Herod’s Relationship with Augustus

Josephus writes that Herod’s sons Alexander and Aristobulus were greeted warmly by Augustus Caesar, who granted Herod the right to pass sovereignty over his kingdom to the offspring of his choice. Herod dispatched his two heirs to Rome, largely for the purpose of giving them an education. In recognition of Herod’s earlier pleas before the Roman Senate for rule over Judaea during the Parthian invasion and his subsequent ability to restore relative order within the frequently unstable Roman province, Augustus granted Herod several territories as a mark of his alliance with Rome as client king. This passage depicts a continued state of friendship between Rome and Herod as well as the attendant benefits of Herod’s position as a successful provincial ruler over Judaea.