Mark - Lesson 9...Continued from page 4

DAY FIVE: An Evil Plot Fulfilled

Please carefully read Mark 6:22-29 and answer the following questions.

1.  What unusual thing happened during the birthday party, and how did Herod react and blurt out impulsively (v. 22, 23)?

2.  For those who joined us for our studies in Esther, it sounds like Herod was another Ahasuerus, driven by alcohol and passions, except this was no Queen Vashti and certainly no Esther.  It was Herod’s step-daughter!  The shameful act of Salome would have never been allowed by the Jews, and even the majority of Gentiles wouldn’t parade their half-naked daughter in front of a group of drunkards, [xvii]especially since she may have been as young as 12 or 14, and “On any reading, Herod’s vulgarity is perverse; after taking his brother’s wife (cf. Leviticus 20:21), he lusts after his wife’s daughter (cf. Leviticus 20:14)!”[xviii]  It is obvious Salome knew what she was doing to an extent, but her mother was using her to accomplish a more evil plan than she realized.  When Herod made this drunken oath to her, what did she do, and what was suggested to her (v. 24, 25)?

3.  John Phillips well said that “Salome might as well have gone to a black widow spider for advice as to Herodias!”[xix]  Sorry to be so graphic, but when Herodias told her to ask “for John’s head on a platter means that she wants it served up as part of the dinner menu?a ghastly touch of ridicule.”[xx]  How did Herod react to this, and what did this easily manipulated buffoon decide (v. 26-28)?

4.  Although Herod was exceedingly sorry, he fulfilled his vow to the girl for pathetic reasons that mark the downfall of all compromisers:  he justified it because he had made an oath, but it was the embarrassment of doing so and not the legality that made him fulfill it;[xxi] he let peer pressure lead him to make this decision instead of having the courage to stand up for what was right; finally he chose not to refuse her, and allowed John’s murder.  What became of John’s remains (v. 29)?

Scripture Memory:  Can you write out this week’s passage by memory here below?  Give it a try, and keep reviewing the passage several times throughout the day.

Mark 6:26: