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Mark 6:24

in Mark 6

Then she went out and asked her mother, “What should I request?” And her mother answered, “The head of John the Baptist.”

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

And she went out, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptizer.

KJV

And she went forth, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist.

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This verse in Mark 6

Commentary

13 notes on this verse

A commentator

Bede

Catena Aurea by Aquinas · Written before 735.

(ubi sup.) His oath does not excuse his murder, for perchance his reason for swearing was, that he might find an opportunity for slaying, and if she had demanded the death of his father and mother, he surely would not have granted it. It goes on, And she went forth, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist. Worthy is blood to be asked as the reward of such a deed as dancing. It goes on, And she came in straightway with haste, &c.

This site's exposition

The head of John the Baptist

on Mark 6:24-25

Herodias answers at once, The head of John the Baptist, as one who had waited for this opening. The girl hurried back to the king and made it sharper than her mother's, adding on a platter immediately. Mark keeps her eagerness in the account without softening it.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers1 voice

A commentator

Josephus

Antiquities of the Jews - Book XVIII, Chapter 5, Section 2 · Written before 100.

proposed

Now some of the Jews thought that the destruction of Herod's army came from God, and that very justly, as a punishment of what he did against John, that was called the Baptist: for Herod slew him, who was a good man, and commanded the …

The Medieval Church4 voices

A commentator

Theophylact of Ohrid

Catena Aurea by Aquinas · Written before 1107.

The malignant woman begs that the head of John be given to her immediately, that is, at once, in that very hour, for she feared lest Herod should repent.

A commentator

Gregory the Dialogist

Catena Aurea by Aquinas · Written before 604.

proposed

(Mor. 3, 7) I cannot, without the greatest wonder, reflect that he, who was filled even in his mother's womb with the spirit of prophecy, and who was the greatest that had arisen amongst those born of women, is sent into prison by wicked men, is beheaded for the dancing of a girl, and though a man of so great austerity, meets death through such a foul instrument. Are we to suppose that there was something evil in his life, to be wiped away by so ignominious a death? When, however, could he commit a sin even in his eating, whose food was only locusts and wild honey? How could he offend in his conversation, who never quitted the wilderness? How is it that Almighty God so despises in this life those whom He has so sublimely chosen before all ages, if it be not for the reason, which is plain to the piety of the faithful, that He thus sinks them into the lowest place, because He sees how He is rewarding them in the highest, and outwardly He throws them down amongst things despised, because inwardly He draws them up even to incomprehensible things. Let each then infer from this what they shall suffer, whom He rejects, if He so grieves those whom he loves.

A commentator

Bede

On the Gospel of Mark · Written before 735.

proposed

When she had gone out, she said to her mother: "What shall I ask?" And she said: "The head of John the Baptist, etc." Herodias, fearing lest Herod should at some point come to his senses, or become a friend of her brother Philip and …

A commentator

Theophylact of Ohrid

Commentary on Mark · Written before 1107.

proposed

"That you give me," says the wicked woman, "right now," at once.
6 more voices on this verse

The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

The promise was rashly made, and could not bind him to do an unrighteous thing. Sinful oaths must be repented of, and therefore not performed; for repentance is the undoing of what we have done amiss, as far as is in our power. When Theodosius the emperor was urged by a suitor with a promise, he answered, I said it, but did not promise it if it be unjust.
And she went forth and said unto her mother,....

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

Christ's retirement into a desert place with his disciples; the crowds that followed him thither to receive instruction from him; and his feeding five thousand of them with five loaves and two fishes,

The Nineteenth Century3 voices

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

And she said, The head of John the Baptist--Abandoned women are more shameless and heartless than men. The Baptist's fidelity marred the pleasures of Herodias, and this was too good an opportunity of getting rid of him to let slip.
These verses describe the death of one of the most eminent saints of God. They relate the murder of John the Baptist. Of all the evangelists none tells this melancholy story so fully as Mark. Let us see what practical lessons the passage contains for our own souls. We see, in the first place, the amazing power of truth over the conscience . Herod "fears" John the Baptist while he lives, and is troubled about him after he dies. A friendless, solitary preacher, with no other weapon than God's truth, disturbs and terrifies a king. Everybody has a conscience. Here lies the secret of a faithful minister's power. This is the reason why Felix "trembled," and Agrippa was "almost persuaded," when Paul the prisoner spoke before them. God has not left Himself without witness in the hearts of unconverted people. Fallen and corrupt as man is, there are thoughts within him accusing or excusing, according as he lives — thoughts that will not be shut out — thoughts that can make even kings, like Herod, restless and afraid. None ought to remember this so much as ministers and teachers. If they preach and teach Christ's truth, they may rest assured that their work is not in vain. Children may seem inattentive in schools. Hearers may seem careless in congregations. But in both cases there is often far more going on in the conscience than our eyes see. Seeds often spring up and bear fruit, when the sower, like John the Baptist, is dead or gone. We see, in the second place, how far people may go in religion, and yet miss salvation by yielding to one master-sin. King Herod went further than many. He "feared John." He "knew that he was a just man and holy." He "observed" him. He "heard him, and did many things" in consequence. He even "heard him gladly." But there was one thing Herod would not do. He would not cease from adultery. He would not give up Herodias.
These verses describe the death of one of the most eminent saints of God. They relate the murder of John the Baptist. Of all the evangelists none tells this melancholy story so fully as Mark. Let us see what practical lessons the passage contains for our own souls. We see, in the first place, the amazing power of truth over the conscience . Herod "fears" John the Baptist while he lives, and is troubled about him after he dies. A friendless, solitary preacher, with no other weapon than God's truth, disturbs and terrifies a king. Everybody has a conscience.

The words behind it

16 Greek words

Every Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

13 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Ecclesiastes 7:9Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger settles in the lap of a fool.4 works2 Chronicles 22:3–4Ahaziah also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother was his counselor in wickedness.3 worksGenesis 27:8–11Now, my son, listen to my voice and do exactly as I tell you.3 worksEzekiel 19:2–3and say: ‘What was your mother? A lioness among the lions! She lay down among the young lions; she reared her cubs.3 worksJob 31:31if the men of my house have not said, ‘Who is there who has not had his fill?’—3 worksJob 30:8A senseless and nameless brood, they were driven off the land.3 works
The other 7 cross-references, with their words ▾
Matthew 14:8Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.”3 worksPsalms 37:12The wicked scheme against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them,2 worksPsalms 27:2When the wicked came upon me to devour my flesh, my enemies and foes stumbled and fell.2 worksProverbs 27:3–4A stone is heavy and sand is a burden, but aggravation from a fool outweighs them both.2 worksPsalms 37:14The wicked have drawn the sword and bent the bow to bring down the poor and needy, to slay those whose ways are upright.2 works1 Kings 22:52And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and walked in the ways of his father and mother and of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin.2 worksActs 23:12–13When daylight came, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul.1 works

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Psalms 37:12

    The wicked scheme against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them,

    it leads to

    • Micah 2:1

      Woe to those who devise iniquity and plot evil on their beds! At morning’s light they accomplish it because the power is in their hands.

    • Psalms 35:16

      Like godless jesters at a feast, they gnashed their teeth at me.

    • Daniel 8:12

      And in the rebellion, the host and the daily sacrifice were given over to the horn, and it flung truth to the ground and prospered in whatever it did.

    • Matthew 26:16

      So from then on Judas looked for an opportunity to betray Jesus.

    • Psalms 31:13

      For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side. They conspire against me and plot to take my life.

  • Through

    Job 31:31

    if the men of my house have not said, ‘Who is there who has not had his fill?’—

    it leads to

    • Luke 22:50–51

      And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear.

    • Proverbs 1:18

      But they lie in wait for their own blood; they ambush their own lives.

    • Psalms 27:2

      When the wicked came upon me to devour my flesh, my enemies and foes stumbled and fell.

Where this verse is studied

About Mark

Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee, Rembrandt, 1633, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Public domain.
Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee, Rembrandt, 1633, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Public domain.
Mark: the study guide →Read Mark 6 →
This page draws on 11 works. Open the list of works

This page draws on Bede, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Bede, On the Gospel of Mark; Gregory the Dialogist, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: Mark (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews - Book XVIII, Chapter 5, Section 2; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Theophylact of Ohrid, Catena Aurea by Aquinas and Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on Mark.

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