Antipater Becomes Intolerable. He Is Sent To Rome, And
Carries Herod's Testament With Him; Pheroras Leaves His
Brother, That He May Keep His Wife. He Dies At Home.
1. Now when Antipater had cut off the hopes of the orphans, and had
contracted such affinities as would be most for his own advantage, he
proceeded briskly, as having a certain expectation of the kingdom; and
as he had now assurance added to his wickedness, he became intolerable;
for not being able to avoid the hatred of all people, he built his
security upon the terror he struck into them. Pheroras also assisted him
in his designs, looking upon him as already fixed in the kingdom.
There was also a company of women in the court, which excited new
disturbances; for Pheroras's wife, together with her mother and sister,
as also Antipater's mother, grew very impudent in the palace. She also
was so insolent as to affront the king's two daughters, 44 on which
account the king hated her to a great degree; yet although these women
were hated by him, they domineered over others: there was only Salome
who opposed their good agreement, and informed the king of their
meetings, as not being for the advantage of his affairs. And when those
women knew what calumnies she had raised against them, and how much
Herod was displeased, they left off their public meetings, and friendly
entertainments of one another; nay, on the contrary, they pretended
to quarrel one with another when the king was within hearing. The like
dissimulation did Antipater make use of; and when matters were public,
he opposed Pheroras; but still they had private cabals and merry
meetings in the night time; nor did the observation of others do any
more than confirm their mutual agreement. However, Salome knew every
thing they did, and told every thing to Herod.
2. But he was inflamed with anger at them, and chiefly at Pheroras's
wife; for Salome had principally accused her. So he got an assembly of
his friends and kindred together, and there accused this woman of many
things, and particularly of the affronts she had offered his daughters;
and that she had supplied the Pharisees with money, by way of rewards
for what they had done against him, and had procured his brother to
become his enemy, by giving him love potions. At length he turned his
speech to Pheroras, and told him that he would give him his choice of
these two things: Whether he would keep in with his brother, or with his
wife? And when Pheroras said that he would die rather than forsake his
wife, Herod, not knowing what to do further in that matter, turned his
speech to Antipater, and charged him to have no intercourse either with
Pheroras's wife, or with Pheroras himself, or with any one belonging
to her. Now though Antipater did not transgress that his injunction
publicly, yet did he in secret come to their night meetings; and because
he was afraid that Salome observed what he did, he procured, by the
means of his Italian friends, that he might go and live at Rome; for
when they wrote that it was proper for Antipater to be sent to Caesar
for some time, Herod made no delay, but sent him, and that with a
splendid attendance, and a great deal of money, and gave him his
testament to carry with him,--wherein Antipater had the kingdom
bequeathed to him, and wherein Herod was named for Antipater's
successor; that Herod, I mean, who was the son of Mariamne, the high
priest's daughter.
3. Sylleus also, the Arabian, sailed to Rome, without any regard to
Caesar's injunctions, and this in order to oppose Antipater with all
his might, as to that law-suit which Nicolaus had with him before. This
Sylleus had also a great contest with Aretas his own king; for he had
slain many others of Aretas's friends, and particularly Sohemus, the
most potent man in the city Petra. Moreover, he had prevailed with
Phabatus, who was Herod's steward, by giving him a great sum of money,
to assist him against Herod; but when Herod gave him more, he induced
him to leave Sylleus, and by this means he demanded of him all that
Caesar had required of him to pay. But when Sylleus paid nothing of what
he was to pay, and did also accuse Phabatus to Caesar, and said that he
was not a steward for Caesar's advantage, but for Herod's, Phabatus was
angry at him on that account, but was still in very great esteem with
Herod, and discovered Sylleus's grand secrets, and told the king that
Sylleus had corrupted Corinthus, one of the guards of his body, by
bribing him, and of whom he must therefore have a care. Accordingly, the
king complied; for this Corinthus, though he was brought up in Herod's
kingdom, yet was he by birth an Arabian; so the king ordered him to be
taken up immediately, and not only him, but two other Arabians, who were
caught with him; the one of them was Sylleus's friend, the other the
head of a tribe. These last, being put to the torture, confessed that
they had prevailed with Corinthus, for a large sum of money, to kill
Herod; and when they had been further examined before Saturninus, the
president of Syria, they were sent to Rome.
4. However, Herod did not leave off importuning Pheroras, but proceeded
to force him to put away his wife; 45 yet could he not devise any way
by which he could bring the woman herself to punishment, although he
had many causes of hatred to her; till at length he was in such great
uneasiness at her, that he cast both her and his brother out of his
kingdom. Pheroras took this injury very patiently, and went away into
his own tetrarchy, [Perea beyond Jordan,] and sware that there should
be but one end put to his flight, and that should be Herod's death;
and that he would never return while he was alive. Nor indeed would he
return when his brother was sick, although he earnestly sent for him to
come to him, because he had a mind to leave some injunctions with him
before he died; but Herod unexpectedly recovered. A little afterward
Pheroras himself fell sick, when Herod showed great moderation; for
he came to him, and pitied his case, and took care of him; but his
affection for him did him no good, for Pheroras died a little afterward.
Now though Herod had so great an affection for him to the last day
of his life, yet was a report spread abroad that he had killed him
by poison. However, he took care to have his dead body carried to
Jerusalem, and appointed a very great mourning to the whole nation for
him, and bestowed a most pompous funeral upon him. And this was the end
that one of Alexander's and Aristobulus's murderers came to.