Mark 6:14
And king Herod heard of him; ( for his name was spread abroad:) and he said, That John the Baptist was risen from the dead, and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him. And king Herod heard of him; ( for his name was spread abroad:) and he said, That John the Baptist was risen from the dead, and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him.
Herod heard reports of Jesus after his name had become widely known through healings, exorcisms and raisings of the dead. In terror he decided that Jesus was John the Baptist whom he had beheaded come back to life, and that this explained the mighty powers at work in him. He imagined John raised by God with greater power both to do miracles and to condemn sin and take vengeance on him and his house. His conclusion sprang from a guilty conscience over murdering a true prophet he had almost followed, which turned Christ's works in his eyes into a message of judgment and continuing dread. His trembling remorse soon dulled as a licentious life degraded his moral perception, showing how turning from convicting light can harden into capacity for the worst crimes.
Setting and Background
By the time Herod heard of him, the name of Jesus had spread widely through reports of his mighty works. Those reports told of healings and of casting out evil spirits and of raising the dead. Herod had not previously known Jesus, though Jesus had lived about thirty years in Galilee. That ignorance reflected the general disregard for religious matters among people of high rank. He had never met Jesus before this hearing.
He had long desired to see Jesus and to witness his marvelous power. When Jesus was later brought before him as a prisoner, he was pleased, because he had no doubt he could force him to work a miracle as a condition of saving his life.
The hearing belongs to the account in which news of John's execution at Herod's hand reached Jesus and the disciples. It came just after the disciples returned from their first missionary tour, when they were filled with joy over their success as heralds of the gospel. The tidings brought bitter sorrow and disappointment. Their faith was severely tested because Jesus had left John to die in prison. Jesus looked on their sorrowful, tear-stained faces with pitying tenderness, with tears in his own eyes and voice, and called them apart into a desert place to rest awhile.
After ordering John's execution, Herod was horrified by the sight of John's severed head and could not shut out what he had seen. A year later he was still with Herodias at the Passover ceremonies despite their unlawful marriage.
Herod's Fearful Interpretation
Hearing in terror of Jesus and his mighty works, Herod concluded that Jesus was John whom he had beheaded risen from the dead. He took this rising to explain the mighty works, that therefore mighty works showed forth themselves in him. Haunted by his execution of John, he concluded that John had risen and was working through Jesus.
He believed God had raised John and sent him back with greater and renewed power to perform mighty works. That return was to condemn sin with increased power. His conclusion came from a guilty conscience over murdering and executing John. That murder had left a stain and remorse upon his conscience, making him see the works of Christ as a sign of judgment and a source of continuing fear and remorse. He feared John had returned to avenge his death by condemning him and his household and by pronouncing judgment upon them.
Hardening Conscience Warning
When Herodias demanded the head of John the Baptist, Herod trembled with horror at the request. He felt keen remorse for the beheading that followed, knowing it had been done to gratify a cruel woman's revenge. He had very nearly become John's disciple, having been deeply moved under his preaching. But at the point of decision he fell into Satan's snare, turned away from the truth, and put to death one he knew to be a true prophet.
Afterward his conscience grew far less sensitive than it had been in the hour of that crime. His moral perceptions and judgment were degraded by his continued licentious and sinful life. His sins, which had once filled him with horror and remorse, came to seem trifles to him. His course shows that those capable of the worst crimes are those once convicted by the Spirit of truth who turn away from light into the darkness of iniquity.
John's martyrdom, to which this declaration about John risen from the dead belongs, stands as a warning of the deadly consequence of intemperance. That warning bears with special force upon people holding great authority, whose indulgence imperils not only themselves but the innocent under their power. In Herod's hardened indifference the end of such a course is laid bare.