"Maccabees"

In defiance of a Seleucid decree that all Jews must offer sacrifices to Greek gods, Mattathias is said to have killed one or more royal officials and then retreated with his sons and early followers into the Judean hills. Judah was selected to succeed Mattathias as the leader of the rebellion, and so ancient historians applied the name Maccabee to the whole corps. Simon and Jonathan were his generals, and both play notable roles in the narrative. The sons of Mattathias, and especially the line of rulers that descended from them, are also often referred to as Hasmoneans, a name associated with Mattathias that likely refers to one of his ancient ancestors or a place of family origin.