Herod’s Reaction to Jesus

From the desk of Pastor Ben

At that time, Herod, the tetrarch heard the news about Jesus, and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he has risen from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”     (Matthew 14:1-2)

Although Jesus ministered in Galilee more than in any other place, we don’t know that He ever visited or passed through Tiberias, home of Herod’s palace on the southwest sore of the Sea of Galilee. Had the Lord wanted to go there it would have been easy enough because it was within walking distance of Capernaum, Nazareth, Cana, and other more familiar places. Jesus might have avoided Tiberias so as not to prematurely arouse Hero’s interest.
Herod was greatly distressed when he finally did hear about Jesus. Because of the guilt that nagged him for having murdered John the Baptist, Herod had the superstitious fear that John had returned from the dead to get revenge on him. The notion that John had risen from the grave did not originate with Herod, “because it was said by some that John had risen from the dead” (Luke 9:7). That’s why Herod kept trying to see Jesus, most likely due to a sense of morbid curiosity. Herod’s guilt-ridden mind had convinced him that Christ was none other than a re-incarnated John the Baptist.
The angel told John’s father, Zacharias, that John would “go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah” (Luke 1:17). God had empowered Elijah with miracle-working capabilities and John might have done miracles we don’t know of. So, Herod was convinced that Jesus’ miracles proved He was John returned from the dead — a wrong reason to seek Jesus, not based on faith but fear and misinformation.

Ask Yourself:
How do you keep yourself seeking Christ for all the right reasons — neither legalistically (trying to prove your self-worth) nor superstitiously (trying to cover your bases)? What have been some of the greatest blessings of seeking Him for His glory alone?