The Story of Heliodorus

¹In the days of Onias the high priest, the holy city of Jerusalem was at peace, and the laws of Moses were diligently observed, because Onias obeyed God and hated evil.

²So even the kings honored the sanctuary and embellished the Temple with wonderful gifts.

³Even Seleucus, king of Asia, paid from his own revenues all the expenses connected with offering the sacrifices.

⁴But a man named Simon from the tribe of Benjamin opposed the high priest because he disagreed about how the city markets should be administered. Simon had been appointed manager of the Temple.[#3:4 Some manuscripts read of the family of Bilgah.]

⁵When he could not win his dispute with Onias, he went to Apollonius of Tarsus, who was governor of Coelesyria and Phoenicia.

⁶Simon told him that the treasury in Jerusalem was so full of wealth that it couldn’t be counted. Since this money did not belong to the account set aside for the sacrifices, Simon suggested that this money be brought under the king’s control.

⁷When Apollonius saw the king, he told him about this money. Then the king called Heliodorus, who was in charge of his affairs, and ordered him to bring it back to him.

⁸So Heliodorus immediately set out on his journey, under the guise of visiting the cities of Coelesyria and Phoenicia. But his real purpose was to fulfill the king’s order.

⁹When Heliodorus came to Jerusalem, the high priest received him courteously. Heliodorus told him what he had heard about this large sum of money and asked if it was true.

¹⁰The high priest told him that there were sums deposited to provide for widows and orphans.

¹¹He also stated that the rest belonged to Hyrcanus son of Tobiah, a man of prominent position. Contrary to what the wicked Simon had reported, the total amount was fifteen tons of silver and seven and a half tons of gold.[#3:11 Greek 400 talents [13.6 metric tons] of silver and 200 talents [6.8 metric tons] of gold.]

¹²The high priest said he could not touch these deposits, for they had been brought for safekeeping to the Temple—the holy and sacred place that is honored throughout the whole world.

¹³But because of the orders he had received from the king, Heliodorus said he had no choice but to take the money for the royal treasury.

¹⁴So he set a day and entered the treasury to take inventory.

The people throughout the city were very upset,

¹⁵and the priests, dressed in their special clothing, threw themselves face down before the altar. They called upon God in heaven, who had given the law concerning the deposits, asking him to preserve the money for those who had deposited it.

¹⁶Everyone who saw the high priest became heartbroken, for his face showed the inward anguish of his soul.

¹⁷His body trembled with horror, making the sorrow in his heart clear to all who saw him.

¹⁸Many of the people hurried from their homes to join in corporate prayer because the sanctuary was about to be defiled.

¹⁹The women, dressed in sackcloth, gathered in the streets. The young women ran from their homes—some to the gates and some to the walls—while others peered out of windows.

²⁰All of them stretched their hands toward heaven in prayer.

²¹It was pitiful to see everyone lying face down in anguish and to see the high priest in his agony.

²²While the people were calling to the almighty Lord to keep the deposits safe and secure for those who had given them,

²³Heliodorus went on with his plan.

²⁴But as he arrived at the treasury with his guard, the Lord of all spirits and all authority caused such an awesome heavenly apparition that all who had boldly accompanied Heliodorus collapsed in terror, overwhelmed by God’s power.

²⁵Before them appeared a horse splendidly decorated, and on the horse sat a fearsome rider clad in gold armor. The horse charged and reared fiercely, striking Heliodorus with its front hooves.

²⁶At the same time, two young men of amazing strength and striking beauty, dressed in magnificent clothing, appeared to Heliodorus. They stood on either side of him and whipped him continuously, striking him with blow after blow.

²⁷Heliodorus suddenly fell to the ground, overwhelmed by a deep darkness. His men came to his rescue. They picked him up, put him on a stretcher,

²⁸and carried him away. He had come into that treasury with a large retinue of servants and all his guard, but now he was carried away helpless. He had experienced the power of God.

²⁹Indeed, because of God’s intervention, he lay speechless and without hope of recovery.

³⁰The people praised the Lord because he had marvelously honored his sanctuary. And the Temple, which a short time before had been full of fear and commotion, was filled with joy and gladness because of the almighty Lord’s appearance.

³¹Because Heliodorus was dying, some of his friends urged Onias to call upon the Most High to spare his life.

³²So the high priest, fearing that the king would suspect the Jews of foul play, offered a sacrifice for Heliodorus’s recovery.

³³While the high priest was making a sacrifice for atonement, the same young men, dressed in the same clothing, appeared to Heliodorus once again. They stood before him and said, “Give thanks to Onias the high priest, because for his sake the Lord has spared your life.

³⁴And you, having been whipped by God, should tell everyone of the great works and power of God.” Then they vanished.[#3:34 Greek by heaven.]

³⁵Heliodorus offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made great vows to him, for he had spared his life. Then he said good-bye to Onias, and he and his troops returned to the king.

³⁶He told everyone about the works of the supreme God, whom he had seen with his own eyes.

³⁷Then the king asked Heliodorus what kind of person he should send to Jerusalem. Heliodorus replied,

³⁸“If you have any enemy or conspirator in your country, send him there. He will return to you whipped, if he survives at all, for there is undoubtedly a certain power of God in that place.

³⁹For the one who dwells in heaven is the guardian and protector of that place, and he strikes and destroys those who come to harm it.”

⁴⁰This is the story about Heliodorus and how the treasury was saved.