Mark 6: 14-29
This woman’s character isn’t one we’d like to emulate, believe me. But on a bad day, maybe even a menopause or PMS day (any males reading this should bypass this paragraph), we can become “Herodias”….bitter and not in a good frame of mind. I know this is stretching it…but bitterness can crop up from nowhere and grow in our hearts when we least expect it.
If you have a difficult time remembering “who” she is….this thought might help. She was King Herod’s brother’s (Philip’s) wife. So when you hear Herod’s name….just as “ias.”
Notice, she had been married to Philip, Herod’s brother. Events happened that we needn’t bother with, but the results were that Herod married his former sister-in-law. Not good. John (the one that leaped in Elizabeth’s womb) had been saying to Herod that it wasn’t lawful for him to have his brother’s wife.
John was acting as Herod’s Christian counselor, but he took no notice of the exhortation. The Scriptures take no time in introducing this woman and she’s not painted in a good light. Mark 6:19 begins her introduction. “So Herodias nursed a “grudge” against John and wanted to kill him.
My goodness, there’s no room for imagination here. Needless-to-say she didn’t have a teachable attitude when hearing about it from John’s counsel. He began growing on her black list right away. John was right and she was wrong, but admitting that would not be her style.
Before we begin to think of all the possibilities of not liking her, we sure can learn something from her. As we’ve eluded to before, the Bible doesn’t paint people “perfect” but it does paint them with great “accuracy.”
We’ve learned that she was bitter, and we’ll come to all that; but have you and I ever been bitter when someone has confronted us about a bad attitude or unhealthy or ungodly behavior?
Another way of saying that might be, do you and I have a tendency to get in a “huff inwardly or outwardly” if we’re corrected? Ouch…let’s not cast stones in an aquarium we’ve swum around from time to time.
Sometimes God has used another person to quietly correct me…how about you?
Let’s move forward to some of the words that describe bitter. I don’t even like how the word sounds, how about you?
Bitter: sour, sharp, harsh, severe, tart, caustic, sarcastic, biting
Aren’t these words distasteful! I’d never want to be categorized with any of them, and yet my countenance and attitude has raised its ugly head from time to time. I can identify with these every so often in my life, can anyone join me on this one?
Sometimes this inner attitude seeps out of our pores without our permission. Our heart attitudes pour right out of our lips and behavior and, it isn’t a pretty picture.
For those of us privileged to have proceeded through menopause or PMS, we “know” there are those moments, hours or days where we’d like to even get away from ourselves and can’t. I hope you’re having a chuckle at this moment. But honestly, where do you go to get away from yourself? Now I’m hysterical with laughter. Let me pause to compose myself.
This attitude that can “spring into behavior at a moment’s notice” isn’t godly or attractive. So please don’t interpret the above paragraph to say that Herodias’ life-style or behavior is anything but right.
She hates John’s exposure of her sin, takes it personally (and she should) and determines that at the right time and in the right setting, she’s going for John’s jugular.
Scriptures tells us Herod was curious and somewhat fearful of John because he knew he was a righteous man. He even enjoyed listening to him and somewhat enamored with John. That is when he wasn’t being corrected by him. He knew that John’s counsel was right, but he was king and perhaps felt “above being counseled.” Accountability didn’t seem to be in his vocabulary.
There’s no mention in Scripture that Herodias ever appreciated John and his “let’s get our hearts right with God” approach. She could have taken his counsel to heart. Obviously her conscience troubled her, but ignored the warning signs.
She obviously knew “about” God, but she never “reverenced Him.” She had no commitment to her marriage. She lacked any respect for John, God’s man of the hour. Instead she became furious because John’s counsel “exposed her heart and behavior.”
The soil of her heart was ripe for the seed of bitterness to take root and grow. No doubt the more she thought of him or saw him or even heard her Herod talk about John, it just added fuel to her inner furnace.
She knew she was guilty, then became resentful and no doubt bad-mouthed him whenever she had opportunity. We never read of any conversation between Herod and Herodias talking about “repenting.”
Preaching of God’s word does that sometimes, doesn’t it? Pastors have the responsibility to “comfort the afflicted” and at the same time “afflict the comfortable.”
Our world is filled with Herods and Herodiases. Even when we’re being kind and thoughtful and honoring in our behavior to others, people may not like us because our behavior exposes theirs.
The important thing is that we don’t behave in ways that “deserve their accusations.” Haven’t you found that our approach and love of the other person should greatly affect how I approach another?
Even a wise approach can help another be willing to listen and heed good counsel. You know what I mean. If you don’t perhaps we could have coffee and talk about it over a cinnamon roll.
But if I’m unhealthy, I want my doctor to be honest, or I won’t get better.
Herodias didn’t “want to repent/change.” Her defensiveness exposed her heart. This attitude within her heart was fueled by her nursing anger toward John. I’m sure she re-lived his counsel and became “historical in her recollection of his rebuke.”
It all came to a head at Herod’s birthday party. Philip and Herodias had a daughter from their marriage. She must have been attractive and knew the right moves to entertain Herod and his guests. Even his attitude towards Herodias’ daughter wasn’t like what it should have been as a perhaps “step dad”….as no doubt her dancing was provocative to say the least.
It must have stirred him in some ways because Herod asked the girl. “Ask me for anything you want, and I’ll give it to you. And if that wasn’t inviting enough, he laced it with “And he promised her with an oath, whatever you ask I will give you, up to half my kingdom.” Now that must have been some dance, if you ask me. The Scriptures don’t seem to flatter or doctor up the truth…it just tells it.
I know my personality is going to leak out here … but I’ve attempted many a nice meal for my husband. You know candles, tablecloth, music and his favorite meal. But in all the years we’ve been married, he’s never responded like Herod. You know, whatever you’d like, it’s yours response.
Reading between the lines, the daughter sought counsel from her mother, Herodias. They had something up their sleeves, you can bank on that. Herodias caused her daughter to sin, so she lacked no restraint in this attitude. Her scheming was brazen, rebellious and hateful.
The daughter was even instructed by her mother as to how to carry out their bitter plan. “I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” We can see that this bitterness was well incubated and ripe for the request.
Herodias wanted John and his testimony out of her life, and this was the moment she was waiting for. Her bitterness and hatred were lethal weapons. John was imprisoned for his stand for righteousness and now he was about to “go home to heaven”….but not without losing his head first to an embittered, ugly-hearted woman. He may have been imprisoned, but his heart was free!
When we think about it, Herodias’ heart was imprisoned by her bitterness and it had eaten away at her. It had taken “her” captive and the environment became murderous and ugly at that birthday party.
Even Herod became distressed by the situation, but his behavior was far from kingly, and his pride was so great that because of his oath, status and dinner guests, he didn’t refuse her. Talk about being a man of your word….in the worst possible way.
Bitterness can color any heart and take people by storm. Everyone in this picture and at that party was touched by this murderous and bitter attitude. It poisoned her, Herod, her family, the guests and caused horrible distress and sadness for the disciples that came for his body, not to mention the agony of Jesus.
There’s nothing happy about this ending. From letting this situation marinate in my own heart, I don’t ever want bitterness to ever root in me, for it’s an ugly and active attitude that can kill motivation, encouragement, and shatter relationships and the reputation of another.
Lord God, thank you for your mercy and instruction. We want our lives to ooze with the “fragrance of your grace.”
Cups of Cold Water 