Anchor My Faith

The Foolish Execution of John

Scripture: Matthew 14:9, 12-13; Mark 6:21-29

In the previous lesson, we learned that Herod’s fear was protecting John from being killing. Both Herod and Herodias, his wife, wanted him dead, but for now Herod’s fear controlled him. ^{Mk 6:21} “But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his nobles and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. ²² For when Herodias’s daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. And the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you.” ²³ And he vowed to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.”’

As guests to Herod’s birthday party, leaders from three social groups were invited.  The “nobles” were high-ranking governmental leaders of Galilee, the “military commanders” were those who were directing units of men, and the “leading men” were those who were wealthy and prominent Galileans.

For entertainment, Herodias’s daughter came in and danced. This was not Herod’s daughter, but the daughter of Herod Philip, his brother, the former living husband of Herodias. One can only imagine what her dancing was like, but it pleased Herod and his guest to the extent that Herod asked her what she wanted as a gift. He wasn’t thinking clearly when he asked her that question because he allowed her to ask for anything, up to half of his kingdom. In front of his guest, Herod goes one step farther and seals his offer with a vow.

Not knowing what to ask, ^{Mk 6:24} “she went out and said to her mother, “For what should I ask?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.”’ Finally, the opportunity presented itself and Herodias would get her wish to have John executed. She tells her daughter to go back to Herod and tell him that she wanted “the head of John the Baptist.” ^{MK 6:25} “And she came in immediately with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”’

^{Mk 6:26} “And the king was exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her ^{Mt 14:9} he commanded it to be given.  ^{Mk 6:27} And immediately the king sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison ²⁸ and brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother.”

John had done nothing wrong by pointing out Herod’s sin in taking his living brother’s wife as his wife, and now because of a vow made before influential guests, to save face, Herod gives the order to execute John. Today, Christians find themselves in similar situations when they are arrested on false charges or even executed on the spot out of hatred. Most Christians in the west do not understand the cost of building the kingdom of God. It began with Jesus giving his life on the cross to purchase our salvation. He made the promise that many would suffer and die as we worked to build the kingdom. There are many lost sheep hidden deep in the kingdom of darkness. To find them and to rescue them will take time, money and lives. We in the west who embrace safety, security and comfort don’t want to even think of engaging in this type of rescue operation, but Jesus said to us to go and do it. I am so thankful for the opportunity I had to teach in an underground school in Asia. I learned many lessons about this there.

^{Mk 6:29} “When his disciples heard of it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb ^{Mt 14:12} and they went and told Jesus. ¹³ Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself.” The disciples of John came and rescued the body of John and laid it in a tomb and told Jesus what had happened. Upon hearing this, Jesus withdrew to a desolate place to be alone. Surely this was a reminder of his own pending death, the death of his disciples and the deaths of so many Christians in building the kingdom of God.

Conclusion

The death of John the Baptist reminds me of certain TV series when characters are removed through some form of death. When their time is up, they are written out of the script. John came as a forerunner of Jesus and now that his work was done it was time to bring him home. There is pain and suffering in that loss, but for John it was a glorious homecoming.