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than its duration. When Antiochus III died in 17 A.D. (along with Philopater, the king of Cilicia), the nation
was torn apart by internal struggles between those forces desiring independence and those hoping for a
Roman occupation. Tiberius placed the area under the control of praetors. Prompted by the troubles in
Commagene and Cilicia, Tiberius sent Germanicus to the East.
¤ ANTIOCHUS IV (fl. mid-lst century A.D.) King of Commagene who was granted his right to rule
from GAIUS CALIGULA. For 20 years Commagene had been a part of the provincial system, but in 37
A.D. Gaius allowed Antiochus to assume the throne. Son of Antiochus III, the new king was given a
share of other lands, Cilicia and Lycaonia, and also received 100 million sesterces in revenue. Gaius
liked Antiochus, whom Dio called equal in tyranny to Emperor Caligula, and probably Herod Agrippa.
Gaius, however, deposed Antiochus in 40 A.D., probably because the destitute emperor needed his
money. Claudius reinstated Antiochus, and the grateful king aided the Romans in the Parthian war of 57
A.D.
¤ ANTIOCHUS OF ASCALON (d. 68 B.C.) A philosopher, intellectual and organizer of the New
Academy in the 1st century B.C. Antiochus found the ACADEMY, the great philosophical school
founded by Plato, in a state of disrepute, undone by feuds and academic rivalries. Taking over the
administration of the institution for the Skeptic Philo (c. 78 B.C.), he began to energize the sagging
Academy by steering it away from the traditional skeptical philosophy by which it had been founded.
This intellectual broadening allowed the institution to flourish, and other great intellectuals were drawn
to it. CICERO and his contemporaries came to the Academy and brought with them a spirit of healthy
debate and rivalry that stimulated the various schools and provided a rich heritage of knowledge and
thought. Cicero adhered to the skeptical viewpoint and supported Philo, while Antiochus stuck to his own
convictions.
¤ ANTIPATER OF IDUMAEA (fl. mid-lst century B.C.) Minister, politician and power broker in
PALESTINE and JUDAEA during the period of Aristobulus, Hyrcanus and Pompey the Great, and father
of Herod the Great, the future King of Judaea. The son of Antipas, the governor of Idumaea, Antipater
acquired influence at the court, serving in his father's position and then becoming an advisor to Queen
Alexandra Salome.
In 67 B.C., Alexandra died, leaving the kingdom to her two sons, the elder Hyrcanus and Aristobulus.
Aristobulus was strong-willed and difficult while Hyrcanus was weak. Sensing a great opportunity,
Antipater became the prime influence on Hyrcanus, and when the two heirs began their violent feuding,
Antipater sided with Hyrcanus, although Aristobulus was the proven military commander. Antipater
turned to King Aretas III of Arabia, and in 65 B.C. an Arabian army marched on Jerusalem to besiege