Herod Agrippa was a grandson of Herod the Great and the son of Aristobulus IV. Unlike the earlier division of his grandfather’s kingdom among several sons, Agrippa eventually ruled over nearly the entire territory that Herod the Great had once controlled.
Agrippa first received territory in 37 AD, when the Roman emperor Caligula granted him lands that had previously been ruled by Herod Philip. A few years later, he was also given the territory of Herod Antipas after Antipas was removed from power. Finally, in 41 AD, the emperor Claudius granted him Judea and Samaria, territories that had once been ruled by Herod Archelaus. At that point Agrippa controlled nearly the full kingdom of his grandfather.
Agrippa appears in the Book of Acts as a persecutor of the early Christian church. He ordered the execution of James, the son of Zebedee – the brother of John and one of the Twelve apostles (Acts 12:2). He also imprisoned Peter, though Peter later escaped after an angel freed him from prison (Acts 12:3-11).
According to Acts, Agrippa later accepted praise from a crowd that treated him like a god. Shortly afterward, he was struck down and died after being “eaten by worms” (Acts 12:21-23).