‘INTENDING AFTER EASTER’

READING ACTS 12:1-4, 20-23

‘And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people.’ Acts 12:4

I have chosen this text for a ‘Thought for the Week’ because it is the only mention of Easter in the Bible (AV) and because the events of this chapter occur around Eastertime. King Herod Agrippa I was looking ahead to Easter, which was about a week away, and had plans for what he would do thereafter. He was ‘intending after Easter’.

Marcus Julius Agrippa I (King Herod Agrippa 1), born in 10 BCE, was one of four members of the Herodian dynasty mentioned in the New Testament. The others are:

• His grandfather, Herod the Great, king of Judea, who reigned at the time of Jesus’ birth. In the Gospel of Matthew chapter 2 he orders the massacre of all male infants in Bethlehem in an attempt to kill the baby Jesus.
• His uncle, Herod Antipas – He was one of Herod the Great’s sons, and ruled over Galilee and Perea during the time of Jesus’ ministry. He was the ruler who executed John the Baptist and who mocked Jesus at his trial.
• His son, Marcus Julius Agrippa II (Herod Agrippa II), who ruled over parts of Judea and Galilee. He is called King Agrippa in the Book of Acts, which describes how he heard the apostle Paul’s defence against accusations of blasphemy.

See my posts: KING HEROD AGRIPPA II (part 1); KING HEROD AGRIPPA II (part 2); KING HEROD AGRIPPA II (part 3)

This man Herod Agrippa I in Acts 12, was the grandson of Herod the Great and ruled over Judea and Samaria. He was brought up and educated along with the imperial family in Rome and was a close personal friend of the emperors Gaius (Caligula) and Claudius who granted him wide areas of territory to rule on Rome’s behalf as a client king.

Herod Agrippa I was a successful politician who managed to balance dual identity as a Jew and a Roman. Whilst maintaining excellent relations with Rome he acted as a devout Jew while in Judaea. He observed the festivals, offered sacrifices at the temple, and donated generously to Jewish causes. He was generally popular and was particularly highly regarded by the Jewish religious leaders whose approval he cultivated, especially the Pharisees.

As Acts 12:3 mentions, he also persecuted the early church, hoping to please the Jews who vehemently opposed the Christians. He executed James, the brother of John, and arrested Peter, planning to kill him ‘after Easter’.

The Greek word translated ‘Easter’ in Acts 12:4 is pascha which occurs 29 times in the New Testament. In 28 of those occurrences it is rendered ‘passover’ – referring to the night when the Lord passed over Egypt and killed all the firstborn of Egypt (Ex. 12:12). The Authorized Version (King James), like the modern Bible Versions, uses the word ‘passover’ where this word pascha occurs; with the notable exception of Acts 12:4, where it translates it as ‘Easter.’

The AV translators took on board Luke’s comment at the end of verse 3: ‘Then were the days of unleavened bread’. This tells us that Peter was arrested during the Festival of Unleavened Bread (Nisan 15-21). Since it always followed the Passover (Nisan 14th) the Passover that year had already come and gone. Herod could not possibly have had the Passover in mind as regards his plans for Peter. The next Passover was a year away! It seems likely that Herod had in mind an Ancient Near Eastern pagan spring festival (now called Easter) in honour of the goddess Astarte/ Ishtar which was celebrated around the same time as Passover and which was due to fall within a few days.

The end of Acts chapter 12 records that Herod Agrippa I died suddenly at Caesarea Maritima after the people hailed him as a god. ‘The angel of the Lord smote him’ (Acts 12:23) for accepting divine honours and he died in 44 CE at the age of fifty-four. His intentions were unfulfilled.

Many people make plans for the period after Easter, whether to travel, work, study or relax. Few, however, bear in mind that there may be unforeseen circumstances or changes that affect them. They might never be able to carry out their intentions. Herod was no doubt confident that he would execute Peter after Easter but things did not quite work out as he had planned. After Easter Herod was no longer alive.

This is a salutary lesson for those of us who have plans for the week ahead, and beyond. Our intentions, unlike those of Herod, might be legitimate and good. For some, however, carefully laid plans might not come to pass. Life is uncertain and time is short. Are there matters that we really ought to sort out before Easter? Is there someone we should speak to about spiritual matters? Is there unresolved friction with another family or church member? Is there sin that needs to be confessed to God and forsaken?

Most of us have plans for Easter and hope to see them through. Let us not forget, however, the sad case of King Herod Agrippa I – who was ‘intending after Easter’.