Antiochus VII Sidetes Antiochus VII Euergetes , nicknamed Sidetes ( from Side ) , ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire , reigned from 138 to 129 BC . He was the last Seleucid king of any stature . Biography . He was one of the sons of Demetrius I Soter , the brother of Demetrius II Nicator and his mother may have been Laodice V . Antiochus was elevated after Demetrius ' capture by the Parthians . He married Cleopatra Thea , who had been the wife of Demetrius . Their offspring was Antiochus IX , who thus became both half - brother and cousin to Seleucus V and Antiochus VIII . Sidetes defeated the usurper Tryphon at Dora and laid siege to Jerusalem in 132 . According to Josephus the Hasmonean king John Hyrcanus opened King David ' s sepulchre and removed three thousand talents , which he then paid Antiochus to spare the city . Nevertheless , Antiochus ' respectful treatment of the Jews , and respect for their religion , earned him their gratitude and added name , " Euergetes " ( " the Benefactor " ) . With no Jewish sources of that time ( the Book of Maccabbees ends few years before his time ) it is unclear if the siege on Jerusalem ended with a decisive Seleucid victory or simply a peace treaty . Furthermore the fact is that Jewish forces later assisted Sidetes in his wars , and that for nearly 20 years after his death , John Hyrcanus refrained of attacking areas under Seleucid control . All in all it indicates a renewal of the friendly relations from the time of Demetrius II . Antiochus spent the final years of his life attempting to reclaim the lost eastern territories , overrun by the Parthians under their " Great King " , Mithridates I . Marching east , with what would prove to be the last great Seleucid royal army ( including a force of Judean mercenaries under John Hyrcanus ) , he defeated Mithridates in two battles , killing the aged Parthian king in the last of these . He restored Mesopotamia , Babylonia and Media to the Seleucid empire , before dispersing his army into winter quarters . The Seleucid king and army spent the winter feasting , hunting , and drinking ( the Seleucids maintainted the Macedonian tradition of heavy drinking ) . As with any time an army is quartered upon a population , tensions soon grew between the locals and the Syrian troops . The new Parthian ruler , Phraates II , had not been idle ; raising a new army while stirring up rebellion in the Seleucid occupied towns of Media . Hoping to further sew dissension amongst his foe , Phraates also released his long - held prisoner , Demetrius II , Antiochus ' older brother , to return to Syria and reclaim the throne . That winter ( 130 - 129 BCE ) , several Median towns rose in rebellion and attacked their Seleucid garrisons . Antiochus marched to support one such isolated garrison with only a small force ( likely only his Royal Guards ) . In a barren valley , he was ambushed and killed by Phraates II and a large force of Parthians , which had entered the country without being detected . The last great Seleucid king died in battle , a fitting end for the heir of Seleucus I Nicator ( the Conqueror ) . ( One disputed account has Antiochus take his own life , after the battle is lost , to avoid capture by the Parthians . ) After Antiochus VII Sidetes , the Parthians regained the territory briefly lost , and the Seleucid realm was now restricted to Syria .