Am Yisrael Sher 7: The contribution of the Maccabees to music in the Temple

The customs of music in the Temple in the days of the Maccabees and the Hasmoneans under Greek influence

1) Order of Antiochus III

The order of the Seleucid king Antiochus III appeared in a letter sent to Ptolemy, his army minister after 200 BC, in retaliation to the Jews for extending aid to the king in his wars. Evidence of Antiochus’ intention to do much for the existence of Jerusalem and to provide the sacrifices and offerings necessary for the work of the Temple, as well as to do for the completion of the construction of the Temple.

The people will determine their regime according to the laws of their ancestors and the council of elders and priests and scribes of the Temple and its poets will be exempt from the skull tax, the general tax and the salt tax they raise “(Yosef ben Matityahu, Jewish Antiquities 12, 142). These were only the Levites, despite the fact that they were not mentioned in their title, ie the Levites. And the goalkeepers.

We have before us a historical testimony of great importance as to the determination of the date, in which the main role of the Levites in the sanctuary, and more precisely – the upper layer of the Levite, was gathered around the music in the temple, and perhaps also as temple scribes – A position that will accompany this layer of Levites until the destruction of the Second Temple (70 CE).

The above royal certificate ensured the continued superiority of the priesthood status in society. It is possible that the fact that the certificate was written through the efforts of one of the high priests – John the Thorn lies in the key to cracking the mystery: how it happened that the status of the Levites was undermined, and perhaps even an answer to the question – why the name “Levites” is not mentioned in the above certificate. Only – with Yosef ben Matityahu, who belonged to a famous priestly family, who in several cases, which we will deal with later, did not hesitate to throw mud and dirt in the clothes of the Levites-poets.

One way or another It is clear that there was a change in the status of the Levites in terms of their role in the sanctuary. This seems to have been due to the strengthening of the priests in the Hellenistic period, The time, from the beginning of the Second Temple period, to be an integral part of the sacramental work in the Temple, an examination of a phenomenon that deepened in the public consciousness and belonged to skilled and experienced Levites who belonged to music departments for over two hundred years. , It seems, that might have formed the basis of the same privilege which exempted the Levites from the royal taxes.

This privilege is intended to allow the Levites to devote their full energy and time to their all-important role – singing and playing in the temple, without any worries of earning a living), since the people, the public, took care of the shortage of Levite poets Variety in the form of the royal taxes that were mercilessly inflicted on the controlled population. Or others.

2) The connection between the priesthood and the funeral and the music of the temple

At the beginning of the third century BCE, and throughout the reign of the Hasmonean dynasty, we witnessed an interesting and multifaceted phenomenon, i.e. the music in the temple continued to exist, however the Levites are not mentioned as fulfilling any function in this system. Ben-Sira (c. 180 BC) who described the ceremonial status of Yom Kippur, testified to the cheers of the priests and the bowing of the people, and also – 19-18), and Levites… no. Similar commemorations, of a similar nature, are repeated in the literature of the period in question.

. Among them are the classical instruments of the Levites such as violins, harps and cymbals. However, without mentioning the Levites who play in them. The books of the Maccabees in the context of the celebration of Hanukkah in the days of Judah the Maccabees: “And the priests sang hymns” (Maccabees 2: 30) KG-KIH, which may then have been installed is final.

Some argue that the lack of mention of the Levites in the local literature is evidence that reflects the attitude of the authors of these books who were close to the priesthood towards the Levites The Maccabees themselves came from a respectable family of priests, the Yehoiriv family, a similar phenomenon that reflects the robbery of the systems in the Temple from the beginning of the Hellenistic period onwards, which has since risen to prominence as the figure of the High Priest. From then on, the high priesthood wrote the internal policy in Judaism and served, together with the Jerusalem aristocracy, as a support for the Seleucid dynasty that then ruled the land. Accelerate in the oil of the wheels of the high priesthood and the Jerusalem nobility. This phenomenon of raising the fund of the priesthood family continued even in the Hasmonean hope.

A significant expression of the strengthening of the priesthood was folded in a symbolic effect: (Proverbs Ben Sira 9: 9). These bells, on the hem of the robe of the robe of the high priest, were first mentioned in the book of Exodus, once and for all. And it seems that with the rise of the priesthood somewhere in the third century BCE, she sought to renew one of the ancient biblical symbols associated with the impressive appearance of the High Priest, examining the restoration of the crown to its former glory. Among the neighboring peoples such as Egypt and Mesopotamia. The blowers in the “Mikasha trumpets” (ibid. V. 15).

3) The contribution of the Maccabees to the music of the temple Although there is no evidence of this, it is reasonable to say that during the period of Hellenism, from 175 BC onwards, music was damaged in the temple, and the Maccabees whose revolt was religious in nature, sought to restore the old crown, which is the renewal of music in the temple. Indeed, when Judas Maccabaeus took over the Temple compound, he purified and offered sacrifices in it “according to the Torah” (Maccabees 1: 4, 53). And the aforesaid scribe emphasized that “at the time and in the day that the Gentiles were defiled, in fact that day was consecrated (the temple) with songs and harps and violins and cymbals” (ibid. 54). 142 BC) tore a window to music, in the words of the writer – It is interesting that the cymbals appeared here for the first time, between the violins and the harps, and even the songs appeared after the musical instruments. These changes must be attributed, so to speak, to the moving event, in which music with a more powerful and captivating sound power was requested. The temple that was liberated and purified and the crystallization of the army around its Maccabean leaders. The miksha “held by the priests at the Yom Kippur ceremony in the days of Ben Sira in about 180 BC. Before us is a rather interesting phenomenon that recurs in several ways, and it stems from the desire to adopt sacred customs, orders and orders, which were the property of the priests in the days of Moses for their symbolic aspects.

Rise of the priesthood towards the end of the third century BCE may clarify the importance of the trumpets in temple ceremonies. In the Temple.

It should be noted that the poetry, and especially that which was related to the work of the Temple, was very prominent in the external literature. And saw the world and stopped within it a supernatural power.

A very interesting affair, which gained a foothold in the external literature, embraced the secrets of the “Song of the Angels.” In Mesopotamia, a perception was formed that miraculously raised the consciousness that against the “Temple of Down” stood the “Temple of Up,” in the sense of a heavenly temple identical in all with the earthly temple. This conception was adopted by the Greeks who developed it and seasoned it with philosophical symbols. It is possible that the authors of the external books, most of which were previously found in Greek and Hellenistic schools, were based on the scent of foreign theories about the parallel between the earthly temple and the heavenly temple. However, the assumption that similar theories were prevalent in Judaism should not be completely ruled out. This poetry, I think, may tear before us a window to the music of the Temple in the Hasmonean period.

From the external literature it can be discerned that the main function of the angels is to sing before God. The poets of heaven, the angels, are assembled in skilled choirs, each of which, “has many voices” (Enoch 2: 9 and 12), as if to hint to us about the variety of heights of voices calling for tonal harmony.

At times the sources sailed in praise, that the heavenly choirs sang “with one voice” (Sefer Adam and Eve 7: 2-1) and united “with one voice”, for in this was measured the musical skill of each choir, heavenly as well as national.

The baton of conduct was handed over to the “Minister of the Angels” (ibid. 6) who was responsible, among other things, for the “arrangement” of the “Song of Pleasures” (Enoch 2: 8; 3) and whether it would be far from conjecture that “arrangement” Is it close in his teaching to composing compositions, to organizing the music in a printing system, or to the team of poets within the choir ?!

It is worth noting that the poets of heaven also engaged in software – the study of celestial bodies and the analysis of their course across the sky, examining a phenomenon that was common in the Mesopotamian temple and in the Greek conception. That is, the brave connection forged between music and astronomy and astrology. The music in the Second Temple and the song of the angels is the song of the Levites. And when we add these testimonies to others, which deal with the music of the Temple during the period of the Maccabees and the Hasmoneans, it will no doubt become clear that the music during this period became established, both in the Temple and in the consciousness of the Jewish public in Israel. 4) The music in the synagogue

It should not be shredded, in my opinion, that already in the days of Ezra and Nehemiah the synagogue was full of melodies of hymns, of blessings and prayers, or in any case, we have no evidence Lay here or here. However it is true to say that the first steps were indeed taken in the days of the two. And in any case the matter stuck in the Hellenistic era and from then on.

In fact, later in the work a special chapter will be devoted to examining the music in the synagogue. However, it seems that the circle of sacred music in the Hellenistic period would not be complete without a glimpse into the hall of music that was heard in the synagogues.

Importance in itself. It was a new style of activity in which the worshiping public became an active body carrying itself the work, is prayer. This was done, as a rule, during those hours when the “perpetual” temple, that is, the daily perpetual sacrifice, and the incense burner were sacrificed. Moreover, one of the most prominent musical elements in the work of the synagogue was the “response” of the worshipers, such as the practice that took place in the Temple.

Ten and the external “Psalms of Solomon” were connected as early as the first century BCE. By the way, the spring An in-depth study of these psalms will reveal poignant clues as to the fact that the psalms were pleasing. There is also a version that many blessings were installed during the Hasmonean period and are related to the prayer life in the synagogues.

The Hasmonean-Macbeth. We were – the establishment of synagogues in places far from Jerusalem, where the use of ritual music became stronger and more established. And we have already stated above

that the temple music was established and crystallized from the days of Ezra and Nehemiah onwards, and that a synagogue was built near the Temple that served the needs of the Jews who settled around Jerusalem. However, over time, in the Hellenistic period, whether following the erosion of the temple work at the height of Hellenism in the days of Jason and Menelaus, an examination of finding and raising sporadic solutions, the fruit of changing historical circumstances, and whether after the conquests of the Maccabees . Then the synagogue next to the temple could not, of course, serve the needs of the entire Jewish community. This difficulty was solved in the form of many synagogues established in communities founded in the country, while almost every new synagogue that was founded sought to resemble the main synagogue in Jerusalem, the one near the temple, and even took with it important signs, mainly the use of music in worship. This interesting phenomenon also had an impact on the music in the temple, when it continued to buy it its premiere status.

More on the subject on the Knowledge website:

• Am Yisrael Sher 6 : Temple music is organized and established

With Israel Minister B: Voice and Instrumental Music

• “Am Yisrael Sher” 1: Introduction and opening thing – the music of the period Ancient
• The Priesthood as You Did Not Know – Chapter Fourteen: The Priests in C-Mall

A second synagogue from the Second Temple period is in excavations In the tower

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