Nabataea

Nabataea developed in the rugged mountains and desert valleys of southern Jordan, with Petra as its best-known center. Narrow gorges, sandstone cliffs, and nearby springs helped protect the city.

Its territory changed over time. Nabataean influence extended south to Hegra in northwestern Arabia, north into Transjordan and the Hauran, and west toward the Negev.

The kingdom controlled important stretches of routes connecting Arabian producers with Mediterranean ports. Nabataean engineers collected seasonal rainwater in channels, cisterns, and reservoirs, allowing settlement and agriculture in dry country.

During the second and first centuries BC, Nabataea became a significant power east and south of Judea. Its kings competed with the Hasmonean rulers for control of borderlands and trading routes.

Obodas I defeated the Hasmonean king Alexander Jannaeus in the early first century BC. Aretas III later extended Nabataean influence northward and briefly ruled Damascus.

In the struggle between the Hasmonean brothers Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II, Aretas III supported Hyrcanus and besieged Jerusalem. Roman intervention under Pompey changed the political balance of the region.

The Nabataean monarchy survived as a regional kingdom under growing Roman influence. Relations with Herod the Great included alliances, disputes, and struggles over territory and debts.

Aretas IV, who reigned from about 9 BC to AD 40, presided over an especially prosperous period. Monumental architecture, inscriptions, coinage, and commerce flourished under his rule.

Aretas IV became involved in a dispute with Herod Antipas after Antipas divorced his Nabataean wife, a daughter of Aretas, in order to marry Herodias. Josephus reports that Aretas defeated the forces of Antipas.

After Aretas IV, Malichus II and Rabbel II ruled the kingdom. Under Rabbel II, Bosra became increasingly important. In AD 106 the Roman government annexed Nabataea and established the province of Arabia.

The Nabataean kingdom arose long after the northern Kingdom of Israel had fallen to Assyria in 722 BC. It therefore had no direct political relationship with that kingdom.

Nabataea occupied parts of the broader landscape associated in earlier biblical history with Edom and the lands east of the Jordan. That geographical connection should not be confused with political continuity between the ancient kingdoms.

Nabataea had extensive relations with Hasmonean Judea. Nabataean kings fought over territory with Alexander Jannaeus and intervened in the struggle between Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II.

Relations with Herod the Great included cooperation and conflict. The political importance of Nabataea continued after his death through the rule of his son Herod Antipas.

Antipas married a daughter of Aretas IV but later divorced her to marry Herodias. Josephus connects the resulting hostility with a military defeat suffered by Antipas.

These events provide important historical background for the Gospel accounts of John the Baptist, who condemned the marriage of Antipas and Herodias.

Nabataea is not a major kingdom in the Old Testament narratives because its political rise came centuries after most of those events.

The New Testament refers to Aretas in 2 Corinthians 11:32, where Paul says that an official under King Aretas guarded Damascus in an attempt to arrest him. Acts 9:23-25 also describes Paul escaping the city in a basket, though it does not name Aretas.

The exact political arrangement that allowed an official of Aretas to act in Damascus is disputed. The passage does not by itself prove that Nabataea ruled the entire city at that time.

The history of Aretas IV and Herod Antipas also helps explain the political background of John the Baptist and the Herodian family.

The existence, broad history, and final Roman annexation of Nabataea are well established through Greek and Roman authors, inscriptions, coins, and archaeological remains.

The Nabataeans are documented by the late fourth century BC, but the beginning of their monarchy cannot be dated precisely. The extent of their territory changed considerably over time.

The relationship between Nabataea and the earlier Edomite population is an important historical question, not a settled identification.

The report about the official of Aretas in Damascus is an important early Christian source. Historians disagree over whether it implies temporary Nabataean control, a special jurisdiction, or another arrangement.

The Roman annexation in AD 106 is secure, although details of the political process are not fully preserved.