NT FigureNew Testament

Herod the Great

Matthew Luke

When

37–4 BC· Reign

Tied to events dated from records outside the Bible, usually within a few years. How the dates are worked out

Name meaning

traditionally "heroic" · Greek

About

Rome's client king of Judea at the time of Jesus' birth. When the magi sought the newborn 'king of the Jews,' he was disturbed and, after they failed to report back, ordered the massacre of all boys in Bethlehem two years old and under. Warned in a dream, Joseph fled with Mary and Jesus to Egypt until Herod's death. A great builder who expanded the Temple, he was infamous for paranoid cruelty even within his own family.

Relationships

RivalJesusSought to kill the infant 'king of the Jews'

SonHerod AntipasSon who ruled Galilee after him

Key Scripture AppearancesKJV

Matthew 2:1

Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,Matthew 2:1, KJV

Matthew 2:3

When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.Matthew 2:3, KJV

Matthew 2:16

Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.Matthew 2:16, KJV

Luke 1:5

There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judæa, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.Luke 1:5, KJV

See how Herod the Great connects to every other figure in Scripture.

Explore Herod the Great in the Family Tree →