Bread on the Hillside
Although Herod wanted to kill John, he was afraid of the people, because they regarded John as a prophet. Matthew 14:5 · Berean Standard Bible
Herod wanted John dead, but he was afraid of the people, who believed John was a prophet. Fear of public opinion, not conscience, held him back.
When the only thing restraining someone from doing wrong is fear of consequences rather than love of what's right, it's only a matter of time before they act.
Matthew narrates, revealing the internal conflict within Herod.
This tension between Herod's desire and his fear sets the stage for the tragic events that follow.
Herod's situation illustrates a conflict between political desire (to kill John) and political pragmatism (fear of popular revolt). The people's recognition of John as prophētēs protected him temporarily.
The tension between a ruler's private wishes and public opinion was a constant feature of client kingship under Rome. Herod could not risk instability.
The narrator explains Herod's internal conflict and the political dynamics.
John's life hung in the balance between Herod's murderous intent and the people's reverence. It was politics, not morality, that stayed Herod's hand.
3Now Herod had arrested John and bound him and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife,
4because John had been telling him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.”
5Although Herod wanted to kill John, he was afraid of the people, because they regarded John as a prophet.
6On Herod’s birthday, however, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod
7so much that he promised with an oath to give to her whatever she asked.
Read all of Matthew 14 — A king's guilty banquet ends with a prophet's head on a platter. Hours later, Jesus feeds thousands and walks on water through the night.
This page covers one. BibleKey does all 31,102 — tap any verse for its meaning, any word for its Hebrew or Greek root, and keep reading without leaving the chapter.
Not just the famous ones. BibleKey is free on iPhone and iPad.
Download on the App StoreFree on iPhone & iPad