Mark 6:14-4414And 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 show forth themselves in him. 15Others said, That it is Elias. And others said, That it is a prophet, or as one of the prophets. 16But when Herod heard thereof, he said, It is John, whom I beheaded: he is risen from the dead. 17For Herod himself had sent forth and laid hold upon John, and bound him in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife: for he had married her. 18For John had said unto Herod, It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother's wife. 19Therefore Herodias had a quarrel against him, and would have killed him; but she could not: 20For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just man and an holy, and observed him; and when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly. 21And when a convenient day was come, that Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, high captains, and chief estates of Galilee; 22And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in, and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, the king said unto the damsel, Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee. 23And he sware unto her, Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me, I will give it thee, unto the half of my kingdom. 24And she went forth, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist. 25And she came in straightway with haste unto the king, and asked, saying, I will that thou give me by and by in a charger the head of John the Baptist. 26And the king was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath's sake, and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her. 27And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought: and he went and beheaded him in the prison, 28And brought his head in a charger, and gave it to the damsel: and the damsel gave it to her mother. 29And when his disciples heard of it, they came and took up his corpse, and laid it in a tomb. 30And the apostles gathered themselves together unto Jesus, and told him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught. 31And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat. 32And they departed into a desert place by ship privately. 33And the people saw them departing, and many knew him, and ran afoot thither out of all cities, and outwent them, and came together unto him. 34And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things. 35And when the day was now far spent, his disciples came unto him, and said, This is a desert place, and now the time is far passed: 36Send them away, that they may go into the country round about, and into the villages, and buy themselves bread: for they have nothing to eat. 37He answered and said unto them, Give ye them to eat. And they say unto him, Shall we go and buy two hundred pennyworth of bread, and give them to eat? 38He saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? go and see. And when they knew, they say, Five, and two fishes. 39And he commanded them to make all sit down by companies upon the green grass. 40And they sat down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties. 41And when he had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before them; and the two fishes divided he among them all. 42And they did all eat, and were filled. 43And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes. 44And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men. (Mark 6:14‑44)
WHEN HEROD heard of Jesus and His works, he said: “It is John, whom I beheaded: he is risen from the dead.” Conscience was surely awakened in this weak man, part of whose history is given us in this chapter — and particularly the details of his responsibility in the beheading of John the Baptist. It is another instance of one who is impressed with the zeal and fervor of one preaching God’s word, but who never applies it to his own conscience. Herod no doubt had respect for John, for we read he “was exceeding sorry” that his carelessly given promise resulted in John’s death. Yet he was not a convicted soul from the preaching of that man whom he liked, and his true character was shown in this crucial and tragic test.
We are reminded in the case of Herod, of the seed sown in the fourth chapter of this gospel — part of which fell on stony ground, speaking of those who receive the word with gladness, but have no root in themselves and do not endure. Herod’s improper marriage to his brother’s wife brought about circumstances where he was trapped by his own weakness and foolishness into slaying John, in order to please this wicked woman. In Romans 6:1616Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? (Romans 6:16) we read: “Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?” So the servant of Satan will sooner or later find himself involved in something he might find distasteful, but yet he cannot refuse his master.
This sad story ends with the disciples coming sorrowfully to take John’s body to burial and then turning to Jesus with their grief. At this time they tell Him too of their work on which He had sent them and no doubt many an interesting recital was give It was good for them to come to the Lord and He readily comforts the inviting them, “Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest awhile.”
In the course of seeking this retreat, many people come out into the desert to witness this One who could do such mighty works. His heart “was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and He began to teach them many things.” How typical of this long Servant that He devoted His day to their needs. We have no record of the disciples helping throughout the day and perhaps they secured the rest they anticipated, but not so with Jesus, who busied himself with the multitude all day long.
As the day wears away the disciples approach Him and urge that He send the people away, so they could secure food in the neighboring towns. They did not yet fully know the true character of the One they were following, who would not send the people away without first giving them a bountiful token of His goodness. Nor would He turn them back upon their own resources when they had come to seek Him out.
“He saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? go and see. And when they knew they say, Five, and two fishes.” Although over five thousand people were present, Jesus calmly gives thanks for the food, and through the disciples distributes to them, and “They did all eat, and were filled.” Not only were they all filled, but also when they took up what was left there were twelve baskets full — one for each of the disciples.
We are again reminded of the unlimited character of God’s Word as well as His love — that can be dispensed freely beyond measure and yet the source of that love never emptying.
ML-08/11/1963