But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. – Matthew 2:22

Today’s Scripture Reading (September 9, 2017): Matthew 2

Near the end of his life, Herod the Great placed a golden eagle over the entrance to the Temple in Jerusalem that he had spent most of his life enhancing. The backlash from the Jews as a response to the eagle was immediate and severe. The eagle was seen as an idol desecrating the Temple, and the people wanted the eagle removed. Unfortunately, at that time Herod fell ill, and died, leaving a struggle of succession in his Kingdom. Two popular Jewish teachers, Judas and Matthias, took advantage of the political vacuum and encouraged their students to tear the eagle off of the Temple entrance. The students used axes to chop the eagle down. Because Herod the Great was dead, the reaction to the students was left up to those who were actively contending for the Herodian throne. In this instance, it was Archelaus, who had become the front runner for the contested throne, who ordered that the two teachers and their students be burned alive on March 13, 4 B.C.E.

The resulting death of the teachers and students enraged the population that was gathering to celebrate Passover. Judas and Matthias and their students were immediately revered as martyrs who needed to be honored. A riot ensued during the Passover of 4 B.C.E., and 3,000 Passover participants were killed and Passover in Jerusalem that year was canceled by Archelaus. In the end, Archelaus was named “ethnarch” (essentially “national leader”) and was given half of his father’s kingdom, while his brothers Antipas and Philip divided the other half as “tetrarchs.”

And while it seems that by the end of his reign, Herod the Great was insane, Archelaus maintained that insanity throughout his reign. He was cruel and ruled over his kingdom so badly that the Jews and the Samaritans temporarily put aside their differences and petitioned Rome to have Archelaus removed. Rome finally obliged, sending Archelaus into exile and off of the pages of history. He died sometime before 18 C.E.

But there is ample evidence for us to understand why Mary and Joseph would not have wanted to bring their baby boy back into an Archelaus controlled Bethlehem. Instead, they moved to their former home in Nazareth, Galilee, which was under the control of Herod Antipater (or more commonly Herod Antipas). And it is in Galilee that Jesus would grow, learning his father’s trade and waiting out his time before his ministry finally began.  

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Luke 2