ing winter. These acts of kindness seemed to obliterate his former tyranny, and reconcile his hitherto alienated people; but he soon forfeited the affection thus gained, by relapsing into cruelty and oppression. About this time, Herod married a young lady of great beauty named Mariamne. She was the daughter of Boethus a priest, whom he advanced to the dignity of high priest, in order to render this alliance more suitable to himself: though this honour, which had always been hereditary, was now become of little value; as Herod conferred it on whom he chose, and displaced them at his pleasure.

After this marriage, Herod went on with his buildings; first erecting a magnificent palace for himself, on a hill about seven miles from Jerusalem. In this place he had gained a victory over the Parthians and Jews, when he fled from Jerusalem about seventeen years before, and în memory of that event he called the palace Herodium. The next work he commenced was at Straton's Tower on the sea-coast. Here he constructed a beautiful and safe harbour, and built a city, which he called Cæsarea, in compliment to Augustus. The completion of this work occupied twelve years, and cost large sums of money; but they were well expended, for the place became a celebrated maritime city, which was afterwards the chosen residence of the Roman governors.*

Herod's two sons by Mariamne being now of a suitable age, he sent them to complete their education at Rome: entrusting them to the care of Pollio, a friend of his in that city. But Augustus took the charge of them upon himself, and assigned them apartments in his palace. Herod received farther proofs of favour from the emperor at this time, by having Trachonitis, Aura*Acts xxiii. 23.

nitis, and Batanea added to his dominions; with full power to vest the succession to his kingdom in either of his sons, as he should choose. The new territory, which was situated on the left of the river Jordan between the sea of Galilee and Mount Libanus, gave Herod some trouble; as Zenodorus the late possessor, who had farmed it from the Romans, had encouraged a band of thieves there, on condition of sharing their plunder. On taking possession of the country Herod soon expelled the thieves, by which means Zenodorus lost his unlawful profits, as well as his farm; and being very angry on both accounts, he went to Rome with an accusation against Herod. About this time Agrippa the favourite of Augustus was appointed to the government of all the provinces of the empire to the east of the Egean sea; and took up his residence at Mitylene in the Island of Lesbos. As soon as Herod heard of his arrival there, he went to visit him, and renewed the friendship which had formerly subsisted between them. Zenodorus, in the meantime, meeting with no success at Rome, returned to Gadara, and excited the people of that place to prefer a complaint against Herod to Agrippa. The latter however not only refused to hear their accusations, but sent them in chains to Herod, who had just left him, and in whose favour he was more than ever prepossessed. -Herod on this occasion departed from his usual mode of treating his enemies; for he dismissed the Gadarens without punishment: thinking to disarm their future opposition by his clemency. For some time this had the desired effect; but in the following year Augustus came into Syria, and then Zenodorus, with some delegates from Gadara, renewed the accusations, and prevailed so far as to get a day appointed for Herod to

answer them. He was then at Antioch, and when he entered upon his defence, the favour with which he was treated caused his accusers to despair of succeeding against him; and put them into such fear of being delivered up to him, that they all destroyed themselves to avoid it. Augustus considered this conduct as a proof of their guilt, and consequently acquitted Herod. To make him amends for the trouble they had given him, he farther enlarged his dominions; and appointed him his procurator in Syria. At his request he also bestowed a tetrarchy on Pheroras his brother. In return for all these favours Herod erected a beautiful temple of white marble, in honour of Augustus, near Mount Paneas. This idolatrous flattery, with many other compliances to heathen customs, gave great offence to the Jews. All among them who had any regard for religion were shocked at it; and on his return to Jerusalem general dissatisfaction was expressed on this account. It was in vain for Herod to plead the necessity of conciliating Augustus; his people saw no such necessity; and some of them doubtless reflecting on the glorious privileges conferred on them when the Lord was their sole dependence, contemplated, with grief and shame, the degradation of their present condition.

When Herod found that his excuses were insufficient to appease the national discontent, he proceeded to coercive measures: forbidding all meetings at clubs and feasts; and employing spies to discover all who were any way disaffected towards him. Sometimes he took upon himself this degrading office, and went about the city in disguise, to learn the public opinion. When by these means he gained intelligence of any malcontents he failed not to treat them with great severity: thus

defeating every attempt against him before it could be put in execution. As a farther means of safety he wished to impose an oath of fidelity on his subjects; but all the Pharisees and Essens refusing to take it, he was obliged to content himself with confining it to such as were suspected of conspiracy.

LETTER XLIX.

In the nineteenth year of his reign, Herod, having finished Sebaste, and considerably advanced his works at Cæsarea, undertook to rebuild the temple at Jerusalem: hoping thereby to gain the approbation of his subjects; and leave a monument of his own greatness. Nearly five hundred years had elapsed since the dedication of the second temple; and it had suffered not only from the ravages of time, but from those of war in the frequent assaults that had been made on it: so that many parts of it were in a state of decay.

When Herod made known his intention to the Jews, in a general assembly, they expressed their apprehensions lest he should be unable to build a new temple, when he had taken down the old one. To satisfy them on this head, he promised to collect and prepare all the materials before he disturbed the present building; and according to this promise he commenced his preparations immediately employing a thousand waggons, and ten thousand workmen, under the superintendence of a thousand priests who were skilful in architecture. Every thing needful being thus prepared in two years, the temple was pulled down; and the new one begun. The

completion of this edifice occupied nine years and a half:* but it was still considered as the second temple; because though rebuilt from its foundations, it was not, as formerly, restored from a state of desolation; but only repaired from a state of decay. The year after Herod undertook this great work, he went into Italy to pay his respects to Augustus, from whom he received his two sons, who had now completed their studies. On his return home he married Alexander the elder to Glaphyra, daughter of Archelaus king of Cappadocia; and Aristobulus to Berenice the daughter of Salome. The personal and mental endowments of these young men, as well as their courteous and agreeable behaviour soon won them the affection and esteem of the Jews. But the jealous fears of Salome were awakened by these favourable sentiments towards them: for she dreaded lest they should avenge the death of their mother, and therefore determined to compass their ruin, as the means of preventing her own.

In the twenty third year of Herod's reign, Agrippa resumed his government of the eastern part of the empire, and in the year following he was involved in a troublesome war against the inhabitants of the Cimmerian Bosphorus. Herod on hearing of this, went to him with a powerful supply, and arrived very opportunely; as his assistance enabled Agrippa to terminate the war' by the speedy reduction of the revolters. After this, Herod, accompanying Agrippa to Ephesus, obtained for him a grant of privileges for the Jews who inhabited the several provinces of Asia Minor,† and who were at See note Q.

They were the descendants of those two thousand families planted there by Antiochus the Great,