and attacked the main Syrian army at Emmaus, completely routing it. Gorgias, not finding the enemy in camp, concluded they had retired into the mountains, and went in pursuit of them. Judas sagaciously kept his men from touching the booty, preparing them for the impending battle with Gorgias. When the latter returned to the main camp, he found it in flames, and the Jews ready for battle. The Syrians, seized with panic, fled into the Philistine territory, and only then did the Jews seize the rich spoils (166 BC
).
The victory was all the more striking as the force of Judas was considerably smaller in number and had "not armor nor swords to their minds" (1 Macc 4:6).
Gorgias did not again dare to enter Judea. Once when Judas and Simon Maccabeus were carrying the war outside of that country, two subordinate generals, Joseph and Azariah, in violation of orders undertook an expedition against Jamnia
, but were severely beaten by Gorgias (1 Maccabees v. 18, 19, 55-62), who is designated in "Ant." xii. 8, § 6, "general of the forces of Jamnia." 1 Maccabees does not mention this expedition, but refers to another, and calls Gorgias "governor of Idumaea" (xii. 32), which seems to be more correct than "of Jamnia." He set out with 3,000 infantry and 400 cavalry, and killed a number of Jews; whereupon a certain Dositheus of Tobiene (so the correct reading of the Syrian translation), one of those whom Judas had protected against the pagans
, threw himself upon Gorgias and seized his mantle, intending to take him prisoner; but a Thracian
horseman cut off Dositheus' arm and so saved Gorgias. The last-named then retired to Marissa (ib. verse 35; comp. "Ant." xii. 8, § 6), after which he is lost to view. Willrich assumes ("Judaica," p. 33) from the description of the booty in 1 Maccabees iv. 23 that Holofernes
in the Book of Judith represents Gorgias.
Later on 164 BC
he held a garrison in Jamnia
, and gained a victory over the forces of Joseph and Azarias who, envying the glory of Judas and Jonathan, in direct disobedience to the orders of Judas, attacked Gorgias and were defeated.
Jamnia as given in Josephus
, Ant, XII, viii, 6, is probably the correct reading for Idumaea in 2 Macc 12:32. The doings of Gorgias in 2 Macc are recorded with some confusion. He was regarded with special hostility by the Jews
. In 2 Macc 12:35 he is described as "the accursed man."
Demographics of Syria
Syrians today are an overall indigenous Levantine people. While modern-day Syrians are commonly described as Arabs by virtue of their modern-day language and bonds to Arab culture and history...
-Seleucid General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
of the 2nd century BC, in the service of Antiochus Epiphanes
Antiochus IV Epiphanes
Antiochus IV Epiphanes ruled the Seleucid Empire from 175 BC until his death in 164 BC. He was a son of King Antiochus III the Great. His original name was Mithridates; he assumed the name Antiochus after he ascended the throne....
(1 Macc
1 Maccabees
The First book of Maccabees is a book written in Hebrew by a Jewish author after the restoration of an independent Jewish kingdom, about the latter part of the 2nd century BC. The original Hebrew is lost and the most important surviving version is the Greek translation contained in the Septuagint...
3:38; 2 Macc
2 Maccabees
2 Maccabees is a deuterocanonical book of the Bible, which focuses on the Jews' revolt against Antiochus IV Epiphanes and concludes with the defeat of the Syrian general Nicanor in 161 BC by Judas Maccabeus, the hero of the work....
8:9).
Life
After Judas MaccabeusJudas Maccabeus
Judah Maccabee was a Kohen and a son of the Jewish priest Mattathias...
's forces defeated the Seleucid army at the Battle of Beth Horon
Battle of Beth Horon
The Battle of Beth Horon was fought in 166 BC between Jewish forces led by Judas Maccabaeus and a Seleucid Empire force under the command of Seron....
, they were determined to send a stronger force against him. According to 1 Maccabees
1 Maccabees
The First book of Maccabees is a book written in Hebrew by a Jewish author after the restoration of an independent Jewish kingdom, about the latter part of the 2nd century BC. The original Hebrew is lost and the most important surviving version is the Greek translation contained in the Septuagint...
iii. 38, which Josephus
Josephus
Titus Flavius Josephus , also called Joseph ben Matityahu , was a 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian and hagiographer of priestly and royal ancestry who recorded Jewish history, with special emphasis on the 1st century AD and the First Jewish–Roman War, which resulted in the Destruction of...
follows ("The Antiquities of the Jews" xii. 7, § 3), it was the governor Lysias
Lysias (Syrian chancellor)
Lysias, or Lusias was a 2nd century Seleucid General and governor of Syria under the Seleucid Empire.He was described as, "A noble man, and one of the blood royal"...
, who had been left as regent during the absence of Antiochus in Persia, who commissioned the generals Nicanor and Gorgias, sending them with a large army to Judea
Judea
Judea or Judæa was the name of the mountainous southern part of the historic Land of Israel from the 8th century BCE to the 2nd century CE, when Roman Judea was renamed Syria Palaestina following the Jewish Bar Kokhba revolt.-Etymology:The...
; but according to 2 Maccabees
2 Maccabees
2 Maccabees is a deuterocanonical book of the Bible, which focuses on the Jews' revolt against Antiochus IV Epiphanes and concludes with the defeat of the Syrian general Nicanor in 161 BC by Judas Maccabeus, the hero of the work....
viii. 8, it was Ptolemy, governor of Coele-Syria
Coele-Syria
Coele-Syria , or Cœle-Syria or Celesyria, traditionally given the meaning 'hollow' Syria, was the region of southern Syria disputed between the Seleucid dynasty and the Ptolemaic dynasty. Rather than limiting the Greek term to the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon, it is often used to cover the entire area...
and Phoenicia
Phoenicia
Phoenicia , was an ancient civilization in Canaan which covered most of the western, coastal part of the Fertile Crescent. Several major Phoenician cities were built on the coastline of the Mediterranean. It was an enterprising maritime trading culture that spread across the Mediterranean from 1550...
, who sent them. Nicanor seems to have been the commander-in-chief, although 2 Maccabees viii. 9 describes Gorgias as "a general and a man of experience in military service".
The Battle of Emmaus
The Syrians were so sure of victory that they took with them a number of merchants, to whom they intended to sell the Jewish prisoners as slaves. The Syrians camped at EmmausEmmaus
Emmaus was an ancient town located approximately northwest of present day Jerusalem...
; and Gorgias was sent thence with 5,000 infantry and 1,000 Cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
to attack Judas by night (1 Macc 4:1-24), his guides being treacherous Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
. Judas had been informed of the expedition, and attacked the main Syrian army at Emmaus, completely routing it. Gorgias, not finding the enemy in camp, concluded they had retired into the mountains, and went in pursuit of them. Judas sagaciously kept his men from touching the booty, preparing them for the impending battle with Gorgias. When the latter returned to the main camp, he found it in flames, and the Jews ready for battle. The Syrians, seized with panic, fled into the Philistine territory, and only then did the Jews seize the rich spoils (166 BC
166 BC
Year 166 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Marcellus and Galus...
).
The victory was all the more striking as the force of Judas was considerably smaller in number and had "not armor nor swords to their minds" (1 Macc 4:6).
Gorgias did not again dare to enter Judea. Once when Judas and Simon Maccabeus were carrying the war outside of that country, two subordinate generals, Joseph and Azariah, in violation of orders undertook an expedition against Jamnia
Jamnia
Jamnia may refer to:*Council of Jamnia, a hypothetical Jewish council in the 1st century CE*Yavne, city in Israel unofficially called Jamnia*Jamnia, a former princely state in India...
, but were severely beaten by Gorgias (1 Maccabees v. 18, 19, 55-62), who is designated in "Ant." xii. 8, § 6, "general of the forces of Jamnia." 1 Maccabees does not mention this expedition, but refers to another, and calls Gorgias "governor of Idumaea" (xii. 32), which seems to be more correct than "of Jamnia." He set out with 3,000 infantry and 400 cavalry, and killed a number of Jews; whereupon a certain Dositheus of Tobiene (so the correct reading of the Syrian translation), one of those whom Judas had protected against the pagans
Paganism
Paganism is a blanket term, typically used to refer to non-Abrahamic, indigenous polytheistic religious traditions....
, threw himself upon Gorgias and seized his mantle, intending to take him prisoner; but a Thracian
Thracians
The ancient Thracians were a group of Indo-European tribes inhabiting areas including Thrace in Southeastern Europe. They spoke the Thracian language – a scarcely attested branch of the Indo-European language family...
horseman cut off Dositheus' arm and so saved Gorgias. The last-named then retired to Marissa (ib. verse 35; comp. "Ant." xii. 8, § 6), after which he is lost to view. Willrich assumes ("Judaica," p. 33) from the description of the booty in 1 Maccabees iv. 23 that Holofernes
Holofernes
In the deuterocanonical Book of Judith Holofernes was an invading general of Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar dispatched Holofernes to take vengeance on the nations of the west that had withheld their assistance to his reign...
in the Book of Judith represents Gorgias.
Later on 164 BC
164 BC
Year 164 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Torquatus and Longinus...
he held a garrison in Jamnia
Jamnia
Jamnia may refer to:*Council of Jamnia, a hypothetical Jewish council in the 1st century CE*Yavne, city in Israel unofficially called Jamnia*Jamnia, a former princely state in India...
, and gained a victory over the forces of Joseph and Azarias who, envying the glory of Judas and Jonathan, in direct disobedience to the orders of Judas, attacked Gorgias and were defeated.
Jamnia as given in Josephus
Josephus
Titus Flavius Josephus , also called Joseph ben Matityahu , was a 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian and hagiographer of priestly and royal ancestry who recorded Jewish history, with special emphasis on the 1st century AD and the First Jewish–Roman War, which resulted in the Destruction of...
, Ant, XII, viii, 6, is probably the correct reading for Idumaea in 2 Macc 12:32. The doings of Gorgias in 2 Macc are recorded with some confusion. He was regarded with special hostility by the Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
. In 2 Macc 12:35 he is described as "the accursed man."