Advent 2020 (day 4 of 26)

December 2, 2020 (Wednesday)

 

This is day 4 of the 26 days of Advent. I am following the lectionary posted by Vanderbilt University.

 

One of the things that cannot be ignored in the Bible is prophecy. Sure, we can do mental gymnastics to get around the meaning or just ignore the meaning, but that does not change its existence or significance.

 

About seven hundred years before Jesus was born, the prophet Micah wrote,

“As for you, Bethlehem of Ephrathah,
    though you are the least significant of Judah’s forces,
        one who is to be a ruler in Israel on my behalf will come out from you.
    His origin is from remote times, from ancient days.” [Micah 5:2 CEB]

 

Some might argue this passage refers to David. However Micah voices his statement in the future. In other words, Micah is referring to someone who is yet to come in his historical perspective. Micah also states this One has origins much more ancient than His physical birth. It seem clear, Micah is talking about the Messiah (Christ).

 

Micah was stating that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. Micah 5:3b states, “The rest of his kin will return to the people of Israel.” [CEB] On top of the detail that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem, there is a detail of people returning to Israel. How would this happen? I am so glad you asked?

 

Ever notice how government works God’s will? Check it out: “At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. … All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census.” [Luke 2:1, 3 NLT] So all of Jesus’ “kin” from around the Roman Empire were forced to return to Bethlehem. What are the chances that the government would force a fulfillment of prophecy?

 

In Micah 5:4 the Messiah is pictured as a shepherd. Micah 5:5 starts with, “And he will be the source of peace.” [NLT] What an awesome picture for Jesus. Peace is exactly what the world needs. Then there is a “head-scratcher” reference to a nation that terrorized Israel in Micah’s time: Assyria.

 

The Assyrian empire was a deadly and cruel excuse for a nation. They covered what would be modern Syria, Iraq, Iran, much of Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, northern Saudi Arabia, and Israel. Assyria could refer to the geopolitical dynamics or could be symbolic of a dark empire such as that of the Antichrist (or both). If it is the geopolitical dynamic, who knew 700 years before the birth of Jesus that such a dynamic would exist 2700 years later? What are the chances?

 

There is so much we do not understand about prophecy. Looking BACK we can identify people and events. Looking FORWARD our perspective gets fuzzy. Looking AROUND should give us pause to consider the possibilities.

 

Still the prophecy is clear. The Messiah was going to be born in Bethlehem. Jesus was born in Bethlehem.