2 Maccabees 3:1-8: a reflection

1When the holy city was inhabited with unbroken peace and the laws were kept very well because of the godliness of Onias the high priest and his hatred of wickedness, 2it came to pass that even the kings themselves honored the place and glorified the temple with the noblest presents, 3so that even King Seleucus of Asia bore all the costs belonging to the services of the sacrifices out of his own revenues. 4But a man named Simon of the tribe of Benjamin, having been made guardian of the temple, disagreed with the high priest about the ruling of the market in the city. 5When he couldn’t overcome Onias, he went to Apollonius of Tarsus, who at that time was governor of Coelesyria and Phoenicia. 6He brought him word how that the treasury in Jerusalem was full of untold sums of money, so that the multitude of the funds was innumerable, and that they didn’t pertain to the account of the sacrifices, but that it was possible that these should fall under the king’s power. 7When Apollonius met the king, he informed him of the money about which he had been told. So the king appointed Heliodorus, who was his chancellor, and sent him with a command to accomplish the removal of the reported money. 8So Heliodorus set out on his journey at once, ostensibly to visit the cities of Coelesyria and Phoenicia, but in fact to execute the king’s purpose.

In a time of peace and good order under the godly high priest Onias, a man named Simon falls into a dispute with him over the administration of the city. When Simon cannot win the dispute, he does not let it go; instead, out of his grievance, he goes to a foreign official and betrays the temple treasury to the king, setting in motion a threat to the whole community. His personal grievance, nursed rather than released, led him to harm not only his rival but the entire people; a private quarrel he could not win became an occasion for betraying the whole community to danger.

Notice how Simon's nursed grievance grew into harm for all. His dispute with Onias was a personal matter, one he could not win; but rather than let it go, he nursed the grievance and let it drive him to betrayal. From a private quarrel, he moved to harming the whole community, exposing the temple and the people to danger, to spite a rival he could not overcome. The grievance, held onto and fed, did not stay contained; it spread into great harm, reaching far beyond the original dispute. A personal grievance, nursed rather than released, became the seed of betrayal and harm to many. What began as a quarrel he could not win ended in danger for all.

That is worth taking to heart, for a nursed personal grievance can grow into harm for the whole community, and we do well to release rather than feed it. We can nurse personal grievances, quarrels we cannot win, letting them fester and drive us; and such a grievance, held onto, can lead us to harm not only our rival but many others, as Simon's grievance led to betrayal. A grievance fed rather than released spreads its harm. Do not nurse a personal grievance until it drives you to harm others; release it rather than feeding it, lest, like Simon, it grow into harm for many. Release your personal grievances rather than nursing them until they drive you to harm others, as Simon's grievance against Onias grew into the betrayal of the whole community; for a grievance fed rather than released can spread into great harm, reaching far beyond the original quarrel, and it is wiser to let it go than to let it fester into betrayal and harm to many.

Lord, in a time of peace and good order under the godly high priest Onias, a man named Simon falls into a dispute with him over the administration of the city. When Simon cannot win the dispute, he does not let it go; instead, out of his grievance, he goes to a foreign official and betrays the temple treasury to the king, setting in motion a threat to the whole community. His personal grievance, nursed rather than released, led him to harm not only his rival but the entire people. Show me how Simon's nursed grievance grew into harm for all. His dispute with Onias was a personal matter, one he could not win; but rather than let it go, he nursed the grievance and let it drive him to betrayal. From a private quarrel, he moved to harming the whole community, to spite a rival he could not overcome. The grievance, held onto and fed, did not stay contained; it spread into great harm. What began as a quarrel he could not win ended in danger for all. Take that to my heart, for a nursed personal grievance can grow into harm for the whole community, and I do well to release rather than feed it. I can nurse personal grievances, quarrels I cannot win, letting them fester and drive me; and such a grievance, held onto, can lead me to harm not only my rival but many others. Keep me from nursing a personal grievance until it drives me to harm others; help me release it rather than feeding it, Lord, lest, like Simon, it grow into harm for many.