Chalcis (Chalcis sub Libanum)

The Chalcis discussed here lay in the Lebanon region, not at Chalcis near Aleppo or the Greek city of the same name. Its precise site is disputed; it is often placed near Anjar in the Bekaa Valley.

Ptolemy son of Mennaeus controlled Chalcis and neighboring districts in the first century BC. His son Lysanias succeeded him around 40 BC. The area later passed through arrangements involving Cleopatra VII, Zenodorus, Herod the Great, and Roman officials. In AD 41 Emperor Claudius granted a kingdom at Chalcis to Herod, brother of Agrippa I. After Agrippa I died in AD 44, Herod of Chalcis received oversight of the Jerusalem Temple and authority to appoint high priests. He died around AD 48. Agrippa II subsequently received Chalcis before being transferred to a larger eastern territory. Later arrangements involved Aristobulus, son of Herod of Chalcis. The details and boundaries of these successive grants are not always clear.

Chalcis had no known direct role in the Exodus, Judges, or early Israelite monarchy. Its relevance to Israel lies primarily in the much later political world in which the Herodian family governed territories adjoining Judea.

Chalcis had an unusually important indirect connection with Jerusalem. After the death of Agrippa I, Herod of Chalcis obtained authority concerning the Temple and the appointment of high priests. This linked a small northern client kingdom with the leadership of the Jerusalem priesthood. Agrippa II later held Chalcis before receiving other territories and appears in the account of Paul before Festus.

Chalcis itself is not explicitly named in the New Testament. Its significance is historical background: the Herodian rulers and Roman system of client kings help explain the political setting of Acts. Agrippa II, who once held Chalcis, appears in Acts 25–26. Iturea is mentioned separately in Luke 3:1 and should not simply be equated with the later kingdom of Chalcis.

The existence of local rulers and their coinage is well documented. Josephus is the principal narrative source for Herod of Chalcis and his influence over Jerusalem Temple appointments. Care is required because the name Chalcis refers to more than one ancient city, the boundaries of the Iturean principality changed, and the exact relationship between early Iturean Chalcis and later Herodian grants has been questioned.