What authority did a king have in Bible times?

Answer 1

It depends on what king, of what nation, and at what time. When God allowed Israel its kings in the Old Testament (especially its first three: Saul, David, and Solomon), they were true rulers over the Kingdom of Israel, answerable only to God. When the kingdom became divided into Israel and Judah, weak kings were commonplace and power struggles were frequent. "Foreign" kings in the OT like Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar (Babylon) and Shalmaneser (Assyria) held absolute power over their kingdoms. By the time of Christ, the Roman Empire controlled the Holy Land. The Romans (savvy conquerors that they were) allowed conquered states their "kings," provided they remain subservient to Caesar. These kings wielded far less power than those of the OT, and their authority was strictly limited by Roman law. The Herods of the New Testament were such kings.