Judas Maccabeus - Judas the Galilean
Part Two: “The hammer” of God
“Other views link the name [Maccabee] with
a root that means “to extinguish”,
since the Maccabees extinguished the Greek
persecution, or with makkav, “a
hammer”; Judah, like Charles Martel, was the hammer of his enemies”.
OzTorah
In the early days of the rebellion, Judah received
a surname Maccabee. Several explanations have been put forward for this
surname. One suggestion is that the name derives from the Aramaic maqqaba ("makebet"
in modern Hebrew),
"hammer" or "sledgehammer" (cf. the cognomen of Charles Martel, the 8th century Frankish
leader), in recognition of his ferocity in battle. Others believe it is in
reference to his weapon of choice.
It is also possible that the name Maccabee is an acronym for the Torah verse Mi
kamokha ba'elim Adonai, "Who among the gods is like you, O
Adonai?", his battle-cry to motivate troops. (Exodus
15:11). Rabbi Moshe Schreiber writes that it is an acronym for his father's
name Mattityahu Kohen Ben Yochanan. Some scholars maintain that the name is a
shortened form of the Hebrew maqqab-ya ¯hû (from na ¯qab, ‘‘to
mark, to designate’’), meaning ‘‘the one designated by Yahweh.’[3]
"The victory at the battle
near Poitiers and Tours would later earn Charles the cognomen "Martellus" (L., and so
"Martel", Fr.: "the hammer") from 9th century chroniclers
who, in the view of Pierre Riche, "seem to have been… recalling Judas
Maccabaeus, 'the Hammerer,'" of 1
Maccabees, "whom God had similarly blessed with victory"
...."[28]:44
Twelve years later, when Charles had thrice
rescued Gaul from Umayyad invasions, Antonio Santosuosso noted when he
destroyed an Umayyad army sent to reinforce the invasion forces of the 735
campaigns, "Charles Martel again came to the rescue."[29]:TBD
The Battle of Tours ( October 10, 732), often
called Battle of Poitiers and also called in Arabic بلاط الشهداء (Balâṭ al-Shuhadâ’) The Court of Martyrs was fought near the city of
Tours, close to the border between the Frankish realm and the independent
region of Aquitaine. The battle pitted Frankish and Burgundian
forces under Austrasian Mayor of the Palace Charles Martel against an army of
the Umayyad Caliphate led by ‘Abd-al-Raḥmān al-Ghāfiqī, Governor-general of
al-Andalus. The Franks were victorious, ‘Abd-al-Raḥmān was killed, and Martel
subsequently extended his authority in the south. Ninth-century chroniclers,
who interpreted the outcome of the battle as divine judgment in his favour,
gave Charles the nickname Martellus ("The Hammer"), possibly
recalling Judas Maccabeus ("The Hammerer") of Maccabean revolt.
Details of the battle, including its exact location and the exact number of
combatants, cannot be determined from accounts that have survived.
As later chroniclers increasingly came to praise Charles
Martel as the champion of Christianity, pre-20th century historians began to characterize this battle as being the decisive turning
point in the struggle against Islam. "Most of the 18th and 19th century historians, like Gibbon, saw Poitiers (Tours), as a landmark battle that
marked the high tide of the Muslim advance into Europe." Leopold Von Ranke
felt that "Poitiers was the turning point of one of the most important
epochs in the history of the world."
While modern historians are divided as to whether or not
the victory was responsible — as Gibbon and his generation of historians
claimed — for saving Christianity and halting the conquest of Europe by Islam, the battle
helped lay the foundations for the Carolingian Empire, and Frankish domination
of Europe for the next century. "The establishment of Frankish power in
western Europe shaped that continent's destiny and the Battle of Tours
confirmed that power."
In a 2011 article on the subject, Mitchell First argues
persuasively, based on an analysis of ancient Greek and Latin orthography, that
the kuf spelling is the older one. He also agrees with the now
commonly accepted theory, first put forth by the American Bible scholar Samuel
Ives Curtiss, Jr. in 1876, that makkabi derives from Hebrew makevet
or its Aramaic cognate makava, a hammer or mallet. First writes:
As
to why Judah was called by this name, one view is that the name alludes to his
physical strength or military prowess. But a makevet/makava is not a
military weapon; it is a worker’s tool. Therefore, it has been suggested
alternatively that the name reflects that Judah’s head or body in some way had
the physical appearance of a hammer. Interestingly, the Mishnah at
B’khorot 7:1 lists one of the categories of disqualified priests as ha-makavan
[“the hammerhead”], and the term is explained in the Talmud as meaning one
whose head resembles a makava. Naming men according to
physical characteristics was common in the ancient world.
The derivation of makkabi from makevet
or makava certainly makes better sense than any of the contending
explanations.
What I would take issue with is the assertion
made by First and others before him that since a hammer “is not a military
weapon,” Judah Maccabee must have been likened to one because of his physical
appearance, or else because of his physical power or strength of character.
The fact of the matter is that in both ancient
and medieval times, hammers were military weapons. First himself
mentions the French warrior Charles Martel, “Charles the Hammer,” the
grandfather of Charlemagne, best known for stemming the Muslim advance into
Europe at the Battle of Tours in 734. While this epithet, too, may have
referred only to Charles’s prowess as a commander, the martel de fer or
“iron hammer” was a feature of medieval warfare. Typically, it was mace-like or
club-like at one end and pointed like a pickax at the other, and it was most
commonly wielded by mounted cavalry to smash the armor of enemy soldiers.
…. Two individuals in history have been known as "The
Hammer of God": Judah Maccabee and Charles Martel. The title
"Maccabee" was given to Judah the son of Mattityahu Bar Hashmonay.
(Judas Maccabeus is another way of saying Judah Maccabee.) The word
"Maccabee" comes from the Aramaic word "Maqaba"
and means "The Hammer." (The Old Testament is written in Hebrew and
Aramaic. The Aramaic language is closely related to Hebrew and Arabic.
According to the New Testament, Aramaic was the language spoken by Jesus
Christ. Aramaic is an important Jewish language. Many Jewish sacred texts, such
as the Talmud and the Kaballah (the Zohar), are written in Aramaic as are
several traditional Jewish prayers, such as the Kaddish, and traditional songs,
such as the Passover song Chad Gadyo. Assyrian Christians of Iraq, Syria and
Iran still speak Aramaic.) Judah Maccabee fought against the tyrannical
Seleucid Greeks beginning in the year 167 BC. Centuries later, after defeating
a massive Moslem army in central France, Charles the son of Pepin was called
"Martel," meaning "The Hammer" in Latin. Charles the Hammer
beat back an invasion of Europe by the Muslim Empire in October 732 AD. Charles
Martel defeated the Moslems at the Battle of Tours (also known as the Battle of
Poitiers).
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