ANTIOCHUS IV EPIPHANES

( (God Manifest), ) born c. 215 BC died 164, Tabae, Iran also called Antiochus Epimanes (the Mad) Seleucid king of the Hellenistic Syrian kingdom who reigned from 175 to 164 BC. As a ruler he was best known for his encouragement of Greek culture and institutions. His attempts to suppress Judaism brought on the Wars of the Maccabees. Additional reading Edwin Robert Bevan, The House of Seleucus, 2 vol. (1902; reprinted 1966), is the primary source in English; O. Morkolm, Antiochus IV of Syria (1966), a comprehensive biography with extensive literature; E. Bickermann, Der Gott der Makkaber (1937); and S.K. Eddy, The King Is Dead: Studies in the Near Eastern Resistance to Hellenism 33431 B.C. (1961), discuss the response of the Jews toward Antiochus' demand of Hellenization.