Acts 12:20-23 Now Herod had been very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon; but they came to him with one accord, and having made Blastus the king’s personal aide their friend, they asked for peace, because their country was supplied with food by the king’s country. 21 So on a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat on his throne and gave an oration to them. 22 And the people kept shouting, “The voice of a god and not of a man!” 23 Then immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not give glory to God. And he was eaten by worms and died.

- More than 2,000 years after Herod the Great succumbed at age 69, doctors have now settled on exactly what killed the king of ancient Judea: chronic kidney disease complicated by a very uncomfortable case of maggot-infested gangrene of the genitals.

- Herod Agrippa I is the grandson of Herod the Great and king over almost all his territory with the exception of Decapolis.

- God swiftly brings King Herod low, striking him with an angel, and publicly destroying him for not giving the proper honor to God.  God sees all that we do, even perceiving to the depths of our thoughts, intentions, emotions, and hearts

Herod was a bad man

We are first introduced to the man known as King Herod at the beginning of Acts 12, where he makes great persecution against the church and against her leaders.

Acts 12:1 King Herod “laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church”

Acts 12:2-3 he killed James the brother of John with the sword…[and] proceeded to arrest Peter also

- Herod is ultimately a slave to the fear of man; his track record has proven that he was selfishly sadistic.

- He persecutes the church to ultimately please the Jews and bring glory and praise to himself.

- King Herod retreats to Caesarea in Acts 12:19, but not after putting his guards to death after allowing Peter’s escape.

Acts 12:22 the people were shouting, ‘The voice of a god, and not of a man!’

Pride

- How many of us on a daily basis succumb and give into pride and self-exaltation?

- If it were not for God’s grace and mercy in Christ, many of us would look just like Herod.

- We must repent of our pride and fear of man and turn to Christ that we may have life.

Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.

Pride in the context of this verses refers to an arrogant attitude that manifests itself as independence from God and contrasts strikingly with humility.

The proud person pursues his or her own way, but the humble one obeys God’s Word. Delighting in the Lord and humbly following His commands makes us sure-footed so that we will not slip or stagger

Psalm 37:23 The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way;

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit myeveningdevotional.substack.com/subscribe