Should Christians be interested in the Jewish
celebration of Hanukkah? After all, It celebrates a part of Jewish history that
appears to have no relevance to Christian belief. It recalls the rededication
of the temple after the Syrian King, Antiochus Epiphanes had desecrated it.
After three and a
half years occupying Israel, and following an aborted attempt by Epiphanes to conquer
Egypt, he returned in anger to Jerusalem in 167 BC. He forbade the morning and
evening sacrifices in the temple for a further three and a half years.
During that latter
period, pigs were roasted on the temple altar, and Epiphanes erected a statue
to the goddess Diana in the temple precincts. That became known as the “abomination
that causes desolation.”
Judas Maccabeus and
his band of renegades fought a guerilla war against Epiphanes and defeated his
army in 164 BC. Time now for the temple to be rededicated to the Lord. A search
began for sanctified oil to light the lampstand in the Holy Place.
Only sufficient oil
for one day was found. But the lampstand stayed alight for eight days on that
one day’s supply, until a fresh supply was available. This Festival of
Dedication (Jesus attended in John 10:22) is now celebrated as Hanukkah.
So what is the significance
for Christians? Jesus referred to Epiphanes “abomination” in Matthew 24:15,
pointing to that past event as a picture of a similar future event. That future
“abomination” would be a sign of His near return at the end of the age.
Daniel himself,
while recording prophetically Epiphanes’ first “abomination” in 11:31, referred
to one that is still to come, 9:27, 12:11. Revelation, chapters 11 to 13
predict a new occupation will also extend for a period of seven years, with an
interruption of the sacrifice at the halfway mark.
Hanukkah gives us a
historical event as a picture of a future event. That future event will precede
the final coming of Jesus the Messiah to finally cleanse, not only the temple, but
also the whole earth of defilement. If we miss the significance of the historical
event that Hanukkah preserves, we may not recognize the final events leading to
Messiah’s promised second coming to earth.
Check my website at www.pebblepress.ca for more information on this
subject.
