History of ancient Israel and Judah
The Hellenistic period began in 332 BCE when Alexander the Great conquered Persia.  Upon his death in 323 BCE, his empire was divided among his generals.  At first, Judea was ruled by the Egyptian-Hellenic Ptolemies, but in 198 BCE, the Syrian-Hellenic Seleucid Empire, under Antiochus III, seized control over Judea.