3 Maccabees

The book of 3 Maccabees is found in most Orthodox Bibles as a part of the deuterocanon. Catholics consider it to be an example of pseudepigrapha and do not regard it as canonical. Protestants, with the exception of the Moravian Brothers who include it in the Apocrypha of the Czech Kralice Bible and Polish Gdańsk Bible, likewise regard it as non-canonical. Despite the title, the book has nothing to do with the Maccabees or their revolt against the Seleucid Empire, as described in 1 Maccabees and 2 Maccabees. Instead, it tells the story of persecution of the Jews under Ptolemy IV Philopator (222–205 BC), some decades before the Maccabean uprising. The name of the book apparently comes from the similarities between this book and the stories of the martyrdom of Eleazar and the Maccabean youths in 2 Maccabees; the chief priest Shimon is also mentioned.