The first few verses connect to the last passage. After Jesus sent his disciples out two by two, Jesus' name became very popular. When Harod found out he said, "John, the man I beheaded, has been raised from the dead." Up until now, apparently Herod had not heard of Jesus and he still had the guilty conscience of killing John the Baptist.
The next 13 verses are a parenthesis in the passage. They do not flow with how the thought of the 12 disciples continues in verse 30. They tell of why Herod had killed John the Baptist and it's here that we see his errors.
1-The woman he married, Herodias, was already married to his brother Phillip and had a daughter. This is what John had confronted Herod on and Herodias held a grudge. But she was unable to kill him because Herod protected John.
2-Herod was greatly puzzled by John's messages, but he enjoyed listening to him. Herod grew up with an evil father...Herod the Great who killed all the little boys when Jesus was born and also killed three of his sons (Herod's brothers--one of which was the father of Herodias). Even with this background, it's evident he didn't change too much.
3-Herod had his step-daughter dance before him and his friends at his party. What kind of morals would allow a man in that time to have his daughter dance like that? Even her mother apparently approved.
4-Finally, when it came time to keep his word in front of his friends, he did. However, he didn't want to because it required killing a man whom he knew to be "righteous and holy." But, instead of letting what was right prevail, he didn't want his friends to make fun of him or lose respect for him, so he ordered John to be beheaded.
How many times do we choose friends over what's right?
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