The Herods

By Mary Jane Chaignot

Categories: New Testament Kings

The first record of the Herod family dates to around 100 BCE.
Herod Antipas (the grandfather of Herod the Great) was made a military governor of Idumea.
Several legends swirl around the origins of this family. One notable suggestion is that Antipas was a relative of the Maccabees and a Judean Jew. This, however, has been largely discounted. Most scholars agree that this Antipas was from Idumea. (Idumea is a Greek word that means “belonging to Edom.”)
Antipas was succeeded by his son, Antipator.
Antipator and his Nabatean wife had five children – Phasael, Herod, Joseph, Pheroras, and Salome.
During Antipator’s reign, the Hasmonean dynasty was in turmoil. Alexander Jannaeus died in 76 BCE after reigning as both king and high priest over Judea. His widow, Alexandra Salome, took over upon his death and installed her eldest son, Hyrcanus II, as high priest (since a woman obviously could not be a high priest). When she died in 67 BCE, her second son, Aristobulus, usurped both the kingship and the high priesthood because he thought he was a better ruler. Since Hyrcanus was a docile person, he seemed ok with that arrangement.
Antipator, however, got into the mix because he thought there would be better opportunities for his own advancement under Hyrcanus than Aristobulus.
Using family ties, he persuaded the Nabatean king to send troops to assist Hyrcanus. This plunged the country into a war that would last almost 30 years.
Eventually, both sides appealed to Rome. At first Rome supported Aristobulus, but then changed sides because it seemed advantageous to work with the weaker Hyrcanus.
In 63 BCE, Pompey took the city and made it a tribute to Rome, putting Hyrcanus in charge.
Things were looking up for Antipator.
He began courting Rome and, as soon as Pompey died, he and Hyrcanus aligned themselves with Julius Caesar.
For their loyalty, Hyrcanus was made ethnarch and high priest, and Antipator was given Roman citizenship. He no longer needed to pay taxes and was made procurator over Judea.
From then on, his fortunes increased steadily.
He appointed Phasael governor of Judea and Herod governor of Galilee.
Even though Hyrcanus was still ethnarch, the real power behind the throne lay in the hands of Antipator.
Herod was 25 when he was appointed governor of Galilee. The year was 48 BCE.
When Julius Caesar died in 44 BCE, Antipator and his sons united with Cassius, who made himself master of Syria.
Cassius was one of the assassins of Julius Caesar and was in desperate need of money to fund his army.
Antipator was quick to lend support. For that he was given a military position.
Shortly afterwards, however, he was poisoned.
Cassius then lost to Mark Antony, who had had a high regard for Antipator. Even though many people complained about the leadership of the Herods, Antony ignored those complaints and appointed them tetrarchs – Phasael over Judea and Herod over Galilee.
The war in Judea was not yet resolved. While Rome was in chaos, Antigonus (the son of Aristobulus) garnered support and wrested the kingship from Hyrcanus.
Herod went to Jerusalem to help his brother defend the city on the Jewish Feast of Weeks (Pentecost). Phasael defended the walls; Herod defended the palace. After serious fighting ensued, Antigonus enlisted the help of the Parthians and lured Phasael to their camp under the pretext of drafting a peace agreement. There, both Phasael and Hyrcanus were imprisoned. Hyrcanus was mutilated and Phasael killed himself rather than face such a disgrace. Prior to his death, he was told that Herod escaped from Jerusalem and was safe. This was in 40 BCE.
Herod left the area and went directly to Rome. There, he aligned himself with Antony, who promised to make him “king of the Jews.”
Herod returned a year later (39 BCE) and besieged Jerusalem for two years. Antigonus was captured and sent to Rome to be executed.
In 37 BCE, Herod began his reign as “king of the Jews.”
His first order of business was to get rid of all the remaining Hasmonean family. This was accomplished over the next decade. The bad news is that he had married into the Hasmonean family (thinking it would solidify his position in Judea), so he executed that wife and several of his own sons.
Needless to say, when the Hasmoneans were all gone, he inherited all their wealth.
The other major issue was to find an appropriate high priest. Herod was not qualified to fill this position himself, but he did not want a competing high priest. His solution was to bring in Jews from the Diaspora (think political alliances again) whenever he needed support from a particular area. That individual was appointed until a greater need arose in another area.
Herod solidified his position by bringing in relatives from Idumea and appointing many non-Jews to important positions.
When Octavian defeated Antony in 31 BCE, Herod was quick to sail to Rhodes to proclaim his loyalty to the new Emperor. Octavian Augustus was in no hurry to depose an effective client king, so he confirmed his position.
For many years thereafter, Herod had good relations with Rome.
By 20 BCE, he ruled over the whole Hasmonean territory.
The next ten years were prosperous. There were state visits to make with Roman officials, building projects to complete, and cities to dedicate to the emperor.
Herod was committed to Hellenizing the region. He wooed Gentiles by building clubs, theaters, baths, and gymnasiums. At the same time, he was interested in placating the Jews. He dedicated a lot of time and energy to Jerusalem. He began restoration of the Temple in 20 BCE, enlarging it greatly.
Despite all his successes, he was always insecure in his position and employed many spies to keep him informed of the people’s opinions of him.
His family also contributed to his mental instability. Married ten times, he had fifteen (or more) children. As he was getting older, they began vying for position. (Augustus had told Herod years earlier that he could pick his own successor.) Everyone was accusing everyone else of being disloyal until Herod had no idea who he could or could not trust.
The sons were also fond of killing off their competition.
When Herod the Great died in 4 BCE, he was, by all accounts, a mad man. Herod’s legacy was mixed. He tried to mollify both Gentiles and Jews and pleased neither. Gentiles didn’t want to be under Jewish rule; Jews didn’t think he was Jewish enough. (There was the whole ancestry issue, the marketing of the high priesthood, and his overall enthusiasm for Hellenization.)
Yet, the area prospered under his reign. He provided many jobs during his building project and everyone agreed that the restored Temple was awesome!
Herod died in 4 BCE. Riots immediately broke out as people rebelled against the Herod family and Rome. Needless to say, the rebellion was not successful.
Herod’s will divided his territory among three of his sons – Archelaus, Antipas, and Philip.
All three went to Rome to be certified. Archelaus was given Judea and the title of ethnarch; Antipas was given Galilee and made tetrarch. Philip had the northern territories and was also a tetrarch.
Archelaus only reigned for 10 years. In 6 CE, he was accused by both Jews and Gentiles of excessive cruelty and was exiled to Gaul.
From then on Judea was ruled by procurators or prefects, appointed by Rome. Pontius Pilate had such a position.
Antipas (his younger brother) then took over the family name. It is incorrect to refer to him as “king.”
Herod Antipas ruled for 43 years, most of which were harmonious.
He created a Hellenistic city by the sea (Tiberias) in honor of the emperor. Unfortunately, it was built on a burial ground so Jews avoided it like the plague. He either bribed or forced the ones who lived there.
He is renowned in the New Testament for killing John the Baptist.
According to the story, Herod divorced his Nabatean wife in order to marry Herodias, the former wife of his half-brother. John the Baptist criticized this union, so Herod had him arrested.
During his birthday celebration, Herod invited Herodias’ daughter to dance for him and his guests. She was so captivating that he offered to give her whatever she asked (alcohol might have been a factor). After consultation with her mother, she asked for the head of John the Baptist on a platter. In order to save face before all his guests, Herod ordered it done.
Later on, when Herod heard about Jesus, he thought that perhaps John the Baptist had come back to life.
The gospel of Luke also mentions a quick visit to Herod as part of Jesus’ trial.
In 36 CE, Antipas entertained the Parthian king on the banks of the Euphrates.
The Nabatean king (whose daughter had been married to Antipas before Herodias) decided to attack and was able to defeat him.
Some saw this as retaliation for the death of John the Baptist.
Two years later, Antipas and Herodias were called to Rome and accused of stockpiling weapons. They were exiled to Gaul in 39 CE, where they died.
Philip was the youngest of the three sons and half brother to Archelaus and Antipas.
He reigned for 37 years and little is known about him, which suggests they were pretty uneventful years.
His major building projects were at Caesarea (Philippi) and Bethsaida.
He was known to be a peace-loving and just ruler.
The Herods’ dynasty didn’t end with this generation. Agrippa I (a grandson of Herod, the nephew of the three rulers, and brother of Herodias) would eventually rule over both Philip’s and Antipas’ territories.
Unfortunately, his reign only lasted three years. He died suddenly at the age of 54.
He was survived by four living children – Agrippa II, Bernice, Mariamme, and Drusilla.
Agrippa II was still a minor when his father died, so most of the kingdom reverted to Roman rule. However, he was given jurisdiction over the Temple when Antipas died.
Agrippa was always interested in Jerusalem and eventually settled there where he became increasingly powerful.
He and his sisters were unwaveringly loyal to Rome even during the Jewish wars of 66-70 CE. They fled to Rome in 75 where they remained until Agrippa died in 100 CE. Agrippa had no heir, but by this time he had no land either. Domitian was the emperor.
Little is known about any remaining Herods.

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