He was a frustrated royal. As a prince, he grew up in the shadow of his royal parent who was famous on the world stage. In turn, he became infamous for his having an affair and breaking the heart of a beloved princess, only to divorce her and be remarried to a scandalous woman. Yearning to be king in his own right, he belatedly realized that his subjects had no love for him and had already turned their attentions and affections to the next generation of royals.
His name was Herod Antipas.
Unlike his father King Herod the Great, Herod Antipas was not a major player on the world stage. King Herod the Great had gotten to the job of “King of the Jews,” because his pal, Mark Antony had personally recommended him to the Roman Senate. Later, Herod the Great had wisely warned his pal Mark Antony that his new girlfriend, Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, was bad news. When Mark Antony and Cleopatra had been decisively defeated in battle, Herod the Great befriended the winner, the future Roman emperor Caesar Augustus, and kept his job. As “King of the Jews,” Herod the Great was known throughout the world as the builder of modern Jewish Temple – that strange temple that Jews thought was a gateway to the one true God.
When Herod the Great died, the Kingdom of the Jews was divided between his various sons. But soon afterwards, Caesar Augustus decided that he would rather have a Roman in charge of the important areas of Judea and Samaria. Much to his chagrin, Herod Antipas found a Roman governor ruling the lion’s share of his father’s kingdom, while he had the title of being only a Tetrarch of the rather minor province of Galilee. Following his father’s footsteps, Antipas began major rebuilding projects in Galilee.
However, the reckless ruler soon made international headlines for all the wrong reasons. He managed to create family drama and a foreign policy crisis in one fell swoop. First, he stole his brother Phillip’s wife, Herodias. Herodias also happened to be Herod Antipas’s niece. I’m sure that made for an interesting and complicated family reunion. In doing so, Antipas’s first wife, the beautiful princess from the next-door kingdom, returned home, to a very angry King Aretas IV. Thus, while King Herod the Great had the reputation for being the great temple builder, his reckless son Herod Antipas had the reputation of being a homewrecker. Later, King Aretas sent his troops to fight against Herod Antipas to avenge his family’s honor. When Herod Antipas was badly beaten, his Jewish subjects said that it was divine punishment – not for the sins of theft and adultery – but for the murder of John of Baptist.
Both the Jewish historian Josephus and the gospel writers record how John the Baptist was leading a riverside revival at the Jordan River, calling upon the Jewish people to repent of their sins and make way for the true Messiah. John the Baptist didn’t pull any punches and challenged Herod Antipas to send Herodias back home to her first husband. So Herod Antipas locked up John the Baptist in the dungeon. But once again, we have a Biblical villain who is quite complex. Herod Antipas would actually visit the dungeon to listen to John the Baptist. Perhaps being surrounded by a bunch of yes men, he found John the Baptist’s honesty and courage refreshing. Perhaps being without a moral anchor himself, he found John the Baptist’s integrity unusual and interesting. (Mark 6:17-20).
Naturally, the now Mrs. Herod Antipas (Herodias) did not share her husband’s admiration for this wild-eyed frontier preacher and began plotting a way to dispose of him. The opportunity presented itself when Herod Antipas was having a birthday bash. Herodias’s daughter, Salome, performed a dance that greatly pleased Herod Antipas. He was so pleased that he promised her anything. After comparing notes with her mother Herodias, Salome asked for the head of John the Baptist. Herod Antipas groaned. He knew that it was unethical – executing a prophet for the whim of a dance girl. But he did not want to appear weak in front of his birthday guests. Instead of having the moral courage to refuse her request and give her a bag of gold, he reluctantly ordered John the Baptist to be beheaded. His birthday party ended with a dancing girl, prancing and dancing with a platter that held the head of John the Baptist. (Mark 6:19, 21-29).
Having added prophet killer next to international adulterer to his resume, Antipas badly needed a way to redeem himself. The crafty fox soon found a way to impress both the Jewish priests and the Roman Emperor Tiberius, thanks to the bumbling of the Roman governor Pontius Pilate. According to the Jewish philosopher Philo, Governor Pontius Pilate had placed some shields dedicated to Emperor
Tiberius in his palace in Jerusalem. The Jewish priests objected. They felt the shields had pagan overtones. Pilate refused to remove them. So Herod Antipas wrote a letter to Emperor Tiberius asking him to intervene. Tiberius was furious at Pilate and ordered him to relocate the shields to a more appropriate location outside the Holy City. Pilate was in trouble in with the Emperor and angry with Herod Antipas. Herod Antipas, however, was now recognized as being a defender of the Jewish faith – a good steppingstone to reclaiming the family title of “King of the Jews.”
But once again, a Jewish prophet came along. Herod Antipas began hearing reports of another prophet who was gathering large crowds and working mighty miracles. Then things got even more interesting when he learned that Joanna, the wife of his manger Chuza, had been healed by this prophet. (Luke 8:2-3). Rumors swirled that he was one of the old prophets, perhaps Elijah. Another theory was he was John the Baptist – raised to life. “I beheaded John,” Herod wondered, “so who is this man about whom I hear such stories?” And so Herod Antipas was eager to meet him. (Luke 9:7-9)
The prophet was Jesus of Nazareth. And he was no fan of Herod Antipas. In fact, Jesus might have made a veiled criticism of Herod Antipas by comparing, or contrasting, him with John the Baptist. He once asked the crowds, “What kind of man did you go into the wilderness to see? Was he a weak reed, swayed by every breath of wind? Or were you expecting to see a man dressed in expensive clothes? No, people who wear beautiful clothes and live in luxury are found in palaces. Were you looking for a prophet? Yes, and he is more than a prophet.” (Luke 7:24-26 NLT)
Just before Holy Week, Jesus was even more direct about his thoughts about Herod Antipas. Some of the Pharisees came to Jesus to warn him that Herod Antipas was looking for him, to kill him. Some commentators find the Pharisees to be insincere. I don’t. I think that these Pharisees were fans of Jesus and were afraid that history would repeat itself. Jesus doesn’t run or back down. Instead he sends a message to Herod Antipas:
“Go tell that fox that I will keep on casting out demons and healing people today and tomorrow; and the third day I will accomplish my purpose. Yes, today, tomorrow, and the next day I must proceed on my way. For it wouldn’t do for a prophet of God to be killed except in Jerusalem! O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me.” (Luke 13:32-34 NLT)
This message must have pricked Herod Antipas’s ears. This prophet was heading to Jerusalem for Passover, just like Herod Antipas would. Perhaps their paths would cross in Jerusalem.
In Luke 23, we read that early on Friday morning, Herod Antipas and his soldiers were probably partying when a delegation arrived. The Jewish priests had asked Governor Pontius Pilate to rubber stamp their death sentence of a certain man. Pilate, however, had reopened the case, and then when learning that the accused was from Nazareth of Galilee, decided that Herod Antipas would be in a better position to judge him, after all he was Herod Antipas’s subject. Who is this man, Herod Antipas must have asked. Jesus of Nazareth, they replied.
Herod Antipas couldn’t believe his ears. After searching all over Galilee for this prophet, he was brought to him in handcuffs in Jerusalem. Antipas began asking Jesus questions, but Jesus refused to answer. It was a study in contrasts. John the Baptist was a wild looking man, dressed in camel skins, who wouldn’t shut up. Jesus was a calm looking man, dressed liked a humble carpenter, and refused to speak.
Here is one of the strange crossroads of history. We have Herod Antipas of royal birth who desperately desired to be King of the Jews. He’s now holds in his hands the fate of Jesus of Nazareth, of humble birth, who desired no political position, but is now charged with the crime of proclaiming himself, King of the Jews.
The Jewish priests thought that surely Herod Antipas would agree with them. After all, he was the defender of the faith. But the crafty fox had other ideas. He already had one dead prophet on his resume; he didn’t need another one. No need to turn his subjects against him, again. But he didn’t want to completely alienate the Jewish priests either. So even though he found Jesus to be not guilty, he decided to send Jesus back to Pontius Pilate, but not before he had his fun.
“Then Herod and his soldiers began mocking and ridiculing Jesus. Finally, they put a royal robe on him and sent him back to Pilate.” (Luke 23:11 NLT)
For Jesus, it was also a study of contrasts. John the Baptist was a man of moral courage. Herod Antipas really was “a weak reed, swayed by every breath of wind.” If he thought Jesus was truly innocent, he should have set him free, then and there. If he thought Jesus was truly guilty, he could have him thrown in the dungeon or at the worst beheaded him – a much more humane way to die than the torture of Romans’ crucifixion. Instead, Herod Antipas acted like a bully and mocked Jesus, even to the extent of placing one of his royal robes on him. Herod Antipas was also the “man dressed in expensive clothes” that Jesus had referred to earlier.
So Jesus was sent back to Pilate and ironically served as a peace offering between the two rival rulers. From that day forward, they were allies. (Luke 23:12).
But history was not finished with Herod Antipas. With the ascension of Emperor Caligula, Antipas found himself in exile in Spain. In the end, it would be the next generation of Herods to reclaim the old family title of King of the Jews. His nephew and brother-in-law King Herod Agrippa would be received with great acclaim in Jerusalem having a royal Jewish mother and a best friend in Emperor. Meanwhile, Antipas would be remembered mainly as the beheader of John the Baptist. Even in villainy, his father overshadowed him. King Herod the Great will always be remembered as the villain in the Christmas story, while his son Antipas is barely remembered for his villainy in the Easter story.
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