There are times when God gets angry (Num 22:22, 1Ki
11:9, Ps 78:59, Jer 10:10, etc), so we can know that anger can be a holy
emotion and not at all sin. But for us to be angry and to avoid sin is not at
all natural for the fallen man. To this end, His Word specifically counsels us
not to sin in our anger (Eph 4:26). The wise and the godly heed that, and give
space for their anger to subside before making key decisions. The foolish and
the unwise immediately take regretful action.
Herod had told the Magi to
return to him when they found the King of the Jews. But God warned them in a
dream not to return, so they went another route home after worshipping the
Christ-child. “When Herod realized that he had been
outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys
in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance
with the time he had learned from the Magi.”[1]
There is no doubt Herod had ordered the Magi to return so he could destroy the
Christ-child where He lay. Frustrated and angry that his evil order was
disobeyed, he unleashes the full perversion of his sin in a vengeful and
horrific edict. In so doing he causes
irreparable harm to the very people he is charged with governing.
Over his lifetime, Herod
had done much. He had rebuilt the Jewish temple, he had commissioned many large
projects and provided employment for many. If there is any metric by which we
judge our leaders, surely this is it – a leader must benefit the population
they are governing. If they do so, the population grows and is enriched. This ultimately benefits the leader too, as a
larger and better off population is more able to bring blessing to the king (in
the form of taxes and labor) and better able to defend the land – to the
betterment of both king and population. Herod’s hasty decision does the
opposite, to his people’s great anguish. It might even be said that this single
foolish act undoes all his accomplishments. For this pivotal command is forever
marked in Scripture, denoting Herod as a failure as a king.
It is said that every
decision is an emotional decision. The decisions we take either move us closer
to God (wise decisions) or further away (poor decisions). But nothing moves us
further away from Him than a poor decision fueled by anger.
· Look back at
the last major life decision you made.
Was it made in love?
· What decision
are you facing today? How will that
decision differ if you make it in love and compassion instead of anger or
bitterness?
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