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When did Judas Maccabeus recapture and purify the Temple of Jerusalem?
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Judas Maccabeus recaptured Jerusalem and reconsecrated the Temple of Jerusalem in December 164 BCE.12
Following a three-year struggle against the forces of the Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who had defiled the sanctuary by dedicating it to the Greek god Zeus, Judas ordered the cleansing of the Holy Place. His priests removed the defiled elements and erected a new altar of unhewn stones. The sanctuary was officially rededicated on Kislev 25, 164 BCE. This event is commemorated by the Jewish festival of Hanukkah, which means "dedication" in Hebrew.12