340 The First Jewish Shekels. 



title of king. Agrippa immediately commenced fortifying 

 Jerusalem in a manner which would have rendered it im- 

 pregnable, but the works were arrested, in consequence of 

 the aroused suspicions of Claudius. His government was 

 generally characterised by mildness ; he had interceded with 

 Caligula on behalf of the Jews, when they opposed the deter- 

 mination of that emperor to set up his own statue in the 

 temple ; and yet, to court popularity in Jerusalem, he con- 

 sented, to the death of the apostle James, the brother of 

 John, and cast Peter into prison. He died at Caasarea, 

 the seat of government of the former procurator, as related 

 in Acts xii., at the age of fifty-four, in the year 44 a.d. 

 There are coins of this prince which have for type a kind of 

 portable canopy or sun-shade, an oriental emblem of power, 

 or, as described by some, a tabernacular emblem. The in- 

 scription is BA2IAEOE ArPinnA, " of the King Agrippa." 

 These coins are, however, of uncertain attribution, and are by 

 some assigned to his son, Agrippa II. 



Herod Agrippa II. On the death of Herod Agrippa, his 

 son Agrippa, who was being educated at the court of Clau- 

 dius, in Rome, was only seventeen years of age, and a 

 Roman procurator was therefore appointed to the govern- 

 ment of Judea and the annexed provinces. The care of 

 the temple of Jerusalem, arid the power of appointing the 

 high priest, were, however, confided to a native prince, the 

 brother of the late king, who was still sovereign of the petty 

 state of Chalcis. In a.d. 48, after the death of Herod of 

 Chalcis, the principality of Chalcis was conferred on Herod 

 Agrippa II., with the same privileges in regard to the super- 

 intendence of the temple and the appointment of the high 

 priest. Several additions were afterwards made to the districts 

 placed under his jurisdiction. It was before this Agrippa that St. 

 Paul defended himself against the charges of the Jews. Agrippa 

 being at Cassarea, the seat of government of the Roman procu- 

 rator, he was appealed to by Festus, as a native prince well 

 acquainted with Jewish history and customs, and to this 

 circumstance Paul refers when he expresses his satisfaction at 

 pleading his case before him, especially, as he says, " Because I 

 know thee to be expert in all customs and questions which are 

 among the Jews." The Jews became at this time impatient of 

 their dependent condition, on account of the heavy taxes 

 extorted by the Roman governors, and Agrippa in vain 

 attempted to dissuade them from rebelling against the power 

 of Pome. On the breaking out of the insurrection, he sided 

 with the Romans, and after the fall of Jerusalem retired to 

 Rome, where he received the rank of praetor, and died there 

 in the seventieth year of his age, in 98 a.d. It is difficult to 



