Aretas

(Ἀρέτας), the name of several kings of Arabia Petraea.

1. The contemporary of Jason, the high-priest of the Jews, and of Antiochus Epiphanes, about B. C. 170. (2 Maccab. 5.8.)

2. A contemporary of Alexander Jannaeus, king of Judaea. This Aretas is probably the same who reigned in Coele-Syria after Antiochus XII., surnamed Dionysus. He was invited to the kingdom by those who had possession of Damascus. (J. AJ 13.13.3, 15.2.) Subsequently he seems to have been compelled to relinquish Syria; and we next hear of his taking part in the contest between Aristobulus and Hyrcanus for the Jewish crown, though whether this Aretas is the same as the one who ruled over Syria may be doubted. At the advice of Antipater, Hyrcanus fled to Aretas, who invaded Judaea in B. C. 65, in order to place him on the throne, and laid siege to Jerusalem. Aristobulus, however, purchased the intervention of Scaurus and Gabinius, Pompey's legates, who compelled Aretas to raise the siege. (Joseph. Ant. xiv. 1.4, 100.2, Bell. Jud. 1.6.2.) [Aristobulus, No. 2.] After Pompey had reduced Syria to the form of a Roman province, he turned his arms against Aretas, B. C. 64, who submitted to him for a time. This expedition against Aretas preceded the war against Aristobulus in Judaea, which Plutarch erroneously represents as the first. (D. C. 37.15; Appian, App. Mith. 106; Plut. Pomp. 39, 41.) The war against Aretas was renewed after Pompey's departure from Asia; and Scaurus, Pompey's legate, who remained behind in Syria, invaded Arabia Petraea, but was unable to reach Petra. He laid waste, however, the surrounding country, and withdrew his army on Aretas' paying 300 talents. (J. AJ 14.5.1.) This expedition of Scaurus is commemorated on a coin, which is given under Scaurus. The successors of Scaurus in Syria also prosecuted the war with the Arabs. (Appian, App. Syr. 50.)

3. The father-in-law of Herod Antipas of Judaea. Herod dismissed his wife, the daughter of Aretas, in consequence of having formed an incestuous connexion with Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, as we learn from the Evangelists. To revenge the wrongs of his daughter, Aretas made war upon Herod, and defeated him in a great battle. Herod applied for assistance to the Romans; and Vitellius, the governor of Syria, received an order to punish Aretas. He accordingly marched against Petra; but while he was on the road, he received intelligence of the death of Tiberius (A. D. 37), and gave up the expedition in consequence. (J. AJ 18.5. §§ 1, 3.) This Aretas seems to have been the same who had possession of Damascus at the time of the conversion of the Apostle Paul, A. D. 31. (2 Corinth. 11.32, 33; Acts 9.19-25.) It is not improbable that Aretas obtained possession of Damascus in a war with Herod at an earlier period than Josephus has mentioned; as it seems likely that Aretas would have resented the affront soon after it was given, instead of allowing so many years to intervene, as the narrative of Josephus would imply. The Aretas into whose dominions Aelius Gallus came in the time of Augustus, is probably also the same as the father-in-law of Herod. (Strab. xvi. p.781.)

The following is a coin of Aretas, king of Damascus, but whether it belongs to No. 2 or No. 3 is doubtful. (Eckhel, iii. p. 330.) Perhaps it is a coin of No. 2, and may have been struck when he took possession of Syria at the invitation of the inhabitants of Damascus : in that case there would have been good reason for the inscription ΦΙΛΕΛΛΗΝΟΣ upon it.