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Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Peraea, ended John's public ministry by having him arrested and held in prison.
The story went around that Antipas had imprisoned John on account of his wife, Herodias. [jd1] She had divorced her uncle Herod II, who was wealthy but who ruled no territory, and married his brother, Herod Antipas, who was tetrarch of Galilee and Peraea. John, in criticizing Antipas for his misrule, drew attention to the fact that this marriage violated Jewish law as codified in Scripture.
Mark and Matthew relate a tale in which Herodias's teenage daughter by her previous husband danced for her step-father and his friends at a party. The tetrarch was so taken by her feminine appeal that he promised her anything she wanted, even half his kingdom. Since he wasn't authorized by the Emperor to divide his tetrarchy, the offer did not mean much. But, the girl, Salome, went to her mother and asked her what she should say. Herodias replied, "Tell him you want John's head brought to you on a platter!"
The girl did as her mother said and Antipas, who had enjoyed questioning John, was greatly disturbed. But because he had made his pledge in front of his friends, he ordered John beheaded and the head given to his step-daughter.
When John's disciples heard that their teacher had been executed, they came to the prison and removed his body to assure a proper Jewish burial.[jdz1]
After his death, some remembered John's words, "He must increase, but I must decrease."
Later in his ministry, Jesus addressed a crowd about John, "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A man dressed in nice clothes? Well, those who dress well live in palatial style. So what were you looking for? A prophet. Yes and even more than a prophet. It is written of him
"Since John's time until now, people are storming into the kingdom," Jesus declared. "For the Law and the Prophets tell about John. In other words, if you can accept it, John is Elijah, the one who was to come. He who can hear, listen up!"
Luke quotes Jesus here as adding, "It is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one jot of the law to fall."
When Jesus heard about John's arrest, he withdrew into Galilee. Though that area was under Antipas's control, the tetrarch's stronghold, Machaerus, was to the south, on the eastern side of the Dead Sea, while Galilee was well to the north, about 100 miles or so from Jerusalem.
Instead of returning to Nazareth, Jesus went to Capernaum, a town on Lake Galilee, which is in the area of the ancient Israeli tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali. Matthew sees this move as a fulfillment of the Isaiah prophecy:
He went around in the synagogues of Galilee preaching these things [jd3] and teaching as he went. The people thought he was an excellent speaker and were glad to have him at their religious assemblies -- though at this early stage they were in the main unaware of any acts of power [miracles], which he tended to do at a low key.
NEXT PAGE:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me
https://secretpath191.blogspot.com/2020/11/the-spirit-of-lord-is-upon-me.html
This would suggest that John had been preaching on the east side of the Jordan, which was under Antipas's rule. Another possibility is that Antipas simply had his men kidnap John from the west bank of the river, even though that area was under direct Roman rule, but had word got back to Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor, Antipas would have had major trouble. In fact, it seems plausible that John preached on the east bank in order to stay clear of Roman authority and the possibility of being arrested for fomenting an insurrection by announcing a coming king. But, according to the writer Josephus, that was exactly why Antipas had John arrested.
The story went around that Antipas had imprisoned John on account of his wife, Herodias. [jd1] She had divorced her uncle Herod II, who was wealthy but who ruled no territory, and married his brother, Herod Antipas, who was tetrarch of Galilee and Peraea. John, in criticizing Antipas for his misrule, drew attention to the fact that this marriage violated Jewish law as codified in Scripture.
Mark and Matthew relate a tale in which Herodias's teenage daughter by her previous husband danced for her step-father and his friends at a party. The tetrarch was so taken by her feminine appeal that he promised her anything she wanted, even half his kingdom. Since he wasn't authorized by the Emperor to divide his tetrarchy, the offer did not mean much. But, the girl, Salome, went to her mother and asked her what she should say. Herodias replied, "Tell him you want John's head brought to you on a platter!"
The girl did as her mother said and Antipas, who had enjoyed questioning John, was greatly disturbed. But because he had made his pledge in front of his friends, he ordered John beheaded and the head given to his step-daughter.
When John's disciples heard that their teacher had been executed, they came to the prison and removed his body to assure a proper Jewish burial.[jdz1]
After his death, some remembered John's words, "He must increase, but I must decrease."
Later in his ministry, Jesus addressed a crowd about John, "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A man dressed in nice clothes? Well, those who dress well live in palatial style. So what were you looking for? A prophet. Yes and even more than a prophet. It is written of him
Look! I send my messenger before your face,"Very seriously, I tell you: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John. And yet he who is least in the kingdom is greater than he was."
who will prepare your road ahead of you.[jd1a]
Jesus was not disparaging John. What he was driving at is that John represented the Old Dispensation, even though he was ushering in the New Era. A born-again believer in Christ is fabulously better off than anyone not so. By this saying, Jesus was also implying that the era of earthly rulers was effectively over, that he was the great hope of Israel.
"Since John's time until now, people are storming into the kingdom," Jesus declared. "For the Law and the Prophets tell about John. In other words, if you can accept it, John is Elijah, the one who was to come. He who can hear, listen up!"
Those who were alert would have realized that not only was Jesus crediting John for drumming up the crowds for his own ministry, but Jesus was also implying that he himself was the messiah. Not many did realize this about him prior to has final days on earth.
Luke quotes Jesus here as adding, "It is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one jot of the law to fall."
Yet Jesus was not endorsing the large number of additions and interpretations of the Biblical law formulated by religious lawyers, scholars and rabbis. As he was and is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets, and as he is the eternal bringer of eternal life, we can now understand this saying with that post-resurrection knowledge. As with much, if not most, that Jesus taught in his pre-crucifixion ministry, the full import of his words would not be disclosed until he had sent his Holy Spirit to those who put their trust in him.
In Mark and Luke the expression is "kingdom of God." In Matthew it is rendered "kingdom of heaven" except in four cases, which may represent insertions by later editors. John uses "kingdom of God" twice. The expression "kingdom of heaven" is found exclusively in Matthew.
We are fairly certain that the Matthean community included many Jewish Christians. The authors of Mark and Luke, though strongly influenced by Jewish Christians, are primarily aiming their gospels at Gentiles. The author and editors of John appear to have been Jewish Christians who had become greatly alienated from the Jewish communities.
Thus, many subscribe to the conjecture that the Matthew writer substituted "heaven" for "God" in order to avoid offending Jews by the overuse of "God," a word they had been taught to handle with great reverence. By not using it at all, they avoided, they thought, any misuse.This seems like a reasonable idea.
But, then, does that mean Jesus originally said "kingdom of heaven" but that the apostles altered the phrase when they preached to Gentiles, perhaps because "heaven" was too nebulous an idea in popular Greek culture? Or was the Matthew writer altering Jesus' words in order to minimize offense? But that seems unlikely, though not impossible, considering he had no problem including various denunciations of the scribes and Pharisees.
My solution, which need not be correct, is the idea that the phrase originally used by Jesus was "the kingdom," with no explanatory qualifier. "The kingdom is at hand" would have been pregnant with meaning, especially in that period, but its full meaning would become apparent -- when? Whenever the mind is opened. Hence, I generally quote Jesus that way, though I leave "God's kingdom" in John and in a few other places where the context seems to call for it.
The reader may notice that, these days when we use the spare "the kingdom" in the gospels, there is no loss of information or descriptive power.
In Mark and Luke the expression is "kingdom of God." In Matthew it is rendered "kingdom of heaven" except in four cases, which may represent insertions by later editors. John uses "kingdom of God" twice. The expression "kingdom of heaven" is found exclusively in Matthew.
We are fairly certain that the Matthean community included many Jewish Christians. The authors of Mark and Luke, though strongly influenced by Jewish Christians, are primarily aiming their gospels at Gentiles. The author and editors of John appear to have been Jewish Christians who had become greatly alienated from the Jewish communities.
Thus, many subscribe to the conjecture that the Matthew writer substituted "heaven" for "God" in order to avoid offending Jews by the overuse of "God," a word they had been taught to handle with great reverence. By not using it at all, they avoided, they thought, any misuse.This seems like a reasonable idea.
But, then, does that mean Jesus originally said "kingdom of heaven" but that the apostles altered the phrase when they preached to Gentiles, perhaps because "heaven" was too nebulous an idea in popular Greek culture? Or was the Matthew writer altering Jesus' words in order to minimize offense? But that seems unlikely, though not impossible, considering he had no problem including various denunciations of the scribes and Pharisees.
My solution, which need not be correct, is the idea that the phrase originally used by Jesus was "the kingdom," with no explanatory qualifier. "The kingdom is at hand" would have been pregnant with meaning, especially in that period, but its full meaning would become apparent -- when? Whenever the mind is opened. Hence, I generally quote Jesus that way, though I leave "God's kingdom" in John and in a few other places where the context seems to call for it.
The reader may notice that, these days when we use the spare "the kingdom" in the gospels, there is no loss of information or descriptive power.
When Jesus heard about John's arrest, he withdrew into Galilee. Though that area was under Antipas's control, the tetrarch's stronghold, Machaerus, was to the south, on the eastern side of the Dead Sea, while Galilee was well to the north, about 100 miles or so from Jerusalem.
Instead of returning to Nazareth, Jesus went to Capernaum, a town on Lake Galilee, which is in the area of the ancient Israeli tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali. Matthew sees this move as a fulfillment of the Isaiah prophecy:
The land of Zebulun and the land of NaphtaliFrom Galilee, Jesus began to preach God's good news. "The time has come," he said, "and God's kingdom is right at the door. So turn around and change your ways. And believe the good news!"
Toward the sea [of Galilee] beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the gentiles,
The people who sat in darkness
Saw a great light
And to those who sat in the land
of the Shadow of Death
A Great Light sprang up [jd2]
He went around in the synagogues of Galilee preaching these things [jd3] and teaching as he went. The people thought he was an excellent speaker and were glad to have him at their religious assemblies -- though at this early stage they were in the main unaware of any acts of power [miracles], which he tended to do at a low key.
NEXT PAGE:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me
https://secretpath191.blogspot.com/2020/11/the-spirit-of-lord-is-upon-me.html
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