HISTORY OF OUR SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume II, Issue 54, 9 May 1874, Page 13

HISTORY OF OUR SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST.

By the Abbe J. E. D auras. (Translated from the French for the New Zbaianp Tablet.)

§ VI. Reduction of Judea to a Roman" Pbovince. 27 Division of Palestine among the sons of Hebod, by Augustus. In the meantime, ArchelfU3 and Antipas, followed, ere long, by Philip, their third brother, Salome, their aunt, and the entire family of Herod, embarked at Joppe, for the court of Augustus, there to solicit a decUion of the contested succession. The true King of the Jews and of the world, was growing up in an obscure corner of Na3aretb, while Rome was being divided by the rival intrigues of pretenders to the throne of Jerusalem. During the interval caused by these deliberations, a significant episode took place. Augustus had sent his intendent Sabinus into Judea to take possession of the considerable sums bequeathed to the Emperor by the old Herod. This clause of the will was looked on as inviolable, and its execution adm'tted of no delay ; so far was " the domain of the Herods " at the time of the birth of Jesus Christ, an independent principality! The presence of Sabinus at Jerusalem and the vexatious character of his fiiscal inquisitons revolted the entire population. Under the pretext of looking after the treasures left by Herod, he had occupied t >c chief fortress of the kingdom with a military force. A formidable insurrection broke out in the Holy City, at the feast of Pentecost, and quickly spread itself throughout Judea . The Koman Governor of Syria, the famous Varue, whose disasters in Germany were, some years later, to draw t »ars of despair from the Emperor, was fortunate enough on this occasion to rescue Sjbinus, besieged in the palace of Jerusalem, and to qaell the sedition throughout the entire country. In order to give a semblance of satisfaction to the malcontents, Varus authorised the Jews to senda deputation of fifty of their principal leaders to the courtof Augustus. They besought the emperor to annex unconditionally Judea to the Roman province of Syria, and to rid them for ever of the Herodian dynasty. " The cruelty of Herod, they said, had been such, that were it possible for a ferocious wild beast to obtain the government of a people, it could not act with more inhumanity. At the death of that monster, they added, we had hoped from Archelaus, his son a wise and moderate government. In this ilhtsive hope, we consented to join with him in paying funeral honors to Herod, and we proclaimed the accession of the young prince to the crown. He answered our expectations by the massacre of three thousand Jews in the enclosure of the Temple of Jerusalem." (1) The effect of this protest, supported as it was, by the eight thousand Jews already established at Rome, was not as decisive as might have been expected. Augustus, after several days of deliberation, gave to Archelaus the pr> vinces of Judea, Samamj and Idumea, under the title of ethnarch, promising to grant him the royal dignity hereafter, if he should prove himself worthy of it bj Ins moderation and virtue. Antipas was tetrarch of Galilee and Perea ; Philip, with the same title, received tke investiture of Batanea with that of Trachoniti3 and Auranitus. Salome was coniirmed m the possession of the cities which had beeu left to her by her brother. The - ,11 erf Herod was thus iound ratified in all, save the important modification winch provisionally suppressed tha title of Emg of the Jews, and the annexation of the cities of Gaza, Hippos (2) anu°Gadara, to the .Koman piovmco of Syria. (3)