Herod the Great is one of the most complex and notorious figures in History, and although he is only mentioned briefly in Matthew 2, he and his offspring play into so many of the events in the Gospels and the Book of Acts that we need to understand as much as we can. Herod the Great was a Jewish king, by conversion, and one of the greatest architects in history; he was also a brilliant administrator, general and a vicious and paranoid murderer – killing his wife and three of his sons.
References
Lightfoot: Commentary on the New Testament from the Talmud and Hebraica
Netzer: The Architecture of Herod the Great Builder
Cohen: The Beginnings of Jewishness, and From the Maccabees to the Mishnah
Skarsaune: In the Shadow of the Temple
Schurer: A History of the Jewish People in the Time of Jesus Christ, First Division: Vol I and II
France: The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel of Matthew
Josephus: Antiquities of the Jews and The Jewish Wars