XIII

HEROD THE GREAT

From the writer: This is a meager warning for my readers. This episode is intended for mature readers only, some strong words are used and some contents are a little harsh and may not be appropriate for some. But for those who understand history, they may find this informative. Some information in this story may not be suitable to our present time, proceed at your own risk.

Please be advised that this story is historically factual and the events portrayed is very revealing. The purpose of this is to broaden our knowledge and may not be repeated again. This story is for Herod and Herod alone. Viewer discretion is advised.

LET’S START:

In history, Herod was called “THE GREAT,” but no one expect that an executioner from Bethlehem would carry an honourable name.

On the year 3932 and at the 68th year before the coming of Jesus Christ, was born the wicked Herod, the horrible and identical image of the savage Athaliah. The real Herod’s hometown is Escalon City, in the ocean’s side through the territory of Turkey Asiatic, in Palestine. Black like his soul, cold as a wicked, tempestuous like his monstrousness nesting from his heart……..that night was the birth of the future scourge of Galilee and the shame of his descendants.

A powerful storm was the first one to welcome Herod’s emergence in this world, the strong force of his breathe from his nostrils shook the big buildings structures. The roaring sea’s boisterous waves are like stirring in the midst of water by a group of hordes from hell. The tallest cedar trees and the humungous fig trees rapidly shook from the outbursts amid the raging wind not far from Escalon. The water plunged to the riverbank, and overflowed the meadows through the cities, with its’ raging waters that causes poverty to the inhabitants of these wretched villages.

The whole world lamented woefully for welcoming their merciless future King. Herod is like a flood overflowed, and like a whirlwind, he swiftly took everything with him and everyone that gets on his way; like a flash of lightning that burns upon whom he strikes, and like a pests that kill all of whom he breathes. A slave of his wanting, arrogant and irritable, he finally reached the age of adulthood, twenty-five (25) years of age, where he continued to trail the lustful and sinful path.

His father Antipater, served Caesar faithfully and defeated Pompey the Roman Lord when he attacked Alexandria. Antipater asked Caesar the Rome’s dictator, to grant his son Herod to reign as the King of Galilee. Herod was just twenty-four (24) years of age when he took the first step, the level that took him to climb-up the ladder of success to Jerusalem’s Throne.

Herod is bold and greedy. Nothing can stop him. He desired and aspired a crown in any ways, even to a point of committing crimes; lewdness and treachery did not deter his course. To take place and the desires to make it happen despite of not holding back and perhaps even to force himself to rid over his father’s dead body, his brothers and sisters, and his relatives. For a simple crown, a just lone crown that he greedily desired, to invalidate all the obstacles that prevented him and to obtain and proudly continue to proceed to his dream.

But his fate turned humiliating for him when he got defeated by his enemy Antigonus, King of Juda. He was forced to flee and hide in one of Idumea’s castle with his whole family along with his great treasures.

Herod is like drowning from that end of Arabia Patraea. One afternoon, as he stood from one of those high towers’ strong fortresses, with his arms folded across his chest and with his squinted eyes, he watched with his fierce gaze and blood thirsty heart the sandy desolated rocky mountain. Suddenly, he perceived from the bottom of his heart a deep sigh and followed by the resounding voice, these words:

—“Idumea! Idumea! The animals’ dwelling place of the “Jackals, the Wolves town,” you’re simply a bone structure to me, a skeleton, nothing to offer to my hungry throat but strictly bones for me to tear off and chewed. What I need is the flesh attached to the bone to quench the terrible hunger that kills me. Jerusalem! Jerusalem! You are the food I am craving from the feasts I am dreaming. I will be your King, and you are my slave; at the top of your fortresses, my flag scarlet and gold, will proudly wave in the breeze of your wind. Your children will kiss the very dust that will afloat from the hem of my Royal Robe, and your maidens will sing for me at the Zion’s altar to praise their god, King Herod.”

At last! The long awaited time is over, and from that one night, this Idumean prisoner left his fortress, a great and dangerous intent to escape, but this did not stop him from fleeing, he left and went to Egypt. There, he met Queen Cleopatra to encourage and convinced her of his desired ambition of becoming the King of Judea. Herod calculated and fully trusted his guts that from the Queens’ help from Egypt, truly famous for her beauty and wickedness, his hope will be obtained. A portrayal of these two is like a black Panther’s character, not far from the Tiger’s reputation, and like the Hyenas have the manner to show-up hastily from the Jackal’s one cry.

After Herod’s met with Cleopatra, she turned him over to Mark Anthony, and the two went immediately to the proud City of Rome. At that time, the Senate had a grudge against Antigonus, for he asked help from the Parthos people, Rome’s sworn enemy, but he still sided with the greedy Idumeans, and he happened to arrive at the Capitol to honestly asked for help.

The wind of fortune is slowly blowing to Herod’s side and conforming him. His golden dreams governed Bethlehem’s executioner. Anthony fought against Herod’s greedy desire, but because of this woman’s request and self-gratification, will not be long before she lay beside him in the grave, Anthony granted Herod, Cleopatra’s favored, the crown from Jerusalem’s taxpayer.

Herod received his crown, and he immediately put himself as the first Capitol’s slave. From then on, Caesar of Rome was his god.

But is this worth for Herod? For he got the Throne, and the green Laurel to crown his head is a symbol of a martial victory, made by the Senate’s patronage for Herod, crowning a successful King during his triumph.

Getting impatient and not wanting for anything but the day to come for his enthronement, he quickly assembled troops for himself; he gathered soldiers for hire from Tiber City and pay them out at his own expense, from out of his own pocket. After taking an oath to all of Anthony’s rules and regulations, he then gave the leading position to Verutidio, Caesar’s favorite.

After the preparation and ruled by his craving for revenge, Herod left right away with his soldiers to Roman’s Court and went to Jerusalem in a hurry to claim his Throne.

Antigonus was criticized for Herod’s preparation for taking over and condoned by Caesar, but Herod still continued then and prepared his people to truly punish his daring enemies from their highest Holy City’s fortresses, that will be cursed by the Calvary’s Martyr by any means in the near time.

Then Herod, full of courage attacked in rage and fury, those fortresses made of rocks and metal iron that hinders him from his greed.

Blood flowed like flood. Joseph, brother of the aggressor (Herod) was killed from the battle, and at last, Cleopatra’s servant, Capitol’s patronizer and Caesar’s slave, successfully entered Jerusalem and the Romans Eagle was placed at the top of Zerrubabbel’s Temple, a sign of the triumphant battle taking over for the Throne.

Thousands and thousands of the inhabitants were killed from this bloody battle, and from the weapons of Herod’s minions, no one survived from his fury, but worse if there’s more properties and things to seize.

Rome is asking for gold, and Herod is Rome’s slave.

Herod wanted the crown to remain on his forehead, and for this reason, he separated his wife and married Mariamne II, grand daughter of John Hyrcanus, King of Judea, still imprisoned in Rome, because after his defeat, Pompey brought him there.

Herod’s hands are still soaked in blood for the horrific beheading performed, but he went immediately to the Temple to marry a beautiful and a very young Princess.

Because of their lord’s new and strict command, people from Jerusalem wiped their tears, the tears that make their eyes red, and they were forced to sing and dance on fiesta real, created by the cruel King. A sorrowful face seen and observed from that feast, would be enough to sentence the person to death. One tear shed and it will be followed by the head to shed (beheaded). Herod is wise and a cheat, but a wimp, and for this, he granted his brother-in-law the highest position, Aristobulus III, to be the Head Priest even at a young age, to secure himself against danger.

This young man, genuinely loved by the Israelites, the unfortunate son of the King imprisoned in Rome, a King that was about to be crowned, but it was grabbed from him by his sister’s husband.

Slowly the townspeople showed their love to young Aristobulo III, and Herod saw all these. He was envious to this kind of love; a love that can’t be freely given to him; a love that cannot be demanded; not even an affection just for the liking. And for this, he ordered to drown his brother-in-law, Aristobulo III, from one of Jericho’s bathing pool. And he pretended to be sorrowful for his death; for him to look clean and innocent from the Pharisees’ eyes and those with high positions in Jerusalem.

With this opportunity, the Roman Senate is blind to all the injustices but more appreciative of the gifts sent by the criminal Herod, than to give justices to those innocents murdered without doing any crime.

Never on earth that a King shed so much blood from innocent people, unlike Herod the Idumean, where in history was given the name, “Great.” He became powerful but he lack of the required love and the good attitude to make a King honourable and famous.

Savage and bloodthirsty, he delights the lamentation and mourning of the people he had executed. He ordered Hyrcanus his death, even in his old age, his wife’s grandfather, this old man who saved his life when he was the Galilee’s Governor. At his very old age, and maybe had a few more days to live, Hyrcanus did not stop this traitors’ hand to have him killed. This pitiful old man was accused by Herod’s executioner (he say) of receiving gifts sent by the Arab’s King, but Hyrcanus was innocent.

The most beautiful Princess at that time, his wife Mariamne, very intelligent, died of wounds ordered by her husband, Herod. Not long after that, Alejandra was murdered too, the mother of the damned Mariamne. In fear of his son from Mariamne, Felipo, that he might take revenge for his mother’s death, Herod had him executed too. The cries of bloodshed, screaming for justice and revenge, the cries of those small voices coming out from the bottom of his heart, did not break him.

The entire town became enraged and displeased when they saw this King’s vicious crimes and the unending blood flowing like water. The unstoppable shedding of blood by this brutal, afflicting murderer, started to worry the entire town. Like fields of grasses beaten by the strong wind on both sides, they don’t know where to turn for help, for he is a powerful King.

Herod beheads those who are always favored by Rome, and those who hinder his ways and disobey his rules for power. The Laurel Crown that defiles his forehead filled with cries of crimes was bought from the Capitol from the wealthy and poor’s money.

Herod’s entire life is like a long necklace with long list of bloody murders. From his restless sleep is like seeing this thick terrifying shadow, unnerving and similar to those hordes from hell, running around his mind that embittered his bloody existence.

Herod does not have enough troops to fight the rising rebellion of his town. A few soldiers that carry spears; some Gentlemen from his Palace and the descendants of the Subservience, some Handicaps, a few Herodians who received handful of money from their lord Herod, the lord who wanted to be on the pedestal of the Zion’s altar and worship him like a god.

The wealthy and the audacious Pharisees, who refused to swear to follow him. The brave Essenes complied and sided with the Pharisees. The aggressive Bachelors, urged by their terrible hatred, the brave Disciples of the Moses Law that unite against him, for in the midst of day, they despised death. They had nothing to think of but their desired time to take the revenge from the sweet moment of their freedom.

They see Herod as an executioner from the foreign land, a brutal enemy and so they delight to kill him. The life of the merciless King from Juda is restless. The threat of a deadly sword for him, is in every corner.

One day, fake news of his death spreads. and so the entire town builds a massive fire for a big celebration. Herod heard this, and he was furious; all those who created the huge fire were killed, and the blood were squeezed from out of their corpses and used to extinguish the fire. At the time of this terrible hatred was the arrival of the Three Magi Kings; they were looking for the newly born child, the King of Juda; the Messiah prophesied by the Prophets, the “Israel’s Redeemer.”