Bible Strands
Mark 6:26
The king was consumed with sorrow, but because of his oaths and his guests, he did not want to refuse her.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Herod Antipas, responding to Salome’s immediate request for John the Baptist’s head, stands before his banquet guests at the moment of decision.
The words — The text highlights περὶλυπος γενόμενος (perilupos genomenos), literally “having been made encompassingly sorrowful,” and ὅρκους (horkous), meaning “oaths.”
The thread — This tension between personal grief and public obligation echoes Matthew 14:9, while the theme of regretful compulsion appears in Matthew 27:3 and Matthew 27:24.
Why it lands — The passage demands recognition that social pressure and sworn words can override moral conviction, leaving the reader to examine where they let external demands dictate unjust actions.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
And the king was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath’s sake, and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her.
Cross-references
- Matthew 14:9 The king was grieved, but because of his oaths and his guests, he ordered that her wish be granted
- Matthew 27:3 When Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was filled with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders.
- Matthew 27:24 When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but that instead a riot was breaking out, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “You bear the responsibility.”