Context No. 2478 of 4322 · Luke

Luke 9:6-10: in context

6They departed and went throughout the villages, preaching the Good News and healing everywhere. 7Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by him; and he was very perplexed, because it was said by some that John had risen from the dead, 8and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the old prophets had risen again. 9Herod said, “I beheaded John, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” He sought to see him. 10The apostles, when they had returned, told him what things they had done. He took them and withdrew apart to a desert region of a city called Bethsaida.

As the disciples fan out preaching and healing, word reaches Herod the tetrarch, and he is deeply unsettled. People are saying John the Baptist has risen, or Elijah has come, or one of the old prophets. Herod, who had John beheaded, cannot shake it: I beheaded John, but who is this I keep hearing about? And he sought to see Jesus.

Herod's interest is real, but notice where it comes from, a guilty, haunted place. He wants to see Jesus, yet the wanting rises out of an uneasy conscience, not repentance. He is curious, even fascinated, but he never turns from what he did to John. That is a warning about a certain kind of seeking. You can be intrigued by Jesus, drawn to see him, full of questions about him, and still hold him at the distance of mere curiosity, never letting the encounter cost you a change. When Herod finally meets Jesus, at the trial, he wants a miracle for entertainment and gets silence.

Is my interest in Jesus a curiosity that keeps its distance, or a seeking willing to let the encounter change how I live?

Sources

Luke 9:9: Herod said, I beheaded John, but who is this about whom I hear such things? He sought to see him.
Luke 9:7: Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by him; and he was very perplexed.
Luke 23:8: Now when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceedingly glad... hoping to see some miracle done by him.