Bible Dictionary
OLYMPIUS
Olympius was an epithet of Zeus or Jupiter, associated with Mount Olympus. Antiochus Epiphanes used the title when he desecrated the Jerusalem Temple by dedicating it to Jupiter Olympius.
Definition
Olympius was an epithet of Zeus or Jupiter, derived from Mount Olympus in Thessaly, where the gods were believed to hold court under Zeus. The title became associated with the dedication of the Jerusalem Temple to Jupiter.
Biblical Usage
The title appears in the historical books describing Antiochus Epiphanes’ insult to Jewish religion when he dedicated the Jerusalem Temple to Jupiter Olympius.
Historical Background
The dedication is dated in the supplied material to 168 BC, during the rule of Antiochus Epiphanes.
Historical Bible Dictionaries
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>o-lim'-pi-us (Olumpios): An epithet of JUPITER or ZEUS (which see) from Mt. Olympus in Thessaly, where the gods held court presided over by Zeus. Antiochus Epiphanes, "who on God's altars dansed," insulted the Jewish religion by dedicating the temple of Jerusalem to Jupiter Olympius, 168 BC (2 Macc 6:2; 1 Macc 1:54 ff).</p>