Herod's Dilemma

Today's reading:  Mark 6:14-29 and Ephesians 1:3-14

A couple of years before I went to seminary, it was summer and our daughter, Cyndy, had graduated from high school – she was 18 and her brother Andy was 21. Andy and his friends were planning to go in to Houston to hear some group play at a bar and they wanted Cyndy and her friend Carrie to go with them. So they had asked me for permission. The guys thought that the girls could get in as long as they didn’t drink. I decided that this wasn’t a good idea since Cyndy’s friend was only 17 and I just didn't feel comfortable with it, so I told them, “No.”

 Everybody accepted that and there wasn’t any real argument. The boys all left and Cyndy and Carrie stayed there. Cyndy came up and hugged me and said, “Thanks, Mom. We didn’t really feel comfortable going, but I didn’t want to disappoint my brother.” That was Cyndy’s dilemma – to be supportive and cool in her brother’s eyes versus feeling comfortable about what they wanted to do.

Herod had a dilemma, too. Herod’s dilemma was that it was his birthday and the festivities were just beginning to peak. Everyone was either drunk or getting there pretty quick and so they probably weren't using their best judgment. The king was in a really good mood – a magnanimous mood and was very pleased by the dance of the young woman, Salome, Herodias' daughhter.    

Herod was of Jewish descent and ruled only at the pleasure of Rome. But for a Jew he was a very important man, a powerful man, and he wanted to look good in the eyes of those who were with him. Having been pleased by the dance, he made this astounding offer—anything you want – even half my kingdom. It was foolish of Herod by any stretch of the imagination, but it supported his self-image of who he was and who he wanted others to think he was.

The girl had no idea what to ask for, so she went out and consulted with her mother. She came back and asked for the head of John the Baptist on a platter. Chances are really good that she didn’t really know what she was asking for – she just did what her mother asked without really understanding. Scripture doesn’t tell us how old she was, but I would imagine she would be about 13 to 15.  Her mother, Herodias, had wanted to get rid of John the Baptizer. He had been very vocal in condemning her and Herod for marrying. He represented a thorn in her side by drawing attention to her sin.

As I said before, Herod is of Jewish descent and he had a certain respect (and probably fear) for the Jewish religious tradition. John was a prophet and was speaking out as a prophet calling people to own up to their sinful ways.

Our scripture says that Herod liked to listen to John and he probably spent time down in the dungeon with John.  Herod knew John to be a righteous and holy man and he protected John. So, when the daughter asked for John’s head, Herod had a dilemma. Here he had made this sweeping promise to give Salome whatever she wanted, never dreaming that she would ask for something so – so bizarre.

And now he’s trapped. He didn’t want to give her this request – but he didn’t want to look bad in the eyes of the court officials and military officers there. He didn’t want to look like someone who does not hold up his promises. They all knew what John had been preaching, and Herod didn’t want to appear weak in their eyes. In the Middle East political arena, any sign of weakness is a death knell. That is as true today as it was in Jesus’ time. That’s a large part of the problem between Israel and Palestinian authorities today – they know that neither can afford to show any weakness.

What is interesting is that this need for power and face is actually a weakness. It drove him and forced him to do something he didn’t want to do, all for the sake of saving face. It’s a kind of peer pressure at an extreme level. For Herod, his word was more important than a human life.

In our lives we face dilemmas all the time. I remember once when my son quit a good paying job because of a dilemma between his own sense of right and wrong and what his company was doing. I quit a summer job up on Lake Travis for the same reason – I didn’t like the ethics of the owner of the business. There are times you just have to do that. You have to step back and decide if you are going to be a part of whatever it is you don’t agree with, for the sake of what? A paycheck? What others might think of you? To remain in power – be it small or large?

When faced with these dilemmas, we need to decide where we stand, how we respond to these times of trial. This is what separates us from the animals – that we can make moral or ethical choices when faced with certain (or even uncertain) situations. We use – or should use – our understanding of God, and all that God means, to make those decisions. We should never allow ourselves to become so ingrained in a situation that we have to act against our conscience in order to please or satisfy someone else.

If we look at our lesson from Ephesians we find what should be our guiding light. I took apart the lesson yesterday – taking out all the qualifying, quantifying and descriptive phrases and here was what I had left. Blessed be God . . . who blessed us . . . and chose us . . . before the foundation of the world . . .   He destined us for adoption . . . through Jesus Christ . . . In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our sins . . .  In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance . . .so that we . . . might live for the praise of his glory.   In him you also . . .were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit.

Paul is often hard to follow because he has a tendency to insert phrases that are commentary, but not essential to the true meaning of his discussion.  And in this particular piece, he keeps reiterating that it is not our decision but God’s will that draws us.

 Such as: ‘according to the good pleasure of his will…’
         and ‘according to the riches of his grace. . .’
         and ‘according to his good pleasure. . .’
         and ‘according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things. . .’

And this is our inheritance when we set our hope on Christ – when we’ve heard the word of truth and we believe in him – we belong to God. We don’t have to do things to please the people around us. We have God who has chosen us before the foundations of the world – who is faithful to us in all circumstances, and who will never desert us. This is the one we should please.

Blessed be the name of the Lord. Amen.