Lesson Two: Politics In Palestine at the time of Christ
2.1 Seventy-one years before Jesus was born, the land of Palestine was ruled by the Jews. Hyrcanus II was the eighth Hasmonean ruler of Judea. But in 67 BC he was removed by his younger brother Aristobulus. This led to a civil war. With help from the Roman general Pompey, Hyrcanus II regained control of Palestine in 63 BC. But the Romans would not give Hyrcanus II the title he was looking for. He was not named as king. Eventually Antigonus, the son of Aristobulus, (with help from the Parthians), managed to remove Hyrcanus II from power for a second time in 40 BC. This sent Herod the Great, who had been governor of Samaria and Galilee under Hyrcanus II, fleeing for his life to Rome. The Romans promptly named Herod the Great king of all Palestine and sent him back to rule the entire country. But he had to fight for it. Antigonus would not give up easily. Herod the Great finally took full control of Jerusalem and all of Palestine in 37 BC. Herod's victory finally brought all of Palestine under Roman control.
2.2 But the Jews did not like the Romans. They did not like Herod the Great either. Herod was not a Jew. His mother was Arabian and his father was Idumean (or Edomite). The Jews had conquered Idumea and most of the people had converted to become Jews. So... Herod claimed his father was a Jew, but the Jews said Herod was not a Jew because his mother was not a Jew.
2.3 These things meant that Herod the Great had to do a delicate balancing act. On the one hand he had to rule firmly enough to ensure peace and to ensure that Roman policies were carried out. On the other hand he dared not offend the Jews. He knew they would revolt if he did too many things they didn't like. In spite of all this Herod the Great was actually a pretty good ruler. He liked the Romans and so he built Roman cities in Palestine and filled them with Roman officials. But he also wanted the favor of the Jews so he repaired the temple. The repairs he made were so extensive that you might as well say he rebuilt the temple. The cost of rebuilding the temple was about 5 billion dollars. Herod paid that sum out of his own pocket. Herod also rebuilt and restored the water supplies for the city of Jerusalem. BUT Herod the Great was the Herod who ordered the slaughter of the innocent babies in Bethlehem.
2.4 Unfortunately, Herod also liked Greek culture. Accordingly he built Greek theatres and gymnasiums in Jerusalem and other cities in Palestine. The Jews did not like that. They were against Greek culture. They hated the theatres and the gymnasiums because Greek athletes ran naked, and Greek actors and actresses were also naked on stage sometimes.
2.5 Herod the Great managed to keep the Jewish state, safe and prosperous under Roman authority.
2.6 Yet Herod the Great had a great flaw. He loved wealth and power so much that he was unable or unwilling to name a successor. When Herod died in 4 BC the provinces of Palestine were divided up between three of Herod's sons, Archelaus, Antipas, and Phillip I, and a nephew. Herod's sons did not reign as kings. They were known as "Tetrarchs" because each of them got only 1/4th of the kingdom. However, Archelaus was so brutal and inept that, after ten years, he was replaced by a Roman "procurator," or military governor.
2.7 Rome had a dual system of government. They had a civilian government and a military government. The Tetrarchs were civilian rulers. They ruled as client kings of Rome. That meant they were kings only as long as Rome said they were kings. They needed Roman favor to stay in power. The procurator was a military commander who also served as governor. Pontius Pilate was the procurator of Judea when Jesus was crucified.
2.8 Caesar Augustus was the Emperor of Rome when Jesus was born. He lived in Rome and ruled from Rome. But Roman soldiers were everywhere in Roman Palestine. The Romans ruled by force. There were garrisons of Roman soldiers in every province of Palestine. The Jewish people hated having to put up with those soldiers. The soldiers could legally force them to carry heavy burdens.
2.9 According to the first commandment the Jews were not supposed to make any image of God. Caesar Augustus proclaimed himself to be God. For that reason Roman coins bearing his image were not allowed inside the temple. The Jews did not like Roman rule for many reasons.
2.10 The Jews had to pay TAXES to Rome. That made them even more unhappy. The taxes were used to build roads, city walls, ports and other public works, but the taxes were also used to pay the Roman soldiers. The Jews did not like the Roman army occupying their country.
2.11 In the land of Palestine there was a group of patriots known as "Zealots." They were revolutionaries who wanted to free their country from Roman rule, even if they had to use violence. Just before Jesus was born the Zealots revolted against Rome.
2.12 The Zealots were defeated by the Roman army. Those Zealots who were not killed in battle were captured and crucified. Yet, some of the Zealots escaped and continued to make secret plans against the Romans.
2.13 Yet there were some Jews in Palestine who liked the Romans. They worked for the Romans as tax collectors. The rest of the Jews hated them because they usually became rich by taxing the people too much and keeping the extra money for themselves. They had the power to use force to collect the extra taxes.
2.14 A great thinker who lived sometime before Jesus was once asked, "Which of the wild animals are the cruelest?" He replied, "Of the beasts of the desert, the bear and the lion, but of the beasts of the city, the tax-collector and the parasites who make a living by sucking the blood of others." Most of the Jews felt that the tax collectors were the worst sort of sinners, worse than prostitutes or murderers! But Jesus was the friend of tax collectors and sinners!
2.15 One of Jesus' disciples, Matthew, was a tax collector before he became a disciple. Another one of Jesus' disciples was a Zealot before he became a disciple. In fact, his name was Simon the Zealot.
2.15 Caesar Augustus died when Jesus was about 14 years old. Tiberius Caesar became the new Emperor of Rome. He was the Emperor during most of Jesus' life and ministry.
2.16 Herod Antipas was the Tetrarch in Galilee. He was the one who beheaded John the Baptist. However, he refused to try Jesus and sent Him back to Pilate for trial.