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Herod Antipas
The tetrarch of Galilee who executed John the Baptist and questioned Jesus during his trial — the ' that fox' of Luke' s Gospel.
Herod Antipas was a son of Herod the Great and ruled as tetrarch over Galilee and Perea from 4 BC until AD 39. He built the city of Tiberias on the Sea of Galilee — a city named after the emperor Tiberius and, according to Josephus, built on top of a Jewish cemetery, which made it ritually unclean and deeply unpopular.
John the Baptist
Antipas is best known in the New Testament for his role in the execution of John the Baptist. John had publicly condemned Antipas for divorcing his first wife and taking Herodias, the wife of his half-brother Philip. According to Mark 6 and Matthew 14, Antipas had John arrested, and Herodias’ daughter Salome danced at a banquet and was granted the Baptist’ s head as a reward.
Josephus confirms the arrest and execution of John under Antipas, though he gives a different motive: he feared that John’ s influence over the crowds might lead to an uprising (Antiquities 18.5.2). The two accounts are compatible. Antipas was a weak ruler, manipulated by those around him, who both feared and was fascinated by the men of God he encountered.
The Trial of Jesus
During Jesus’ trial, Pilate learned that Jesus was from Galilee and sent him to Antipas, who happened to be in Jerusalem for the Passover (Luke 23:6–12). Antipas questioned Jesus at length, hoping to see a miracle, but Jesus said nothing. Antipas and his soldiers mocked him and sent him back to Pilate.
Earlier in his ministry, Jesus had referred to Antipas with the famous phrase: “ Go tell that fox, ‘ I will keep on driving out demons and healing people today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will reach my goal’” (Luke 13:32). It is a striking comment from a Galilean peasant about a Roman client king.
“ At that time some Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, ‘ Leave this place and go somewhere else. Herod wants to kill you.’ He replied, ‘ Go tell that fox...’”
Luke 13:31-32Sources
- Mark 6:14–29; Luke 13:31–33; 23:6–12; Matt. 14:1–12.
- Josephus, Antiquities 18.5.2; 18.7.1–2.
- Harold W. Hoehner, Herod Antipas (Cambridge University Press, 1972).