A disturbed ruler (Matthew 2:1-23)
Matthew’s gospel tells us Jesus was born at the time of King Herod. When Herod was 34 he fled to Rome for protection, to his old friend Mark Anthony, who admired what he saw as Herod’s heroic qualities. Caesar Augustus was also a champion for Herod because he remembered the loyalty of Herod’s father towards his adopted father Julius Caesar. So, Caesar Augustus and Antony convened the Roman Senate who voted unanimously to make Herod “The king of the Jews” (a Roman title - not a Jewish one).
With the endorsement of Rome, Herod returns to Israel and fights his way to win the kingdom. He beheads the last male of the Hasmoneans (ruling dynasty), and also his wife and his daughter! To divide loyalties between the people, Herod takes one of the last heirs of the Hasmonean dynasty, as his wife. Matthew Ch 3:3, tells us that when the wise men came looking for Jesus, Herod is disturbed, and the whole of Jerusalem with him. The whole city, by extension, suffers from Herod’s paranoia, the fear that another has power over him.
Paranoia was not uncommon for Herod. The important ancient Jewish historian, Josephus, tells us that towards the end of Herod’s reign, daily life in the palace descended into a darkness of spying, blackmail, torture and murder. It was into this tyrannical kingdom, ruled by a dangerous and murderous madman, that Jesus Christ was born.
Herod’s response to baby Jesus was to murder all of the boys in Bethlehem under two years of age, as any could be the boy he was informed about. Even a baby was a threat to Herod’s power, so great, that bloodshed was justifiable. Herod models what we so often see in the world. The powerful, making life miserable for those below them. Herod exerts power for his own good, without a care for the impact on others.
The good surprise of Christmas is that it shows God’s pattern, in stark contrast to Herod’s, that God embraces weakness and gives up power. Lowering himself and entering the world as a weak, vulnerable and dependent baby. God uses power, never in a self-serving manner, but only for our good. The humbleness of Jesus’ birth is surpassed by his death through which he offers victory over death and the chance for all people to become friends with God.
Isn’t Jesus the type of king who would say to us, “hey, if you find a better offer that is true, you should take it!”—what does that say about the type of king Jesus is?
Simon Hill - Simon enjoys thinking and writing about theology, particularly seeing it become practical. His academic and professional experience has been in engineering, theology and ministry.
Photo by Paweł Furman on Unsplash
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