After Herod's death (we. 4), Archelaus. one of his sons, ruled Judea. Samaria, and ldumea as Ethnarch; Antipas, another son, became Tetrarch of Galilee and Perea: and a third son, Philip. became Tetrarch of Trachonitis. But the arbitrariness and cruelty of Archelaus made him hateful to the people: and Augustus, listening to their just complaints, banished him to Vienne in Gaul (A.D. 6). Judea was now, together with Syria, ruled by Roman procurators. During the government of the first of these. Coponius. the party of the Zealots arose among the Jews. founded by Zadok. and Judas of Galilee, who protested against the taxes imposed by the Roman Government as a sinful servitude. The national movement ran parallel. however. with another presented by John the Baptist and Jesus, who, indifferent to the political conditions, preached the new doctrine that God's Kingdom was not of this world.
In the year 3S the Emperor Caligula issued an edict ordering divine honors to be paid to him self as Cesar. Everywhere throughout the Ro man dominions the Jews refused to obey. The order was given to Petronius. the Roman Gov ernor of Syria, to use violence if necessary in setting up the statue of the Emperor in the Temple at Jerusalem. At Alexandria a mas saere took place, and for a moment it seemed as if all the inhabitants of Judea, too, were (loomed to perish: but Herod Agrippa I.. Tetrarch of Northern Palestine, and a friend of Caligula. dis suaded the Emperor from carrying out his design. Petronius did not enforce the Emperor's order.
and escaped punishment through the murder of Caligula in 41. The accession of Claudius, on the assassination of Caligula, seemed the dawn of a brighter day. Herod Agrippa. a loyal friend and favorite of the new Emperor, obtained anew the dominion over all the parts once ruled by his grandfather Herod. and many privileges were through his influence granted to his Jewish subjects, and even to foreign Jews. They received the rights of Roman citizenship (A.D. 41). and Herod even tried to conciliate their religious prejudices by the strictness with which he ob served their law; yet the national party re mained in an almost permanent state of mutiny, while the followers of Jesus suffered persecution at the hands of Ilerod. After the death of Herod Agrippa I., his son being but a youth of seven teen. the country was again subjected to Roman governors. The land was overrun by robbers and assassins. some of whom professed to be animated by religious motives, while others were mere ruffianly freebooters and cut-throats: the antipathy between .Jews and Samaritans waxed
fiercer and fiercer. and the latter waylaid and murdered the orthodox Galileans as they went up to worship at Jerusalem: all sorts of im postors, fanatics, and pretenders to magic made their appearance: the priesthood was riven by dissensions: and the hatred between the populace and the Roman soldiery (mostly of Grfeco Syrian origin) increased. In 66, in spite of all the precautionary efforts taken by Agrippa, the party of Zealots burst into open rebellion, which was terminated (70) by the conquest of Jeru salem by Titus. the destruction of the temple, and the massacre and banishment of thousands of Jews. who were scattered among their brethren in all parts of the world. The defense of Jeru salem. as narrated by Josephus. is a magnificent example of heroism. Still. very considerable numbers were allowed to remain in their native country. and for the next thirty years. although both hated and treated with rigor, they appear, on the whole. to have flourished. The Emperor Nerva was lenient to them as to the rest of his subjects: but as soon as they had attained some measure of political vitality, their turbulent and fanatical spirit broke out anew. Their last attempts to off the Roman yoke. at Cyrene ( 115 ) , Cyprus ( 116 ) , Mesopotamia ( 119 ) . and Palestine under Bar Cochba (132-135). were de feated after enormous butchery. The suppression of Bar Cochba's insurrection by the capture of Bethar. the great stronghold of the Jews (135). marks the final desolation of Judea and the dispersion of its inhabitants. The whole of Judea was laid waste. and it is said that about 995 towns and villages lay in ashes, and fifty fortresses were razed to the ground : the new city founded by Hadrian on the site of Jerusalem was named Capitolina, and on the site of the temple a sanctuary in honor of Jupiter Capitolinus was erected. containing an equestrian statue of the Emperor Hadrian. The hardships to which Jews were subjected were again alleviated in the reign of Antoninus Pius, whom the .Tewish writers rep resent as secretly attached to their religion. Alex ander Severus also placed Abraham on the same level as he did Christ, and obtained from the grateful people the title of 'father of the syna gogue.' Ideliopnbalus. among his many senseless whims, patronized .Tewish practices. such as eir eumeision and abstinence from swine's flesh.