war among the Jews, and it was in this context that, desperate to remove Alexander, the Pharisees turned to the traditional Syrian Greek enemies of the Jews for help. Later, after Alexander’s death, his widow, Salome Alexandra, came under Pharisaic influence and allowed them to suppress dissenting views. She was thus the antithesis of her husband. Whereas he had embraced, and been embraced by, the Sadducees and other priestly groups, she allied herself with the Pharisees. The reason for the switch