Apphus

APPHUS ăf’ əs (̓Απφούς). An epithet applied to the name of Jonathan, the fifth son of Mattathias (1 Macc 2:5). The exact meaning of the word is not certain, but it is usually taken to mean “dissembler,” perhaps received by Jonathan because of the way he had deceived the tribe of Jambri, who had killed his brother John (1 Macc 9:37-41).

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915)

af’-us, ap’-fus: A name borne by Jonathan, the fifth son of Mattathias (Apphous, 1 Macc 2:5). All the brothers, according to this passage, had double names; John is said to have been called Gaddis; Simon, Thassi; Judas, Maccabeus; Eleazar, Avaran; Jonathan, Apphus (1 Macc 2:2-5). The latter were probably the names which Mattathias gave his sons, while the former were received later when they became "leaders of the people." The common explanation of the word "Apphus" relates it to the Syriac choppus, "the dissembler"; but Torrey (article "Maccabees," Encyclopedia Biblica) points out that we have no means of ascertaining with what guttural consonant the word began, or what Semitic consonant the Greek "s" represents. Both the form and meaning of the name are, therefore, still to be explained.