History of the Jews (Vol. 1-6). Graetz Heinrich
Egypt and Cyrene the Judæans enjoyed rights similar to those of the Greek colonists. They were so proud of this equality that they watched over their privileges with a jealous eye. It is impossible to say from whom they originally held them, whether from Alexander or his successors. The Judæan colony in Egypt began to play an active part at the time when the Egyptian and Syrian courts were hostile to each other, when both were eager for the possession of Judæa, and each was, therefore, anxious to secure the alliance of the Judæans. But the Egyptian Judæans had always been faithful adherents of the Ptolemaic royal house, and Philometor, the sixth prince of that dynasty, had cordially received the numerous fugitives who had fled from Judæa during the persecutions of Antiochus.
Conspicuous amongst those emigrants were several Judæans of distinguished families, as well as the son of the high-priest Onias. They were treated with respect by the Egyptian rulers, and were able, at a later date, to give proof of their intelligence and their learning. Political prudence demanded the friendliest reception of the Judæan malcontents, in order to make sure of their undivided support in the re-conquest of Judæa from Syria. Neither Egypt nor Syria, however, could possibly have divined that the opposition of the Judæan patriots to the Syrian armies would lead to the independence of Judæa.
The Judæans were principally concentrated in Alexandria, second only to Rome in political importance and commerce, and to Athens in love of art and knowledge. Of the five divisions or districts of Alexandria, which were designated by the first letters of the Greek alphabet, the Judæans occupied nearly the whole of two; the district of the Delta, lying upon the sea-coast, had indeed become an exclusively Judæan colony, and its commanding position determined the occupation of its inhabitants. The cargoes of grain that Rome imported for her legions from the rich plains of Egypt were undoubtedly laden upon Judæan ships, and taken into the market by Judæan merchants. They carried the wealth of Egyptian harvests to less fertile countries, as Joseph, their ancestor, had done before them. Prosperity and refinement were the fruits of their enterprise. But commerce was not monopolised by the Judæans, nor was it their only pursuit. Their eagerness to learn and their aptitude enabled them to acquire the skill of the Greeks, and to succeed in the manufacture of delicate fabrics. Judæan artisans and skilled workmen were leagued in a kind of guild, and when labour was required in the Temple of Jerusalem, the Alexandrian-Judæan community supplied the master-hands. Moreover, the Alexandrian Judæans applied themselves to the Grecian arts of war and of statecraft. They acquired the melodious Greek tongue, and made a profound study of Greek learning, many of them reading and understanding Homer and Plato as easily as the books of Moses and the writings of King Solomon.
Prosperity, worthy pursuits, and culture inspired the Alexandrian Judæans with dignity and self-respect, and in this they may be compared with their descendants in Spain of a much later date.
The Alexandrian community was looked upon as the centre of the Judæan colony in Egypt, and other Judæan colonies, and even Judæa herself, were glad to lean at times upon this firm pillar of Judaism. Houses of prayer, bearing the name Proseuche, were established in all parts of the city. Amongst them was the principal synagogue, distinguished by its graceful architecture and its magnificent interior. These houses of prayer were at the same time schools of learning, where the most accomplished student of the Law would stand up on Sabbaths and festival days to expound that portion of the Pentateuch that had just been read to the congregation.
But the most brilliant ornaments of the Alexandrian-Judæan world were the distinguished fugitives who arrived in Alexandria during the Syrian persecutions. The most illustrious of these was Onias IV., the youngest son of the last legitimate high-priest of the line of Joshua ben Jozadak.
After his father had been treacherously murdered, on account of his determined antagonism to the Hellenists and his support of Hyrcanus, young Onias fled for safety to Egypt. There he was kindly received by the gentle King Philometor, because he represented a party which looked upon him as the rightful successor to the priestly dignity, and the sixth Ptolemy, hoping ultimately to wrest Cœlesyria and Judæa from Syrian rule, believed that he might eventually rely upon the support of this party.
As soon as Onias, who had now reached man's estate, heard that the wicked high-priest, Menelaus, had been slain by order of the Syrian court, and that Prince Demetrius had escaped from Rome, and had conquered Syria, he flattered himself that he would be allowed to return as high-priest to Judæa. His protector, the king Philometor, had meanwhile become an ally of Demetrius, and had probably put in a good word for his favourite. But when Alcimus was chosen high-priest, and was supported by an armed force, even against the Hasmonæans, Onias gave up all hope of receiving the priestly inheritance of his father, and took up his permanent abode in Egypt.
Onias seems to have been accompanied by a man of great distinction, Dositheus by name, and the two men played an influential part during the reign of Philometor. They were given the opportunity of distinguishing themselves during the disorders arising from the rivalry of the two royal brothers, the gentle Philometor and the violent Euergetes, who was a monster in body and in mind, and who was called, on account of his enormous size, "Fat-paunch" (Physcon), and on account of his diabolical wickedness, "Kaker-getes."
The two brothers, with their sister Cleopatra, who was the wife of her elder brother, claimed the throne at a period when Egypt and Syria happened to be at war with each other. But Physcon, the younger brother, had seized the throne for himself, supplanting the elder one, who fled as a supplicant to Rome. The Roman Senate acknowledged the rights of Philometor, but always greedy for an extension of power, resolved to make use of this opportunity to weaken Egypt. It decreed, therefore, that the north-western province of Cyrene should be separated from the Egyptian kingdom, and placed under the rule of Physcon. But this prince, dissatisfied with his small territory, repeatedly conspired against Philometor, and the two brothers were soon openly at variance. Philometor dared defy Rome, which had taken Physcon's part; but unfortunately his soldiers were unreliable; for the Alexandrian-Greek population, besides having the usual faults of the Greeks, were remarkable for faithlessness and caprice. Still more did Philometor lack commanders. In this hour of emergency he entrusted the Judæan emigrants, Onias and Dositheus, with the command of the campaign against his brother. The entire Jewish-Egyptian population stood by Philometor. The ability of the two Judæan leaders enabled him to weaken Physcon effectually. From that day Onias and Dositheus were held in great favour by Philometor, and they remained commanders of the entire army.
Onias was recognised by the Judæans as head, or prince of the race (Ethnarch). He may have been unanimously elected to that office by his countrymen, and confirmed in it out of gratitude by the king, or Philometor may have taken the initiative, and raised him to this dignity.
In time this office became a very important one. It was the duty of the ethnarch to control all the affairs of the community, to exercise the duties of a judge, and to protect the integrity of contracts. He represented his people at court. The office of ethnarch, which Onias was the first to hold, offered too many privileges to the Egyptian Judæans for them to have objected to it.
As a result, they were now in the fortunate position of having a leader of royal dignity who was able to mould them into one strong body. Their strength was to be enhanced by a new creation amongst them. In spite of the distinction which Onias enjoyed at the court of Philometor, and amongst his own race, he could not forget that, on account of the events that had taken place in Judæa, he had lost his rightful office of high-priest.
During the uncertain state of things in his own country, when Alcimus was raised above the rightful incumbents of the priesthood, and after his death, when this dignity seemed extinct, Onias conceived the idea of building a Temple in Egypt that should take the place of the violated sanctuary in Jerusalem, and of which he would be the rightful high-priest.
Was he prompted to such an undertaking by piety or ambition? The innermost workings of the heart are not revealed in history. To secure the approval of the Judæans, Onias referred to a prophecy of Isaiah xix. 19, "On that day there will be an altar to the Lord in Egypt." Philometor, to whom he expressed his wish, out of gratitude for his military services, presented him with a tract of land in the region of Heliopolis, four and a-half geographical miles north-east of Memphis, in the land of Goshen, where the descendants of Jacob had once lived until the exodus from Egypt. In