Mark 6:14-29
July 13, 2003
5 Pentecost B
Mark 6:14-29
July 13, 2003
What a terrible text. For the Gospel this morning, we are presented with a sordid tale of anger and revenge, a tale of gory death. Hardly the “Good News” that the gospel is supposed to bring to us. And it’s not even a story about Jesus. So what’s it doing here in Mark’s Gospel? And what are we supposed to get out of this terrible text? These are the questions I’d like you to consider as we take a look at the story of the death of John the Baptist this morning.
Mark inserts this story as a flashback, to bring the reader up to speed with what has been happening behind the scenes as Jesus begins his ministry. Last week, we saw Jesus send his disciples out to preach and heal in his name. Somehow, Herod gets wind of their success, and learning about Jesus, gets a little nervous. “Uh, oh,” he says, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised from the dead.” Mark then goes on to tell the story of how that happened. Get ready for a story that is part Greek tragedy, and part soap opera.
First of all, let’s get our Herods straight, because there were a lot of them. The Herod that was alive at the time that Jesus was born was known as Herod the Great. He’s the one who rebuilt the Temple at Jerusalem into a center of religious and political power. Herod the Great had four sons, and after his death, his kingdom got split up among them. The Herod in today’s story is Herod Antipas, who got control of Galilee. He’s the same Herod who we meet at the trial of Jesus. OK so far?
Now, one of the Herod brothers had a daughter named Herodias, who grew up and married her uncle, Herod Phillip. Yeah, Phillip married his niece. But that’s not the end of it. When Herod Antipas met Herodias, his brother’s wife, he wanted her. So both of them divorced their spouses, and got married. Nice family, huh?
So, now we have Herod Antipas, ruler of Galilee, married to Herodias, his niece and sister-in-law. Can you say dysfunctional? Well, John the Baptist did. John publicly criticized Herod and Herodias for their immoral behavior, which was against the Law of God. Now Herod couldn’t have that, so he put John in prison to silence him. But a strange thing happened. Herod liked listening to John the Baptist, at least when he was chained up. He knew that John was a holy man and a prophet, and liked listening to him, even though he couldn’t quite figure out what John meant. But for Herodias, it was different.
Herod’s bride hated John the Baptist for criticizing her behavior, and wanted him dead. Pretty soon, she got the opportunity. Herod threw a birthday party for himself, to which all his court and the important people of the land were invited. We can imagine a lavish banquet, where the wine flowed freely. As a special surprise, Herodias sends her daughter, who we will call Salome, in to do a provocative dance for Herod and his guests. Herod, who I’m guessing by now is pretty drunk, is so taken by her dance, that he tells her he’ll give her whatever she asks for. Salome turns to her Mom for advice, and the request is made; “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptizer on a platter.” Herod can’t loose face in front of his guests, and so John is beheaded. His head is brought into the banquet, as if it were the last course. Yuck.
So that’s how John the Baptist, whom Herod both admired and feared, lost his life. And that’s why, when he hears about Jesus, he says, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.” Herod had been able to kill the messenger, but not the message. And it haunted him.
So, I ask you again, what can we get out of this terrible text? At the very least, I suppose it illustrates the destructive power of human desire. Herod and Herodias allowed their selfish desires to ruin two marriages, then resorted to murder to defend their immoral liaison. But there is more here for Christians to learn than a simple moral lesson.
Do you remember what John the Baptist preached when he appeared in the wilderness? John preached repentance. He announced that the Kingdom of God was coming, and that people should repent. Then, after Jesus was baptized by John, he took up the call; “The time is fulfilled, the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the Good News.” When Jesus sent his disciples out to preach and heal in his name, they carried the same message; “Repent.”
Repent. It means to change, from the inside out. It means turning around, and walking in a new direction. It means changing your behavior in response to the Good News of the Love of God in Jesus Christ. That’s what John would have been preaching to Herod. And Herod liked listening to John. He knew that there was something there for him, but he couldn’t quite bring himself to give up the things that he selfishly wanted. He liked listening to John, but he didn’t really hear him.
That remains a problem for us, too, as we listen to the Word of God. It sounds good, but oh, that repentance part. That part about giving up our old ways and changing direction. We can listen all we want, but until we act on what is being said, we will not have heard, just like Old Herod. So. That is at least one thing that we can get out of this terrible text.
And here’s another. It will take more than the decapitation of a prophet and the crucifixion of an insurgent to stop the mission and message of God. Herod thought he could silence, or at least control John by putting him in prison. When that didn’t work, he had him killed. Then, when he heard about the work of Jesus, Herod thought John had risen from the dead. That’s how God does things. God keeps resurrecting the message.
The Romans and religious authorities thought they would get rid of Jesus and all that he represented by nailing his power down to the cross, but God showed them how wrong they were. God raised Jesus from the dead, and the message was resurrected, this time, to live forever. God’s power came loose from the cross, relegating Herod and all the others like him to the footnotes of history.
Mark tells us the story of Herod in a footnote. We have to be reminded of who he was and what he did, because as important as he thought he was, without hearing the message of God, he was nothing.
A terrible text, indeed, for those like Herod, who choose to listen but not hear. But a text filled with promise and new life, for those who hear and respond to the message that cannot die. AMEN