Herod Continued

When Pompey arrived in Damascus, Syria, he again heard the cases of the two brothers. Hyrcanus claimed that as the older brother the throne was his right. He also said incursions on neighboring countries and piracies at sea were caused by Aristobulus. Antipater procured 1000 highly esteemed Jews to support the allegations. Aristobulus alleged that Hyrcanus had not the temperament to rule or any greater right to the title of king. There was another side trying to be heard by Pompey, that of the Jews, since many of the people of Judaea didn't want a king at all, but a high priest, as they had long had. They feared a king would enslave them. Pompey criticized Aristobulus for his violence and then sent them away telling them he would settle their dispute later.

Aristobulus wouldn't wait. By marching into Judaea, Aristobulus angered Pompey. So, changing his course, Pompey took the army he had been leading against the Nabateans, and marched, instead, against Aristobulus. In the process of defeating Aristobulus, Pompey destroyed the walls of Jerusalem. He then made Hyrcanus high priest again, restored to Syria its conquered cities, made Jerusalem a tributary of Rome, and demanded 10,000 talents. On his way back to Rome, Pompey took Aristobulus and his children as captives. Aristobulus managed to return, and although he was taken back again, his son Alexander seized control of Syria and made other trouble for the Romans.

Meanwhile Antipater married an Idumean named Cypros by whom he had four sons, Phaselus, Herod, Joseph, and Pheroras, and a daughter named Salome. [See John the Baptist and Salome.]

While ... back in Rome, politics were heating up. In an effort to please Julius Caesar, the Egyptians decapitated Pompey.

After Julius Caesar had taken control of Rome, Antipater made himself useful to Caesar in his war against Egypt. Caesar conferred on him Roman citizenship and freedom from taxes. He confirmed Hyrcanus as high priest and made Antipater procurator of Judaea.


As procurator, Antipater made his eldest son Phaselus governor of Jerusalem and gave Galilee to Herod, who was only 15. Eager to prove himself, Herod helped the Syrians by seizing and slaying a troublesome band of robbers, which made him popular with the Syrians.

Antipater received reflected glory and honor from this. When Hyrcanus wanted to send money to Rome, Antipater offered to take it, but presented it as his own gift. Flavius Josephus says Hyrcanus knew this and approved. But the leading Jews felt differently. They confronted Hyrcanus telling him that he was king in name only and that Antipater and his sons had taken over the real rule. They accused Antipater's son Herod of having broken their law by executing a man who had not been sentenced to death by the Sanhedrin. Hyrcanus reluctantly had to admit that much, so he ordered Herod appear before the Sanhedrin. Herod obeyed, but he came with an armed guard.

Sextus Caesar, governor of Syria, asked Hyrcanus to clear Herod of the charges. Hyrcanus tried to comply, but the Sanhedrin had other plans, and so, when it looked as though the Sanhedrin would pronounce a sentence of death, Hyrcanus advised Herod to escape. Herod went to Damascus where Sextus Caesar made him general of the army of Celesyria.

Despite his attempt to help Herod, Hyrcanus was rightly afraid that Herod would then try to make war on him. Antipater and Herod's brother Phaselus stopped Herod from marching on Jerusalem.

Back in Rome, Cassius and Brutus headed a conspiracy to assassinate Julius Caesar. Mark Antony and Octavian were allies for a while in their opposition to the assassins.

Herod ingratiated himself with Rome when Cassius came to Syria following the assassination of Julius Caesar. Herod did not balk at bringing him the taxes he demanded from Judaea, although other areas resisted, for which reason he was commended and others punished.

Herod became engaged to a grand daughter of Hyrcanus. She was but one of several wives he had. By an earlier wife, Doris, married in perhaps 47 B.C., Herod had a son named Antipater.

Thus related by marriage and the friendship of his father Antipater (who had by then been poisoned by someone else trying to represent Hyrcanus' interests), Hyrcanus told Mark Antony that Herod was the best ruler. Because of this, and a bribe, Mark Antony made Herod and his older brother Phaselus tetrarchs.

Source: Flavius Josephus Antiquities of the Jews - Book XIV