History
Herod Antipas -a nickname derived from Antipatros-
was the son of the Jewish king Herod
the Great and his wife Malthace; he was full
brother of Archelaus and a half brother
of Philip. With his brothers Archelaus
and Philip, he was educated in Rome, a
kind of honorable detention to guarantee
his father's loyalty. In his father's
testament, Herod Antipas was appointed
tetrarch of Galilee and Peraea (the east
bank of the Jordan). The Roman emperor
Augustus confirmed this decision and Antipas'
reign could begin (4 BCE).
The Death of John the
Baptist
The situation for which Herod Antipas
was remembered most was with the imprisonment
and death of John the Baptist (Matt 14:3-12;
Mark 6:1729; Luke 3:19, 20; Jos. Antiq.
xviii. 5. 2 ; 116-119) .
Antipas had married the daughter (name unknown)
of Aretas IV, the Nabatean king, which probably
was instigated by Augustus who was known to
favor intermarriages among the various rulers
for the sake of peace in the Roman empire.
This marriage would have not only made for
peace between the Jews and the Arabs, but also
Aretas' territory served as a buffer between
Rome and Parthia. Hence they were married around
14 A.D.
Around 15 years later (29 A.D.) Antipas made
a journey to Rome. On his way he paid a visit
to his half brother Herod (Philip) who had
apparently lived in one of the coastal cities
of Palestine. Antipas fell in love with his
Philip's wife Herodias who was also Philip’s
own niece. She seemed was a very ambitious
woman and this was her opportunity to become
the wife of a tetrarch. She agreed to marry
Antipas on his return from Rome upon the condition
that Aretas' daughter must be cast out (Jos.
Antiq. xviii. 5. 1 ; 109, 110) . Aretas' daughter
got wind of the arrangement and quickly fled
to her father. This divorce was not only a
personal insult to Aretas but also a breach
of a political alliance which later led to
a retaliation by Aretas.
Not long after Aretas' daughter had departed,
Antipas and Herodias were married. John the
Baptist spoke boldly against this marriage
and therefore Antipas imprisoned him. John's
denouncement was that Antipas had married his
brother Philip's Wife. The Mosaic law forbad
the marriage of a brother's wife (Lev 18:16;
20:21) with the exception of raising children
to a deceased childless brother by levirate
marriage (Deut 25:5; Mark 12 :19) .
"For Herod slew him, who was a good
man, and commanded the Jews to exercise
virtue, both as to righteousness towards
one another, and piety towards God,
and so to come to baptism" - Josephus
Antiquties, XVIII, v, 2.
A
Detailed history on Herod Antipas can
be found
here.
Cities of Sepphoris and Tiberias
Sepphoris was rebuilt and fortified
after Galilee came under the rule of
Herod Antipas. The importance of this
city for our study of the Gospels lies
in the fact that it was located only
four miles from Nazareth. During Jesus’ early
years, Herod Antipas was restoring,
developing and fortifying Sepphoris.
It served as his principle residence
and the administrative center of Galilee,
until he built Tiberias in A.D. 18-20.
Tiberias, famed as a city in the region
where Jesus preached, as the capital
of Herod Antipas, the seat of the Sanhedrin,
and the place where the Jerusalem Talmud
was written, is so rich in antiquities
that archaeologists in Israel call
it “the City of Treasures.”
Photos
from excavations at Tiberias
Coin of Jesus found in Ancient Tiberias
Excavation
Scriptures
Matthew 14:3 For
Herod had laid hold on John, and bound
him, and put him
in prison
for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's
wife.
Luke 3:1 Now
in the fifteenth year of the reign of
Tiberius Caesar, Pontius
Pilate being governor of Judaea, and
Herod being
tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother
Philip tetrarch of Ituraea
and of the region of Trachonitis, and
Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene
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