¹⁹ The women added, “When we burned incense^(A) to the Queen of Heaven^(B) and poured out drink offerings to her, did not our husbands^(C) know that we were making cakes^(D) impressed with her image^(E) and pouring out drink offerings to her?”

¹⁸ The children gather wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women knead the dough and make cakes to offer to the Queen of Heaven.^(A) They pour out drink offerings^(B) to other gods to arouse^(C) my anger.

¹⁵ Then all the men who knew that their wives^(A) were burning incense^(B) to other gods, along with all the women^(C) who were present—a large assembly—and all the people living in Lower and Upper Egypt,^(D) said to Jeremiah,

¹⁹ So Herodias nursed a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But she was not able to, ²⁰ because Herod feared John and protected him, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man.^(A) When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled^[a]; yet he liked to listen to him.

²¹ Finally the opportune time came. On his birthday Herod gave a banquet^(B) for his high officials and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee.^{(C) 22} When the daughter of^[b] Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner guests.

The king said to the girl, “Ask me for anything you want, and I’ll give it to you.” ²³ And he promised her with an oath, “Whatever you ask I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”^(D)

²⁴ She went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?”

“The head of John the Baptist,” she answered.

²⁵ At once the girl hurried in to the king with the request: “I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”

²⁶ The king was greatly distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her. ²⁷ So he immediately sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head. The man went, beheaded John in the prison,

⁶ He followed the ways of the kings of Israel,^(A) as the house of Ahab had done, for he married a daughter of Ahab.^(B) He did evil in the eyes of the Lord.

²⁵ (There was never^(A) anyone like Ahab, who sold himself to do evil in the eyes of the Lord, urged on by Jezebel his wife.

³ Do not intermarry with them.^(A) Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, ⁴ for they will turn your children away from following me to serve other gods,^(B) and the Lord’s anger will burn against you and will quickly destroy^(C) you.

⁶ “If she marries after she makes a vow^(A) or after her lips utter a rash promise by which she obligates herself ⁷ and her husband hears about it but says nothing to her, then her vows or the pledges by which she obligated herself will stand.