Exploring the Herod and Mary Connection
RECENT HOSPITALIZATION
Kathie Lee was hospitalized due to a fall while recovering from hip replacement surgery in June. As reported by PEOPLE magazine, “the former Today co-host suffered a fractured pelvis in two places and was hospitalized for over a week for physical therapy. Gifford says she "moved 300 books by myself" during book signings in Nashville. "I weakened my body," she says. "It's my own fault." The next day, one of Gifford's friends came by to pick her up. She hurried to the door and ‘just tripped.' She says, "It didn't take much, because I was weak in that spot. And the next thing you know, I am back in the hospital with a fractured pelvis, the front and the back. That's more painful than anything I went through with the hip. The pelvis is unbelievably painful. But anyway, here I am."
HEROD THE GREAT
Kathie Lee says that she’s been completely fascinated by King Herod since 2012, when she went on a rabbinical study trip to Israel, led by famous Bible scholar Ray Vander Laan. The various sites they explored, and Vander Laan’s correction of common misunderstandings of Scripture drew her in, especially his explanation of Herod’s background, blind ambition, and bloodthirst. “Herod’s life was marked by triumph, tragedy, murder, debauchery, and political intrigue,” Kathie Lee says. It surprised her to learn how highly-regarded the Judean monarch was outside Israel and how deeply the Jews hated him for his aspiration to be revered as the “King of Jews.”
At the same time, it disgusted her to read of Herod’s insatiable lust for power, stopping at nothing to gain more, including murdering his own wife, Mariamne. His greed was legendary, she says. “He was the richest man in the world then; more so than Elon Musk is today.” While the story of Jesus Christ is considered the greatest story ever told, Kathie Lee calls the story of Herod the Great the greatest story never told. The idea of writing a book about the ancient king came from her son, Cody, and is the first in a series she’ll be co-writing called Ancient Evil/ Living Hope. Another motivation for Kathie Lee and her co-author, Dr. Bryan Litfin of Liberty University, for doing extensive research on Herod is to prove that humanity has always been capable of the darkest evil. Kathie Lee says she believes there’s not more evil today than in prior eras. “There’s just more cable channels and cell phones now!” she quips. Overarching Herod’s wickedness, the authors highlight the clear providence of God in using all things for his purposes in redemptive history.
MARY THE FAITHFUL
In starkest contrast to King Herod, stands Mary, the teen chosen by God to bear his incarnate Son. “The juxtaposition of these characters is a message for today,” Kathie Lee explains. Though evil has always existed, so also has the purity of faith and obedience to God’s calling that Mary exhibited. Only twelve to fourteen-years-old when the angel Gabriel announced that she would conceive a child by the Holy Spirit, Mary knew what that would in her culture, Kathie Lee points out. “To conceive a child out of wedlock would result in terrible shame, possibly even death by communal stoning. Certainly, Joseph would call off the marriage, resulting in a life of poverty and rejection as a tainted woman who couldn’t keep herself chaste. Even if the illegitimate son went on to become a great king like the visitor said, Mary knew she would still have to contend with the immense societal disgrace of an unwanted pregnancy. Can such a thing really be from God?” Mary’s faith and willing obedience gives people hope amidst the darkest of circumstances, both in ancient times and today, Kathie Lee believes. Though all looked bleak about Mary’s situation, she says the Lord was orchestrating every detail for His glory, her good, and the redemption of His people through Jesus.
Kathie Lee recounts how the lives of Mary and Herod intertwined when the Judean king heard of an infant child believed to be the Messiah and future King of the Jews -- an obvious threat to his reign. The king issued an edict that all male children two-years-old and younger in Bethlehem and the vicinity be killed, known as the Massacre of the Innocents. The Lord then appeared to Joseph, telling him to take Mary and Jesus and flee to Egypt, which was not under Herod’s rule. There they stayed until the king’s death in 4 BC.
CODAS
Following the non-fiction narrative of Herod and Mary is a series of codas, or life applications stemming from Dr. Litfin’s interview of Kathie Lee. Correlating to each chapter of the book, they discuss the lessons learned from Herod’s wretched example and Mary’s faithful one, as Kathie Lee applies those to her own life, past and present. From her family and successes to the most painful events of her life, i.e. being publically accused in 1996 of running Honduran sweatshops for her clothing line, and her husband’s infidelity the following year, Kathie Lee explains how darkness was turned to light in her own life, just as Herod’s wickedness was used by God to bring about much good. The themes of forgiveness, humility, and trust in the Lord run throughout this section. She says she wants to give people hope no matter how dark this world becomes and lead them to friendship with God – “the best gift you can give someone,” she says with conviction.
To purchase Kathie Lee's book, Herod and Mary, and to learn more about her latest projects please visit Kathie Lee Gifford's website: www.KathieLeeGifford.com.
