Mark 6:20 Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly.
I think maybe Herod was like a lot of other people throughout history who have found the message of godliness and righteousness fascinating.
They know there is something special about it, they want to learn more about it, but when it comes to acting on it, they pull back.
Herold knew that somehow what John the Baptist was telling him was true and right, and ought to be heeded.
Yet Herod, from all I have read about him, was too weak-willed to do anything to change his life or his actions.
I suspect that Herod regretted his response to John the Baptist in one way or another until the day he died. His decision to have John beheaded led him into spiritual disarray. We see that in the next episode we read of him in the Bible, when he wanted to see Jesus perform a miracle, but nothing is said of his wanting to hear any message from Jesus as he had heard from John.
Herod’s life continued as one disaster after another and he committed suicide in the end. There is nothing more disastrous than that.
All of which tells me once again that rejection of the Truth is a dangerous, spiritually disastrous road to follow.
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