Verses 17-29 are a flashback in which Mark explained how John had died. This is the only story in Mark's Gospel that does not concern Jesus directly.153Why did Mark include it? Perhaps he did so because John's death prefigured Jesus' violent end. Mark devoted 14 verses to John's death but only three to his ministry. He really gave two passion narratives, Jesus and John's.154
Mark showed particular interest in what "King"Herod Agrippa, and especially Herodias, did to John.155The main reason Mark included this pericope will emerge later (9:13).
6:17-18 Herod Philip I was really Herod Antipas' half-brother. It was unlawful for Herod to marry Herodias because their marriage was incestuous since Philip was still alive (cf. Lev. 18:16; 20:21). Antipas had converted to Judaism, so he had placed himself under Mosaic Law.156
"We behold in John an illustrious example of that moral courage, which all pious teachers ought to possess, not to hesitate to incur the wrath of the great and powerful, as often as it may be found necessary: for he, with whom there is acceptance of persons, does not honestly serve God."157
6:19-20 Antipas' passion for Herodias conflicted with his respect for and interest in John. He wanted to maintain both relationships, and tension arose as a result.
"Kingliness changed places: the subject did not fear the sovereign; the sovereign feared the subject."158
Antipas could live with this tension, but Herodias could not, so she sought to kill her rival. Antipas evidently protected John from Herodias. John was righteous in his relations with other people and holy in his relationship to God. The perplexity the king felt undoubtedly arose over his conflicting affections for Herodias and John. Sometimes unrepentant sinners are curious about spiritual matters and spiritual people. This seems to have been true of Antipas. Probably the king and John conversed when Herod visited the Machaerus fortress east of the Jordan River where John was a prisoner.
"Herod was awed by the purity of John's character, feared him as the bad fear the good."159
6:21-23 Finally Herodias was able to trick her husband into getting rid of her nemesis. Salome was Herodias' daughter by Philip. The phrase "up to half of my kingdom"is figurative meaning at great personal sacrifice. Antipas could not have given away half of his kingdom because he lacked the authority to do so.
6:24-25 Women were not present at such banquets as observers. Consequently Salome had to leave the banquet hall to confer with her mother. The daughter apparently shared her mother's hatred for John the Baptist rather than Herod's respect for him. She hurried back to Herod with her request before he might change his extravagant offer. Perhaps she asked for John's head on a platter to humiliate him further comparing him to an animal slain and prepared for dinner.
6:26-28 The only other time Mark used the Greek word perilupos, translated "very sorry"or "greatly distressed,"was in 14:34 where it describes Jesus' agony in Gethsemane. This shows the extent of Antipas' anxiety over the dilemma Salome's request created for him. His pride got him in trouble, as Pilate's did later. Both of these rulers sacrificed a righteous and holy man on the altar of their personal popularity.
The Greek word spekoulatora, translated "executioner,"is a Latinism reflecting the Roman influence on Mark's Gospel. It refers to a bodyguard of Herod's. The fact that John's head finally went to Herodias shows that she was the person responsible for his death. However, her husband gave the order to execute him, so he was also blameworthy. In Jesus' case, the Jewish religious leaders called for His death, as Herodias had done, and Pilate gave the official permission for execution.
6:29 The parallels between John's burial and Jesus' are also striking (cf. 15:42-47). John died alone; his disciples were not with him. The same was true of Jesus with the exception of His disciple John and some of His female disciples. Herod gave John's disciples permission to bury his corpse as Pilate permitted Joseph of Arimathea to bury Jesus. The disciples of each man gave their teacher an honorable burial in a tomb.
This pericope shows that people who preach repentance and point to Jesus as the Messiah can expect opposition, persecution, imprisonment, and perhaps a martyr's death. This is a comfort for disciples who suffer for their witness for Jesus. It does not relieve them of their suffering or hold out the hope of escape, but it does enable them to see that they are in the best of company. This is some encouragement. Historically martyrs have found strength in remembering that they are part of a large company who have shared the sufferings of their Savior.
