Mark 6:14-29 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs!
Today’s passage is Mark 6:14-29. Let’s go!
Mark 6:14-16 (NIV)
14 King Herod heard about this, for Jesus’ name had become well known. Some were saying, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”
15 Others said, “He is Elijah.” And still others claimed, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of long ago.”
16 But when Herod heard this, he said, “John, the man I beheaded, has been raised from the dead!”
On verses 14-16: King Herod hears about the movement that Jesus is leading. While others think Jesus is the second coming of the prophet Elijah, and others a modern day prophet, King Herod can’t help but think that Jesus is actually John the Baptist raised from the dead. Why? It’s because King Herod was haunted by indescribable guilt, shame and regret for killing John the Baptist. Herod feared that God was now coming back to get him. What can we learn from this? We can try to hide from our sins, but the guilt, shame and distress of what we have done will ultimately catch up to us and will kill us, unless we have a right view of who Jesus is.
Mark 6:17-20 (NIV)
17 For Herod himself had given orders to have John arrested, and he had him bound and put in prison. He did this because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, whom he had married.
18 For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”
19 So Herodias nursed a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But she was not able to,
20 because Herod feared John and protected him, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man. When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled; yet he liked to listen to him.
On verses 17-20: Starting in verse 17, Mark flashes back to the time when John was still alive and had spoken out against Herod and Herodias, saying that their marriage was unlawful. Why was their marriage unlawful? Herod was originally married to someone else, and Herodias was married to Herod’s half brother Philip. But Herod and Herodias fell in love and in order to marry Herodias, Herod divorced his original wife, while Herodias had also divorced Philip. By divorcing his first wife and marrying the wife of Herod’s brother, Herod violated the Jewish law which says that you are not to sleep with your brother’s wife (Leviticus 18:16) and not to marry your brother’s wife (Leviticus 20:2).
Herodias held a grudge against John for speaking up this way, to the point of wanting to find a way to kill him (v19). In contrast, Herod respected John and tried to protect him. John’s sermons both puzzled Herod and yet intrigued him (v20). Given time, and without the influence of his wife, maybe, just maybe, Herod would have eventually repented of his sin. As we will see, however, it did not turn out that way.
What can we learn from this? Here Mark shows us two different ways that we can respond to God’s truth. One way is, like Herodias, to deny the truth and kill the messenger. Herodias’ heart was like the hardened path that Jesus describes (Mark 4:15): as soon as the seed of God’s Word hits that ground, pride rejects the seed and Satan takes it away. The other way to respond to God’s Word is, like Herod, to respect the fact that the messenger spoke up and to enjoy hearing the Word. However, as we will see, Herod’s heart was not good soil. Herod’s heart was more like the soil among rocks (Mark 4:16-17) and the soil among thorns (Mark 4:18-19), where trouble, the worries of this life and the desire for other things make the seed of God’s Word planted in Herod’s heart unfruitful. The same Word, different responses. Preachers will courageously preach the Word, but how much it bears fruit in your life, if at all, will depend on the condition of your heart.
Mark 6:21-26 (NIV)
21 Finally the opportune time came. On his birthday Herod gave a banquet for his high officials and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee.
22 When the daughter of Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner guests. The king said to the girl, “Ask me for anything you want, and I’ll give it to you.”
23 And he promised her with an oath, “Whatever you ask I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”
24 She went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?” “The head of John the Baptist,” she answered.
25 At once the girl hurried in to the king with the request: “I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”
26 The king was greatly distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her.
On verses 21-26: Proverbs 20:25 says that “[i]t is a trap for a man to dedicate something rashly and only later to consider his vows.” That’s exactly what happened with Herod. As a result, not only Herod, but John the Baptist and an entire nation suffered because of Herod’s rash and reckless promise. Always think before you promise. Count the cost before you say yes.
Mark 6:27-29 (NIV)
27 So he immediately sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head. The man went, beheaded John in the prison,
28 and brought back his head on a platter. He presented it to the girl, and she gave it to her mother.
29 On hearing of this, John’s disciples came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.
On verses 27-29: John was murdered because of the cowardice and foolishness of King Herod and the pride and vengeance of Herodias. What an awful way to die. But keep this in mind: John’s murder was not the end of John’s story. In many ways, John’s story was just beginning.
That’s because for those who are in Christ, death is not the end; rather, death is the doorway to the rest of your life and the best of your life. Herod and Herodias’ murderous actions only quickened the all-surpassing glory, peace, joy and satisfaction that John would get to experience in heaven with his God.
John’s story is a sobering reminder that, even for those who live an outstanding life, not every life on earth ends with a pretty little bow on top. Some die tragically, unjustly, senselessly, far earlier than anyone would have expected. But the good news is that for those who are in Christ, death is not the end of our story.
Death is when the dress rehearsal finishes and the real show can begin. For you may have 80 to 90 years on earth (“if you’re lucky”, as they say), but you will have countless billions and trillions of years in eternity, either in heaven or in hell.
So if you think your life is only about how long, how comfortably and how happily you live on earth, you’re missing the point. It’s like judging how worthwhile a movie is based on the opening 2 seconds. Do that and you’ll miss the entire picture.
John died a dishonorable death on earth, but do you know that there is no human being who is honoured in heaven more than John? Listen to Jesus’ words about John the Baptist:
Matthew 11:11a (NIV)
11 I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist…
It goes to show that what is left unresolved on this side of heaven will be resolved when we get to the other side. Every evil will be thwarted, every wrong righted, every injustice undone, every hurt healed, every wound mended, every senseless tragedy used for the greater good. We’ll see it the fitting conclusion to it all one day in heaven. What we see now is only an incomplete and small part.
So though evil seemed to triumph here in these verses, read till the end of the story and you’ll find that evil does not win. It cannot. For God is writing a greater story.
Jesus, thank You that our story doesn’t end with how and when we die. It ends with our life in You. Thank You that no suffering we ever go through on earth can compare to the glory, the happiness and peace we will know when we are with You in heaven. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
