Mark 6:22

And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in, and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, the king said unto the damsel, Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

6:14-29 Herod feared John while he lived, and feared him still more when he was dead. Herod did many of those things which John in his preaching taught him; but it is not enough to do many things, we must have respect to all the commandments. Herod respected John, till he touched him in his Herodias. Thus many love good preaching, if it keep far away from their beloved sin. But it is better that sinners persecute ministers now for faithfulness, than curse them eternally for unfaithfulness. The ways of God are unsearchable; but we may be sure he never can be at a loss to repay his servants for what they endure or lose for his sake. Death could not come so as to surprise this holy man; and the triumph of the wicked was short.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

For Herod feared John - That is, he stood in awe of him on account of his sanctity, and his boldness and fearlessness in reproving sin.

Knowing that he was a just man and an Holy - A holy, pious, upright, honest man - a man who would not be afraid of him, or afraid to speak his real sentiments.

And observed him - Margin, "kept him, or saved him." This does not mean that he "observed" or obeyed his teachings, but that he kept him in safe custody in order to preserve him from the machinations of Herodias. He was willing to show his respect for John, and to secure him from danger, and even to do "many things" which might indicate respect for him - at least, to do so much as to guard him from his enemies.

And did many things - But he did not do the thing which was demanded of him - to break off from his sins. He attempted to make a compromise with his conscience. He still loved his sins, and did "other" things which he supposed might be accepted in the place of putting away, as he ought, the wife of his brother - the polluted and adulterous woman with whom he lived. Perhaps he treated John kindly, or spoke well of him, or aided him in his wants, and attempted in this way to silence his rebukes and destroy his faithfulness. This was probably before John was imprisoned. So sinners often treat ministers kindly, and do much to make them comfortable, and hear them gladly, while they are still unwilling to do the thing which is demanded of them - to repent and believe the gospel. They expect that their kind attentions will be accepted in the place of what God demands - repentance and the forsaking of their sins.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

22. And when the daughter of the said Herodias—that is, her daughter by her proper husband, Herod Philip: Her name was Salome [Josephus, Antiquities, 18.5,4].

came in and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, the king said unto the damsel—"the girl" (See on [1444]Mr 5:42).

Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

See Poole on "Mark 6:14"

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in,.... To the hall, where Herod and his guests were, after supper was over; or rather, whilst at it: she is called the daughter of Herodias, and not of Herod; she having had her not by him, but by his brother Philip: her name is thought to be Salome; See Gill on Matthew 14:6,

and danced and pleased Herod, and them that were with him; at supper, his lords, captains, and principal men in his dominions; See Gill on Matthew 14:6.

The king said unto the damsel, ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee; which shows how exceedingly pleased he was; and the more, in that she gave such general pleasure to his whole company.

Geneva Study Bible

And when the daughter {o} of the said Herodias came in, and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, the king said unto the damsel, Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee.

(o) This same Herodias had the daughter by Philip, not by Herod Antipas, and Josephus called the daughter Salome.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Expositor's Greek Testament

Mark 6:22. ἤρεσεν, it, the dancing, pleased Herod and his guests.—τ. κορασίῳ, to the girl, as in Mark 5:41-42, not necessarily a child; the word was used familiarly like the Scotch word “lassie”; disapproved by Phryn., p. 73.—αἴτησόν με … ὥμοσεν: promise first, followed by oath after a little interval, during which the girl naturally hesitated what to ask.

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

22. the daughter of … Herodias] Her name was Salome, and she afterwards married (1) Philip the tetrarch of Trachonitis, her paternal uncle, and (2) Aristobulus, the king of Chalcis. “A luxurious feast of the period was not regarded as complete unless it closed with some gross pantomimic representation; and doubtless Herod had adopted the evil fashion of his day. But he had not anticipated for his guests the rare luxury of seeing a princess—his own niece, a granddaughter of Herod the Great and of Mariamne, a descendant, therefore, of Simon the High Priest, and the great line of Maccabæan princes—a princess, who afterwards became the wife of a tetrarch, and the mother of a king—honouring them by degrading herself into a scenic dancer.” Farrar’s Life of Christ, I. 391.

Bengel's Gnomen

Mark 6:22. Ὁ βασιλεὺς τῷ κορασίῳ, the king unto the damsel) An antithesis.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 22. - The words should run thus: And when the daughter of Herodias herself came in καὶ εἰσελθούσης τῆς θυγατρὸς αὐτῆς τῆς Ἡρωδιάδος. The intention of the evangelist is to point out that it was Herodias's own daughter who danced, and not a mere professional dancing-girl. Josephus mentions that dancing-women were admitted to feasts by the Jews; and Xenophon testifies to the same custom amongst the Greeks. Mark 6:22

Vincent's Word Studies

The said Herodias (αὐτῆς τῆς Ἡρωδιάδος)

The A. V. misses the point of αὐτῆς, by the translation the said: the object being not to particularize the Herodias just referred to, but to emphasize the fact that Herodias' own daughter was put forward instead of a professional dancer. Hence Rev., correctly, "the daughter of Herodias herself."

Damsel (κορασίῳ)

See on Mark 5:41.