Accompanied by his servants, Herod enters his dwelling in an exceptionally good mood. He proclaims how happy he is to see Jerusalem and the Temple. Most of all, however, he wants to see Mariam, and he inquires about her when his servant Nuntio enters. Nuntio responds that she is well and will quickly join him as he commanded.

Herod criticizes Nuntio for frowning; he wants no darkness when Mariam arrives. It seems to Herod as if a great length of time has passed since he has seen Mariam. His yearning to see her grew by the hour, he says, filling him with a sorrow that made time stand still, whereas when he is with Mariam, time flies past.

Herod speaks of visiting Europe and seeing all the wonders of Rome, saying nothing compares with the miraculous beauty of Mariam. She is even more beautiful, he says, than Caesar’s exquisitely beautiful wife Livia. He encourages himself to remain patient; he will see Mariam soon, and her lateness gives him a chance to calm himself before she arrives. Instead, his brother Pheroras enters, making Herod say he “must [his] passion smother” (4.