What Caused General Pompey to Enter Judea?

 Nadene Goldfoot                                      

General Pompey (106-48 BCE) was a Roman general.  He arrived in Syria in 65 BCE and became the arbiter in the dispute between Hyrcanus II, elder son of Alexander Yannai and Salome Alexandra who will die in 31 BCE and Aristobulus, younger brother of Hyrcanus II  for the throne of Judea.                             

Aristobulus became king and reigned from 67 to 63 BCE. Civil War started and in 63 the 2 brothers went to Damascus to talk with Pompey who ordered Aristobulus to surrender all the Judean strongholds, including Jerusalem.  Aristobulus was forced to agree, but not his supporters.      

When Pompey went to Syria, he was visited by ambassadors from Syria and Egypt, with Aristobulus sending him a very expensive golden vine. A little later, ambassadors from Hyrcanus and Aristobulus went to see him. The former claimed that first Aulus Gabinius and then Scaurus had taken bribes. Pompey decided to arbitrate the dispute later, at the beginning of spring, and marched to Damascus. 

There, he heard the cases of Hyrcanus, Aristobulus and those who did not want a monarchy and wanted to return to the tradition of being under the high priest. Hyrcanus claimed that he was the rightful king as the elder brother and that he had been usurped, accusing Aristobulus of making incursions in nearby countries and being responsible for piracy, thus causing a revolt. 

                                      

                       2 brothers  Fighting over the Throne

Aristobulus claimed that Hyrcanus' indolence had caused him to be deposed, and that he took power lest others seize it. Pompey reproached Aristobulus for his violence, and told the men to wait for him, for he would settle the matter after dealing with the Nabataeans. However, Aristobulus went to Judea. This angered Pompey, who marched on Judea and went to the fortress of Alexandreium, where Aristobulus fled to.

Pompey laid siege to the Temple hill, and after 3 months, captured the Temple in 63.  This marked the end of Judea's political independence.  Aristobulus was taken prisoner and sent to Rome.  Together with his son, Antigonus, Aristobulus escaped in 56 BCE and returned to Judea.  the Romans besieged him in the fortress of Makhvar (Machaaerus in Transjordan) and took him prisoner, sending him again to Rome.

Aristobulus went to talk to Pompey and returned to the fortress three times to pretend he was complying with him, intending to wear him down and prepare for war should he rule against him. When Pompey ordered him to surrender the fortress, Aristobulus did give it up, but withdrew to Jerusalem and prepared for war. While Pompey was marching on Jerusalem, he was informed about the death of Mithridates. 

                                                  

Pompey encamped at Jericho, where Aristobulus went to see him, promising to give him money, and received him into Jerusalem. Pompey forgave him and sent Aulus Gabinius with soldiers to receive the money and the city. However, the soldiers of Aristobulus did not let them in, which led Pompey to arrest Aristobulus and enter Jerusalem. The pro-Aristobulus faction went to the Temple and prepared for a siege, while the rest of the inhabitants opened the city gates. 

Pompey sent in an army led by Piso and placed garrisons in the city and at the palace, yet the enemy refused to negotiate. Pompey built a wall around the area of the Temple and encamped inside this wall. However, the temple was well fortified and there was a deep valley around it. The Romans built a ramp and brought siege engines and battering rams from Tyre.

Pompey took advantage of the enemy celebrating the Sabbath to deploy his battering rams, since Jewish law did not allow the Jews to meddle with the enemy if they were not attacking them on the day of the Sabbath. Therefore, the defenders of the Temple did not counter the deployment of the battering rams by the Romans, which, on the other days of the week, they had successfully prevented. 

The next day, the wall of the Temple was broken through and the soldiers went on a rampage. According to Josephus, 12,000 Jews fell. Josephus wrote "No small enormities were committed about the temple itself, which, in former ages, had been inaccessible, and seen by none; for Pompey went into it, and not a few of those that were with him also, and saw all that which it was unlawful for any other men to see but only for the high priests. There were in that temple the golden table, the holy candlestick, and the pouring vessels, and a great quantity of spices; and besides these there were among the treasures two thousand talents of sacred money: yet did Pompey touch nothing of all this, on account of his regard to religion; and in this point also he acted in a manner that was worthy of his virtue." 

                                               

Pompey left the shrine intact, although entering the Holy of Holies (inner sanctum) which was  huge no no.  The Temple, a shrine for the Ark, sacred vessels and offerings consisted essentially of a hall, shrine, and inner sanctum (holy of holies.)

The next day, he ordered the men in charge of the Temple to purify it, and to bring offerings to God, as Jewish law required. Pompey restored Hyrcanus, the rightful king and eldest son  to the high priesthood "both because he had been useful to him in other respects, and because he hindered the Jews in the country from giving Aristobulus any assistance in his war against him."

Pompey returned the Syrian cities the Jews had conquered to Syrian rule, thus bringing Judea back to its original territory. He rebuilt the city of Garara and restored seven inland cities and four coastal ones to its inhabitants. He also made Jerusalem a tributary of Rome and Judea a satellite of Syria. According to Josephus, Pompey then went to Cilicia, taking Aristobulus and his children with him, and, after this, he returned to Rome.

Aristobulus and his family were taken to Rome to grace Pompey's triumph.  Pompey effectively terminated Jewish independence enjoyed since Simon the Maccabee who died in 135 BCE.   

When Julius Caesar rose to power, Aristobulus was released in 49 BCE and promised 2 legions with which to attack Pompey's supporters in Syria.  He was poisoned before being able to embark.   

Judea was made tributary and stripped of the territories acquired by the Hasmoneans.                         

In April 70 ce, about the time of Passover, the Roman general Titus besieged Jerusalem. He was then emperor from 79 to 81 CE.  Since that action coincided with Passover, the Romans allowed pilgrims to enter the city but refused to let them leave—thus strategically depleting food and water supplies within Jerusalem.  This time, Titus saw to it that the Temple was burnt down, destroyed and so was the city of Jerusalem and most all the people were either killed or taken prisoner as slaves. Titus is called Titus, the Wicked.   

Judea had been attacked twice, once by Pompey 100 years ago and now by Titus.  

Kingly Happenings In Jerusalem Before 70 CE When The Temple Fell

 Nadene Goldfoot                                                   

Jews, both ethnic Jews and converts, became a significant part of the Roman Empire's population (perhaps as much as ten percent) in the first century CE. The Roman general Pompey (106-48 BCE)  in his eastern campaign established Roman Syria in 64 BCE and conquered Jerusalem shortly after, in 63 BCE.

This Roman General Pompey first arrived in Syria in 65-3 BCE, and he became the arbiter in the dispute between the brothers, Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II for the throne of Judea.  This shows that Rome had overcome Syria, Judea and Transjordan  135 years before they destroyed the 2nd Temple in 70 CE.            

Hyrcanus II (who died in 31 BCE) was the eldest son of Alexander Yannnai, King of Judah from 103-76 BCE), son of John Hyrcanus.  Alexander, the father,  was a terrible despotic and violent ruler.  He had to use foreign mercenaries to maintain order. In 94, Civil War broke out.   At the end of his reign, Alexander Yannai tried to complete his conquests in Transjordan, and died while besieging Ragaba.   Hyrcanus II's  mother was Salome Alexandra (67 BCE) but was driven from the throne and the high priesthood by his brother, Aristobulus.  Aristobulus knew that Pompey was about to decide in favor of his opponents, left for Jerusalem, firmly determined to fight the Roman invaders.  Pompey pursued him and after a 3 month siege, captured the Temple Mount, deposed Aristobulus, and appointed  Hyrcanus II as high priest, with limited political authority, but without the title of ethnarch.  

                                                                         

Aristobulus II  (king of Judah from 67-63 BCE)  was the younger son of John Hyrcanus and Salome Alexandra.  When Salome died, her oldest son, Hyrcanus II, became king, but Aristobulus  ursurped the throne.  Civil War started, and in 63, the 2 brothers appeared in Damascus, Syria to urge their claims before Pompey who ordered Aristobulus II to surrender all the Judean strongholds, including Jerusalem. At this time, the Romans had control over the whole area.   Aristobulus was forced to agree, but his supporters refused to comply.  

                                                 

Pompey laid siege to the Temple hill, and after 3 months, captured the Temple in 63 BCE.  This marked the end of Judea's political independence.  When he captured the Temple from Aristobulus IIs' supporters, he left the shrine intact, although he entered the Holy of Holies, making it unfit.  He made Judea a tributary and stripped of the territories acquired by the Hasmoneans.  Aristobulus II and his family were taken to Rome to grace Pompey's triumph.  Pompey terminated Jewish independence that had been enjoyed since the days of Simon the Maccabee  of our Chanukah history.  

Aristobulus  was taken prisoner and sent to Rome.  Together, with his son, Antigonus. Aristobulus escaped in 56 BCE and returned to Judea.  The Romans besieged him in the fortress of Makhvar (Machaerus in Transjordan) and took him prisoner, sending him again to Rome.

                                             

When Julius Caesar rose to power, Aristobulus II was  released in 49 BCE and promised 2 legions with which to attack Pompey's supporters in Syria.  Aristobulus II was poisoned before being able to embark.  Who poisoned him?  Was it Caesar who was just stalling?  Or someone in Hyrcanus's camp.  

The last Hasmonean high priest was the grandson of Aristobulus II , named Aristobulus III.  He was the brother of Mariamne, wife of Herod, King of Israel.  Herod was suspicious of Aristobulus III, but for fear of the intervention of Mark Anthony, he appointed Aristobulus III the high priest at the age of 17.  The affection with which the people openly greeted Aristobulus III when he appeared on the Feast of Tabernacles in priestly robes aroused Herod's jealousy, and he had  young Aristobulus III drowned in a swimming pool at Jericho.  

A son of Herod and Mariamne, a Judean Prince, was another Aristobulus born in 35 BCE, dying in 7 BCE.  As a result of the intrigues at Herod's court, he was accused, together with his brother, Alexander, of conspiring to murder his father and was killed by strangulation. 

                                                   

Mariamne II was the wife of Herod, and daughter of Simon, son of Boethus.  Herod had appointed Boethus as High Priest.  Mariamne II was renowned for her beauty, and bore one son.  when Herod discovered that she had been involved in Antipater's plotting, he divorced her and expunged her son's name from his will.   

Antipater was the father of Herod and the ruler of Judea from 63 to 43 BCE and was the son of the ruler of Idumea (Edom)  of the 1st century BCE.  He had a lot of influence because he supported Hyrcanus in his war against his brother, Aristobulus.  Later, he helped the Romans.  Antipater joined Julius Caesar after his victory over Pompey, recruited the Jewish and Nabatean troops for his army.  Caesar made Antipater the financial administrator of Judea in 47 BCE and he became an effective ruler of the country, appointing his sons, Phasael and Herod, to the chief administrative posts.  He was poisoned during his carousing. 

Herod I or Herod the Great  (73 BCE-4 BCE) was King of Judea.  He was the son of Antipater, the Idumean (Edom) by his Nsabatean wife, Cypros.  His father appointed him as governor of the Galilee while still a young man.  Antigonus, son of Aristobulus II, tried to establish himself iin the Galilee but Herod stopped him.  Herod married Mariamne, granddaughter of the high priest, Hysrcanus.  Mark Anthony demanded high taxes from Herod.  Herod wound up murdering all possible rivals to his power, even his wife, Mariamne, their 2 sons, Alexander and Aristobulus, and his 1stborn, Antipater.  In his will, he left his kingdom to his sons Archelaus, Herod Antipas, and Philip.  

                                             

Judea  ruled the territory with Roman approval. While Judea was an independent kingdom before 63 BCE,  it was under heavy Roman influence and Herod came to power with Roman support.  Many years before, a pharaoh had tried to kill all baby boys, and Moses was rescued from that by his mother who hid him in a reed boat, putting him in the river.  

The New Testament depicts Herod as a monster who tried to kill baby Jesus and, when he couldn't find him, killed every infant in Bethlehem. Historians today generally believe the story is fictional.

While Herod did execute one of his wives, and three of his children, he was also a prolific builder who renovated and expanded the Temple in Jerusalem, the most holy site in Judaism. He also helped save the ancient Olympic Games during a financial crisis. [In Photos: Experience Ancient Jerusalem's Spendor with Virtual-Reality App]

                                            

Agrippa I aka Marcus Julius or Herod Agrippa I (10 BCE-44 CE) was king of Judea, son of Aristobulus and grandson of Herod.  After his father's death, he wound up in escapades with Caligula and was put in prison by Tiberius for suspected treachery.  He strengthened the fortifications of Jerusalem.  he died suddenly while attending the games in Caesarea.  After his death, his kingdom was again converted into an annex of the province of Syria.  

Agrippa II aka Marcus Julius of Herod Agrippa II (28 CE to 93 CE) was the last king of the house of Herod, son of Agrippa I.  When his father died, Judea reverted to the rule of the Procurators, (governors of Judea under the Roman emperors, but in the year 50, Agrippa II received the principality of Chalcis and was made responsible for supervising the Temple in Jerusalem. Emperor Claudius gave him  the title of King.  In 54, he had to give up Chalcis, receiving in exchange scattered territories in Transjordan and elsewhere.  His domain was extended under Nero by the addition of tracts in the Galilee, etc.  although not king of Judea, he enjoyed royal prestige there, but his quarrels with the priests and his inscribing of coins with heathen emblems and portraits of the emperors earned him the hostility of the people.  

Agrippa II was the brother of Berenice, daughter of Herod's sister, Salome.  She had married her cousin, Aristobulus and, after his death, Herod's brother-in-law, Theseudion.  She was mother of Herod Agrippa I and Herodias. She became mistress of Emperor Titus and followed him to Rome, but was forced by Roman popular opinion to leave him.  When Vespasian died, she unsuccessfully tried reconciliation with Titus. 

                                                  

Pontius Pilate served as the Prefect of Judaea from 26 to 36 CE.  He convicted Jesus of treason and declared that Jesus thought himself King of the Jews, and had Jesus crucified.  The prefect of the city was responsible for maintaining law and order within Rome and acquired full criminal jurisdiction in the region within 100 miles (160 km) of the city. Under the later empire he was in charge of Rome's entire city government.                               

Then the Jews revolted against Rome in 66 and Pilate went to Jerusalem to restore calm but had to flee for his life.  he went with Titus and assisted him during the siege of Jerusalem.  As a reward, his dominions outside Palestine were further extended.  The First Jewish–Roman War, sometimes called the Great Jewish Revolt, or The Jewish War, was the first of three major rebellions by the Jews against the Roman Empire, fought in Roman-controlled Judea,  resulting in the destruction of Jewish towns, the displacement of its people and the appropriation of land for Roman military use, as well as the destruction of the Jewish Temple and polity.

The Great Revolt began in the year 66 CE, during the twelfth year of the reign of Nero, originating in Roman and Jewish religious tensions. The crisis escalated due to anti-taxation protests and attacks upon Roman citizens by the Jews. The Roman governor, Gessius Florus, responded by plundering the Second Temple, claiming the money was for the Emperor, and the next day launching a raid on the city,

                                                  

The Romans had occupied Jerusalem since Herod the Great was king for 133 years before they burned down the Temple and the city. They chose the kings;  puppets in their hands.   In the siege of Jerusalem during the Roman war, the Temple served as a center of military activity and was destroyed by the conquering Romans in 70 CE.  A Roman Temple was later built on the site, and since the Modern Period, a mosque has stood there, which is the Mosque of Omar.  The area around the western walls of the Herodian Temple compound was extensively excavated by B. Mazar from 1968.   

Resource:

The New Standard Jewish Encyclopedia

https://www.livescience.com/64962-king-herod.html

https://www.davidicdynasty.org/king-david-through-rashi/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Jewish%E2%80%93Roman_War