(John 5:2-9).
No sooner was the Antonia nearing completion than Herod initiated an even more grandiose project, a new palace at the highest point of the city, today the area just south of Jaffa Gate. Words fail Josephus as he tries to describe its wonders (War 5.161-181). What struck him, as it did every visitor, were the three great towers named Hippicus for Herod’s friend, Miriamme for his murdered wife, and Phasael for his brother. Originally the tower was 150 feet high, greater than the Lighthouse of Alexandria, which was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.
This palace was Pontius Pilate’s residence when he came to Jerusalem, and it was here that Jesus was condemned to be crucified (John 19:13). Jesus would have seen the great blind stones of the solid base of Phasael (which still survives) towering above him as he began the way of the cross, which brought him out through the Gennath Gate to Golgotha.
Such investment in construction brought prosperity. To ensure that his supporters had the means to enjoy themselves, Herod built a theatre just outside the city to the south and a hippodrome or amphitheatre whose location is unknown. The games they hosted had all the trappings of pagan festivals and, in consequence, gave great offense to pious Jews. These, however, were too important a constituency to be ignored. To placate them Herod offered to rebuild the much-repaired temple. His plans were so grandiose that he had to prove he had the money and material in hand before the religious authorities permitted him to begin work, probably in 23 B.C.
The Temple
The original temple area was a square—812 feet to a side. In the second century B.C. the Maccabees extended it to the south in order to appropriate the