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Context No. 1009 of 4322 · 1 Maccabees

Context · Reflection

1 Maccabees 16:11-17: in context

11Ptolemy the son of Abubus had been appointed governor over the plain of Jericho, and he had much silver and gold; 12for he was the high priest’s son-in-law. 13His heart was lifted up, and he planned to make himself master of the country, and he made deceitful plans against Simon and his sons, to do away with them. 14Now Simon was visiting the cities that were in the country, and attending to their needs. He went down to Jericho—himself with Mattathias and Judas his sons—in the one hundred seventy-seventh year, in the eleventh month, which is the month Sebat. 15The son of Abubus received them deceitfully into the little stronghold that is called Dok, which he had built, and made them a great banquet, and hid men there. 16When Simon and his sons had drunk freely, Ptolemy and his men rose up, took their weapons, rushed in against Simon in the banqueting place, and killed him, his two sons, and some of his servants. 17He committed a great iniquity, and repaid evil for good.

This is a grim turn near the end of First Maccabees. Ptolemy son of Abubus, made governor of the plain of Jericho and married into the high priest's family, grows ambitious. His heart is lifted up, and he plots to seize control of the country by treachery, doing away with Simon, the aging leader who had helped secure Israel's freedom, and Simon's sons. When Simon comes down to Jericho on a tour of the towns, Ptolemy welcomes him into a stronghold he had built, throws a great banquet, and hides armed men there. When Simon and his sons have drunk freely, Ptolemy and his men fall on them and murder Simon, two of his sons, and some of his servants. The writer's verdict is blunt: he committed a great crime and repaid evil for good.

The chilling detail is the setting of the murder, a banquet. Ptolemy does not meet Simon in open battle; he invites him to a feast, plays the gracious host, and slaughters him over the wine. The hospitality itself is the weapon, trust turned into a trap. And the writer names the motive at the root: his heart was lifted up. Ambition, pride swelling in a man given a little power, is what drives him to repay the one who helped him with betrayal and blood. First Maccabees does not moralize; it simply records the crime and passes its short, damning judgment, he repaid evil for good, letting us feel how ugly ingratitude and treachery are. It is a reminder that some of the deepest wounds come not from open enemies but from those we have trusted and even benefited, whose pride turns them against the very people who lifted them up. The banquet betrayal is as old as the human heart, and scripture refuses to look away from it.

Have I let a swelling of my own importance turn me against someone who did me good, and do I guard against the pride that repays kindness with betrayal?

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