Horseradish is not for Horses
Horseradish should not be confused with the red and white radishes you sometimes eat in a salad. It is usually sold in stores as a creamy sauce in a small bottle. Beware! The first time you eat some, be sure that you take only a tiny amount with a bite of meat, for it is more hot and spicy than you might think.
The horseradish plant itself is rather pretty. Its clean white blossoms give no clue as to the taste that is in its roots, which go down as much as 14 feet, and from which horseradish sauce is made. People who grow this in their home gardens usually make their own sauce by grating the roots to a fine hash and adding vinegar and salt. But the job of grating is unpleasant, for horseradish is much worse than onions in bringing tears to the eyes. It also has an unpleasant smell.
A strange thing about horseradish sauce is that a person who tastes it the first time is not likely to try it again, because it is so hot. But those who continue to eat it learn to like it and will eat it when it is available.
This is the reason, no doubt, that it has also been given the name devil root. An author of an article about it has said, “Certainly horseradish has some characteristics in common with sin: it’s delicious, but there are side effects. And like sin it’s easy to start.” (And we might add, hard to stop.)
What he said is worth thinking about, for any sin once allowed in our lives is hard to turn away from. The Israelites on the way to Canaan, complaining to Moses in the opening Bible verse, were an example of this. The Lord had delivered them from Egypt and the hard life there, promising something much better ahead, but they complained, for they could only think of the food they had left behind in that evil land.
The Bible warns of this, saying in Proverbs 4:14,1514Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. 15Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away. (Proverbs 4:14‑15), “Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass [go] away.” Earlier, in Proverbs 1:1010My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. (Proverbs 1:10), the warning is given: “My son, if sinners entice [tempt] thee, consent thou not.”
And so the “devil root” to be concerned about is not really the horseradish that we eat, but that which it reminds us of — Satan himself. The Word of God, the Bible, prepares us for Satan’s temptations when it says: “Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” Ephesians 6:1111Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. (Ephesians 6:11). The “armor of God” means being full of trust and faith in the Lord Jesus as our Saviour, and walking according to God’s Word, allowing Him to be our help and guide in everything. Are you doing this?
ML 04/22/1990