ルカによる福音書9:7-9 Luke 9:7-9,

しかし、ヘロデは言った。「ヨハネなら、わたしが首をはねた。いったい、何者だろう。耳に入ってくるこんなうわさの主は。」そして、イエスに会ってみたいと思った。　　　（ルカ9:9）

領主ヘロデは、洗礼者ヨハネを処刑したにもかかわらず、再び人々の心をとらえて大きな影響力をもつイエスという人物が現れたので、どう対処してよいかわからず、ひどく不安な気持ちをもったのでありました。

これは、彼が権力者として自分の権力を維持していくために、影響力のある人物に対して目を光らせて、早めに手を打とうとしていたからでありましょう。すなわち、イエスとは何者であるか、というその正体がわからなかったために、どのような手を打ったらよいかもわからなかったのです。ところが、それだけではなく、領主ヘロデはイエスに会ってみたいとも思っていました。9節に「イエスに会ってみたいと思った」と記されているとおりです。それは、正体を見極めたいというだけではなく、会うことによって、自分が何かの利益を受けたいと考えていたからでありましょう。 牢屋に入れた洗礼者ヨハネに対しても、領主ヘロデは「その教えを聞いて非常に当惑しながらも、なお喜んで耳を傾けていた」のでした。おそらく、イエス・キリストに対しても、同じような態度で接しようとしたのだと思われます。

それでは、これに対してキリストは、どのような態度で、領主ヘロデに向き合ったのでしょうか？領主ヘロデに対抗して攻撃を仕掛けたのでしょうか？それとも、領主ヘロデを恐れて逃げて行ったのでしょうか？ルカによる福音書の13章32節と33節には、そのどちらでもないことを表すキリストの御言葉が記されています。すなわち、ある人々が「ここを立ち去ってください。ヘロデがあなたを殺そうとしています」とイエス・キリストに警告をしました。すると、キリストは次のようにおっしゃいました。「行って、あの狐に、『今日も明日も、悪霊を追い出し、病気をいやし、三日目にすべてを終える』とわたしが言ったと伝えなさい。だが、わたしは今日も明日も、その次の日も自分の道を進まねばならない。預言者がエルサレム以外の所で死ぬことは、ありえないからだ。」すなわち、イエス・キリストは、毅然として父なる神様からゆだねられた福音宣教の働きを続け、また毅然として父なる神様から与えられた十字架の道を歩むということを宣言なさったのであります。キリストは、地上の権力者である領主ヘロデとの関係で歩むべき道を決めておられたのではなく、天の父なる神様との関係でご自身の歩むべき道を決めておられたのであります。

（7月9日の説教より）

Even Christians who believe that God is in control of everything live in the world under the powers of the world. In other words, Christians are sent into the world to be given the ministry of witness about Christ in the Sunday service. They then live in the world from Monday to Saturday. In this world, they strive to live according to God’s will under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. However, in the place of their sent life, they often experience sufferings in the face of the powers of the world that are not in accordance with God’s will.

The powers of this world can be the powers of the state, or the powers of the workplace, school or local community. It may also be the pressures that come from the relationships of close associates or the demands that come from family relationships. Where several people come together, political power relations arise, to a greater or lesser extent. And when a group of people is organised in some way, it creates those who have power and those who do not. Of course, the form of that organisation will be very different in ancient and modern times. For example, in ancient times, the form of government was usually a monarchy ruled by a king, whereas in modern times, many countries have a democratic system in which the people who hold political office are decided by a vote. However, the fact that some people have power and others do not is common to both ancient and modern times. Therefore, it is important for Christians to consider the relationship between Jesus Christ and those in power in the world.

In today’s Bible passages, we see a man called Herod, who had a power in New Testament times. It is important to note that there are several different people named Herod in the New Testament. The most famous Herod is the brutal Herod the Great, who, at the time of the birth of Jesus Christ, killed every boy under the age of two living in Bethlehem for fear that his kingship would be threatened. This Herod the Great is the father of Herod the tetrarch, i.e., Herod Antipas in today’s Bible passages. Herod Antipas was born around 20 BC to Herod the Great and a Samaritan woman named Malthace. Herod the Great had decreed in his will that after his death his kingdom should be divided into three parts, with a child named Archelaus as king, Antipas as lord of Galilee and Perea, and a child named Philip as lord of Gauranitis, Terachonitis, Batanea and Panaeas. Herod Antipas, who thus became lord of Galilee and Perea, ruled his territory for more than 40 years, from 4 BC to 39 AD. He followed the example of his father, Herod the Great, in his building projects and built a new city on the shores of Lake Galilee. He named the city Tiberias in memory of the Roman emperor Tiberius and made it the capital of Galilee.

Herod Antipas was apparently not as brutal as his father, Herod the Great, but he lived a life that was far from a God-fearing life. He married a princess from the neighbouring kingdom of Nabatea, but around 30 AD he divorced her and married Herodias, the wife of his own brother. Because of criticism from John the Baptist about this, Herod Antipas had John the Baptist arrested and put him in prison. Mark 6:19-29 describes how the captured John the Baptist was executed. Namely, Herodias, who had been criticised for their marriage, resented John the Baptist and wanted to kill him, but was unable to. This was because her husband, Herod Antipas, knew that John the Baptist was “a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly.” However, Herodias did not miss the opportunity of her daughter Salome, born to a previous husband, to dance at the birthday celebration of Herod Antipas. Herod Antipas said to Salome, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you,” and inadvertently swore, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.” Herodias made her daughter Salome wish for “the head of John the Baptist.” Herod Antipas, was very distressed, but as he had sworn, he had no choice but to accept this wish, and he sent a soldier to have John the Baptist’s head beheaded, and gave it to Salome on a tray. Salome then handed the head of John the Baptist to her mother, Herodias. This is a grotesque story, but it has been the subject of paintings, musics and other art forms. And this event is the background to today’s biblical passages.

The reputation of Jesus Christ grew as the twelve disciples, sent by him, preached the gospel of the kingdom of God in town after town and village, healing the sick. And with it, “Who is Jesus?” became rumours among the people. One of these rumours was that John the Baptist had risen from the dead. When you think about this rumour, you realise that it is not right. This is because Jesus Christ had not only already been born into the world before John the Baptist was executed, but had also begun his work as Saviour. In other words, Jesus Christ was baptised by John the Baptist in the Jordan River and publicly began his work as Saviour. His early ministry coincided with the time when John the Baptist was alive. So it is absolutely ludicrous to think of Jesus Christ as John the Baptist come back to life. Yet this ludicrousness was whispered about as if it were true.

Some people also claimed that Jesus Christ was the great Old Testament prophet Elijah. The prophet Elijah was a powerful prophet of the 9th century BC. The Old Testament book of 2 Kings tells the wondrous story of Elijah being welcomed into heaven without experiencing physical death. Also in the Old Testament, Malachi 3:23 prophesies, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes.” This means that a prophet like Elijah will be sent by God in the last days. People applied this to Jesus Christ. However, Christ himself says in Matthew 11:14 that John the Baptist was Elijah.

Alternatively, the powerful teachings and miracles of Jesus Christ reminded people of other prophets in the Old Testament, so it is not surprising that some people said that “one of the prophets of old had risen.” There was a man called Elisha, a disciple of the prophet Elijah. He performed the miracle of bringing a dead child back to life in a place called Shunem. Jesus Christ also performed the miracle of bringing the daughter of the synagogue ruler Jairus back to life, so there were similarities with the work of the prophet Elisha. This is why it was said, “One of the prophets of old had risen.”

The reaction of Herod Antipas to Jesus Christ was mixed. In verse 7 of today’s passages we read that “Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening, and he was perplexed.” The word “perplexed” seems to be a slightly weak translation. The newer editions of Japanese Bible used by evangelical churches translate it as “greatly perplexed.” The Greek word diapoleō (διαπορέω) translated means “greatly perplexed” or “at a loss.” In other words, Herod Antipas, did not know how to cope with the appearance of Jesus, who had once again captured the hearts of the people and had great influence over them, and he felt terribly uneasy.

This was probably because, as a man who had a power, he wanted to keep an eye on influential people and take early action in order to maintain his power. He did not know who Jesus was, and therefore did not know what steps to take. But not only that, Herod Antipas also wanted to meet Jesus, as verse 9 says: “he sought to see him.” This was not only because he wanted to find out who he was, but also because he wanted to benefit in some way from meeting Jesus. Even with John the Baptist, whom he had put in prison, when he heard him, Herod Antipas was “greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly.” Presumably, Herod Antipas tried to treat Jesus Christ in the same way.

So what was Christ’s attitude towards Herod Antipas in response? Did he attack against Herod Antipas? Or did he flee in fear of Herod Antipas? In Luke 13:32-33, we find Christ’s words expressing neither of these. Some people said to Christ, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” Christ then answered to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’” In other words, Jesus Christ resolutely declared that he would continue the work of preaching the gospel entrusted to him by God the Father, and that he would resolutely walk in the way of the cross given to him by God the Father. Christ did not determine his path in relation to Herod Antipas of the earthly powers, but in relation to God the Father in heaven.

This shows how Christians should live in relation to earthly authorities. This means that, whatever the earthly powers may say, Christians should walk faithfully in the way of the cross they have been given, faithfully fulfilling the gospel ministry they have been given, just as Jesus Christ did. The Christian attitude towards earthly authorities must not be mere rebellion or mere obedience. It is important to walk the Christian path following Christ.

The religious reformer Calvin taught the following about how to be prepared when we are afflicted by evil authorities of the world (Institutes of Christian Religion, Book 4, chapter 20, 29-32). First, that we must be patient and humble because God is punishing us with the whip of bad authorities. Second, it is not the task of Christians to replace bad authorities, but to pray for help of God who can do it. To save God’s people from bad authorities, God may raise up special servants of God, such as Moses who delivered Israel from the king of Egypt, or other authorities who do not believe in God, such as Cyrus, the Persian king who delivered Israel from Babylon. We should remember that God can defeat evil authorities, using those who do not believe in God and think only of doing evil.

As Christ said in Matthew 26:52: “All who take the sword will perish by the sword,” those who try to dominate others by violence will be destroyed by the violence of another. Therefore, Christians should not exert themselves to bring down bad authorities, but patiently wait for the day when bad authorities will be brought down by God’s fair judgement.

And if the bad authorities seek to do something against God, Christians need not obey their commands. In other words, as the religious reformer Calvin wrote at the end of his Institutes of Christian Religion as an exception to obedience to those in authority, “If they command anything against God, we must never approve of it” (Book 4, Chapter 20, 32), if those in authority command us to do something against God, we do not have to obey them. For example, if the authorities force us to worship idols, we need not and must not obey them.

Later, when Jesus Christ was sent by Pontius Pilate, governor of the Roman Empire, because Jesus was from Galilee, Herod Antipas interrogated him and tried to get something out of him. However, when Christ did not answer anything, he joined the soldiers in insulting him and then sent him back to Pontius Pilate in a splendid clothing. In the midst of this suffering, Christ did not ask for any help from Herod Antipas. Christ remained resolute on the road to the cross until the end.

What about the end of Herod Antipas, on the other hand? About nine years after Herod’s marriage to Herodia, Herodia’s brother Agrippa I was appointed king of Northeastern Palestine. So, egged on by the power-hungry Herodia, Herod Antipas went to the Roman emperor Caligula and demanded that he be given the throne as king as well. However, this action provoked his rival Agrippa I, who accused him of treason. Thus, Herod Antipas was found guilty and exiled by the Roman emperor to what is now Spain or France, where he died. According to one account, he was even executed. In other words, Herod Antipas, a powerful authority who persecuted John the Baptist and Jesus Christ, lost all power in less than ten years.

In the Old Testament, Psalm 37:1-2 says as follows.

Fret not yourself because of evildoers;

be not envious of wrongdoers!

For they will soon fade like the grass

and wither like the green herb.

There may be people around us who seem to be doing what they want with their power. But let us not be irritated by such people. God will crush those who wield power in their own way. Rather, we should persevere when we are persecuted and use it as an opportunity to proclaim the gospel. For example, the Apostle Paul preached Christ when he was put in prison because of persecution. Even if we are not put in prison, the life of a Christian who looks up to God in the midst of persecution and misunderstanding and walks faithfully in his ministry of proclaiming the gospel is an excellent testimony to Christ that leads unexpected people.