Herodias was the granddaughter of King Herod the Great of Judea - the very one who initiated the massacre of the babies. And by the order of his granddaughter, John the Baptist, the righteous and predecessor of Jesus Christ, was killed.
The name of the Jewish king Herod the Great has become a household name: the word "Herod" in our minds is associated with cruelty and inhumanity. Nevertheless, historians assess his activities not only negatively. This king did a lot to build Judah. But about his granddaughter Herodias, history has not conveyed a single good word to us.
Tongue of the rebellious Forerunner
John the Baptist (Forerunner) was the son of Elizabeth (a relative of Mary, mother of Jesus Christ) and the priest Zechariah. He was born a few months before the one whom Christians consider the Savior. And later, in his sermons, he predicted his appearance.
John the Baptist led a hermitic lifestyle: he wore simple, coarse clothing and ate the simplest food. At the age of about 30, he began to walk in Judea, preaching repentance for sins to its inhabitants. He baptized people by washing them in the waters of the Jordan River and saying that this ceremony would bring repentance and cleansing from sins. In addition, John stated: “I baptize in water; but there is [Someone] among you whom you do not know. He is the one who follows me, but who is ahead of me. I am not worthy to untie the strap of His shoes."
Seeing Jesus once, the Forerunner said: “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away [the] sin of the world. This is, about whom I said: a man is following me, who has stood in front of me, because he was before me. I did not know Him; but for this I came to baptize in water, that He might be revealed to Israel."
Soon John the Baptist became known to all the inhabitants of Judea. He enjoyed great popularity among his compatriots, although he was clearly preaching a non-Jewish tradition. The Baptist's compatriots were clearly impressed by John's asceticism, his desire to make the world a better place, as well as fearlessness. The fact is that the Forerunner did not hesitate to tell the truth to anyone in the face. And representatives of the authorities - including. For this he had to pay a dear price.
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Cruel incestors
At that time, Galilee and Perea, part of Judea, where the subsequent terrible events unfolded, were ruled by the son of Herod the Great - Herod Antipas. The ruler of this area was considered a woman named Herodias. She was not the legal wife of Herod and was generally his niece.
From childhood, Herodias was distinguished not only by a penchant for debauchery. She neglected one of the most important rules - the prohibition of incest. From an early age, this woman strove for the highest position, therefore, in her intimate preferences, she did not go beyond the "framework" of the Herodias dynasty, founded by her grandfather.
The success with the men of her own family first led her to marriage with her first uncle, Herod Beth. From him, 20-year-old Herodias gave birth to a daughter Salome in about 5 AD. A marriage between such close relatives was a real slap in the face for devout Jews who feared incest like fire. But this marriage of Herodias was somehow digested by the compatriots.
However, this relative did not seem promising enough to an ambitious woman. And she turned her gaze to the next one. Another uncle, Herod Philip, became the new spouse of the libertine. The people shuddered. But Herodias wanted to spit on the customs of her ancestors. The lust for power became her religion.
And again a puncture - Herod Philip did not shine a high position. What should I do? The evil and power-hungry Herodias wrung her hands in frustration. I had to change my life partner again. They - there is no need to doubt it - again became the closest relative. And again the uncle - Herod Antipas, who at the time of the beginning of life with Herodias was the ruler of Galilee and Perea. Of course, these parts of Judea are not the whole Roman Empire. But it’s better this way than vegetating among ordinary aristocrats, the ambitious woman thought. It should be noted here that by the time of his rapprochement with Herodias, Herod Antipas was married to the daughter of Areta, the king of the Nabateans. The wife did not want to let her husband go to the homeless woman so easily. She complained to her father, and Areta went to war against Antipas. The son of Herod the Great lost this battle. But he did not return to his wife - the beautiful niece Herodias too bewitched him with her charms. How many people died in that battle is unknown. And for Herodias, human blood was thinner than water …
Becoming the wife of Herod Antipas, Herodias mostly satisfied her power ambitions. She lived happily with her husband and her daughter Salome. The couple robbed the subjects mercilessly, imposing an unbearable tribute on the Jews.
The people were terrified. But, as often happens, he was silent. The greedy incestuous became more and more impudent.
The only person who openly opposed the presumptuous authority was John the Baptist. This man, as we have already written, led a hermitic lifestyle. And he did not at all resemble the sleek representatives of the local aristocracy. He openly branded the incestor and her husband, who robbed their people.
At first, Herodias did not take the Forerunner and everything he said to heart. “You never know what some ragamuffin is carrying,” she thought. But soon Herodias began to report that John, despite his beggar appearance, enjoyed great authority among the Jews (despite the fact that some of his statements were contrary to Judaism). And she understood: she needed to shut him up somehow. But how? The failure was that Herod Antipas, who was always ready to submit to the insidious beauty, then began to resist. He argued: John is a righteous man and sage. In addition, Antipas did not want to execute the Baptist in fear of popular anger.
The only thing that Herodias achieved was the imprisonment of John in the fortress of Macheron. This is how the historian describes this terrible place: “The fortress itself was formed by a rocky hill, rising to an extraordinary height and therefore difficult to reach, but nature made sure that it was inaccessible. On all sides, the hill is surrounded by abysses of incredible depth, so that crossing them is almost impossible. The western mountain depression stretches for 60 stadia and reaches the Asphalt Lake, and it is on this side that Macheron reaches its highest height. The northern and southern hollows, although they are inferior in length to those just mentioned, also make it impossible to attack the fortress. As for the eastern one, it is at least 100 cubits deep, but adjoins the mountain opposite to Macheron."
There was no need to doubt that the imprisonment did not become a serious test for John - a wise man and ascetic in his nature. Herodias understood this at once. And she decided to destroy the Baptist at all costs.
Birthday execution
It was 28 AD. One of the nights in the palace of Herod Antipas, the birthday of the ruler was celebrated. Both the guests and the hosts were so drunk after midnight that they could no longer remember themselves from joy and drunken prowess.
At that moment, an insidious plan ripened in Herodias's head. She asked her young daughter Salome to dance in front of the guests a depraved dance in the nude. Antipa liked this proposal very much. But then, spoiled from a young age, Salome, as her mother had advised her, decided to break a little. Drunk Antipas declared: he is ready to pay any price for the dance. And Salome “at the instigation of her mother, said: give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist. And the king was grieved, but, for the sake of the oath and those reclining with him, he commanded that it be given to her, and he sent to cut off John's head in prison. And his head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother”(Matt. 14: 8-11).
John was killed. His head was brought on a platter to Salome - she called her mother, and Herodias, in a fury, pricked the tongue of the man who told the people so much truth about her with a needle …
What happened next? According to one version, Antipas with Herodias lost power and died in poverty around 40 AD. According to another, the earth opened under the feet of the killers and swallowed them …
The death of Salome was also terrible - she was wiped out by the ice floes of the river, which she crossed in winter. Two ice floes closed around her neck and tore off her head in the same way as the murderer's knife once cut off the head of John the Baptist.
Maria Konyukova