Although the Romans ruled Palestine at the time of Jesus, they did not remove all the old Jewish leaders. They allowed King Herod to rule Judah, which was part of Palestine. He was not very powerful. He did have some control over his own people. But he couldn’t order the Romans about. Herod seemed particularly frightened that another king would come and take this throne from him. He got worried when he heard that there were three wise men looking for the baby king of the Jews. He knew his wife hadn’t had a new baby, so who could this new baby king be?
He decided to be sure that he would kill all the baby boys who were born in Bethelem at the time of Jesus. He really was a nasty cruel man. Of course by the time his soldier got to Bethlehem to kill the babies, Joseph had gone off with Jesus and Mary to Egypt. So Herod was too late.
Working it Out
1. Which parts of Palestine did Herod rule. Did his kingdom cover Bethlehem, Jerusalem or Nazareth? 2. How did Herod find out about the birth of Jesus and what did he do about it?
3. Was it the same King Herod who was around when Jesus was born who Pontius Pilate sent Jesus to at his trial?
See: Matthew 2:1-12, Luke 23:5-12
4. What sort of government do Israel and Palestine have today – do they have a King now?
