Gospel of Mark Study #18

“The Power of a Guilty Conscience”

Mark 6:14-29

Study #18 in Mark Series

INTRODUCTION:

A guilty conscience is a terrible thing. It is like a tight band around your neck, cutting off your oxygen. It feels like a huge lead weight sitting right on your chest. It messes with your mind. You find yourself wondering if people can see your secret when they look at you. You find it hard to look people in the eye. You do not let yourself get too close to people for fear that they might learn what you have done.

In Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” it was Scrooge’s guilty conscience that tormented him in the night. He knew that he was an evil man, and he became haunted and plagued by the evil and unkind things he had done.

In our text for today’s study we see the power of a guilty conscience in the life of a king who was a murderer, who had spilt innocent blood, who had murdered a holy man whose only fault was that he had spoken the truth.

TRANSITION:

Our last time together we studied Mark 6:1-13, in which Mark recounts what happened when Jesus returned to His hometown, Nazareth, and showed up at the local synagogue, along with His twelve disciples. You will remember that His reception there was frosty, to say the least. 

Then, in verses 7-13 Mark tells us how Jesus sent out the Twelve, two by two, to preach the Gospel, heal the sick, and cast out evil spirits. He instructed them to take nothing with them, but rather, to trust God to meet all their needs along the way. Verse 13 says, “And they were casting out many demons and were anointing with oil many sick people and healing them.” Can you imagine what that must have been like for them, to experience the power of God working through them in such a wonderful way, and to discover that there truly was power and authority in the name of Jesus? They must have been totally pumped when they came back home to tell Jesus what had happened. But there were others who were taking note of these things as well. Look at verse 14. 

NOTES on the Text:

Verse 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.”

• At this point in Jesus’ public ministry, He was getting a reputation. Everybody in Israel knew something about Him and everyone had an opinion, although they were usually wrong.
• Notice that they were not disputing the fact that Jesus was a miracle worker. They were just divided over the source of His power and the authority under which He operated.
• Recognizing the similarities some claimed that Jesus was really John the Baptist back from the grave. This was their explanation of why Jesus could do such miracles, although it is interesting to note that according to John 10:41 John the Baptist performed no miracles. 

Verse 15: Others said, “He is Elijah.” And still others claimed, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of long ago.”

• This was a common rumor among the people – that Jesus was really Elijah returning from the dead in fulfilment of Malachi 4:5 (cf. Matt. 16:14; John 1:21).
• Others believed that He was a prophet after the pattern of the Old Testament prophets.

Verse 16: But when Herod heard this, he said, “John, the man I beheaded, has been raised from the dead!”

• Evidently all this speculation about Jesus’ identity was talked around so much that it eventually came to the ears of Herod, the one who had ordered John beheaded. Here we step into a flashback moment. Verses 16-29 are a parenthesis in Mark’s account of the ministry of Jesus and His disciples. In verse 30 he will pick up that context again. But in the meantime, we have this fascinating story about what happened to John the Baptist, the one who Jesus called, “the greatest among those born of women.” But this account of John’s death needs to be seen in the context set up here by verse 16 of the heavy conscience of Herod.
• The Herod mentioned here is Herod Antipas, one of the sons of Herod the Great, the leader who was in power when Jesus was born, and that killed the babies in Bethlehem. Herod Antipas was the Tetrarch (“ruler of a fourth”) of the regions of Galilee and Perea for 43 years (4 BC – AD 39). By the way, this is also the same Herod to whom Pilate sent Jesus for judgment just a few years later.
• This is the first evidence we have that the reputation of Jesus had come to the attention of the government officials. But for Herod this was more than just information. He became convinced that Jesus was the reincarnation of John, whom he had murdered. That scared him! He must have thought that John had come back to haunt him. 

Verses 17-20: 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.

• This story is like a Latin novella. It has more twists and turns than “Dallas,” “Peyton Place,” “Dynasty,” or “The Thorn Birds.”
• Herod Antipas, AKA “Herod the Tetrarch” was a randy old lecher with no morals whatsoever. Herodias was the wife of her half-uncle, Herod Philip I. That is weird by itself. But then Herod Antipas, the half-brother of Philip, seduced his sister-in-law, Herodias, and drew her into a second scandalous incestuous marriage with him, raising the “ick factor” significantly. Herod Antipas was already married to the daughter of Aretas, king of the Nabataeans (an Arab country), but that was just a minor thing. He sent her away so that he could marry Herodias.
• I am very sure that this turn of events did not make brother Philip happy, but Antipas was the stronger of the two, politically speaking, so there was not much Philip could do about it.
• Herodias had a daughter by Philip. Her name was Salomé. When you do the math, you’ll figure out that the girl was Herod Antipas’ niece as well as his stepdaughter.
• According to the ancient Jewish historian, Josephus, Herod had John incarcerated in his own palace/fortress located at Machaerus in the Judean Wilderness. The Castle of Machaerus was built high on a lonely ridge, surrounded by terrible ravines, overlooking the eastern shore of the Dead Sea. It was one of the loneliest and grimmest and most unassailable fortresses in the world. It was in that bleak and desolate fortress that the last chapter of John’s life was played out.
• Look again at verse 18: For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” Apparently, John had been publicly hammering Herod for this incestuous marriage. The verb tense (= Greek imperfect tense) indicates that this public rebuke was continuous and ongoing by John. No wonder it got under Herod’s skin, not to mention ticking off Herodias. Verse 19 says that Herodias came to hate John and she wanted him dead. However, she and her husband apparently had a running disagreement about what should be done about John. Unlike Herod, Herodias felt no attraction to John and his preaching. Herod, on the other hand, despite his sinful and loose lifestyle, respected and feared John, and recognized him for a man of God and a true prophet. Herodias did not care—she was ready to put out a hit on John, ASAP.
• Take another look at verse 20: When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled; yet he liked to listen to him. What was it about John and his message that fascinated Herod? Was it John’s unique delivery? Was it his amusing wardrobe? Was it the fact that John believed every word he preached, unlike the sycophants who surrounded Herod and every other king? Apparently, Herod himself did not know what it was. It says, “…he was greatly puzzled.” But I believe it was because John’s words rang true. Herod recognized in John the voice of truth and godly wisdom, and that is always compelling, even when it reveals things about us that we do not enjoy hearing. John was a holy man, with a holy message. He lived out what he preached, and he would not back down from anybody, even the king. Because of that, Herod liked listening to him. I think that Herod had John arrested for three reasons: (1) To shut him up and get him out of circulation; (2) To get Herodias off his back, thinking that her anger would be assuaged; and (3) To save John’s life. And the way I read it, verse 20 says that Herod must have had some face-to-face sessions with John while he was imprisoned there at Machaerus.

Verses 21-23: 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.”

• Oh, happy day! This was exactly the situation for which Herodias had been waiting. She knew that it would come if she would just bide her time. Now this was finally her golden moment.
• When Herod’s birthday came around, he threw himself a party. After all, who could do it better? He invited all his pals, his military men, his cronies, and the elite rich-and-powerful folks from the whole region of Galilee.
• This was not unusual. Herod was famous for his wild, extravagant parties. But something there was out of the ordinary—namely, the evening’s entertainment. The dancers at such an event would always have been attractive young slave girls or hired dancers, often prostitutes. However, on that night, the beautiful 18-20-year-old princess, Salomé, came out and danced for Herod and his guests. This was unheard of! As I said, dancing to entertain the guests was the work of a slave or a prostitute, not of a princess! Such solo dances in those days were disgusting and licentious pantomimes. For the daughter (or stepdaughter/niece) of royal blood to so expose and demean herself was beyond belief because those dances were the art of professional prostitutes, not “nice girls.” The very fact that Salomé would degrade herself to dance this way to entertain Herod and his drunk friends is a grim commentary on the character of the girl, and of the mother who allowed and encouraged her to do it. This, however, was Herodias’ opportune moment and undoubtedly, she was the one who put the girl up to it. And old Herod, under the influence of his own lust fueled by liquor, fell into her trap. He loved every minute of Salomé’s dance and wanted more.
• Now Herod was not the first man to do or say something stupid while under the alcohol-induced enchantment of a pretty girl. Notice that Salomé did not even have to ask for anything. Stupid Herod volunteered to give her anything her little sexy heart desired if she would just keep on doing what she had been doing. He offered her “anything,” carte blanche. He said, “Here’s my VISA-Platinum card, sweetie. Whatever you want I will buy, up to half of my kingdom! You buy it, Baby, and I’ll pay for it.” How stupid can a guy get?
• This whole thing was obviously a setup from the get-go. Herodias was the one running the scam, Salomé was the bait, and Herod was the mark, the patsy. The two women knew exactly what they were doing. Herod was clueless. 

Verses 24-25: 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.”

• Salomé went out of the room to talk to her momma. Apparently, Herodias was not present in the room for the party but was probably watching it all from behind a curtain. That was typical in those days. Wives were expected to stay at home, out of sight. But you can bet there were plenty of beautiful women in there, as guests and escorts of the rich and powerful men in attendance.
• When Salomé ask her mother what to ask for, Herodias was quick with a response: “The head of John the Baptist on a platter.” She did not care about money. She had plenty of that. She did not want more beautiful clothes. Her closets were already full. She did not want a Caribbean cruise. She had seen all the places she cared to see. No, she wanted John’s head on a serving tray. She wanted him dead, with proof that the job was done.
• Notice too that she wanted it done “right now.” She wanted the deed accomplished before Herod could find a way to wiggle out of it because she knew that he liked John.
• Over the past few years, we have heard a lot about beheadings in the Middle East and in Muslim controlled regions of Africa, especially Somalia. There have been some famous cases like Daniel Pearl, the journalist, and Nick Berg, just to name a couple. But there have been hundreds of others. It is one of the most gruesome, painful, and frightening ways to die that you can imagine. It is a violation of the person that goes way beyond rape and other forms of torture. It is a hideous, hellish practice. Yet that is what John the Baptist went through, all because he angered the wrong people by speaking the truth.

Verse 26: The king was greatly distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her.

• Although he was deeply grieved by Herodias’ request, he found it impossible to go back on his promises before such a grand and distinguished group. In his oriental potentate way of thinking it was more important for him to save face in front of his friends than to preserve the life of God’s prophet. No wonder his conscience troubled him afterward (cf. verse 14 and 16). He knew that what he was doing was downright evil. But he did not have the courage to say, “No!”

Verses 27-28: 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.

• Herod’s palace at Machaerus was also a fortress and as such it contained a prison. Thus, the execution scene was not far removed from the banquet room. The whole evil shameful act probably only took a few minutes.
• Apparently, Salomé remained in the dining hall until John had been executed and they brought his head to her. The calmness with which she made the request and then carried the gory platter to her mother is indicative of the calloused nature of the girl. Like mother, like daughter. 

Verse 29: On hearing of this, John’s disciples came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

• John’s death occurred early into Jesus’ public ministry. John did not live long enough to see all the things that Jesus did, but he saw enough to convince him that the Messiah had indeed stepped onto the scene and that his work as the Forerunner was complete. Even though his death was horrific, I know that he died in peace, knowing that he had completed his mission.
• During John’s ministry he gathered around him a group of followers. They loved and respected him. When Jesus appeared, John pointed Him out to his disciples and urged them to follow Christ, which they did. But that did not lessen their love for John, for he was the one who introduced them to the Savior. So, after John’s martyrdom they gathered his body and gave him an honorable and proper burial with the respect that was due a man who preferred death to falsehood.

CONCLUSION:

This passage is fascinating from a character-study perspective. Look at the main players—what a strange outfit! Herod, Herodias, Salomé, and the prison executioner—all with innocent blood on their hands, all guilty. But then there’s John who stands out like a ray of sunshine—an innocent godly man, a man who spoke the truth, a man who served God with all his heart, a man who had nothing to regret. John died with a clear conscience, knowing that he was right with God and that he had finished his course with honor.

Herod, on the other hand, was left with a guilty conscience that plagued him right up until the day of his death. He later got into trouble with Emperor Caligula and was banished to Gaul where he and Herodias died in exile. Many people believe that it was God’s judgment against them for the murder of John. 

Herodias had wanted to eliminate the one man who had the courage to confront her with her sin. She wanted to go on acting as she pleased with no one to point a finger at her. She murdered John so that she could sin in peace. However, she overlooked the fact that even though she no longer needed to meet John, one day she would still have to meet God. Sin cannot be hidden from Him. He sees it all.