OVERVIEW This group work focuses, entails and encumbers the narration of the orderly recital of the details and particulars of the series of rulers or dynasts in the family tree of Herod. This is certainly a very broad topic that covers everything about the nature, characteristics and practices about the family of Herod as a Roman ruler during the New Testament times. It is a truism to say that fact is stranger than fiction. History has proven this to be true numerous times. Most people have encountered in the Bible some very and strange people; most have heard of Herod the Great but few realized how many people that impacted the New Testament history which came from his family. The first century Jewish historian, Josephus, wrote a great work about Herod and his family and their twisted story which puts great modern minds – modern-day soap operas – to shame. it will be helpful to take a closer look at the individual members of the Herod family tree in order to appreciate the background of some of the events of Jesus’ life and the early church.
THE HERODIAN DYNASTY Herod was the family name of several Roman rulers who served as provincial governors of Palestine and surrounding regions during New Testament times. The Herodian Dynasty was a royal dynasty of Idumean (Edomite) descent, ruling the Herodian Kingdom and later the Herodian Tetrarchy, as vassals of the Roman Empire. The Herodian dynasty began with Herod the Great, who assumed the throne of Judea, with Roman support, bringing down the century long Hasmonean Kingdom. His kingdom lasted until his death in 4 BCE, when it was divided between his sons as a Tetrarchy, which lasted for about 10 years. During the time of the Hasmonean ruler, John Hyrcanus (134-104BCE), Judea conquered Edom (Idumea) and forced the Edomites to convert to Judaism. The Edomites were gradually integrated into the Judean nation, and some of them reached high-ranking positions. In 40 BCE, the Parthians invaded the eastern Roman provinces and managed to drive the Romans out of many areas. In Judea, the Hasmonean dynasty was restored under king Antigonus as a pro-Parthian monarch. Herod the Great, the son of Antipater the Idumean and Cypros, managed to escape to Rome. After convincing the Roman Senate of his sincere intentions in favour of Romans, he eventually was announced as king of the Jews by the Roman Senate. Despite his announcement as king of the whole of Judea, Herod did not fully conquer it until 37 BCE. He subsequently ruled the Herodian kingdom as a vassal king for 34 years, crushing the opposition while also initiating huge building projects, including the Caesarea harbour, the Temple Mount, the Masada and the Herodium, among other things. Herod ruled Judea until 4 BCE; at his death his kingdom was divided among his three sons as a tetrarchy.
HEROD THE GREAT ruled 37-4 B.C. The first Herod, known as Herod the Great, was the Roman ruler of Palestine during the days of the Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus when Jesus was born in Bethlehem (Matt. 2:1; Lk. 3:1). All the other different Herods mentioned in the New Testament were the sons or grandsons of this Herod. (Mt. 2:16 -18) 40-4 B.C. He was known as a master builder, organizer, developer although his policies were considered cruel and ruthless by the Jewish people. His most notable achievement was the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem- A project that took nearly 50 years. He also rebuilt and enlarged the city of Caesarea into a port city on the Mediterranean Sea. Caesarea served as the Roman Provincial capital for Palestine during the New Testament era. The magnificent aqueducts that he built at the city are still visible today. Herod the Great grew to be a bold man charged by the San Hedrin of killing without consent of the Council. a) Council charged Herod before Rome of encroaching Roman Law, but he was freed. b) He then killed all but one of the San Hedrin, including the High Priest Hyrcanus. c) Hyrcanus had a granddaughter named Miriamne whom Herod married hoping for Jewish support.
d) Together they had two sons Aristobulos and Alexander. Salome, Herods’ sister hated both sons because they were heirs to the throne she wanted for her own. e) Inner murmuring from those who were jealous of Miriamne’s beauty said she was guilty of unfaithfulness and Herod had her killed. (28 BC) This apparently haunted Herod as in 7 BC when the sons found out their father had killed their mother, he had them killed as well.
Political Activity At age 25 he began as governor of Galilee. Good at raising tribute money so Rome gave him power. 31BC Antony was conquered by Augustus. Herod quickly flattered Augustus and got imperial favor. He fought Arabians and they finally bowed to Herod power. (Antiquities 15.v5) He influenced younger Jews and began party called HERODIANS. Offense to most in nation and we see how they would opposed Christ. (Mt. 22:16, Mk. 3:6, 12:13) Most Jews saw him as a Usurper of David’s throne who helped Roman oppression. Many tried to kill him but he always came out on top. (Ant XV, viii.) As an old man, he was diseased. Irritable temper. Courts miserable. Tried to kill himself. Final decision of his life was to order Antipater killed. (Son of Doris) (He had instigated his brother Alexander and Aristobulus deaths.) He also had many nobles killed at his death so the kingdom would mourn his passing. Talent He was organized, shrewd, knew men, how to use them. (Wise) Had friendship of emperors. His greatest ability was architectural taste and this is seen in rebuilding Zerubabbel’s temple, making it even more glorious than Solomon. When Titus besieged Jerusalem he sought to spare the building in the final attack of the city. Of course Masada Fortress was amazing! He was known as a master builder, organizer, developer although his policies were considered cruel and ruthless by the Jewish people. His most notable achievement was the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem- A project that took nearly 50 years. He also rebuilt and enlarged the city of Caesarea into a port city on the Mediterranean Sea. Caesarea served as the Roman Provincial capital for Palestine during the New Testament era. The magnificent aqueducts that he built at the city are still visible today.
Personal Life Great physical strength and intellectual powers beyond the norm. But he was the incarnation of brute lust. History shows few families more immoral and brutal. Even noticing the intermarriage helps tangle the family tree so much that figuring it out is like a puzzle. Due to his insane taste for power he would kill the only woman he loved and their two sons. After the death of Miriamne’s sons in 7 B.C. Augustus said, “would rather be Herod’s pig than his son Herod died in 4 B.C and since some time elapsed between the massacre and his death, (Mt. 2:19) this gives us an approximate help in dating the birth of Christ. Josephus also mentions an eclipse just before Herod’s death. (Ant XVII, vi, 4) The eclipse occurred on March 13 in 4710 of the Julian period therefore 4 B.C. is probable.
HEROD ARCHELAUS Herod Archelaus (23 BC – 18 AD) was ethnarch of Samaria, Judea, and Idumea (biblical Edom), including the cities Caesarea and Jaffa, for a period of nine years (circa 4 BC to 6 AD). Archelaus was removed by Roman Emperor Augustus when Judaea province was formed under direct Roman rule, at the time of the Census of Quirinius. He was the son of Herod the Great and Malthace the Samaritan, and was the brother of Herod Antipas, and the half-brother of Herod II. Archelaus (a name meaning "leading the people") came to power after the death of his father Herod the Great in 4 BC, and ruled over one-half of the territorial dominion of his father.
Josephus writes that Herod the Great (father of Archelaus) was in Jericho at the time of his death. Just prior to his final trip to Jericho, he was deeply involved in a religious conflagration. Herod had placed a golden eagle over the Temple entrance which was perceived as blasphemous. The eagle was chopped down with axes. Herod defended his works and offered an attack on his predecessors, the dynastic Hasmoneans. Herod killed all male lineal successors of the Hasmoneans. The Pharisees had long attacked the Hasmoneans as well, as having parentage from Greeks while under bondage. This racial slur was repeated by the Pharisees through the rule of Alexander Jannaeus and Queen Salome. With this explicit background given, Josephus began an exposition of the days of Archelaus' reign before Passover of 4 BC. Archelaus dressed in white and ascended a golden throne and appeared to be kind to the populace in Jerusalem in order to appease their desires for lower taxes and an end to the (political) imprisonment of Herod's enemies. The demeanour of the questioning appeared to turn at some point, and the crowd began to call for the punishment of those of Herod's people who ordered the death of the 2 teachers and the 40 youths. They also demanded the replacement of the High Priest, from the appointed High Priest of Herod's to a High Priest, "...of greater piety and purity." Josephus does not tell who would be "...of greater piety and purity". To this request, however, Archelaus acceded, although he was becoming angry at the presumptions of the crowds. Archelaus asked for moderation and told the crowds that all would be well if they would put aside their animosities and wait until he was confirmed as King by Caesar Augustus. Archelaus then left to feast with his friends. It was evening and as the darkness settled, mourning and wailing begin over the city. Archelaus began to worry as people begin streaming into the Temple area and those who wailed for loss of the teachers continued their very loud mourning. The people were escalating in their threatening behaviour. The Thackeray translation of Josephus here states it thus: "The promoters of the mourning for the doctors stood in the body of the temple, procuring recruits for their faction". Josephus does not tell us who these "promoters of the mourning", who recruit from within a body inside the Temple, could be. Archelaus then sent a general, some other people and finally a "tribune in Command of a Cohort" to reason with these "Seditionists", to stop their "innovations" and wait until Archelaus could return from Rome and Caesar. Those who came from Archelaus were stoned, with many killed. After the stoning, those who stoned the soldiers returned to their sacrifices, as if nothing had happened. Josephus does not tell who performed the sacrifices in the Temple. It was after midnight, and Archelaus suddenly ordered the entire army into the city to the Temple. Josephus records the death toll at 3000. Archelaus sent heralds around the city announcing the cancellation of Passover. Archelaus quickly sailed to Caesar and faced a group of enemies - his own family. Antipater, the brother of Archelaus who was deposed from Herod's will days earlier, argued that Archelaus merely feigned grief for his father, crying during the day and involved with great "merriment" during the nights. The threats carried out by Archelaus ending in the death of 3000 in the Temple were not just threats to the worshipers in Jerusalem at Passover, but also amounted to a threat to Caesar himself, since Archelaus acted in every manner a King, before such title had been given by Caesar. At this point, Nicolaus of Damascus argued to Caesar that Archelaus acted appropriately and that Herod's will, supposedly written a few weeks prior (yielding the kingship to Archelaus and against Antipater), should be seen as valid.
Thus, Archelaus received the Tetrarchy of Judea last will of his father, though a previous will had bequeathed it to his brother Antipas. He was proclaimed king by the army, but declined to assume the title until he had submitted his claims to Caesar Augustus in Rome. In Rome he was opposed by Antipas and by many of the Jews, who feared his cruelty, based on the murder of 3000; but in 4 BC Augustus allotted to him the greater part of the kingdom (Samaria, Judea, and Idumea) with the title of ethnarch (a ruler of an ethnic group). The first wife of Archelaus is given by Josephus simply as Mariamne, perhaps Mariamne III, daughter of Aristobulus IV, whom he divorced to marry Glaphyra. She was the widow of Archelaus' brother Alexander, though her second husband, Juba, king of Mauretania, was alive. This violation of the Mosaic Law, along with Archelaus' continued cruelty, aroused the ire of the Jews, who complained to Augustus. Archelaus was deposed in 6 AD and banished to Vienne in Gaul.
HEROD ANTIPAS (Herod’s Son) Herod Antipater (born before 20 BC – died after 39 AD), known by the nickname Antipas, was a 1st-century ruler of Galilee and Perea, who bore the title of tetrarch ("ruler of a quarter") and is referred to as both "Herod the Tetrarch" and "King Herod" in the New Testament although he never held the title of king. He is widely known today for accounts in the New Testament of his role in events that led to the executions of John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth. After being recognized by Augustus upon the death of his father, Herod the Great (c. 4 BC/AD 1), and subsequent ethnarch rule by his brother, Herod Archelaus, Antipas officially ruled Galilee and Perea as a client state of the Roman Empire. He was responsible for building projects at Sepphoris and Betharamphtha, and more important for the construction of his capital Tiberias on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. Named in honour of his patron, the emperor Tiberius, the city later became a centre of rabbinic learning. Antipas was a son of Herod the Great, who had become king of Judea, and Malthace, who was from Samaria. His date of birth is unknown but was before 20 BC. Antipas, his full brother Archelaus and his half-brother Philip were educated in Rome. Antipas was not Herod's first choice of heir. That honor fell to Aristobulus and Alexander, Herod's sons by the Hasmonean princess Mariamne. It was only after they were executed (7 BC), and Herod's oldest son Antipater was convicted of trying to poison his father (5 BC), that the now elderly Herod fell back on his youngest son Antipas, revising his will to make him heir. During his illness in 4 BC, Herod had yet another change of heart about the succession. According to the final version of his will, Antipas' elder brother Archelaus was now to become king of Judea, Idumea and Samaria, while Antipas would rule Galilee and Perea with the lesser title of tetrarch. Philip was to receive Gaulanitis (the Golan Heights), Batanaea (southern Syria), Trachonitis and Auranitis (Hauran). Because of Judea's status as a Roman client kingdom, Herod's plans for the succession had to be ratified by Augustus. The three heirs therefore travelled to Rome to make their claims, Antipas arguing he ought to inherit the whole kingdom and the others maintaining that Herod's final will ought to be honoured. Despite qualified support for Antipas from Herodian family members in Rome, who favoured direct Roman rule of Judea but considered Antipas preferable to his brother, Augustus largely confirmed the division of territory set out by Herod in his final will. Archelaus had, however, to be content with the title of ethnarch rather than king. In 6 AD, Archelaus was deemed incompetent by Augustus and replaced with a prefect. As a result, Antipas would govern Galilee and Perea for the next forty-two years. The two territories were separated by the region of the Decapolis, with Galilee to the north and Perea to the south.
Threats to stability in both areas would have been clear to Antipas when he took office. While he had been making his case to Augustus in Rome, dissidents led by Judas son of Hezekiah had attacked the palace of Sepphoris in Galilee, seizing money as well as weapons which they used to terrorize the area. In a counterattack ordered by Quinctilius Varus, Roman governor of Syria, Sepphoris was destroyed by fire and its inhabitants sold as slaves. Meanwhile, Perea bordered on the kingdom of Nabatea, which had long had uneasy relations with Romans and Jews. Part of Antipas' solution was to follow in his father's footsteps as a builder. He rebuilt and fortified Sepphoris, while also adding a wall to Betharamphtha in Perea. The latter city was renamed Livias after Augustus' wife Livia, and later Julias after his daughter. However, the tetrarch's most noted construction was his capital on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee – Tiberias, so named to honour his patron Tiberius, who had succeeded Augustus as emperor in 14 AD. Residents could bathe nearby at the warm springs of Emmaus, and by the time of the First Jewish-Roman War the city's own buildings included a stadium, a royal palace and a sanctuary for prayer. It gave its name to the sea and later became a centre of rabbinic learning. However, pious Jews at first refused to live in it because it was built atop a graveyard and therefore a source of ritual impurity; Antipas had to colonize it using a mixture of foreigners, forced migrants, poor people and freed slaves. At other times Antipas was more sensitive to Jewish tradition. His coins carried no images, which would have violated Jewish prescriptions against idolatry. When Pontius Pilate, governor of Judea from 26 AD to 36 AD, caused offence by placing votive shields in the Antonia palace at Jerusalem, Antipas and his brothers successfully petitioned for their removal. Antipas faced more immediate problems in his own tetrarchy after John the Baptist – in 28/29 AD according to the Gospel of Luke (or 27 AD, if the co-regency of Augustus and Tiberius is included in Luke's reckoning of time, for which there is some evidence) – began a ministry of preaching and baptism by the Jordan River, which marked the western edge of Antipas' territory of Perea. The New Testament Gospels state that John attacked the tetrarch's marriage as contrary to Jewish law (it was incestuous, as Herodias was also Antipas' niece, but also John criticized the fact that she was his brother's wife in Mark 6:18, lending credence to the belief that Antipas and Herodias married while Herod II was still alive), while Josephus says that John's public influence made Antipas fearful of rebellion. John was imprisoned in Machaerus and executed. According to Matthew and Mark, Herod was reluctant to order John's death but was compelled by Herodias' daughter (unnamed in the text but named by Josephus as Salome), to whom he had promised any reward she chose as a result of her dancing for guests at his birthday banquet. Among those baptized by John was Jesus of Nazareth, who began his own ministry in Galilee – causing Antipas, according to Matthew and Mark, to fear that the Baptiser had been raised from the dead. Luke alone among the Gospels states that a group of Pharisees warned Jesus that Antipas was plotting his death, whereupon Jesus denounced the tetrarch as a "fox" and declared that he, Jesus, would not fall victim to such a plot because "it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem". Luke also credits the tetrarch with a role in Jesus' trial. According to Luke, Pilate, on learning that Jesus was a Galilean and therefore under Herod's jurisdiction, sent him to Antipas, who was also in Jerusalem at the time.
Initially, Antipas was pleased to see Jesus, hoping to see him perform a miracle, but when Jesus remained silent in the face of questioning Antipas mocked him and sent him back to Pilate. Luke says that these events improved relations between Pilate and Herod despite their earlier enmity. Due to the lack of historical evidence, it has been suggested that Jesus' trial by Herod Antipas is unhistorical. Robin Lane Fox, for example, an English historian, claims that the story was invented based on Psalm 2, in which "the kings of the earth" are described as opposing the Lord's "anointed", and also served to show that the authorities failed to find grounds for convicting Jesus. Antipas' fall from power was due to Caligula and to his own nephew Agrippa, brother of Herodias. When Agrippa fell into debt during the reign of Tiberius despite his connections with the imperial family, Herodias persuaded Antipas to provide for him, but the two men quarrelled and Agrippa departed. After Agrippa was heard expressing to his friend Caligula his eagerness for Tiberius to die and leave room for Caligula to succeed him, he was imprisoned. When Caligula finally became emperor in 37 AD, he not only released his friend but granted him rule of Philip's former tetrarchy (slightly extended), with the title of king. Antipas died in exile. The 3rd-century historian Cassius Dio seems to imply that Caligula had him killed, but this is usually treated with scepticism by modern historians. In Flaubert's "Herodias" (1877), Herodias uses her long-concealed daughter, Salome, to manipulate Herod sexually for her own political purposes. This conceit (original with Flaubert) inspired Oscar Wilde's play "Salome" (1891), the first version of the legend to show Salome with a will of her own, opposing her mother and lusting after John the Baptist herself. Naive and puzzled by her stepfather's lascivious attentions, the young girl arouses Herod in order to avenge herself on the prophet who has refused her advances. Flaubert's novella was turned into an opera by Jules Massenet (1881) in which Salome, ignorant of her royal parentage, becomes a disciple of the Baptist, who is then executed by the lustful and jealous Herod (a baritone). In Richard Strauss's operatic setting of Wilde's play (1905), Herod, one of the most difficult tenor roles in the repertory, is depicted as befuddled by both drink and lust, and in bitter conflict with his wife (as in Flaubert). At the end of the opera (as in Wilde's play), disgusted with Salome's behaviour with the head of John, he orders her execution.
HEROD PHILIP Philip the Tetrarch, sometimes called Herod Philip II by modern writers (ruled from 4 BC until his death in AD 34) was the son of Herod the Great and his fifth wife, Cleopatra of Jerusalem. Philip II was born in 19 BCE. He was a half-brother of Herod Antipas and Herod Archelaus; and should not be confused with Herod II, whom some writers call Herod Philip I. Philip inherited the northeast part of his father's kingdom, which included Iturea and Trachonitis; and possibly Gaulanitis and Paneas, as was noted by Flavius Josephus. Augustus Caesar made his own division of Herod's kingdom; giving one half to Archelaus, while dividing the other half into two, going to Antipas and Philip. Batanea, along with Trachonitis and Auranitis (with a certain part of what was called the House of Zenodorus), paid the annual tribute of one hundred talents to Philip.
Philip married his niece Salome, the daughter of Herodias and Herod II (sometimes called Herod Philip I, and also a member of the Herodian dynasty). This Salome appears in the Bible in connection with the execution of John the Baptist. However, there would have been a great difference in their ages: Salome was born in ~14 CE, at which time Herod Philip was 32 years old. The gospels of Matthew and Mark state that the Herodias whom Herod Antipas married was the wife of Antipas' brother "Philip", a fact supported by Josephus, who indicated she was the wife of Herod II (a.k.a. Philip I). It is known that Philip the Tetrarch rebuilt the city of Caesarea Philippi, calling it by his own name to distinguish it from the Caesarea on the sea-coast, which was the seat of the Roman government. It is possible that the 'Salome' he was married to was a half-sister by that same name, a daughter of Herod the Great and his 8th wife Elpis. This sibling Salome was born in ~14 BCE, and so only five years younger than Herod Philip (a more realistic age gap). But this would also be the only known occurrence of the children of Herod the Great intermarrying, even if from different mothers. Marriage to 1st cousins and uncles, however, was relatively common in the so-called Herodian dynasty. There is no contemporary evidence for Philip the Tetrarch's use of the name "Herod Philip" as a dynastic title, as did occur with his brothers Herod Antipas and Herod Archelaus. Herod II is sometimes called "Herod Philip I" (because the gospels call the husband of Herodias "Philip"), and then Philip the Tetrarch is called "Herod Philip II". Kokkinos says, "The stubborn existence of many theologians in referring to Herod III as 'Herod Philip' is without any value...No illusory Herod Philip ever existed."; [ Philip the Tetrarch, "unlike his brothers, did not use Herod as a dynastic name." Philip's half-brothers, Archelaus and Antipas, had adopted the name of Herod, "presumably" for a dynastic claim from Herod the Great.
HEROD AGRIPPA (Herod’s Grandson) Herod Agrippa, also known as Herod or Agrippa I (11 BC – 44 AD), was a King of Judea from 41 to 44 AD. He was the last ruler with the royal title reigning over Judea and the father of Herod Agrippa II, the last King from the Herodian dynasty. The grandson of Herod the Great and son of Aristobulus IV and Berenice, he was born Marcus Julius Agrippa, so named in honour of Roman statesman Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa. He is the king named Herod in the Acts of the Apostles 12:1:2 "Herod (Agrippa)". Josephus states that he was known in his time as "Agrippa the Great". Christian and Jewish historiography take different views of this king, with the Christians largely opposing Agrippa and the Jews placing little precedent toward the Judean kings installed by Rome. Josephus informs us that, after the execution of his father, young Agrippa was sent by his grandfather, Herod the Great to the imperial court in Rome. There, Tiberius conceived a great affection for him, and had him educated alongside his son Drusus, who also befriended him, and future emperor Claudius. On the death of Drusus, Agrippa, who had been recklessly extravagant and was deeply in debt, was obliged to leave Rome, fleeing to the fortress of Malatha in Idumaea. There, it was said, he contemplated suicide. After a brief seclusion, through the mediation of his wife Cypros and his sister Herodias, Agrippa was given a sum of money by his brother-in-law and uncle, Herodias' husband, Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Galilee and Perea, and was allowed to take up residence in Tiberias, and received the rank of aedile in that city, with a small yearly income. But having quarrelled with Antipas, he fled to Flaccus, proconsul of Syria.
Soon afterwards he was convicted, through the information of his brother Aristobulus, of having received a bribe from the Damascenes, who wished to purchase his influence with the proconsul, and was again compelled to flee. He was arrested as he was about to sail for Italy, for a sum of money which he owed to the treasury of Caesar, but made his escape, and reached Alexandria, where his wife succeeded in procuring a supply of money from Alexander the Alabarch. He then set sail, and landed at Puteoli. He was favourably received by Tiberius, who entrusted him with the education of his grandson Tiberius Gemellus. He also formed an intimacy with Caligula, then a popular favorite. Agrippa was one day overheard by his freedman Eutyches expressing a wish for Tiberius's death and the advancement of Caligula, and for this he was cast into prison. Following Tiberius' death and the ascension of Agrippa's friend Caligula in 37, Agrippa was set free and made king of the territories of Gaulanitis, Auranitis, Batanaea, and Trachonitis, which his uncle Philip the Tetrarch had held, with the addition of Abila. Agrippa was also awarded the ornamenta praetoria and could use the title amicus caesaris ("friend of Caesar"). Caligula also presented him with a gold chain equal in weight to the iron one he had worn in prison, which Agrippa dedicated to the Temple of Jerusalem on his return to his ancestral homeland. In 39, Agrippa returned to Rome, and brought about the banishment of his uncle, Herod Antipas; he was then granted his uncle's tetrarchy, consisting of Galilee and Peraea. This created a Jewish kingdom which did not include Judea at its center. After the assassination of Caligula in 41, Agrippa was involved in the struggle over the accession between Claudius, the Praetorian Guard, and the Senate. How big a part Agrippa played is uncertain; the various sources differ. Cassius Dio simply writes that Agrippa cooperated with Claudius in seeking rule. Flavius Josephus gives us two versions. In The Jewish War, Agrippa is presented as only a messenger to a confident and energetic Claudius. But in The Antiquities of the Jews, Agrippa's role is central and crucial: he convinces Claudius to stand up to the Senate and the Senate to avoid attacking Claudius. After becoming Emperor, Claudius gave Agrippa dominion over Judea and Samaria and granted him the ornamenta consularia, and at his request gave the kingdom of Chalcis in Lebanon to Agrippa's brother Herod of Chalcis. Thus Agrippa became one of the most powerful kings of the east. His domain more or less equalled that which was held by his grandfather Herod the Great. In the city of Berytus, he built a theatre and amphitheatre, baths, and porticoes. He was equally generous in Sebaste, Heliopolis and Caesarea. Agrippa began the building of the third and outer wall of Jerusalem, but the suspicions he had of Claudius's intervention prevented him from finishing the fortifications which he had begun. His friendship was courted by many of the neighbouring kings and rulers, some of whom he housed in Tiberias, which also caused Claudius some displeasure. Agrippa returned to Judea and governed it to the satisfaction of the Jews. Perhaps because of this, his passage through Alexandria in the year 38 instigated anti-Jewish riots. At the risk of his own life, or at least of his liberty, he interceded with Caligula on behalf of the Jews, when that emperor was attempting to set up his statue in the Temple at Jerusalem shortly before his death in 41. Agrippa's efforts bore fruit and persuaded Caligula to rescind his order thus preventing the Temple's desecration. However, Philo of Alexandria recounts that Caligula issued a second order to have his statue erected in the Temple. Another statue of himself, of colossal size, was built of gilt brass. The Temple of Jerusalem was then transformed into a temple for Caligula, and it was called the Temple of illustrious Gaius the new Jupiter.
From Josephus, Antiquities 19.8.2 343-361: "Now when Agrippa had reigned three years over all Judea he came to the city Caesarea, which was formerly called Strato's Tower; and there he exhibited spectacles in honor of Caesar, for whose well-being he'd been informed that a certain festival was being celebrated. At this festival a great number were gathered together of the principal persons of dignity of his province. On the second day of the spectacles he put on a garment made wholly of silver, of a truly wonderful texture, and came into the theatre early in the morning. There the silver of his garment, being illuminated by the fresh reflection of the sun's rays, shone out in a wonderful manner, and was so resplendent as to spread awe over those that looked intently upon him. Presently his flatterers cried out, one from one place, and another from another, (though not for his good) that he was a god; and they added, "Be thou merciful to us; for although we have hitherto reverenced thee only as a man, yet shall we henceforth own thee as superior to mortal nature." Upon this the king neither rebuked them nor rejected their impious flattery. But he shortly afterward looked up and saw an owl sitting on a certain rope over his head, and immediately understood that this bird was the messenger of ill tidings, just as it had once been the messenger of good tidings to him; and fell into the deepest sorrow. A severe pain arose in his belly, striking with a most violent intensity. He therefore looked upon his friends, and said, "I, whom you call a god, am commanded presently to depart this life; while Providence thus reproves the lying words you just now said to me; and I, who was by you called immortal, am immediately to be hurried away by death. But I am bound to accept what Providence allots, as it pleases God; for we have by no means lived ill, but in a splendid and happy manner." When he had said this, his pain became violent. Accordingly he was carried into the palace, and the rumour went abroad everywhere that he would certainly die soon. The multitude sat in sackcloth, men, women and children, after the law of their country, and besought God for the king's recovery. All places were also full of mourning and lamentation. Now the king rested in a high chamber, and as he saw them below lying prostrate on the ground he could not keep himself from weeping. And when he had been quite worn out by the pain in his belly for five days, he departed this life, being in the fifty-fourth year of his age and in the seventh year of his reign. He ruled four years under Caius Caesar, three of them were over Philip's tetrarchy only, and on the fourth that of Herod was added to it; and he reigned, besides those, three years under Claudius Caesar, during which time he had Judea added to his lands, as well as Samaria and Caesarea. The revenues that he received out of them were very great, no less than twelve millions of drachmae. But he borrowed great sums from others, for he was so very liberal that his expenses exceeded his incomes, and his generosity was boundless." Acts 12 relates that he was eaten by worms, after an angel struck him for not giving glory to God while being worshiped by sycophants. The Jewish Encyclopedia has a different account of Agrippa's reign: Claudius, showed himself grateful to Agrippa for important services rendered him, and upon his accession, placed under his rule the remainder of Palestine, the territories of Samaria, Judea, and Idumæa, formerly governed by Archelaus. Loaded with honours and titles, Agrippa returned home, and the few remaining years of his benevolent sway afforded the people a brief period of peace and prosperity. The evil consequences of a ruler's unbridled passions and tyranny had been sufficiently evident to him in Rome, and they had taught him moderation and strict self-control.
The Talmud also has a positive view of his reign: The Mishnah explained how the Jews of the Second Temple era interpreted the requirement of Deuteronomy 31:10–13 that the king read the Torah to the people. At the conclusion of the first day of Sukkot immediately after the conclusion of the seventh year in the cycle, they erected a wooden dais in the Temple court, upon which the king sat. The synagogue attendant took a Torah scroll and handed it to the synagogue president, who handed it to the High Priest's deputy, who handed it to the High Priest, who handed it to the king. The king stood and received it, and then read sitting. King Agrippa stood and received it and read standing, and the sages praised him for doing so. When Agrippa reached the commandment of Deuteronomy 17:15 that “you may not put a foreigner over you” as king, his eyes ran with tears, but they said to him, “Don’t fear, Agrippa, you are our brother, you are our brother!”[17] The king would read from Deuteronomy 1:1 up through the shema (Deuteronomy 6:4–9), and then Deuteronomy 11:13–21, the portion regarding tithes (Deuteronomy 14:22–29), the portion of the king (Deuteronomy 17:14–20), and the blessings and curses (Deuteronomy 27–28). The king would recite the same blessings as the High Priest, except that the king would substitute a blessing for the festivals instead of one for the forgiveness of sin. (Mishnah Sotah 7:8; Babylonian Talmud Sotah 41a.) The "King" Herod mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 12, is identified as the same person as Herod Agrippa (though the Herod mentioned in Acts 13:1 refers to Herod Antipas). The identification is based in part on the description of his death, which is very similar to Agrippa's death in Josephus's Antiquities of the Jews 19.8.2, although Josephus does not include the claim that "an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms." Further evidence is the identification of the ruler in Acts 12:1 as "Herod the king," since Agrippa is the only Herod who would have had authority in Jerusalem at that time. Blastus is mentioned in the New Testament as Herod's chamberlain. Herod Antipas, uncle and predecessor of Agrippa as ruler of Galilee and Peræa, is the Herod mentioned in the Gospels who authorized the execution of John the Baptist and played a role in the trial of Jesus. Herod Agrippa II, son of Herod Agrippa, was asked, with his sister Berenice, by the Roman Procurator of Judea, Porcius Festus, to assist in the mini-trial of the Apostle Paul. Herod Agrippa is the protagonist of the Italian opera, L’Agrippa tetrarca di Gerusalemme (1724) by Giuseppe Maria Buini (mus.) and Claudio Nicola Stampa (libr.), first performed at the Teatro Ducale of Milan, Italy, on August 28, 1724. Herod Agrippa is a major figure in Robert Graves' novel Claudius the God, as well as the BBC television adaptation I, Claudius, wherein he was portrayed by James Faulkner as an adult and Michael Clements as a child. He is depicted as one of Claudius's closest lifelong friends. Herod acts as Claudius's last and most trustworthy friend and advisor, giving him the key advice to trust no one, not even him. This advice proves prophetic at the end of Herod's life, where he is depicted as coming to believe that he is a prophesied Messiah and raising a rebellion against Rome, to Claudius's dismay. However, he is struck down by a possibly supernatural illness and sends a final letter to Claudius asking for forgiveness.
HEROD AGRIPPA II (Agrippa’s Son, Herod’s grandson) Herod Agrippa II (AD 27/28 – c. 92 or 100) officially named Marcus Julius Agrippa and sometimes just called Agrippa, was the eighth and last client ruler of Rome from the Herodian dynasty, the fifth (after Herod the Great, Agrippa I, Herod of Chalcis and Aristobulus of Chalcis) bearing the title of King. He was the son of the first and better-known Herod Agrippa, the brother of Berenice, Mariamne, and Drusilla (second wife of the Roman procurator Antonius Felix). Herod Agrippa II was educated at the court of the emperor Claudius, and at the time of his father's death he was only seventeen years old. Claudius therefore kept him at Rome, and sent Cuspius Fadus as procurator of the Roman province of Judaea. While at Rome, he voiced his support for the Jews to Claudius, and against the Samaritans and the procurator of Iudaea Province, Ventidius Cumanus, who was lately thought to have been the cause of some disturbances there. On the death of king Herod of Chalcis in 48, his small Syrian kingdom of Chalcis was given to Herod Agrippa, with the right of superintending the Temple in Jerusalem and appointing its high priest, but only as a tetrarchy. In 53, he was forced to give up the tetrarchy of Chalcis but in exchange Claudius made him ruler with the title of king over the territories previously governed by Philip, namely, Batanea, Trachonitis and Gaulonitis, and the kingdom of Lysanias in Abila. The tetrarchy of Chalcis was subsequently in 57 given to his cousin, Aristobulus. Herod Agrippa celebrated by marrying off his two sisters Mariamne and Drusilla. Flavius Josephus, the Jewish historian, repeats the gossip that Herod Agrippa lived in an incestuous relationship with his sister, Berenice. It was before him and his sister Berenice that, according to the New Testament, Paul the Apostle pleaded his case at Caesarea Maritima, possibly in 59. Agrippa expended large sums in beautifying Jerusalem and other cities, especially Berytus (ancient Beirut), a Hellenised city in Phoenicia. His partiality for the latter rendered him unpopular amongst his own subjects, and the capricious manner in which he appointed and deposed the high priests made him disliked by his coreligionists. In the seventeenth year of Agrippa's reign (corresponding with the 12th year of Nero's reign), Agrippa tried desperately to avert a war with Rome, when he saw his countrymen generally disposed to fight against Rome, because of certain insults and abuses they had had under the Roman procurator, Gessius Florus. At this time, they had broken-off the cloisters leading from Antonia Fortress to the Temple Mount where Roman soldiers were wont to keep guard during the Jewish holidays, and they refused to pay the tribute which was due to Caesar. Agrippa convened the people and urged instead that they tolerate the temporary injustices done to them and submit themselves to Roman hegemony. At length, Agrippa failed to prevent his subjects from rebelling, whereas, during a certain holiday when the Roman governor of Syria, Cestius Gallus, had passed through Judea to quell the rebellion, he was routed by Jewish forces. By 66 the citizenry of Jerusalem expelled their king, Agrippa, and his sister, Berenice, from Jerusalem. During the First Jewish-Roman War of 66–73, he sent 2,000 men, archers and cavalry, to support Vespasian, showing that, although a Jew in religion, he was entirely devoted to the Roman Empire. He accompanied Titus on some campaigns, and was wounded at the siege of Gamla. After the capture of Jerusalem, he went with his sister Berenice to Rome, where he was invested with the dignity of praetor and rewarded with additional territory. He had a great intimacy with the historian Josephus, having supplied him with information for his history, Antiquities of the Jews. Josephus preserved two of the letters he received from him.
According to Photius, Agrippa died, childless, at the age of seventy, in the third year of the reign of Trajan, that is, 100, but statements of historian Josephus, in addition to the contemporary epigraphy from his kingdom, cast this date into serious doubt. The modern scholarly consensus holds that he died before 93/94. He was the last prince of the house of Herod.
ARISTOBULUS OF CHALCIS Aristobulus of Chalcis was a son of Herod of Chalcis and his first wife Mariamne. Herod of Chalcis, ruler of Chalcis in Iturea, was a grandson of Herod the Great through his father, Aristobulus IV. Mariamne was a granddaughter of Herod the Great through her mother, Olympias; hence Aristobulus was a great-grandson of Herod the Great on both sides of his family. Aristobulus was married to Salome after the death of her first husband, Philip the Tetrarch. With her, Aristobulus had three sons: Herod, Agrippa, and Aristobulus Three coins with portraits of him and Salome have been found. Aristobulus did not directly succeed his father as ruler of the Chalcis. Rather, upon his father's death in 48 AD, the emperor Claudius gave the realm to Aristobulus' first cousin, Herod Agrippa II. When in 52 AD Agrippa was given the territories previously governed by Philip the Tetrarch (also known as Herod Philip II) and Lysanias, Aristobulus was subsequently given Chalcis. He reigned as Aristobulus of Chalcis until his death in 92 AD, when Chalcis became part of Roman Syria.
He has been identified with the Aristobulus appointed by Nero as King of Armenia Minor in 55 AD, who participated with his forces in the Roman–Parthian War of 58–63, receiving a small portion of Gerater Armenia in exchange. This Aristobulus was displaced from Armenia Minor in 72 AD, but is thought to be the "Aristobulus of Chalcidice" who supported Lucius Caesennius Paetus, proconsul of Syria, in the war against Antiochus of Commagene in 73 AD, and was in consequence compensated with a new kingdom, "probably Chalcis ad Belum" (modern Qinnasrin, in northern Syria.[4] Assuming all these Aristobuli were indeed the same person, he would seem to have been ruler, at various times, of the Iturean Chalcis, Armenia Minor, and Chalcis ad Belum.
DEFICIENCES/CRITICISMS OF HERODIAN DYNASTY Without a doubt these facts are stranger than fiction, for who could have ever dreamed up this jumbled and confused family of ungodly people? They obviously had no regard for the law of God or standards of righteousness. Selfish and paranoid in protecting his human power, Herod the Great tried to kill the Savior of the world. Herod Antipas was a coward who had the blood of the murder of John the Baptist on his hands. Herodias was a vindictive adulteress who allowed her daughter to dance seductively for the lustful eyes of leering men. Her brother, Herod Agrippa I, was a persecutor of the church and had the blood of the apostle James on his hands. Herod Agrippa II cavorted with his own sister in ways that caused chatter and rumors of incest. Yet, many today would find all this acceptable and humorous. But not God. He struck Herod Agrippa I dead and will judge each member of this sordid family in the last day. They were all close to someone who would have taught, or did teach, them the way of righteousness, but to no avail. Only one almost became a Christian. We must learn from their sad examples and live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world (Tit. 2:11-12). Marriage to 1st cousins and uncles, however, was relatively common in the so-called Herodian dynasty. The description of Herod Agrippa as a king, who persecuted the Jerusalem church, having James son of Zebedee killed and imprisoning Peter, stands in contrast with Josephus' account of a kindly man. According to Josephus, he was a milder ruler than his grandfather Herod the Great, and Josephus records him as talking with and then forgiving a law student accused of political rabble rousing, rather than punishing him as his grandfather and some other Herod would have done. Christian scholars argue that the biblical account makes sense given that Agrippa had been raised with a strong Jewish identity.] Agrippa would resent a movement begun during his absence from Judea that tried to declare a man as divine.
CONCLUSION Herod’s story offers us a perfect example of what the conflict between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent really looks like. This story is going on all around us right now, but might be seen with eyes of faith.
This interesting although it is lengthy. Your conclusion is brief. I wished it was nore. Altogethr it is commendable. However, you need to post your references here too. I hope to see that soon. Well done.
References Josephus, Antiquitates Judaicae Rajak, Tessa (1996), "Iulius Agrippa (1) I, Marcus", in Hornblower, Simon, Oxford Classical Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press Ebner, Eliezer, History of the Jewish People, The Second Temple Era, Mesorah Publications Ltd. 1982, p. 155 The Bible Truth Magazine Volume. XLV:6 Page 16. March 15, 2001.
OVERVIEW
ReplyDeleteThis group work focuses, entails and encumbers the narration of the orderly recital of the details and particulars of the series of rulers or dynasts in the family tree of Herod. This is certainly a very broad topic that covers everything about the nature, characteristics and practices about the family of Herod as a Roman ruler during the New Testament times.
It is a truism to say that fact is stranger than fiction. History has proven this to be true numerous times. Most people have encountered in the Bible some very and strange people; most have heard of Herod the Great but few realized how many people that impacted the New Testament history which came from his family. The first century Jewish historian, Josephus, wrote a great work about Herod and his family and their twisted story which puts great modern minds – modern-day soap operas – to shame. it will be helpful to take a closer look at the individual members of the Herod family tree in order to appreciate the background of some of the events of Jesus’ life and the early church.
THE HERODIAN DYNASTY
Herod was the family name of several Roman rulers who served as provincial governors of Palestine and surrounding regions during New Testament times. The Herodian Dynasty was a royal dynasty of Idumean (Edomite) descent, ruling the Herodian Kingdom and later the Herodian Tetrarchy, as vassals of the Roman Empire.
The Herodian dynasty began with Herod the Great, who assumed the throne of Judea, with Roman support, bringing down the century long Hasmonean Kingdom. His kingdom lasted until his death in 4 BCE, when it was divided between his sons as a Tetrarchy, which lasted for about 10 years. During the time of the Hasmonean ruler, John Hyrcanus (134-104BCE), Judea conquered Edom (Idumea) and forced the Edomites to convert to Judaism. The Edomites were gradually integrated into the Judean nation, and some of them reached high-ranking positions. In 40 BCE, the Parthians invaded the eastern Roman provinces and managed to drive the Romans out of many areas. In Judea, the Hasmonean dynasty was restored under king Antigonus as a pro-Parthian monarch. Herod the Great, the son of Antipater the Idumean and Cypros, managed to escape to Rome. After convincing the Roman Senate of his sincere intentions in favour of Romans, he eventually was announced as king of the Jews by the Roman Senate. Despite his announcement as king of the whole of Judea, Herod did not fully conquer it until 37 BCE. He subsequently ruled the Herodian kingdom as a vassal king for 34 years, crushing the opposition while also initiating huge building projects, including the Caesarea harbour, the Temple Mount, the Masada and the Herodium, among other things. Herod ruled Judea until 4 BCE; at his death his kingdom was divided among his three sons as a tetrarchy.
HEROD THE GREAT ruled 37-4 B.C.
The first Herod, known as Herod the Great, was the Roman ruler of Palestine during the days of the Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus when Jesus was born in Bethlehem (Matt. 2:1; Lk. 3:1). All the other different Herods mentioned in the New Testament were the sons or grandsons of this Herod. (Mt. 2:16 -18) 40-4 B.C.
He was known as a master builder, organizer, developer although his policies were considered cruel and ruthless by the Jewish people. His most notable achievement was the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem- A project that took nearly 50 years. He also rebuilt and enlarged the city of Caesarea into a port city on the Mediterranean Sea. Caesarea served as the Roman Provincial capital for Palestine during the New Testament era. The magnificent aqueducts that he built at the city are still visible today.
Herod the Great grew to be a bold man charged by the San Hedrin of killing without consent of the Council.
a) Council charged Herod before Rome of encroaching Roman Law, but he was freed.
b) He then killed all but one of the San Hedrin, including the High Priest Hyrcanus.
c) Hyrcanus had a granddaughter named Miriamne whom Herod married hoping for Jewish support.
d) Together they had two sons Aristobulos and Alexander. Salome, Herods’ sister hated both sons because they were heirs to the throne she wanted for her own.
ReplyDeletee) Inner murmuring from those who were jealous of Miriamne’s beauty said she was guilty of unfaithfulness and Herod had her killed. (28 BC) This apparently haunted Herod as in 7 BC when the sons found out their father had killed their mother, he had them killed as well.
Political Activity
At age 25 he began as governor of Galilee. Good at raising tribute money so Rome gave him power.
31BC Antony was conquered by Augustus. Herod quickly flattered Augustus and got imperial favor.
He fought Arabians and they finally bowed to Herod power. (Antiquities 15.v5)
He influenced younger Jews and began party called HERODIANS. Offense to most in nation and we see how they would opposed Christ. (Mt. 22:16, Mk. 3:6, 12:13)
Most Jews saw him as a Usurper of David’s throne who helped Roman oppression. Many tried to kill him but he always came out on top. (Ant XV, viii.)
As an old man, he was diseased. Irritable temper. Courts miserable. Tried to kill himself. Final decision of his life was to order Antipater killed. (Son of Doris) (He had instigated his brother Alexander and Aristobulus deaths.) He also had many nobles killed at his death so the kingdom would mourn his passing.
Talent
He was organized, shrewd, knew men, how to use them. (Wise) Had friendship of emperors.
His greatest ability was architectural taste and this is seen in rebuilding Zerubabbel’s temple, making it even more glorious than Solomon. When Titus besieged Jerusalem he sought to spare the building in the final attack of the city. Of course Masada Fortress was amazing!
He was known as a master builder, organizer, developer although his policies were considered cruel and ruthless by the Jewish people. His most notable achievement was the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem- A project that took nearly 50 years. He also rebuilt and enlarged the city of Caesarea into a port city on the Mediterranean Sea. Caesarea served as the Roman Provincial capital for Palestine during the New Testament era. The magnificent aqueducts that he built at the city are still visible today.
Personal Life
Great physical strength and intellectual powers beyond the norm. But he was the incarnation of brute lust. History shows few families more immoral and brutal. Even noticing the intermarriage helps tangle the family tree so much that figuring it out is like a puzzle.
Due to his insane taste for power he would kill the only woman he loved and their two sons. After the death of Miriamne’s sons in 7 B.C. Augustus said, “would rather be Herod’s pig than his son
Herod died in 4 B.C and since some time elapsed between the massacre and his death, (Mt. 2:19) this gives us an approximate help in dating the birth of Christ. Josephus also mentions an eclipse just before Herod’s death. (Ant XVII, vi, 4) The eclipse occurred on March 13 in 4710 of the Julian period therefore 4 B.C. is probable.
HEROD ARCHELAUS
Herod Archelaus (23 BC – 18 AD) was ethnarch of Samaria, Judea, and Idumea (biblical Edom), including the cities Caesarea and Jaffa, for a period of nine years (circa 4 BC to 6 AD). Archelaus was removed by Roman Emperor Augustus when Judaea province was formed under direct Roman rule, at the time of the Census of Quirinius. He was the son of Herod the Great and Malthace the Samaritan, and was the brother of Herod Antipas, and the half-brother of Herod II. Archelaus (a name meaning "leading the people") came to power after the death of his father Herod the Great in 4 BC, and ruled over one-half of the territorial dominion of his father.
Josephus writes that Herod the Great (father of Archelaus) was in Jericho at the time of his death. Just prior to his final trip to Jericho, he was deeply involved in a religious conflagration. Herod had placed a golden eagle over the Temple entrance which was perceived as blasphemous. The eagle was chopped down with axes. Herod defended his works and offered an attack on his predecessors, the dynastic Hasmoneans. Herod killed all male lineal successors of the Hasmoneans. The Pharisees had long attacked the Hasmoneans as well, as having parentage from Greeks while under bondage. This racial slur was repeated by the Pharisees through the rule of Alexander Jannaeus and Queen Salome.
ReplyDeleteWith this explicit background given, Josephus began an exposition of the days of Archelaus' reign before Passover of 4 BC. Archelaus dressed in white and ascended a golden throne and appeared to be kind to the populace in Jerusalem in order to appease their desires for lower taxes and an end to the (political) imprisonment of Herod's enemies. The demeanour of the questioning appeared to turn at some point, and the crowd began to call for the punishment of those of Herod's people who ordered the death of the 2 teachers and the 40 youths. They also demanded the replacement of the High Priest, from the appointed High Priest of Herod's to a High Priest, "...of greater piety and purity." Josephus does not tell who would be "...of greater piety and purity". To this request, however, Archelaus acceded, although he was becoming angry at the presumptions of the crowds. Archelaus asked for moderation and told the crowds that all would be well if they would put aside their animosities and wait until he was confirmed as King by Caesar Augustus. Archelaus then left to feast with his friends. It was evening and as the darkness settled, mourning and wailing begin over the city. Archelaus began to worry as people begin streaming into the Temple area and those who wailed for loss of the teachers continued their very loud mourning. The people were escalating in their threatening behaviour. The Thackeray translation of Josephus here states it thus: "The promoters of the mourning for the doctors stood in the body of the temple, procuring recruits for their faction". Josephus does not tell us who these "promoters of the mourning", who recruit from within a body inside the Temple, could be. Archelaus then sent a general, some other people and finally a "tribune in Command of a Cohort" to reason with these "Seditionists", to stop their "innovations" and wait until Archelaus could return from Rome and Caesar. Those who came from Archelaus were stoned, with many killed. After the stoning, those who stoned the soldiers returned to their sacrifices, as if nothing had happened. Josephus does not tell who performed the sacrifices in the Temple. It was after midnight, and Archelaus suddenly ordered the entire army into the city to the Temple. Josephus records the death toll at 3000. Archelaus sent heralds around the city announcing the cancellation of Passover.
Archelaus quickly sailed to Caesar and faced a group of enemies - his own family. Antipater, the brother of Archelaus who was deposed from Herod's will days earlier, argued that Archelaus merely feigned grief for his father, crying during the day and involved with great "merriment" during the nights. The threats carried out by Archelaus ending in the death of 3000 in the Temple were not just threats to the worshipers in Jerusalem at Passover, but also amounted to a threat to Caesar himself, since Archelaus acted in every manner a King, before such title had been given by Caesar. At this point, Nicolaus of Damascus argued to Caesar that Archelaus acted appropriately and that Herod's will, supposedly written a few weeks prior (yielding the kingship to Archelaus and against Antipater), should be seen as valid.
Thus, Archelaus received the Tetrarchy of Judea last will of his father, though a previous will had bequeathed it to his brother Antipas. He was proclaimed king by the army, but declined to assume the title until he had submitted his claims to Caesar Augustus in Rome. In Rome he was opposed by Antipas and by many of the Jews, who feared his cruelty, based on the murder of 3000; but in 4 BC Augustus allotted to him the greater part of the kingdom (Samaria, Judea, and Idumea) with the title of ethnarch (a ruler of an ethnic group). The first wife of Archelaus is given by Josephus simply as Mariamne, perhaps Mariamne III, daughter of Aristobulus IV, whom he divorced to marry Glaphyra. She was the widow of Archelaus' brother Alexander, though her second husband, Juba, king of Mauretania, was alive. This violation of the Mosaic Law, along with Archelaus' continued cruelty, aroused the ire of the Jews, who complained to Augustus. Archelaus was deposed in 6 AD and banished to Vienne in Gaul.
ReplyDeleteHEROD ANTIPAS (Herod’s Son)
Herod Antipater (born before 20 BC – died after 39 AD), known by the nickname Antipas, was a 1st-century ruler of Galilee and Perea, who bore the title of tetrarch ("ruler of a quarter") and is referred to as both "Herod the Tetrarch" and "King Herod" in the New Testament although he never held the title of king. He is widely known today for accounts in the New Testament of his role in events that led to the executions of John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth. After being recognized by Augustus upon the death of his father, Herod the Great (c. 4 BC/AD 1), and subsequent ethnarch rule by his brother, Herod Archelaus, Antipas officially ruled Galilee and Perea as a client state of the Roman Empire. He was responsible for building projects at Sepphoris and Betharamphtha, and more important for the construction of his capital Tiberias on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. Named in honour of his patron, the emperor Tiberius, the city later became a centre of rabbinic learning.
Antipas was a son of Herod the Great, who had become king of Judea, and Malthace, who was from Samaria. His date of birth is unknown but was before 20 BC. Antipas, his full brother Archelaus and his half-brother Philip were educated in Rome. Antipas was not Herod's first choice of heir. That honor fell to Aristobulus and Alexander, Herod's sons by the Hasmonean princess Mariamne. It was only after they were executed (7 BC), and Herod's oldest son Antipater was convicted of trying to poison his father (5 BC), that the now elderly Herod fell back on his youngest son Antipas, revising his will to make him heir. During his illness in 4 BC, Herod had yet another change of heart about the succession. According to the final version of his will, Antipas' elder brother Archelaus was now to become king of Judea, Idumea and Samaria, while Antipas would rule Galilee and Perea with the lesser title of tetrarch. Philip was to receive Gaulanitis (the Golan Heights), Batanaea (southern Syria), Trachonitis and Auranitis (Hauran). Because of Judea's status as a Roman client kingdom, Herod's plans for the succession had to be ratified by Augustus. The three heirs therefore travelled to Rome to make their claims, Antipas arguing he ought to inherit the whole kingdom and the others maintaining that Herod's final will ought to be honoured. Despite qualified support for Antipas from Herodian family members in Rome, who favoured direct Roman rule of Judea but considered Antipas preferable to his brother, Augustus largely confirmed the division of territory set out by Herod in his final will. Archelaus had, however, to be content with the title of ethnarch rather than king. In 6 AD, Archelaus was deemed incompetent by Augustus and replaced with a prefect. As a result, Antipas would govern Galilee and Perea for the next forty-two years. The two territories were separated by the region of the Decapolis, with Galilee to the north and Perea to the south.
Threats to stability in both areas would have been clear to Antipas when he took office. While he had been making his case to Augustus in Rome, dissidents led by Judas son of Hezekiah had attacked the palace of Sepphoris in Galilee, seizing money as well as weapons which they used to terrorize the area. In a counterattack ordered by Quinctilius Varus, Roman governor of Syria, Sepphoris was destroyed by fire and its inhabitants sold as slaves. Meanwhile, Perea bordered on the kingdom of Nabatea, which had long had uneasy relations with Romans and Jews. Part of Antipas' solution was to follow in his father's footsteps as a builder. He rebuilt and fortified Sepphoris, while also adding a wall to Betharamphtha in Perea. The latter city was renamed Livias after Augustus' wife Livia, and later Julias after his daughter. However, the tetrarch's most noted construction was his capital on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee – Tiberias, so named to honour his patron Tiberius, who had succeeded Augustus as emperor in 14 AD. Residents could bathe nearby at the warm springs of Emmaus, and by the time of the First Jewish-Roman War the city's own buildings included a stadium, a royal palace and a sanctuary for prayer. It gave its name to the sea and later became a centre of rabbinic learning. However, pious Jews at first refused to live in it because it was built atop a graveyard and therefore a source of ritual impurity; Antipas had to colonize it using a mixture of foreigners, forced migrants, poor people and freed slaves. At other times Antipas was more sensitive to Jewish tradition. His coins carried no images, which would have violated Jewish prescriptions against idolatry. When Pontius Pilate, governor of Judea from 26 AD to 36 AD, caused offence by placing votive shields in the Antonia palace at Jerusalem, Antipas and his brothers successfully petitioned for their removal.
ReplyDeleteAntipas faced more immediate problems in his own tetrarchy after John the Baptist – in 28/29 AD according to the Gospel of Luke (or 27 AD, if the co-regency of Augustus and Tiberius is included in Luke's reckoning of time, for which there is some evidence) – began a ministry of preaching and baptism by the Jordan River, which marked the western edge of Antipas' territory of Perea. The New Testament Gospels state that John attacked the tetrarch's marriage as contrary to Jewish law (it was incestuous, as Herodias was also Antipas' niece, but also John criticized the fact that she was his brother's wife in Mark 6:18, lending credence to the belief that Antipas and Herodias married while Herod II was still alive), while Josephus says that John's public influence made Antipas fearful of rebellion. John was imprisoned in Machaerus and executed. According to Matthew and Mark, Herod was reluctant to order John's death but was compelled by Herodias' daughter (unnamed in the text but named by Josephus as Salome), to whom he had promised any reward she chose as a result of her dancing for guests at his birthday banquet.
Among those baptized by John was Jesus of Nazareth, who began his own ministry in Galilee – causing Antipas, according to Matthew and Mark, to fear that the Baptiser had been raised from the dead. Luke alone among the Gospels states that a group of Pharisees warned Jesus that Antipas was plotting his death, whereupon Jesus denounced the tetrarch as a "fox" and declared that he, Jesus, would not fall victim to such a plot because "it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem". Luke also credits the tetrarch with a role in Jesus' trial. According to Luke, Pilate, on learning that Jesus was a Galilean and therefore under Herod's jurisdiction, sent him to Antipas, who was also in Jerusalem at the time.
Initially, Antipas was pleased to see Jesus, hoping to see him perform a miracle, but when Jesus remained silent in the face of questioning Antipas mocked him and sent him back to Pilate. Luke says that these events improved relations between Pilate and Herod despite their earlier enmity. Due to the lack of historical evidence, it has been suggested that Jesus' trial by Herod Antipas is unhistorical. Robin Lane Fox, for example, an English historian, claims that the story was invented based on Psalm 2, in which "the kings of the earth" are described as opposing the Lord's "anointed", and also served to show that the authorities failed to find grounds for convicting Jesus. Antipas' fall from power was due to Caligula and to his own nephew Agrippa, brother of Herodias. When Agrippa fell into debt during the reign of Tiberius despite his connections with the imperial family, Herodias persuaded Antipas to provide for him, but the two men quarrelled and Agrippa departed. After Agrippa was heard expressing to his friend Caligula his eagerness for Tiberius to die and leave room for Caligula to succeed him, he was imprisoned. When Caligula finally became emperor in 37 AD, he not only released his friend but granted him rule of Philip's former tetrarchy (slightly extended), with the title of king. Antipas died in exile. The 3rd-century historian Cassius Dio seems to imply that Caligula had him killed, but this is usually treated with scepticism by modern historians.
ReplyDeleteIn Flaubert's "Herodias" (1877), Herodias uses her long-concealed daughter, Salome, to manipulate Herod sexually for her own political purposes. This conceit (original with Flaubert) inspired Oscar Wilde's play "Salome" (1891), the first version of the legend to show Salome with a will of her own, opposing her mother and lusting after John the Baptist herself. Naive and puzzled by her stepfather's lascivious attentions, the young girl arouses Herod in order to avenge herself on the prophet who has refused her advances. Flaubert's novella was turned into an opera by Jules Massenet (1881) in which Salome, ignorant of her royal parentage, becomes a disciple of the Baptist, who is then executed by the lustful and jealous Herod (a baritone). In Richard Strauss's operatic setting of Wilde's play (1905), Herod, one of the most difficult tenor roles in the repertory, is depicted as befuddled by both drink and lust, and in bitter conflict with his wife (as in Flaubert). At the end of the opera (as in Wilde's play), disgusted with Salome's behaviour with the head of John, he orders her execution.
HEROD PHILIP
Philip the Tetrarch, sometimes called Herod Philip II by modern writers (ruled from 4 BC until his death in AD 34) was the son of Herod the Great and his fifth wife, Cleopatra of Jerusalem. Philip II was born in 19 BCE. He was a half-brother of Herod Antipas and Herod Archelaus; and should not be confused with Herod II, whom some writers call Herod Philip I. Philip inherited the northeast part of his father's kingdom, which included Iturea and Trachonitis; and possibly Gaulanitis and Paneas, as was noted by Flavius Josephus. Augustus Caesar made his own division of Herod's kingdom; giving one half to Archelaus, while dividing the other half into two, going to Antipas and Philip. Batanea, along with Trachonitis and Auranitis (with a certain part of what was called the House of Zenodorus), paid the annual tribute of one hundred talents to Philip.
Philip married his niece Salome, the daughter of Herodias and Herod II (sometimes called Herod Philip I, and also a member of the Herodian dynasty). This Salome appears in the Bible in connection with the execution of John the Baptist. However, there would have been a great difference in their ages: Salome was born in ~14 CE, at which time Herod Philip was 32 years old. The gospels of Matthew and Mark state that the Herodias whom Herod Antipas married was the wife of Antipas' brother "Philip", a fact supported by Josephus, who indicated she was the wife of Herod II (a.k.a. Philip I). It is known that Philip the Tetrarch rebuilt the city of Caesarea Philippi, calling it by his own name to distinguish it from the Caesarea on the sea-coast, which was the seat of the Roman government. It is possible that the 'Salome' he was married to was a half-sister by that same name, a daughter of Herod the Great and his 8th wife Elpis. This sibling Salome was born in ~14 BCE, and so only five years younger than Herod Philip (a more realistic age gap). But this would also be the only known occurrence of the children of Herod the Great intermarrying, even if from different mothers. Marriage to 1st cousins and uncles, however, was relatively common in the so-called Herodian dynasty.
ReplyDeleteThere is no contemporary evidence for Philip the Tetrarch's use of the name "Herod Philip" as a dynastic title, as did occur with his brothers Herod Antipas and Herod Archelaus. Herod II is sometimes called "Herod Philip I" (because the gospels call the husband of Herodias "Philip"), and then Philip the Tetrarch is called "Herod Philip II". Kokkinos says, "The stubborn existence of many theologians in referring to Herod III as 'Herod Philip' is without any value...No illusory Herod Philip ever existed."; [ Philip the Tetrarch, "unlike his brothers, did not use Herod as a dynastic name." Philip's half-brothers, Archelaus and Antipas, had adopted the name of Herod, "presumably" for a dynastic claim from Herod the Great.
HEROD AGRIPPA (Herod’s Grandson)
Herod Agrippa, also known as Herod or Agrippa I (11 BC – 44 AD), was a King of Judea from 41 to 44 AD. He was the last ruler with the royal title reigning over Judea and the father of Herod Agrippa II, the last King from the Herodian dynasty. The grandson of Herod the Great and son of Aristobulus IV and Berenice, he was born Marcus Julius Agrippa, so named in honour of Roman statesman Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa. He is the king named Herod in the Acts of the Apostles 12:1:2 "Herod (Agrippa)". Josephus states that he was known in his time as "Agrippa the Great".
Christian and Jewish historiography take different views of this king, with the Christians largely opposing Agrippa and the Jews placing little precedent toward the Judean kings installed by Rome. Josephus informs us that, after the execution of his father, young Agrippa was sent by his grandfather, Herod the Great to the imperial court in Rome. There, Tiberius conceived a great affection for him, and had him educated alongside his son Drusus, who also befriended him, and future emperor Claudius. On the death of Drusus, Agrippa, who had been recklessly extravagant and was deeply in debt, was obliged to leave Rome, fleeing to the fortress of Malatha in Idumaea. There, it was said, he contemplated suicide. After a brief seclusion, through the mediation of his wife Cypros and his sister Herodias, Agrippa was given a sum of money by his brother-in-law and uncle, Herodias' husband, Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Galilee and Perea, and was allowed to take up residence in Tiberias, and received the rank of aedile in that city, with a small yearly income. But having quarrelled with Antipas, he fled to Flaccus, proconsul of Syria.
Soon afterwards he was convicted, through the information of his brother Aristobulus, of having received a bribe from the Damascenes, who wished to purchase his influence with the proconsul, and was again compelled to flee. He was arrested as he was about to sail for Italy, for a sum of money which he owed to the treasury of Caesar, but made his escape, and reached Alexandria, where his wife succeeded in procuring a supply of money from Alexander the Alabarch. He then set sail, and landed at Puteoli. He was favourably received by Tiberius, who entrusted him with the education of his grandson Tiberius Gemellus. He also formed an intimacy with Caligula, then a popular favorite. Agrippa was one day overheard by his freedman Eutyches expressing a wish for Tiberius's death and the advancement of Caligula, and for this he was cast into prison. Following Tiberius' death and the ascension of Agrippa's friend Caligula in 37, Agrippa was set free and made king of the territories of Gaulanitis, Auranitis, Batanaea, and Trachonitis, which his uncle Philip the Tetrarch had held, with the addition of Abila. Agrippa was also awarded the ornamenta praetoria and could use the title amicus caesaris ("friend of Caesar"). Caligula also presented him with a gold chain equal in weight to the iron one he had worn in prison, which Agrippa dedicated to the Temple of Jerusalem on his return to his ancestral homeland. In 39, Agrippa returned to Rome, and brought about the banishment of his uncle, Herod Antipas; he was then granted his uncle's tetrarchy, consisting of Galilee and Peraea. This created a Jewish kingdom which did not include Judea at its center.
ReplyDeleteAfter the assassination of Caligula in 41, Agrippa was involved in the struggle over the accession between Claudius, the Praetorian Guard, and the Senate. How big a part Agrippa played is uncertain; the various sources differ. Cassius Dio simply writes that Agrippa cooperated with Claudius in seeking rule. Flavius Josephus gives us two versions. In The Jewish War, Agrippa is presented as only a messenger to a confident and energetic Claudius. But in The Antiquities of the Jews, Agrippa's role is central and crucial: he convinces Claudius to stand up to the Senate and the Senate to avoid attacking Claudius. After becoming Emperor, Claudius gave Agrippa dominion over Judea and Samaria and granted him the ornamenta consularia, and at his request gave the kingdom of Chalcis in Lebanon to Agrippa's brother Herod of Chalcis. Thus Agrippa became one of the most powerful kings of the east. His domain more or less equalled that which was held by his grandfather Herod the Great.
In the city of Berytus, he built a theatre and amphitheatre, baths, and porticoes. He was equally generous in Sebaste, Heliopolis and Caesarea. Agrippa began the building of the third and outer wall of Jerusalem, but the suspicions he had of Claudius's intervention prevented him from finishing the fortifications which he had begun. His friendship was courted by many of the neighbouring kings and rulers, some of whom he housed in Tiberias, which also caused Claudius some displeasure. Agrippa returned to Judea and governed it to the satisfaction of the Jews. Perhaps because of this, his passage through Alexandria in the year 38 instigated anti-Jewish riots. At the risk of his own life, or at least of his liberty, he interceded with Caligula on behalf of the Jews, when that emperor was attempting to set up his statue in the Temple at Jerusalem shortly before his death in 41. Agrippa's efforts bore fruit and persuaded Caligula to rescind his order thus preventing the Temple's desecration. However, Philo of Alexandria recounts that Caligula issued a second order to have his statue erected in the Temple. Another statue of himself, of colossal size, was built of gilt brass. The Temple of Jerusalem was then transformed into a temple for Caligula, and it was called the Temple of illustrious Gaius the new Jupiter.
From Josephus, Antiquities 19.8.2 343-361: "Now when Agrippa had reigned three years over all Judea he came to the city Caesarea, which was formerly called Strato's Tower; and there he exhibited spectacles in honor of Caesar, for whose well-being he'd been informed that a certain festival was being celebrated. At this festival a great number were gathered together of the principal persons of dignity of his province. On the second day of the spectacles he put on a garment made wholly of silver, of a truly wonderful texture, and came into the theatre early in the morning. There the silver of his garment, being illuminated by the fresh reflection of the sun's rays, shone out in a wonderful manner, and was so resplendent as to spread awe over those that looked intently upon him. Presently his flatterers cried out, one from one place, and another from another, (though not for his good) that he was a god; and they added, "Be thou merciful to us; for although we have hitherto reverenced thee only as a man, yet shall we henceforth own thee as superior to mortal nature." Upon this the king neither rebuked them nor rejected their impious flattery. But he shortly afterward looked up and saw an owl sitting on a certain rope over his head, and immediately understood that this bird was the messenger of ill tidings, just as it had once been the messenger of good tidings to him; and fell into the deepest sorrow. A severe pain arose in his belly, striking with a most violent intensity. He therefore looked upon his friends, and said, "I, whom you call a god, am commanded presently to depart this life; while Providence thus reproves the lying words you just now said to me; and I, who was by you called immortal, am immediately to be hurried away by death. But I am bound to accept what Providence allots, as it pleases God; for we have by no means lived ill, but in a splendid and happy manner." When he had said this, his pain became violent. Accordingly he was carried into the palace, and the rumour went abroad everywhere that he would certainly die soon. The multitude sat in sackcloth, men, women and children, after the law of their country, and besought God for the king's recovery. All places were also full of mourning and lamentation. Now the king rested in a high chamber, and as he saw them below lying prostrate on the ground he could not keep himself from weeping. And when he had been quite worn out by the pain in his belly for five days, he departed this life, being in the fifty-fourth year of his age and in the seventh year of his reign. He ruled four years under Caius Caesar, three of them were over Philip's tetrarchy only, and on the fourth that of Herod was added to it; and he reigned, besides those, three years under Claudius Caesar, during which time he had Judea added to his lands, as well as Samaria and Caesarea. The revenues that he received out of them were very great, no less than twelve millions of drachmae. But he borrowed great sums from others, for he was so very liberal that his expenses exceeded his incomes, and his generosity was boundless."
ReplyDeleteActs 12 relates that he was eaten by worms, after an angel struck him for not giving glory to God while being worshiped by sycophants.
The Jewish Encyclopedia has a different account of Agrippa's reign:
Claudius, showed himself grateful to Agrippa for important services rendered him, and upon his accession, placed under his rule the remainder of Palestine, the territories of Samaria, Judea, and Idumæa, formerly governed by Archelaus. Loaded with honours and titles, Agrippa returned home, and the few remaining years of his benevolent sway afforded the people a brief period of peace and prosperity. The evil consequences of a ruler's unbridled passions and tyranny had been sufficiently evident to him in Rome, and they had taught him moderation and strict self-control.
The Talmud also has a positive view of his reign: The Mishnah explained how the Jews of the Second Temple era interpreted the requirement of Deuteronomy 31:10–13 that the king read the Torah to the people. At the conclusion of the first day of Sukkot immediately after the conclusion of the seventh year in the cycle, they erected a wooden dais in the Temple court, upon which the king sat. The synagogue attendant took a Torah scroll and handed it to the synagogue president, who handed it to the High Priest's deputy, who handed it to the High Priest, who handed it to the king. The king stood and received it, and then read sitting. King Agrippa stood and received it and read standing, and the sages praised him for doing so. When Agrippa reached the commandment of Deuteronomy 17:15 that “you may not put a foreigner over you” as king, his eyes ran with tears, but they said to him, “Don’t fear, Agrippa, you are our brother, you are our brother!”[17] The king would read from Deuteronomy 1:1 up through the shema (Deuteronomy 6:4–9), and then Deuteronomy 11:13–21, the portion regarding tithes (Deuteronomy 14:22–29), the portion of the king (Deuteronomy 17:14–20), and the blessings and curses (Deuteronomy 27–28). The king would recite the same blessings as the High Priest, except that the king would substitute a blessing for the festivals instead of one for the forgiveness of sin. (Mishnah Sotah 7:8; Babylonian Talmud Sotah 41a.)
ReplyDeleteThe "King" Herod mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 12, is identified as the same person as Herod Agrippa (though the Herod mentioned in Acts 13:1 refers to Herod Antipas). The identification is based in part on the description of his death, which is very similar to Agrippa's death in Josephus's Antiquities of the Jews 19.8.2, although Josephus does not include the claim that "an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms." Further evidence is the identification of the ruler in Acts 12:1 as "Herod the king," since Agrippa is the only Herod who would have had authority in Jerusalem at that time.
Blastus is mentioned in the New Testament as Herod's chamberlain. Herod Antipas, uncle and predecessor of Agrippa as ruler of Galilee and Peræa, is the Herod mentioned in the Gospels who authorized the execution of John the Baptist and played a role in the trial of Jesus. Herod Agrippa II, son of Herod Agrippa, was asked, with his sister Berenice, by the Roman Procurator of Judea, Porcius Festus, to assist in the mini-trial of the Apostle Paul.
Herod Agrippa is the protagonist of the Italian opera, L’Agrippa tetrarca di Gerusalemme (1724) by Giuseppe Maria Buini (mus.) and Claudio Nicola Stampa (libr.), first performed at the Teatro Ducale of Milan, Italy, on August 28, 1724.
Herod Agrippa is a major figure in Robert Graves' novel Claudius the God, as well as the BBC television adaptation I, Claudius, wherein he was portrayed by James Faulkner as an adult and Michael Clements as a child. He is depicted as one of Claudius's closest lifelong friends. Herod acts as Claudius's last and most trustworthy friend and advisor, giving him the key advice to trust no one, not even him. This advice proves prophetic at the end of Herod's life, where he is depicted as coming to believe that he is a prophesied Messiah and raising a rebellion against Rome, to Claudius's dismay. However, he is struck down by a possibly supernatural illness and sends a final letter to Claudius asking for forgiveness.
HEROD AGRIPPA II (Agrippa’s Son, Herod’s grandson)
ReplyDeleteHerod Agrippa II (AD 27/28 – c. 92 or 100) officially named Marcus Julius Agrippa and sometimes just called Agrippa, was the eighth and last client ruler of Rome from the Herodian dynasty, the fifth (after Herod the Great, Agrippa I, Herod of Chalcis and Aristobulus of Chalcis) bearing the title of King. He was the son of the first and better-known Herod Agrippa, the brother of Berenice, Mariamne, and Drusilla (second wife of the Roman procurator Antonius Felix).
Herod Agrippa II was educated at the court of the emperor Claudius, and at the time of his father's death he was only seventeen years old. Claudius therefore kept him at Rome, and sent Cuspius Fadus as procurator of the Roman province of Judaea. While at Rome, he voiced his support for the Jews to Claudius, and against the Samaritans and the procurator of Iudaea Province, Ventidius Cumanus, who was lately thought to have been the cause of some disturbances there. On the death of king Herod of Chalcis in 48, his small Syrian kingdom of Chalcis was given to Herod Agrippa, with the right of superintending the Temple in Jerusalem and appointing its high priest, but only as a tetrarchy. In 53, he was forced to give up the tetrarchy of Chalcis but in exchange Claudius made him ruler with the title of king over the territories previously governed by Philip, namely, Batanea, Trachonitis and Gaulonitis, and the kingdom of Lysanias in Abila. The tetrarchy of Chalcis was subsequently in 57 given to his cousin, Aristobulus. Herod Agrippa celebrated by marrying off his two sisters Mariamne and Drusilla. Flavius Josephus, the Jewish historian, repeats the gossip that Herod Agrippa lived in an incestuous relationship with his sister, Berenice. It was before him and his sister Berenice that, according to the New Testament, Paul the Apostle pleaded his case at Caesarea Maritima, possibly in 59. Agrippa expended large sums in beautifying Jerusalem and other cities, especially Berytus (ancient Beirut), a Hellenised city in Phoenicia. His partiality for the latter rendered him unpopular amongst his own subjects, and the capricious manner in which he appointed and deposed the high priests made him disliked by his coreligionists.
In the seventeenth year of Agrippa's reign (corresponding with the 12th year of Nero's reign), Agrippa tried desperately to avert a war with Rome, when he saw his countrymen generally disposed to fight against Rome, because of certain insults and abuses they had had under the Roman procurator, Gessius Florus. At this time, they had broken-off the cloisters leading from Antonia Fortress to the Temple Mount where Roman soldiers were wont to keep guard during the Jewish holidays, and they refused to pay the tribute which was due to Caesar. Agrippa convened the people and urged instead that they tolerate the temporary injustices done to them and submit themselves to Roman hegemony. At length, Agrippa failed to prevent his subjects from rebelling, whereas, during a certain holiday when the Roman governor of Syria, Cestius Gallus, had passed through Judea to quell the rebellion, he was routed by Jewish forces. By 66 the citizenry of Jerusalem expelled their king, Agrippa, and his sister, Berenice, from Jerusalem. During the First Jewish-Roman War of 66–73, he sent 2,000 men, archers and cavalry, to support Vespasian, showing that, although a Jew in religion, he was entirely devoted to the Roman Empire. He accompanied Titus on some campaigns, and was wounded at the siege of Gamla. After the capture of Jerusalem, he went with his sister Berenice to Rome, where he was invested with the dignity of praetor and rewarded with additional territory.
He had a great intimacy with the historian Josephus, having supplied him with information for his history, Antiquities of the Jews. Josephus preserved two of the letters he received from him.
According to Photius, Agrippa died, childless, at the age of seventy, in the third year of the reign of Trajan, that is, 100, but statements of historian Josephus, in addition to the contemporary epigraphy from his kingdom, cast this date into serious doubt. The modern scholarly consensus holds that he died before 93/94. He was the last prince of the house of Herod.
ReplyDeleteARISTOBULUS OF CHALCIS
Aristobulus of Chalcis was a son of Herod of Chalcis and his first wife Mariamne. Herod of Chalcis, ruler of Chalcis in Iturea, was a grandson of Herod the Great through his father, Aristobulus IV. Mariamne was a granddaughter of Herod the Great through her mother, Olympias; hence Aristobulus was a great-grandson of Herod the Great on both sides of his family. Aristobulus was married to Salome after the death of her first husband, Philip the Tetrarch. With her, Aristobulus had three sons: Herod, Agrippa, and Aristobulus Three coins with portraits of him and Salome have been found.
Aristobulus did not directly succeed his father as ruler of the Chalcis. Rather, upon his father's death in 48 AD, the emperor Claudius gave the realm to Aristobulus' first cousin, Herod Agrippa II. When in 52 AD Agrippa was given the territories previously governed by Philip the Tetrarch (also known as Herod Philip II) and Lysanias, Aristobulus was subsequently given Chalcis. He reigned as Aristobulus of Chalcis until his death in 92 AD, when Chalcis became part of Roman Syria.
He has been identified with the Aristobulus appointed by Nero as King of Armenia Minor in 55 AD, who participated with his forces in the Roman–Parthian War of 58–63, receiving a small portion of Gerater Armenia in exchange. This Aristobulus was displaced from Armenia Minor in 72 AD, but is thought to be the "Aristobulus of Chalcidice" who supported Lucius Caesennius Paetus, proconsul of Syria, in the war
against Antiochus of Commagene in 73 AD, and was in consequence compensated with a new kingdom, "probably Chalcis ad Belum" (modern Qinnasrin, in northern Syria.[4] Assuming all these Aristobuli were indeed the same person, he would seem to have been ruler, at various times, of the Iturean Chalcis, Armenia Minor, and Chalcis ad Belum.
DEFICIENCES/CRITICISMS OF HERODIAN DYNASTY
ReplyDeleteWithout a doubt these facts are stranger than fiction, for who could have ever dreamed up this jumbled and confused family of ungodly people? They obviously had no regard for the law of God or standards of righteousness. Selfish and paranoid in protecting his human power, Herod the Great tried to kill the Savior of the world. Herod Antipas was a coward who had the blood of the murder of John the Baptist on his hands. Herodias was a vindictive adulteress who allowed her daughter to dance seductively for the lustful eyes of leering men. Her brother, Herod Agrippa I, was a persecutor of the church and had the blood of the apostle James on his hands. Herod Agrippa II cavorted with his own sister in ways that caused chatter and rumors of incest. Yet, many today would find all this acceptable and humorous. But not God. He struck Herod Agrippa I dead and will judge each member of this sordid family in the last day. They were all close to someone who would have taught, or did teach, them the way of righteousness, but to no avail. Only one almost became a Christian. We must learn from their sad examples and live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world (Tit. 2:11-12).
Marriage to 1st cousins and uncles, however, was relatively common in the so-called Herodian dynasty.
The description of Herod Agrippa as a king, who persecuted the Jerusalem church, having James son of Zebedee killed and imprisoning Peter, stands in contrast with Josephus' account of a kindly man. According to Josephus, he was a milder ruler than his grandfather Herod the Great, and Josephus records him as talking with and then forgiving a law student accused of political rabble rousing, rather than punishing him as his grandfather and some other Herod would have done. Christian scholars argue that the biblical account makes sense given that Agrippa had been raised with a strong Jewish identity.] Agrippa would resent a movement begun during his absence from Judea that tried to declare a man as divine.
CONCLUSION
Herod’s story offers us a perfect example of what the conflict between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent really looks like. This story is going on all around us right now, but might be seen with eyes of faith.
This interesting although it is lengthy. Your conclusion is brief. I wished it was nore. Altogethr it is commendable. However, you need to post your references here too. I hope to see that soon. Well done.
ReplyDeleteReferences
ReplyDeleteJosephus, Antiquitates Judaicae
Rajak, Tessa (1996), "Iulius Agrippa (1) I, Marcus", in Hornblower, Simon, Oxford Classical Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Ebner, Eliezer, History of the Jewish People, The Second Temple Era, Mesorah Publications Ltd. 1982, p. 155
The Bible
Truth Magazine Volume. XLV:6 Page 16. March 15, 2001.