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1180   MATTHEW AFTER EXILE ERA 5 HEROD THE GREAT Matthew 2:1–12 SYNOPSIS HEROD THE GREAT Age 25 ? 32–35 41? 43–44 48? Second son of Herod Antipater II; becomes governor of Galilee in 47 BC Appointed as governor of Syria BACKGROUND Becomes king of Judea Defeats Arabs despite opposition by Cleopatra and Octavian Executes his wife (Mariamne), mother-in-law and brother-in-law Rebuilds Samaria, Jerusalem, Jericho and Caesarea 48 Builds royal palace for himself 52 Begins reconstruction of the temple, a magnificent building project 64 Kills his two sons Alexander and Aristobulus Sends the Magi to search for Jesus, but they do not return to him 67 Herod the Great (73 BC—4 BC ) oversaw the transition of Palestine from Hasmo- nean rule to a Roman province. Though a capable administrator, Herod alienat- ed his conservative Jewish subjects and heightened expectations for the entrance of a legitimate Jewish king who would fill the throne of David. Kills all the male babies in and near Bethlehem Becomes ill just before his death in 4 BC; leaves kingdom to his three sons: Antipas, Philip and Archelaus The autonomous Jewish Hasmonean kingdom established by the Maccabean revolt (see article, p. 1154) came to an end when the Roman general Pompey (see article, p. 1159) invaded Palestine to put an end to the civil war between two Hasmonean rulers. After Pompey cap- tured Jerusalem (63 BC), he left Judea a Roman subsidiary under the author- ity of Antipater, 1 and the Roman Senate later appointed Antipater’s son Herod as “king” of all Palestine (37 BC). Herod was an Idumean (i.e., Edomite), a descendant of Isaac’s son Esau. Esau and his descen- dants were not chosen by the Lord to in- herit the Abrahamic covenant (see article, p. 37), and thus tensions had existed be- tween the Israelites and the Edomites for centuries. 2 Furthermore, during the Has- monean period, Idumeans like Herod were forced to convert to Judaism, but the Jews viewed them as false converts. Herod at- tempted to gain Jewish acceptance by marrying a Jewish Hasmonean princess and by completely renovating the temple of Jerusalem (see article “The Second Temple,” p. 1260), but he would never be accepted by the people as a true king. PERSONALITY TRAITS Though Herod proved to be an extraordinary administrator, he was pathologically suspi- cious of political threats to his power and could resort to extreme brutality. He murdered his wife, the Hasmonean Mariamne, and several of their own children, when he suspected their Hasmonean roots were raising expectations among the people for a legitimately Jewish king. Throughout Herod’s rule, any possibility of revolt was treated with utter ruthlessness. ROLE WITHIN THE BIBLICAL STORY As a military leader, Herod subjugated Palestine to Roman rule. Whenever Hasmonean partisans attempted to throw off foreign subjugation, Herod remained steadfastly loyal to the Roman senate. With the blessing of Caesar Augustus, Herod swept through Galilee, Judea, and Idumea, defeated resistant forces, and established permanent control of Jerusalem.