Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

SIMON

(Gk. Símon; Heb. šimʿôn)

1. Simon, surnamed the Just (Gk. dikaios, also meaning “righteous”), who according to Josephus (Ant. 12.43) succeeded his father Onias in the high priesthood. This places him within the period of Ptolemy I’s rule over Judea (301-282 b.c.e.). A scholion to Megillat Taʿanit (par. b. Yoma 69a) tells of an encounter between Simon and Alexander the Great. Since it is doubtful that Alexander would have prostrated himself before any Jewish priest, the story is usually considered to be largely legendary. While the existence of a priest by the name of Simon at the time of Ptolemy I seems quite likely, other evidence suggests that the surname should be applied to Simon II.

2. Simon II, the son of Onias II, high priest in Jerusalem ca. 219-196 b.c.e. He is praised for his leadership in the repair of the temple and the fortification of Jersualem in Sir. 50:1-21, an account which describes at length his presence at and participation in the daily sacrifice. This appears to be the high priest also called the Just (1 above) by Josephus in Ant. 12.157 (cf. 12.224). M. ʾAbot 1:2 states that Simon the Just was among the survivors of the Great Assembly and ascribes a major rabbinic maxim to him. It is probably because of the pious reputation of Simon II that the rabbis made such an attribution.

3. Simon the Benjaminite. In 2 Macc. 3:4-6 he is described as the captain of the temple who informed Seleucus IV Philopator that there were treasures in the temple beyond those required to sustain the daily sacrifice. The king sends Heliodorus to seize these funds, thereby violating the sanctity of the temple. In this case “Benjaminite” is probably a textual corruption of Bilgah, one of the priestly clans listed in 1 Chr. 24:14. This evidence suggests that the story reflects a dispute between priestly clans, with Simon a member of the pro-Seleucid camp (cf. 2 Macc. 4:1-6).

John Kampen

4. Simon (surnamed Thassi, 1 Macc. 2:3), the second son of Mattathias and brother of Judas Maccabeus and Jonathan, whom he succeeded as high priest (143-135 b.c.e.). Though older than his predecessors, Judas and Jonathan, he was the last son of Mattathias to lead the Jews against the Seleucids (1 Macc. 13:8; 14:41ff.). He won independence for Judea (142), thus establishing the Hasmonean dynasty, which endured until 63 b.c.e. Simon enlarged the territory of the Jews and advanced their fortunes (1 Macc. 13–16), until his treacherous murder by his son-in-law Ptolemy (16:14-19). 1 Macc. 14:4-15 is a poem extolling Simon’s glory.

See Hasmoneans.

5. Simon Chosamaeus (Gk. Chosamaias), the son of Annas, listed in 1 Esdr. 9:32 among those who had married foreign wives (cf. Shimeon in Ezra 10:31).

6. Simon Peter, son of Jonah (Matt. 16:17) or John (John 1:42; 21:15-17) and brother of Andrew, who led him to Christ (1:40-42). All three were fishermen and natives of Bethsaida (John 1:44). Surnamed Peter (“stone”) or Cephas (Aram. “rock”) by Jesus (Matt. 4:18; 16:17-18; 1 Cor. 1:12; esp. John 1:42), he belonged to the inner group of three disciples (Matt. 17:1; 26:37) and became the most prominent of the Twelve (Matt. 10:2-4; Mark 3:16-19; Luke 6:13-16; Acts 1:13). He was a leader in the early Church (cf. esp. Acts 1–15; Gal. 1–2) and two NT letters bear his name. Tradition places his martyrdom at Rome.

7. Simon the Zealot, one of the Twelve (Matt. 10:4; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:15; Acts 1:13). Before becoming a disciple of Jesus, he was a member of the Zealots, a party of patriotic Jews, who believed that to submit to Rome’s authority was to deny God’s lordship. In Matthew and Mark he is called “the Cananaean,” a transliteration of Aram. qanʾān, “zealot.” It does not mean he is from Cana or a “Canaanite,” as the KJV reads in Matt. 10:4; Mark 3:18.

8. Simon, the half brother of Jesus (Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3). He apparently came to believe in Jesus after the Resurrection (John 7:5; Acts 1:14; 1 Cor. 9:5).

9. Simon the Leper, who owned the house at Bethany in which Mary anointed Jesus (Matt. 26:6; Mark 14:3; John 12:1-8). He may have been the father of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, or perhaps Martha’s husband. If he had once been afflicted with leprosy, he had obviously been cured, possibly by Jesus.

10. The father of Judas Iscariot (John 6:71; 13:2, 26).

11. A man from Cyrene in North Africa who was compelled to carry Jesus’ cross to Golgotha (Mark 15:21; Matt. 27:32; Luke 23:26). Mark notes that he was the father of Alexander and Rufus, men obviously known to the reader of his Gospel, which was probably written to the church at Rome (cf. Rom. 16:13).

12. A Pharisee who invited Jesus to dinner in his home, where a penitent woman anointed Jesus’ feet with her tears, and Jesus in a parable taught the relationship between appreciation and forgiveness (Luke 7:36-50).

13. Simon, called Magus because he practiced magic (Acts 8:9, 11). He believed and was baptized when Philip preached the gospel in Samaria (Acts 8:5-13). When Peter and John followed up on Philip’s ministry, Simon attempted to buy from them the authority to bestow the Holy Spirit, and they severely rebuked him (Acts 8:14-24). The English word “simony,” which means “the buying or selling of sacred things,” derives from Simon Magus.

14. A tanner who lived in Joppa, in whose house Peter stayed “many days” (Acts 9:43; 10:6, 32). His house was outside the city “by the sea” (Acts 10:6), apparently separated from the Jewish community, because contact with dead bodies made tanning an unclean trade.

15. Simon bar Kosiba, leader of the Second Jewish Revolt (132-135 c.e.).

See Bar Kokhba.

W. Edward Glenny

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

SIMON

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)