Day 237: Matthew 2, Luke 2:39-52

No nativity scene would be complete without the "Three Wise Men" even though it doesn't seem that they were there at the actual time of Jesus' birth but came to visit some time later. We also don't really know that there were three of them...only that they brought three different types of gifts.

Anyway...the thing I'm thinking about is King Herod and his response to the Magi's visit. These men came to Herod to see if he could help them in their quest:

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”  When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. (Matthew 2:1-3)

I believe that line, "he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him" says a lot. When you read about King Herod you get the picture that his reign was much like that of many of the modern day despots who somehow rise to power over and over in that part of the world. I think of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, or Moammar Khadafi in Libya, or Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Iran. I think if any of these guys heard something about the possibility of another king being born in their realm they would be "disturbed." And I'm guessing that if any of these guys were "disturbed" that the people in their country would also be "disturbed" in another way. They would be afraid, that's what they would  be...because who could predict what any one of these crazy men would do? The only thing you know for sure is that it's going to be ugly...and bloody.

Sure enough, that was Herod's reaction:

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. (Matthew 2:16)

I think we sometimes gloss over this bit of information. I can't imagine the pain and grief that this event caused throughout the land. Jesus' birth and death were accompanied by unspeakable violence.

Then, another remarkable thought:

Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. (Luke 2:51)

The Almighty God of the Universe lives life in a humble Nazareth home as the obedient son of a common laborer and his young wife. The Creator steps into the creation. He experiences daily life from birth to adulthood...just like me.

Amazing.