Daily Devotions
Mark
1 Peter 5:13 "She who is in Babylon, elect together with you, greets you; and so does Mark my son."
Day 143 – Mark 6
“She who is in Babylon, elect together with you, greets you; and so does Mark my son.” 1 Peter 5:13
HEROD IN A DILEMMA
Herod was well and truly caught! How would he be able to extricate himself from this
dilemma that he found himself in? He much have racked his drunken mind hard, but could not come up with a solution to save John’s life (His imprisoning of John gave him some protection from the wrath of Herodias… at least for a while).
“And the king was exceedingly sorry;
yet because of the oaths and because of those
who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her.”
MARK 6:26
1. Exceedingly sorry
Herod’s heart had a soft spot for John the Baptist. Herod was not unfamiliar to the practice of executing prisoners. But this was John the Baptist! He had the highest regard for him. He felt “exceedingly sorry” when he heard the request made by Herodias’ daughter.
2. Two other powerful reasons
Much as Herod would have liked to find an alternative to the request for John’s head, he also felt that he had to accede.
a) The oaths he had made
Herod must have stated again and again that he would truly give Herodias’ daughter anything she requested! He must have even given oath after oath to her, to prove that he was most serious about the offer he made her!
b) Those who sat with him
All eyes were on Herod that evening. There were “the nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee” (Mark 6:21). What would they think of him if he went back on his word?
THE CRUEL AND UNJUST ORDER GIVEN
Herod Antipas felt that he had no choice but to fulfill the request made to him.
“Immediately the king sent an executioner
and commanded his head to be brought.
And he went and beheaded him in prison,
brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl;
and the girl gave it to her mother.”
MARK 6:27-28
A SAD END
John had many faithful disciples. They came and did the needful.
“They came and took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb.”
MARK 6:29