Then a certain Eleazar, famous among the priests of the country … : This Eleazar is otherwise unknown, although a number of Jewish heroes had this name. This is not the Eleazar of 1 Macc 6.43; 2 Macc 6.18; 8.23; or 4 Macc 5.4. The mention of priests in Egypt, far away from the Temple in Jerusalem, is surprising, and indeed, one important Greek manuscript has “Jews” instead of priests, but the scribe was probably trying to correct what he perceived as a mistake. There was in fact a Jewish temple built in the Egyptian city of Leontopolis by Onias IV, a Jewish priest, but this was well after the time in which 3 Maccabees took place. However, the text says priests and that is what we have to translate. We may begin this verse with “There was a well-known Jewish priest in Egypt named Eleazar…” or “Eleazar was a Jewish priest who had been highly respected…” (Contemporary English Version).

Who had attained a ripe old age: Ripe old age is an English idiom for “very old.” One way to render this clause is “He was a very old man.”

And throughout his life had been adorned with every virtue means Eleazar was a person who always did the right or good thing, and this great goodness made the other Jews revere him. We may translate this clause as “and people had always honored him because he always did the right [or, good] thing.”

Directed the elders around him to cease calling upon the holy God and prayed as follows: In this verse Eleazar ordered the leaders around him to be quiet and listen to the prayer that he was about to offer. For elders see 3 Macc 1.23; for holy God, see 3 Macc 2.2.

It will help the reader follow the story if Eleazar is identified here as one of the prisoners in Alexandria (so Contemporary English Version). A model of this verse that does this is:

• There was a well-known Jewish priest in Egypt named Eleazar, who was a prisoner with the other Jews. He was very old, and such a good man that people had always honored him highly. While the other Jewish leaders were praying to the holy God, Eleazar ordered them to be quiet. Then he began praying, and here is what he said:….

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 3-4 Maccabees. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2018. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.

A paragraph break as in Contemporary English Version would be helpful at this point.

Likewise also the king, after convening a great banquet to celebrate these events may be rendered “Philopator also held a big feast to celebrate what had happened.” This verse speaks of a separate celebration that the king arranged.

Gave thanks to heaven unceasingly and lavishly: Heaven, of course, refers to God. So we may translate this whole phrase as “could not stop giving thanks to God repeatedly [or, over and over]” or “kept on giving thanks to God again and again.”

For the unexpected rescue which he had experienced may be rendered “for not putting him to death as he would have expected.” There is a serious textual problem here. A few manuscripts have “they” instead of he. Both Hanhart and Rahlfs have the pronoun “he” in their Greek text, which Anderson and Hadas follow. Emmet accepts the reading with the pronoun “they,” and so does Contemporary English Version. We prefer the pronoun he. More manuscripts have it, and it is the more difficult reading of the two, which often indicates that it is the original. According to this reading, Philopator realized that not only were the Jews rescued, but he himself was, since the God who protected his people from harm allowed the king who intended to kill them to remain alive. Whatever reading is accepted in the text, a footnote should be added for the alternative.

Here are possible models for this verse:

• Meanwhile the king also held a big feast to celebrate what had happened. God had not put him to death, as he might been expected,* and so he could not stop giving thanks to God, over and over.
* God had not put him to death, as he might have expected; other manuscripts could be translated God had rescued the Jews.

• Meanwhile the king also held a big feast to celebrate what had happened. He could not stop thanking God again and again, because God had not put him to death as he might have expected.*
* God had not put him to death as he might have expected; other manuscripts could be translated God had rescued the Jews.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 3-4 Maccabees. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2018. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.