The importance of promises

When the news of Jesus spread widely, even reaching the ears of King Herod, people began saying that Jesus was "the resurrected John the Baptist" and that this was why He had the power to perform miracles.  Herod himself said, "The John whom I beheaded has been raised from the dead" (Mark 6:14-16, Korean Modern Bible).  From their perspective, the reason they thought this way was because Jesus had been healing the sick and casting out demons, performing miraculous signs.  In their view, anyone who possessed such power must have had a connection with someone like the prophet Elijah (v. 15), or perhaps someone more recent, such as John the Baptist.  Especially from King Herod's perspective, upon hearing the rumors about Jesus, when he said that John, whom he had beheaded, had come back to life, it was inevitable that memories of his previous encounters with John would resurface.  These memories included the rebuke John had given him for marrying his brother Philip's wife, Herodias, and saying that it was wrong (vv. 17-18).  As a result, Herodias harbored a grudge and sought to have John killed, but because Herod feared John, thinking of him as a righteous and holy man, he had protected him and did not allow this to happen (Mark 6:19).  An interesting detail is that, despite his discomfort at hearing John’s rebukes, King Herod still enjoyed listening to him (v. 19).  How could someone who was rebuked for their wrongdoing still take pleasure in listening to the person who had rebuked them?  Amid this situation, "a good opportunity" arose for Herodias.  This "good opportunity" came when "Herod held a banquet on his birthday, inviting the nobles, the military commanders, and the prominent men of Galilee.  When the daughter of Herodias entered and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests.  The king said to the girl, 'Ask me for anything you want, and I will give it to you. I will even give you up to half my kingdom'" (vv. 21-22).  The girl then asked her mother, "What should I ask for?" (v. 24).  Just as Herodias, who sought to destroy John, was waiting for the "good opportunity," Satan's agents, like Herodias, are always looking for chances to attack and bring us down.  For example, during the reign of King Darius, there were three administrators, and the other two, who were clever and excelled in all matters, looked for a way to accuse Daniel, the prime minister, of doing something wrong in his official duties (Daniel 6:1-4).  This reminds me of the latter half of Genesis 4:7: “… If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?  But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it” (Korean Modern Bible).

When Herodias answered her daughter, who came to her and asked, “What should I ask for?”, she said, "Ask for the head of John the Baptist."  The daughter hurried to the king and said, “I want you to give me the head of John the Baptist on a platter right now” (Mark 6:24-25, Korean Modern Bible).  As I reflected on this passage, I was reminded of the story in the book of Esther, where King Xerxes said to Esther three times: “What is your request?  Even up to half the kingdom, it will be given to you” (Esther 5:3), “What is your petition?  It will be given to you.  What is your request?  Even up to half the kingdom, it will be granted” (6:6), “What is your request? It will be given to you.  What is your petition?  Even up to half the kingdom, it will be granted” (7:2).  But how starkly different are the women Esther and Herodias!  In brief, Esther is a precious and noble daughter of God, while Herodias is the wicked daughter of Satan.  When I think of Herodias, the evil daughter of Satan, who is controlled by her mother and obediently follows her mother's commands without question, I feel deep sympathy for her daughter.  I wonder how many daughters in this world are enduring such suffering in relationships with their mothers, similar to the one between Herodias and her daughter.

When King Herod heard the request, “Give me the head of John the Baptist on a platter right now,” he was deeply distressed.  However, because of the promise he had made and the guests sitting at the banquet, he could not refuse the girl’s request.  He immediately sent the executioner to behead John and bring his head on a platter.  The executioner went to the prison, beheaded John, brought the head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. She then gave it to her mother, Herodias (Mark 6:25-28).  When John’s disciples heard this news, they took his body, buried it, and mourned (v. 29).  As I meditated on this passage, I reflected on the importance of promises.  King Herod, though deeply distressed, could not break the promise he made to Herodias' daughter and kept it.  Of course, the reason was also due to the guests sitting at the banquet (v. 26).  However, Herod had previously been deeply distressed when he listened to John’s words but enjoyed hearing them (v. 19).  When comparing his distress at hearing John’s words to the great distress he felt at hearing the request for John’s head, it seems clear that King Herod was more deeply distressed by the words of Herodias, the daughter of Satan, spoken through her daughter, than by the words of God through John.  Therefore, he chose to obey the words of Satan rather than God’s words.  I believe this is not only true of King Herod but also of us. We, too, hear the words of God, who is truth, and the words of Satan, the father of lies. And like King Herod, we can sometimes be deeply distressed.  However, in the end, rather than obeying God’s word when we are convicted by it, we often, in our distress, listen to Satan’s lies and are deceived by them, following them.  The number of times we have done this might be countless.