We come to this story carrying the ache every human heart knows: the hope that truth and goodness will win, and the sting when they don’t. What do we do when the faithful are silenced, when courage meets cruelty? John the Baptist’s death forces that question into the open — not as an abstract theology problem, but as the gut-level reality of grief, injustice, and costly discipleship.
In Matthew 14:3–12 and Mark 6:17–29 we read the same grim event from two angles. Herod Antipas had John imprisoned because John rebuked Herod’s unlawful marriage to Herodias. At a feast Herodias’s daughter danced; pleased and embarrassed, Herod swore to give her anything she asked. Prompted by her mother, she demanded John’s head. Herod, trapped by his oath and public face, ordered the execution; John’s disciples buried him. Mark gives fuller color of Herod’s remorse and inner conflict; Matthew connects the episode to Jesus’ later withdrawal on hearing (Matt. 14:13). This scene is recorded in Matthew and Mark (Luke only alludes to Herod’s curiosity about Jesus in 9:7–9), and it does not appear in John’s Gospel.
This passage exposes a raw truth about the human condition: power can silence prophets, and good people can be compromised by fear, glory, and social pressure. John’s fate is a warning — prophetic faithfulness has a cost. But it’s also a moment that reveals the Kingdom’s counter-story. Jesus honors John’s witness even amid the world’s cruelty; the gospel refuses any cheap victory. The weight of the moment presses us to take seriously the reality that God’s purposes often move through suffering, not around it. That tension is the Gospel’s hard grace: Jesus does not promise painless vindication, but he promises presence, meaning, and final justice.
Today, name one truth or kindness you have been avoiding because it might make you uncomfortable. Speak it — to a coworker, a family member, or a friend — in a humble, clear sentence; or, if speaking feels unsafe, write it and share it with someone you trust. Lament the injustice you see (quietly or aloud), support truth-tellers in your circle, and commit to one small act of courage this week. In doing so you live out John’s witness: faithful, costly, and held by God’s grace.
In Matthew 14:3–12 and Mark 6:17–29 we read the same grim event from two angles. Herod Antipas had John imprisoned because John rebuked Herod’s unlawful marriage to Herodias. At a feast Herodias’s daughter danced; pleased and embarrassed, Herod swore to give her anything she asked. Prompted by her mother, she demanded John’s head. Herod, trapped by his oath and public face, ordered the execution; John’s disciples buried him. Mark gives fuller color of Herod’s remorse and inner conflict; Matthew connects the episode to Jesus’ later withdrawal on hearing (Matt. 14:13). This scene is recorded in Matthew and Mark (Luke only alludes to Herod’s curiosity about Jesus in 9:7–9), and it does not appear in John’s Gospel.
This passage exposes a raw truth about the human condition: power can silence prophets, and good people can be compromised by fear, glory, and social pressure. John’s fate is a warning — prophetic faithfulness has a cost. But it’s also a moment that reveals the Kingdom’s counter-story. Jesus honors John’s witness even amid the world’s cruelty; the gospel refuses any cheap victory. The weight of the moment presses us to take seriously the reality that God’s purposes often move through suffering, not around it. That tension is the Gospel’s hard grace: Jesus does not promise painless vindication, but he promises presence, meaning, and final justice.
Today, name one truth or kindness you have been avoiding because it might make you uncomfortable. Speak it — to a coworker, a family member, or a friend — in a humble, clear sentence; or, if speaking feels unsafe, write it and share it with someone you trust. Lament the injustice you see (quietly or aloud), support truth-tellers in your circle, and commit to one small act of courage this week. In doing so you live out John’s witness: faithful, costly, and held by God’s grace.
Matthew: 14:3-12
In Matthew 14:3-12, John the Baptist is imprisoned by Herod Antipas for condemning Herod’s marriage to Herodias, and at Herodias’s instigation Herod has John beheaded after her daughter’s dance leads to a request for his head on a platter. John’s disciples bury his body and report the event to Jesus.
Open VerseMark: 6:17-29
John the Baptist rebuked Herod for marrying his brother’s wife, so Herod imprisoned him, and at Herod’s birthday the daughter of Herodias danced before the guests; prompted by her mother, she requested John’s head, and Herod reluctantly ordered his execution. John's disciples buried his body and then went and told Jesus.
Open Verse