03_Biblica_Sharon_Layout 1 01/04/14 11:46 Pagina 56 56 NADAV SHARON a young military hero appears in Xenophon’s biography of Cyrus the Great. At the age of fifteen or sixteen Cyrus is said to have been the hero of the Medes’ successful defense against the Assyrians’ invasion of Media (Xenophon, Cyr. 1.4.16-24). Similarly, Alexander the Great is said to have been sixteen years old when he was left as regent in Macedonia, at which time he also excelled in war (Plutarch, Alex. 9.1-2). However, while the cases of Cyrus and Alexander may serve as precedents for this literary motif 20, it seems that Herod’s life was modeled more specifically not on these classical figures, but rather on one important biblical precedent of a very young military hero — King David. Indeed, Tal Ilan has pointed to the biographical similar- ities between the two kings, and suggested that, upon the instruction of Herod, Nicolaus modeled his story of Herod’s life on the biblical story of King David 21. The biblical story of David says that he was merely a lad when anointed (1 Sam 16,11), and repeats that in the context of his duel with Goliath (1 Sam 17,33; cf. 17,14). Thus, the emphasis on Herod’s youth upon his first appointment to office and shortly before he kills Ezekias “the brigand chief” is very much in line with the David typology 22. V. Why Exactly Fifteen Years Old? Still, the David typology does not explain the specific age of fif- teen, since David’s age is not specified in either instance in biblical or extra-biblical traditions. Seemingly, if David was the only inspi- ration, Nicolaus could have, and should have, left Herod as “a mere lad”. Yet, despite the fact that Herod’s specific age is not stated in Josephus’ War, Nicolaus appears to have been Josephus’ source for that datum in the Antiquities as well. For in contrast to Nicolaus, Josephus, who was certainly more critical of Herod in the Antiqui- ties and rebuked Nicolaus for his apologetic embellishments of 20 The rabbinic midrash Genesis Rabbah says that Simon and Levi were only thirteen years old when they took their vengeance on the city of Shechem (80:10). 21 T. ILAN, “King David, King Herod and Nicolaus of Damascus”, JSQ 5 (1998) 195-240. 22 T. ILAN, “David, Herod”, 205-206. In addition, the approximate age given for Herod when he died, seventy, is another parallel with David (2 Sam 5,4).