Mark 6

"But in the next breath they were cutting him down: "He's just a carpenter--Mary's boy. We've known him since he was a kid. We know his brothers, James, Justus, Jude, and Simon, and his sisters. Who does he think he is?" They tripped over what little they knew about him and fell, sprawling. And they never got any further." Mark 6 The Message

Ah, the fickle nature of people. This reminds me of so many folks I've peripherally touched base with about Jesus---there is an arrogance that they know all about him, yet they do not know him at all.

[Herod Antipas is another half-hearted listener....intrigued enough to want to speak with him, even though it perplexed him, but not enough commitment to commit himself to Christ. The cost was clearly too high for Herod, and he eventually caved to the whims of a girl:

"... for Herod feared John, knowing that he 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." -Mark 6:20

The "Herods" always confuse me---apparently "Herod's temple" in our CC timeline is the expansion project of the 2nd temple headed up by Herod the Great. Herod Antipas was one of his sons, set over Gailee. It sounds like there may have been mental illlness in the family--in the father and in the children as the other son was deemed incompetent and the father was characterized as a "madman." From the Biblical accounts, Herod Antipas seems to struggle with Jesus and his relationships:

Herod (Hebrew: הוֹרְדוֹס‎, Hordos, Greek: Ἡρῴδης, Hērōdēs), also known as Herod the Great (born 73 or 74 BCE, died 1 BCE in Jericho[1]), was a Roman client king of Judea.[2][3][4] His epithet of "the Great" is widely disputed as he is described as "a madman who murdered his own family and a great many rabbis."[5][6][7] He is also known for his colossal building projects in Jerusalem and elsewhere, including his expansion of the Second Temple in Jerusalem (sometimes referred to as Herod's Temple) and the construction of the port at Caesarea Maritima. Important details of his biography are gleaned from the works of the 1st century CE Roman-Jewish historian Josephus Flavius.

The Romans made Herod's son Herod Archelaus ethnarch of Judea, Samaria, and Idumea (biblical Edom) from 4 BCE to 6 CE, referred to as the tetrarchy of Judea. Archelaus was judged incompetent by the Roman emperor Augustus who then combined Samaria, Judea proper and Idumea into Iudaea province[8] under rule of a prefect until 41. Herod's other son Herod Antipas was tetrarch of Galilee from 4 BCE – 39 CE. -Wikipedia

"There was no limitation on His power, but His purpose was to perform miracles in the presence of faith. Only a few here had faith to come to Him for healing." -BKC

"And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them." -Mark 6:5

"And they cast out many devils and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them." Mark 6:13

It's hard to come to the bottom of the issue of demons/devils. How to understand exactly what they are and are not? Not to overly fear them, but not to underly estimate them is tricky.

Strong's commentary on Neuter of a derivative of a daemonic being; by extension a deity: - devil, god."