This verse follows on directly from the previous one. So that is the link, and it may be translated as “… and her dancing pleased Herod so much that he promised…” or “He was so pleased that he promised….”

He promised with an oath to give her is in part transformed into direct discourse in Good News Translation: “he promised her, ‘I swear that I will give….’ ” Promised with an oath translates a structure which is the strongest possible way of making a promise; New Jerusalem Bible has “that he promised on oath to give.” Another possible restructuring, utilizing partial direct discourse, is “he made an oath and promised her, ‘I will give you….’ ”

See 5.33 for a discussion of oath and other forms of swearing.

Whatever she might ask is too brief for some languages. “Anything she might ask for” or “anything that she asked him to give her” are other renderings.

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .