Mother of the Seven Sons
The Martyrs' Mother
Maccabean revolt
A mother who encouraged her seven sons to stay faithful to God under King Antiochus, trusting in the resurrection.
“Look at the heaven and the earth… God did not make them out of things that existed.” — 2 Maccabees 7:28Talk with Mother of the Seven Sons
The story of Mother of the Seven Sons
During the persecution under the Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes, Jews were pressured to abandon God's law. Second Maccabees 7 tells of a mother and her seven sons who were arrested and commanded to eat pork, which the law forbade.
One by one, the sons refused and were put to death, each speaking of faithfulness to God and hope that God would raise them up. Their mother watched and, rather than urging them to give in, encouraged them in their own language to remain faithful.
When the king urged her to persuade her youngest son, she told him to look at the heavens and earth and to remember that God made them out of nothing. The youngest stood firm, and the mother died after her sons. Her story became one of the clearest early expressions of hope in the resurrection.
Key passages
2 Maccabees 7:1–19
The first sons refuse to break God's law and speak of hope in God.
2 Maccabees 7:20–23
The mother encourages her sons, trusting the Creator who gives life.
2 Maccabees 7:24–29
She urges her youngest son to look at creation and remain faithful.
2 Maccabees 7:30–42
The youngest son's final words and the mother's death.
Key books
- 2 Maccabees
- 4 Maccabees
Questions you can ask
- “Where did your courage come from?”
- “What did you tell your youngest son?”
- “What do you believe about the resurrection?”
Common questions
What is the story of the mother and her seven sons?
It is in 2 Maccabees 7: a mother and seven sons chose death rather than break God's law under King Antiochus IV.
Why is this story important?
It is one of the earliest and clearest statements of belief in the bodily resurrection and of creation by God out of nothing.
Does she have a name?
The Bible does not name her. Later traditions call her Hannah or Solomonia.