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The Lexham Bible Dictionary
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Onias the High Priest of 1 Maccabees (Ὀνίας, Onias). Often referred to as Onias I. One of the high priests in Jerusalem during the fourth century bc. First Maccabees records that King Arius of the Spartans dispatches a letter to Onias claiming that the Spartans and the Jews were brothers because of their mutual descent from Abraham. According to 1 Maccabees 12:8, this letter was well received.

There is some disagreement concerning the specific identity of Onias and Arius here. The dating makes the most sense for both Onias I and Areios I (as both were in their relevant positions at the end of the fourth century bc). The Jewish historian Josephus claims that this letter was sent to Onias III, but the dating does not seem to fit (Josephus, Antiquities 12.226–27).

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