^14:1At that time Herod the tetrarch¹ heard reports about Jesus, ^14:2and he said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead! And because of this, miraculous powers are at work in him.” ^14:3For Herod had arrested John, bound him,² and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, ^14:4because John had repeatedly told³ him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.”⁴^14:5Although⁵ Herod⁶ wanted to kill John,⁷ he feared the crowd because they accepted John as a prophet. ^14:6But on Herod’s birthday, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod, ^14:7so much that he promised with an oath⁸ to give her whatever she asked. ^14:8Instructed by her mother, she said, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.” ^14:9Although it grieved the king,⁹ because of his oath and the dinner guests he commanded it to be given. ^14:10So¹⁰ he sent and had John beheaded in the prison. ^14:11His¹¹ head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. ^14:12Then John’s¹² disciples came and took the body and buried it and went and told Jesus.

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Footnotes

1 A tetrarch, a ruler with rank and authority lower than a king, ruled only with the approval of the Roman authorities. This was roughly equivalent to being governor of a region. Several times in the NT, Herod, tetrarch of Galilee, is called a king (Matt 14:9, Mark 6:14–29), reflecting popular usage rather than an official title.
2 Most witnesses (א2 C D L W Z Θ 0106 f1, 13 33 𝔐 lat) read αὐτόν (auton, “him”) here as a way of clarifying the direct object; various important witnesses lack the word, however (א* B 700 ff1 h q). The original wording most likely lacked it, but it has been included here due to English style. includes the word in brackets, indicating reservations about its authenticity.
3 The imperfect tense verb is here rendered with an iterative force.
4 This marriage of Herod to his brother Philip’s wife was a violation of OT law (Lev 18:16; 20:21). In addition, both Herod Antipas and Herodias had each left marriages to enter into this union.
5 Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
6 Grk “he”; the referent (Herod) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
7 Grk “him” (also in the following phrase, Grk “accepted him”); in both cases the referent (John) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
8 The Greek text reads here ὁμολογέω (homologeō); though normally translated “acknowledge, confess,” ( 1) lists “assure, promise with an oath” for certain contexts such as here.
9 Grk “and being grieved, the king commanded.” Herod was technically not a king, but this reflects popular usage. See the note on tetrarch in .
10 Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.
11 Grk “And his”; the referent (John the Baptist) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
12 Grk “his”; the referent (John) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here καί (kai) has been translated as “Then.”