Mark 6:17-20 "For Herod himself had given orders to have John arrested, and he had him bound and put in prison. He did this because of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, whom he had married. 18 For John had been saying to Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." 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. When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled; yet he liked to listen to him." NIV
This passage is a classic example of the struggle between conscience and convenience! Confronted by John the Baptist for unlawfully taking his brother’s wife to be his own mistress, Herod is being stirred in his conscience by the rebuke of this righteous man. The problem is, he also enjoys his sin! As verse 20 tells us Herod both enjoyed listening to John and was greatly puzzled by the things that he taught. But another voice was speaking into his life also.
The voice of sin speaks loudly in our soul when we have given it a resting place. This was Herod’s dilemma. The voice of sin was speaking loudly through the mouth of his mistress. Evidently this woman was enjoying the privileged life that she had found by embracing this life of sin with Herod. Because of this when John spoke to Herod about changing this relationship her heart burned with anger against him. She carried a deep grudge against John and wanted to kill him. As a result of this awkward situation Herod is living in a chronic and constant tension. On the one hand he enjoys listening to John and even has a holy sense of fear that causes him to defend John. On the other hand his lust for this mistress leaves her voice ever present in his mind, pressing for him to take action against this righteous man.
This relationship is so parallel to the very nature of sin in its struggle against our conscience. Wherever sin is given a resting place in our hearts, even good people live in a chronic battle. James tells us in his letter that the double minded man is unstable in all of his ways. This is the fruit of this divided heart. When our hearts are inconsistent because we have made room for sin we leave the door open for costly compromises. We also create a tension where we can become ensnared by our own commitment to maintain a relationship with this sinful area. Herod’s relationship with Herodias is such an image of our relationship with sin. We try to defend a righteous place in our hearts but the roots of sin that we welcome into our lives constantly hold a grudge against the purest parts of us and seek for opportunity to destroy the life of God within us.
In the case of Herodias, her need for vengeance is finally satisfied as an opportunity is presented to her through the favor that comes upon her daughter. How could Herod have predicted that this evil woman would be able to influence her own daughter to ask for such a wicked thing as the head of John the Baptist? The problem is that sin is utterly unpredictable. It will seek opportunity against us through avenues that we least expect. It is vital that we learn to close the doors of temptation completely and leave no room for them to exploit the moments in our lives when we have let our guard down. For Herod and for each one of us the cost of making room for sin in our lives is never demanded of us on our terms. And when it is time to pay, pay we must!
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