Luke 9:9

he desired Literally, "was seeking this agrees with Luke 23:8, "he was desirous to see him of a long season." St Luke may have heard particulars about Herod from Chuzas (Luke 8:3) when he was with St Paul at Caesarea Stratonis, or from Manaen at Antioch (Acts 13:1). The curiosity of Herod about Jesus does not seem to have been aroused before this period. A half-alien tyrant such as he was, belonging to a detested house, is often little aware of what is going on among the people; but the mission of the Twelve in all directions, and therefore possibly to Tiberias, produced effects which reached his ears. His wish to see Jesus was not gratified till the day of the crucifixion partly because our Lord purposely kept out of his reach, feeling for him a pure contempt ("this fox," Luke 13:32), and for this among other reasons never so much as entered the polluted and half-heathen streets of Herod's new town of Tiberias (which partly covered the site of an old cemetery); and partly because, after the news of John's murder, He seems at once to have withdrawn from all permanent work in Gennesareth. During the mission of the Twelve we infer that He made a journey alone to Jerusalem to the unnamed feast of John 5:1, probably the Feast of Purim. During this visit occurred the healing of the cripple at Bethesda.