Sylleus

Family: Arabian · Role: the Arabian · First appears: Book I, Chapter 27

Sylleus, the Arabian, was associated with Salome, who had formerly endeavored to marry him. He became an enemy of Herod after Salome disclosed the king’s grand secrets to him.

In Book I, Chapter 29, Sylleus sailed to Rome despite Augustus’s injunctions to oppose Antipater in their lawsuit, while also contesting Aretas, his own king. He had slain many of Aretas’s friends, including Sohemus, and bribed Phabatus to assist him against Herod and Corinthus to act against Herod. When the alleged assassination plot was exposed, Herod immediately arrested Corinthus and two Arabians, one of whom was Sylleus’s friend; under torture, they confessed that they had paid Corinthus to kill Herod, and they were sent to Rome. By Book I, Chapter 31, Antipater’s main pretense was the lawsuit he had had with Sylleus.

Relationship record

Life events

Herod arrests Corinthus and two Arabians after Sylleus's alleged assassination plot is exposed.(Book I, Chapter 29)
- With: Herod (son of Antipater and Cypros) Corinthus
- “Accordingly, the king complied; for this Corinthus, though he was brought up in Herod's kingdom, yet was he by birth an Arabian; so the king ordered him to be taken up immediately, and not only him, but two other Arabians, who were caught with him; the one of them was Sylleus's friend, the other the head of a tribe. These last, being put to the torture, confessed that they had prevailed with Corinthus, for a large sum of money, to kill Herod; and when they had been further examined before Saturninus, the president of Syria, they were sent to Rome.”

Book I, Chapter 27

courtship with Salome (sister of Herod) (Salome had formerly attempted to marry Sylleus.) “when she formerly endeavored to marry herself to Sylleus the Arabian”
enemies with Herod (son of Antipater and Cypros) (Sylleus is explicitly called the king's enemy.) “Sylleus the Arabian, she had discovered the king's grand secrets to him, who was the king's enemy”

Book I, Chapter 28

courtship with Salome (sister of Herod) “earnestly desired leave to be married to Sylleus the Arabian”

Book I, Chapter 29

rivals with Nicolaus “Sylleus also, the Arabian, sailed to Rome, without any regard to Caesar's injunctions, and this in order to oppose Antipater with all his might, as to that law-suit which Nicolaus had with him before.”
enemies with Aretas (king of Arabia) “This Sylleus had also a great contest with Aretas his own king;”
with Sohemus (of Petra) (Sylleus killed Sohemus.) “for he had slain many others of Aretas's friends, and particularly Sohemus, the most potent man in the city Petra.”
with Phabatus (Sylleus bribed Phabatus to act against Herod.) “Moreover, he had prevailed with Phabatus, who was Herod's steward, by giving him a great sum of money, to assist him against Herod;”
with Corinthus (Sylleus bribed Corinthus to participate in a plot against Herod.) “Sylleus had corrupted Corinthus, one of the guards of his body, by bribing him, and of whom he must therefore have a care.”
rivals with Antipater (son of Herod and Doris) (They opposed one another in a lawsuit) “Sylleus also, the Arabian, sailed to Rome, without any regard to Caesar's injunctions, and this in order to oppose Antipater with all his might”
rivals with Aretas (king of Arabia) (Sylleus was in conflict with Aretas) “This Sylleus had also a great contest with Aretas his own king”
with Phabatus (Sylleus bribed Phabatus to assist against Herod) “Moreover, he had prevailed with Phabatus, who was Herod's steward, by giving him a great sum of money, to assist him against Herod”
with Corinthus (Sylleus bribed Corinthus) “Sylleus had corrupted Corinthus, one of the guards of his body, by bribing him”
with Augustus (Sylleus disregarded Caesar's injunctions) “Sylleus also, the Arabian, sailed to Rome, without any regard to Caesar's injunctions”

Book I, Chapter 31

with Antipater (son of Herod and Doris) (Antipater had been involved in a lawsuit with Sylleus.) “his main pretense for which was file law-suit he had been in with Sylleus.”

Book I, Chapter 32

with Antipater (son of Herod and Doris) (Antipater claimed that he acted to prevent Sylleus from insulting Herod.) “Yet was I absent, father, on thy affairs, that Sylleus might not treat thee with contempt in thine old age.”

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Extracted from the original text of The Wars of the Jews; Or, The History of the Destruction of Jerusalem. Made with Rho MD.