Chapter 4 – The Third Rejection of the King (Part 1 of 6)

Thus far in our study of the nation Israel, we have witnessed God’s chosen people marching, running actually, toward a spiritual wasteland, looking for peace and freedom apart from God’s laws and  instructions (torah). They didn’t seem to know it most of the time, or even care, so long as they could be like the nations around them. And even though Samuel communicated the message of God about how ruthless human kings can be in 1 Samuel 8, the elders of Israel in that day were convinced an earthly king was the better choice of a king than God Himself.

As Israel’s timeline progresses, there were pockets of hope, scattered here and there, when they would cry out to God because of the mess the human king had made. They would be called upon to repent, and they often did so. Sometimes, a king would arise who would do right in the eyes of the Lord, and through his efforts, the nation would turn to God through repentance. In a glimmer of hope, historians chronicling the stories would have the fortunate opportunity of writing about a happier occurrence in the timeline of Israel. 

 Unfortunately, however, those revivals were short-lived, and eventually, the nation found itself in captivity, first to sin, and secondly at the hands of the Babylonians and eventually the Assyrians. Their misfortunes would continue at the whims and wishes of the Medes and the Persians. Then, Alexander the Great and the Greek Empire. Then, finally, the domination of Rome. 

Like water being drained from a bathtub, Israel spiraled out of control while losing itself at the same time. The leaders continued to hold fast to their belief that an earthly king would somehow be a better option than having God Almighty as their King. Even when God infiltrated human history in the form of an infant, miraculously born of the Holy Spirit, the leaders, entrenched in their self-righteousness, could only see this one born “King of the Jews” as a threat. A threat to their way of life and a threat to their human king, who wasn’t even Jewish. Therefore, in an attempt at keeping their power and prestige, they made an attempt at killing Emmanuel [which literally means, “The With Us (emmanu) God (El)]. 

So, as we have covered so far, the nation Israel rejected God in Ramah as their King (1 Samuel 8), and in Matthew 2, they tried to kill their King—the One born King of the Jews. And we need to note here that rejection is inherent in the act of attempted murder. 

This brings us to the third rejection of the King. And as we will see, like from 1 Samuel 8 to Matthew 2, the stakes will rise. 

During the years leading up to and including the earthly ministry of Jesus, the religious leaders of Israel continued to hold up the specific instructions and teachings of God’s Law (torah) that suited them, picking and choosing carefully those commandments that helped them survive politically and prosper financially, thus causing them to morally and societally capitulate to the powers that be. 

By the time we get to the three-year-mark of Jesus’s earthly ministry, most of the water is gone. Israel is now circling the drain. 

A good time for a Savior, wouldn’t you say? 

However, as we will see, the people of Israel had become so spiritually blind and deaf, they wouldn’t have known the Messiah—God in the flesh—if He stood before them, face-to-face, and preached the truth. 

How do I know that, you ask? 

Because that is exactly what happened. 

Self-Righteousness vs. The Righteousness of God 

By this time in Jewish history, Jesus has been ministering in and around Jerusalem for three years. Enough time for anyone to get a strong sampling of His teachings and compare them with the Old Testament writings, and that’s exactly what the chief priests and teachers of the law did. In confrontation after confrontation, like a prosecuting attorney, they were building their case. They tried to punch holes in Jesus’s theology (e.g., Matthew 12:2, 24; 15:1-2; Mark 2:18; Luke 5:30, 33; 6:2; 7:39; 11:38, 53-54; 13:14; 17:20; John 8:13). They questioned witnesses who had dealings with Jesus (e.g., John 5:1-15; 9:13-34). They tried to catch Him off guard and get Him to misspeak so they could use it against Him (e.g., Matthew 12:38; 16:1; Mark 3:1-2; 8:11; 10:2; Luke 14:1; John 10:24).

After three years, the evidence was pointing in the wrong direction, and they were getting desperate. They realized the magnitude of the life of Jesus and His claims of being the Messiah.  

In Luke 4, starting in verse 16, He entered the synagogue in Nazareth and read Isaiah 61 in the presence of all who were there. When he gave the scroll back to the attendant, He sat down—the formal posture of a teacher (think “department chair” in a college). Then, He stated to all who were in attendance that Isaiah 61, a Messianic prophecy, had just been fulfilled in their presence. 

In John 4, Jesus confronts the Samaritan woman at the well. After a discussion, she states that when the Messiah comes, He will explain everything. To which Jesus replied, “I who speak to you am He” (v. 26, LSB). 

In Matthew 16, beginning in verse 13, Peter declares Jesus as the Christ, and Jesus not only affirms it (He does not deny it), He tells Peter that those words were not his own. Peter received that revelation from God, thus confirming it as truth. 

The teachers of the Law, the scribes, and Pharisees—all the religious leaders—understood who Jesus claimed to be. They just could not accept Him as such. He didn’t fit the “Conquering King” motif. He didn’t protect the religious elite and promise destruction to the Romans. Instead, He ate with tax collectors, who extorted money from the Jews and gave it to their oppressors. He healed someone, a person special to, of all people, a Roman Centurion, who represented everything about the Roman Empire that was evil. In addition to these “un-Messianic” acts, Jesus attacked the religious leaders of Israel every chance He got. In their minds, Jesus had it all backwards. He couldn’t be the Messiah. Could He? 

It was this one little pesky question that kept them coming back to Jesus again and again. Even though His actions were completely the opposite of what they envisioned for the Messiah, His words made them often retreat and regroup. Jesus’s words were so different, and spoken with such authority, even the “uneducated peasants” noticed a difference (Matthew 7:28-29). Jesus so often used the Old Testament against the religious elite, often asking them, “Have you not read?” Thus, the implication was, “If you’re supposedly the religious teachers and leaders of Israel, how can you be so ignorant of what God said and meant?”  

This back and forth between Jesus and the religious elite came to a head in Matthew 21. That’s when everything changed. After being denounced publicly again, this time in the Temple in verses 23-44—about Jesus being the Messiah, mind you—the chief priests and Pharisees decided it was time to issue the warrant for Jesus’s arrest. Verses 45-46 tell us: “And when the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them. And although they were seeking to seize Him, they feared the crowds, because they were regarding Him to be a prophet” (emphasis added; LSB). 

Hidden Agendas 

John 11:47-53 gives us the actual transcript of a subsequent emergency meeting of the Sanhedrin that occurred shortly after Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. Some of the Jews who witnessed the event believed in Jesus, but others raced back to Jerusalem and reported what had happened to the religious leaders, thus prompting the subsequent meeting:

Therefore, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the Sanhedrin together and were saying, “What are we doing? For this man is doing many signs. If we let Him go on like this, all will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and out nation.”

But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all, nor do you take into account that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation not perish.”

Now, he did not say this from himself, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but in order that He might also gather together into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.

So, from that day on they planned together to kill Him (emphasis added; LSB). 

Did you hear what they said? Many of the religious leaders were concerned. About what? That Jesus may be the Messiah. And heaven forbid, if everyone believed in Him, it would bring destruction upon them.

Was that true? No. Exactly the opposite was true. 

Had the religious leaders accepted Jesus as the Messiah, and had they urged all of Israel to believe in Him and follow Him, God would have blessed the nation and used her to reach the world with the gospel message. This is evidenced in Jesus words in Matthew 23:37, where He laments to Jerusalem about how He would have taken Israel under His care and protection, like a hen does with her chicks. He wanted to protect Israel so many times, throughout the Old Testament times and now into the beginning of the New Testament era. However, they rejected God as King. They rejected Him and His message. They killed His messengers (i.e., the prophets). They killed the Messiah’s herald, John the Baptist. And now, they were about to kill God’s most powerful messenger, His Messiah, the One and Only Son of God (John 3:16). 

Ironically, what Caiaphas said Jesus’s death would prevent (the destruction of the Temple and Israel) actually caused it, for when God removed His hand of protection from Israel in Matthew 23:37, in less than one generation later, in 70 A.D., Titus destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple. 

Only one tower and one wall (The Wailing Wall) remain. Even to this day. 

Israel has never recovered from that day in history. And the history of Israel is one sad episode after another of how neighboring nations have mistreated the Jews, first because of religious hatred, and then because of racial hatred.

Thought for the Week:

Before we cast stones at the Sanhedrin, particularly Caiaphas, we must first examine our own hearts. How many times do we choose not to believe God’s Word and obey it, because we are afraid of the plight such obedience may bring upon our lives?

That was really the litmus test for Caiaphas and the religious leaders of Israel. They knew, deep down, Jesus was the Messiah. Or better said, they feared He might be. They knew no one could do what He could do if He were not sent from God. They even said so much (Mark 12:28-33; John 3:2; 9:31-33). However, to admit that Jesus is who He said He is, and acknowledging that truth meant the religious leaders must submit to Him, as King. And as you can see, we are right back to the central issue. 

God is the King of Heaven, and we live in that realm now, as that Kingdom is at hand (Matthew 3:2; 4:17). Jesus taught us time and time again what “The Kingdom of Heaven is like.” It is there, in black

and white, and often in red letters, too, if we have eyes to see and ears to hear. 

Yet, do we not succumb to the “fear of the crowds,” like the Sanhedrin did? We’re afraid of what someone might say and do to us, if we stand up for Jesus and proclaim Him as King? Or we’re afraid the oppressive government might step in and take everything we have? Maybe even imprison us? Even have us executed for our faith (maybe not in the United States—although it’s heading in that direction)? 

Do you see? The sins of the Sanhedrin are the sins of any person who is not committed to Jesus wholeheartedly. That’s why Jesus said the road to glory was narrow (Matthew 7:13-14).  

It’s not an easy road to travel. And it flows in the opposite direction of the broad road, which is wide  and promises to keep us safe, but leads to destruction. Caiaphas was on that broad road. He believed if Jesus could be killed, it would make the rest of them safe. However, the opposite was true, because he was operating in the kingdom of men. Jesus is the King of the Kingdom of Heaven. 

And when these two kingdoms clash, the Kingdom of Heaven wins out every time because it is the Kingdom of Truth. 

The kingdom of men is full of lies and deceit, as the nation Israel found out. 

 

NEXT WEEK:

We continue this section by looking at how self-righteousness can be so spiritually minded but be no earthly good.

Pictures courtesy of  Pixabay and Unsplash and the following photographers/artists:

Wasteland - Unsplash by Valentin Salja

Scroll - Pixabay by falco

Wailing Wall - Unsplash by Sergio Rodriguez Portugese del Olmo

Bible - Unsplash by Timothy Eberly

Broad Road - Pixabay by Islandworks

Narrow Road - Pixabay by Tama66

Chapter 3 – The Second Rejection of the King (Part 8 of 8)

 

The historical backdrop referenced in Part 7 last week became the setting in which Matthew introduces us to the Magi (i.e., Wise Men; see Matthew 2:1). As we noted last time, they were looking for a successor for their Persian king, Phraates IV.

During the years 10-7 B.C., Phraates IV not only had some physical issues, but he had become corrupt and a political pawn of Rome. He was viewed and being weak and feeble by a growing number of Persians both inside and outside the royal circle. The Magi, a political and religious group of advisors who existed in historical records dating back to the seventh century B.C, were part of the king’s or emperor’s advisory council in all of the four major empires to affect Israel: the Babylonians, the Greeks, the Persians, and the Romans. Even the Old Testament prophet, Daniel, crossed paths with these “magicians” and was made chief of the Magi by Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 2:48; 4:9) during his reign. Daniel’s position of prominence carried on into the Medo-Persian Empire under the reigns of King Darius and King Cyrus (Daniel 6:28).

Of all the roles the Magi played, kingmakers was one of the more prominent. They helped choose kings. They anointed kings. They gave their “blessing” and became trusted advisors to kings due to their abilities. As a result, they amassed great power and influence. 

Of course, like any group with power and influence, they always wanted to protect their status by making sure the kings they served could protect the current kingdom or empire. Such aspirations were always a vested interest. In this case, they wanted a new king who could defeat the Romans and make the Persian Empire dominant once again in that region of the world. 

How History Affects God’s People

It must be understood at this point that Rome had always been fearful of the Persians. Trying to guard the northeast corner of their own empire had always been problematic due to the distance from Rome and the ferocity of the Persian forces. The two empires fought in 63 B.C., then again in 55 B.C., and again in 40 B.C., and Rome didn’t always win, as we discussed last week. 

However, guess where the battlefield between these two behemoths always ended up? 

In the region of Israel and the Middle East. 

It was this historical backdrop, with a powerful oppressor (Rome) already occupying the land of Israel and an equally powerful adversary just to the east (Medo-Persians), adding tension to Matthew’s account in Chapter 2. 

Enter the Magi 

At this point in our study, I’m sorry to burst your Christmastime, manger-scene bubble, but when the

Magi came into Jerusalem in Matthew 2:1, it was not on camels. And there would have been more than three. And they would have been heavily guarded. 

Verse 3 of Matthew’s account in Chapter 2 tells us that when King Herod heard these Persian kingmakers were asking where the newly born King of the Jews resided, he and all of Jerusalem were troubled. The word “troubled” (some versions use the word “disturbed”) means “to stir up; to agitate, like water in a pool, and includes the emotions.” Matthew says King Herod was caught off guard. He was shaken, and so was everyone in the city. Why? 

First, these Persian kingmakers (and everyone knew who the Magi were) had ridden into town, asking, “Where is the one who has been born King of the Jews?” Herod knew they weren’t looking for him. He hadn’t been born “King of the Jews.” Octavian bestowed that title on him over three decades earlier. Herod wasn’t even Jewish. He was Idumean, and he also knew the Magi knew who he was. He’d been reigning as “King of the Jews” for well over thirty years, and he was the “king” who defeated their armies, with the Romans help, no less. 

Let’s face it, three old men on camels, by themselves, would not have made King Herod nor the entire town of Jerusalem “troubled” or “disturbed” as Matthew describes it. Not to mention that because they were carrying gold, frankincense, and myrrh, highway bandits surely would have picked them off on their thousand-mile trip.

We also must note that Herod understood the situation well enough, including the Old Testament scriptures, to summon the chief priests and teachers of the Law and ask them where the Messiah was to be born (v. 4). He knew who the Messiah was supposed to be. He’d probably heard the people of Jerusalem talk about the Messiah off and on many times over his thirty-plus years as king. He also knew when the chief priests and teachers of the Law quoted Micah 5:2, they were talking about a “ruler” who had the pedigree to be king. The Messiah would not be a Roman-appointed hack. He would be a Son of David, a Son of Abraham, because Micah said the Messiah would come out of Judah. 

In the Israeli’s eyes, no Roman-sanctioned king could compare, and because Herod was a lunatic who had anybody and everybody killed when he believed they were after his throne, including his own son, the people of Jerusalem would have been happy to see him go. 

These Magi storming into town unannounced were royal statesmen with great political power. They would have been adorned in their royal, priestly garb and conical hats. They used Royal Persian steed (Arabian horses), which was their preferred mode of transportation, and because of their position, they never would have embarked on a journey of a thousand miles up and over the desert, following what is known as the fertile crescent, and descend south into Israel, into Roman-occupied territory, mind you, on camels, by themselves. 

These kingmakers would have been accompanied by soldiers. Some historians believe they may have had their own army, kind of like the Knights Templar in Medieval times. Either way, historians believe the size of the army would have been formidable, possibly as large as a thousand soldiers, all on horses, all armed, all skilled with the bow and arrow, all excellent swordsmen, and all ready to protect these royal subjects. 

Now do you understand why King Herod and all of the Jerusalem were frightened? 

To top everything off, Herod had sent the majority of his own army to fight a battle many miles away, so he and his country were extremely vulnerable at this moment in time. This explains why Herod desires to meet with them secretly. He knows his army is too far away to help. Rome is even farther away. So, he accommodates them. Phraates IV is still king of Persia, so he’s hedging his bets that the relationship between Rome and Phraates IV will hold until he can find out exactly what these Magi want. 

More than likely, the Magi told him about their journey. How they saw the star rise in the east, how it led them there, how it was unlike any other star they have ever witnessed as priests entrenched in the religion of Zoroastrianism. They believed in astrology as much as astronomy, often seeing them as interchangeable, with a sizeable dose of alchemy thrown in for good measure. Yet, even being wrapped up in this religion, they were in awe of this star. And give them credit. They noticed it when nobody else did.

Herod, using the Magi to his advantage, asks them to go find this newborn king and then report back to him on his location “so that I too may come and worship him” (v. 8). The Magi believed Herod. They would have no reason not to, I suppose. They probably believed the Jewish people were just as excited to see their newborn king as they were. 

The Magi left and went on their way, finding the star hovering over a house (vv. 9-10).¹ They presented their gifts, fell to the ground and worshipped Jesus. Then, they were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, thus leading us to believe that if they did not understand Herod’s intentions before this moment, they understood after the dream. 

Once the Magi left, Joseph is visited by an angel of the Lord and instructed to take his family to Egypt because Herod is plotting to murder the child. Joseph obeyed, and he and his family stayed in Egypt until Herod died (v. 14). 

The Second Rejection is Made Manifest 

This is where the story gets horrific and important all at the same time. 

When King Herod finds out the Magi did not obey him and had left the country without giving him the location of the “one born King of the Jews,” he goes berserk. Herod was a madman, and he had the reputation to prove it. Historians believe, as do I, this explains why Jerusalem was troubled along with Herod. Witnessing a group of Persian Royal Advisors come marching into town, on Persian steed, backed by as many as a thousand of the best Persian soldiers, would have been alarming enough. However, to know Herod would respond in his usual, maniacal way must have terrified the people of Jerusalem even more. 

Herod gives orders to his remaining troops “to slay all the male children who were in Bethlehem and all its vicinity, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had carefully determined from the Magi” (v. 16). 

Apparently, in the joyous and zealous retelling of their journey, when the Magi were meeting secretly with Herod, they told him how long their journey had lasted. It may have been even longer than a year, and the star may have been visible for even longer than that. Otherwise, Herod would not have known the relative age of the male child when he gave his heinous, murderous command. Or he tacked on additional time, just to be sure. We’ll never know exactly. But to get bogged down in an argument over why Herod chose “two years and younger” misses the point of the entire passage. 

For it is at this point in the story when The Second Rejection of the King comes to a head. 

Herod Rejects the King 

Herod rejects the King, the Messiah, Jesus. Herod understood what the Magi were asking. When they told him of their trip and how they were looking for the “one born king of the Jews,” Herod immediately pulled the chief priests and scribes aside and asked where the Messiah was to be born. He obviously knew enough about Jewish theology to put two and two together and ask such a question. He hated Jesus so much because he understood who the Messiah was. He understood what the Messiah was to come and do. He knew the Messiah was coming to be the King of Israel. And he was never going to allow that to happen. 

Herod was so protective of his throne and his power, he was willing to kill innocent male infants and toddlers. Seriously, how dangerous could one of those be? And to think one of these innocent boys could be an enemy at all, to an adult, to a sitting king and his throne, is another picture of how evil and deranged Herod was. Most people would inquire. Most people would monitor the situation and see if this child could be identified. But not Herod. 

The mothers and fathers of the slaughtered children must have been devastated, for they surely received no forewarning. Otherwise, they would have fled like Joseph and Mary did.² You also must know that the Herodian soldiers didn’t bother asking for birth certificates either. Some older children, no doubt, who looked like they matched the specified age range, were killed because the soldiers couldn’t tell if they were two or not, thus adding to the carnage.

The Chief Priests and Scribes Reject the King 

Even more unbelievable was how the chief priests and scribes behaved during this entire ordeal. They were indifferent. And complicit. They immediately knew where to go in the Old Testament to find the answer to Herod’s question about where the Messiah was to be born. They read the prophecy from Micah 5:2 to Herod in verses 5-6. They, no doubt, sat in that secret meeting, heard the Magi recount their journey, and didn’t do anything. They didn’t even ask to accompany the Magi, in an effort to investigate. They didn’t follow-up at all. They didn’t even take enough initiative to step outside and look for the star. They didn’t say to themselves, “Maybe we should go check this out.” They didn’t even know about the star, and they were the experts in the Law. It had been in the sky for likely days, maybe weeks, if not more, leading up to the moment when the Magi arrive in town, yet they didn’t even notice it, getting closer, getting larger, coming their direction, which is a warning to us today about being prepared for Jesus’s Second Coming, wouldn’t you say?³ 

Instead, the chief priests and scribes just sat there in the palace. Indifferent. Content with being vassals to Rome. And even when Herod gave the order to his soldiers, they remained silent. 

Therefore, we can only conclude that in the midst of this heart-wrenching moment in Jewish history, when we hear the staccato-like pounding of horses’ hooves against the hardened dirt road as they gallop off into the distance, these priests and scribes turned a blind eye as Herod’s soldiers left a grieving Bethlehem in their wake. 

Dust clouds rose and drifted at the will of the slight breeze that brought no comfort.  

Horrified mothers wailed as they clutched their dead children. 

Angry fathers cried out with loud shouts of utter helplessness toward the heavens. 

 “Then what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled, saying, ‘A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and she was refusing to be comforted because they were no more” (emphasis added; Matthew 2:18; cf. Jeremiah 31:15; Legacy Bible). 

Do you remember when I asked you to tuck away the name of a place back in Chapter 2 of this Bible study series? The place was called Ramah. It was in Ramah when Israel first rejected God as King. God warned the people of Israel about earthly kings, human kings, and how demanding they could be, how self-centered they could be, how ruthless they could become. However, that admonition to think before you act did not deter the elders of Israel from demanding God give them a king. 

They wanted to be like all the other nations around them, and man-oh-man, did they get their wish. 

Now, in the person of King Herod, Israel was like all the other nations. 

Evil.

Rachel, the mother of Jacob, who later became Israel, is weeping for her children, her descendants. She’s weeping in Ramah because that’s where the decision to reject God began. Not only are the children who were killed by Herod’s soldiers “no more,” but more importantly, the nation Israel was no more. At least, not how God intended. With Him as King. With a thriving theocracy. With Israel being qadosh as God is qadosh. With the nation Israel being the Old Testament “salt and light” God intended, bringing His salvation to a dying world.⁴ 

Even this late in the history of Israel, under the reign of a brutal, heartless, Roman-appointed maniac like Herod, her religious leaders would rather have an appointed, human king “to judge” them, “such as all the other nations have” (1 Samuel 8:5), “a king to lead us and go out before us and fight our battles” (1 Samuel 8:20). They had totally abandoned God as King. They had traveled so far away from God spiritually, when wise men from the east showed up, looking for the Messiah, the religious leaders didn’t care. They were happy to have their appointed, human king, even if he killed innocent children and murdered the Messiah in the process to keep his throne. These religious leaders are ultimately reliving the 1 Samuel 8 incident in “Ramah.” They rejected God as King in Ramah, and now, they are rejecting His Son. As a result, Rachel weeps for her children because they are spiritually dead. 

At this moment in time, the Second Rejection is complete. God comes in the flesh, fulfills Isaiah 9:1-7 as well as many more prophecies, reestablishing His Kingship, and they continue to reject Him. 

But God is merciful, and He is to give them one last chance. 

And that brings us to Final Rejection of the King, which will be our topic in Chapter 4.

  

Thought of the Week:

See Endnote #3 below.

NEXT WEEK:

We will begin to look at the Third Rejection of the King.

Endnotes

1. Sorry, folks, but Jesus wasn’t in a manger when the Magi arrived in Jerusalem. He was in the manger when the shepherds did, though (Luke 2:16), which was several months, possibly up to two years before the Magi arrived, if Herod’s decision to kill all the baby boys two-years-old and younger can be used as a possible timetable. Herod did inquire as to when the Magi saw the star, so it stands to reason that it took them up to two years to prepare for the trip, travel the long distance, and arrive in Jerusalem.

 

2. Some people ask, “Why didn’t God give them the same message as Joseph and Mary? Why did God allow those children to be killed?” First, if all the families with children had been warned and told to leave town, Herod’s soldiers would have returned and reported that there were no children in Bethlehem. As a result, the countryside would have been ravaged by Herod’s jealousy, and no doubt, every male child in all of Israel would have been murdered. That’s how maniacal Herod was. He arranged to have his own son drowned and told those confidants to make it look like an accident, all because he was afraid his son would try and usurp the throne. So, you can understand, no male child would have been safe, if those in Bethlehem would have been warned. You see, when sin becomes so evil, no act, even by God, will end well for those who stand in the way of those who have evil intentions.

Second, God had to make specific plans to bring about His plan of salvation for all of mankind. Yet, at the same time, He is not obligated to protect everyone from everything that is harmful all the time. Mankind chose sin in the Garden. Mankind has chosen sin every day since. And in this particular instance, Israel, of whom the other children and families represent, chose to reject God over and over again down through the centuries. “But Kevin, these people are different.” Are they? These were the same people who would follow Jesus around thirty years later, see Him perform thousands of miracles and speak with divine authority. They would even hail Him as Messiah as He rode triumphantly into Jerusalem in His last week on Earth. But He did not live up to their expectations. He didn’t vow to overthrow Rome. He attacked the religious leaders instead. And as a result, in less than a week’s time, the very people who were chanting “Hosanna!” and laying palm branches and robes in the roadway as He entered Jerusalem chanted “Crucify Him!” by week’s end. Tens of thousands followed Jesus, but after the dust settled, only 120 were in the upper room on Pentecost. These facts prove the fickleness of the human heart, and God knew all this when He sent the angel to warn Joseph.  

 

3. The signs of the times are all pointing to Jesus’s return being imminent. The world is setting itself up like never before, in a unified front all around the globe, over issues that pit themselves and their beliefs against (“anti”) God, against (“anti”) Bible, and against (“anti”) Christ. This globalization and unification of their message will become more and more pronounced in the coming weeks, months, and even years, if Jesus tarries that long.

Yet, at the same time, the world is setting itself ablaze. “Wars and rumors of wars” are on the front page headlines. Earthquakes in various places happen often. Just this week, one hit the mountains of Georgia, just north of Atlanta. Killings in our streets, killings in our classrooms, killings in our neighborhoods, and killings in our homes are all on the rise, while lawmakers make it easier and easier for criminals to “get away with it.” They believe this because of some notion that culture should dictate what is right and wrong. The only absolute truth in their relativistic worldview is that there is no absolute truth. It’s insanity by another name. 

Therefore, as these anti-God, anti-Bible, and anti-Christ “beliefs” permeate societies around the globe at an alarming rate, they inadvertently promote selfishness and violence while promising “hope.” However, they never deliver hope in any real, true sense. And people know this as their souls tell them otherwise. This is why so many young people are committing suicide and other atrocities today. They hear all the “promises” propagated as truth, such as, “We will bring about social justice,” “We must rewrite the laws of our nations to make them more inclusive,” “Gender is whatever you want it to be,” “Those who have told you what is right and wrong were wrong, and we will fix it,” and the like. Young people are told things will get better while divorce tears their families apart and leaves them as “ropes” in a financial tug of war, aided and abetted by judges and laws that, in actuality, have little interest in their overall well-being, regardless of what they promise. 

You see, the false promises of those who do evil and true reality clash as lies are told as truths, and as truths are called lies. This breeds frustration, because if you believe this life is the only one you’ll have, then your worldview gets very narrow and very self-centered.

As a result, selfishness and violence will continue to rise and will usher in “the AntiChrist,” who will not only embrace the aforementioned “beliefs,” but will promise “to do the job God failed to do”: bring peace and salvation to the world. He will be hailed as the true savior and actually bring “peace”…for three-and-a-half years, the Bible tells us. Then, literally, all hell breaks loose, and in the end, the blood will rise to the horse’s bridle and cover 1,600 stadia (Rev. 14:20), which is almost 158 miles. The point being, with all that bloodshed, the AntiChrist will bring anything but peace and salvation. However, by that time, it will be too late for those who believed God Almighty was the enemy, His Word was false, and His Son was a liar. 

Therefore, if you say you are a believer, make sure (Matthew 7:21-23; 2 Peter 1:10). Time is running short for this Earth as we know it. Prepare yourself. Draw near to God in these Last Days. 

 

4. Once again, we must make the note that this is not an anti-Semitic Bible study. Although things are looking bleak, and it seems God is building a case to utterly destroy Israel and completely abandon them, eradicating them from His redemptive plan for all time, it must be brought to light that this passage, quoted from Jeremiah 31:15, sits right in the middle of some of the most encouraging chapters in Jeremiah’s book (chapters 30-35). Although they were about to be carried off into captivity by Babylon and Nebuchadnezzar in Jeremiah’s day, there is hope for a remnant to come out of the ashes of captivity. So, too, in this scene in Matthew, in spite of the horror committed by the one appointed “King of the Jews” by Rome (Herod), there is another anointed “King of the Jews,” who is coming as the Messiah (Jesus). He will bring hope to Israel in the midst of their spiritual captivity. He will bring salvation and call out of bondage those who call upon the Name of the Lord and into the once and for all promised land (Roman 10:9-13).

 Pictures courtesy of  Unsplash and the following photographers/artists:

Israel - by Tetiana Shyshkina

Wisemen ornament - by Robert Thiemann

Star - by Ales Krivec

Chapter 3 – The Second Rejection of the King (Part 7 of 8)

 The Rejection of Israel’s King Finds Its Roots in History

 The year was 48 B.C. The Roman Republic (it was not an empire yet) was in turmoil. Pompey, the ruler at the time, had become jealous of a certain general, whose armies had conquered much of the region of Gaul (northeast Europe), crossed the English Channel, and invaded Britain. The general’s name was Julius.

Julius was the governor of Gaul, and had been elected to serve as a member of the Roman council, no doubt, to help Rome govern that region of the Republic by receiving regular updates.

Julius was known to be a ruthless and cunning commander, and proved this to be so in the Gallic Wars. He was responsible for building a bridge across the Rhine River in order to make it to English Channel.

When Pompey and his supporters decided Julius was amassing too much power, they ordered him to return to Rome and give up the command of his armies. He refused. Instead, in a bold move, he “crossed the Rubicon” River and triggered a civil war with Pompey and his supporters.

Julius pursued Pompey through several areas, finally catching up to him in Egypt. Egypt’s leader, Ptolemy VIII, a child himself, ordered for Pompey to be captured, and to keep Julius from invading Egypt, he offered Pompey’s head in exchange for peace. Julius agreed, and Ptolemy obliged.

Soon, Julius found himself caught in a civil war between Ptolemy and co-regent, Cleopatra. He and Cleopatra aligned against Ptolemy and defeated him, lifting Cleopatra to the position of queen. And in the process, they became lovers who never married.

Such is the life of corrupt royalty. And to add to the drama, when you trace your lineage back and claim you are the offspring of the goddess, Venus, as Julius did, then your head swells to abnormal dimensions, both figuratively and spiritually.

The Rise and Fall of Julius Caesar

Julius spent the next two years chasing down Pompey’s supporters and eliminating his enemies. Then, in 46 B.C., he was declared dictator of the Republic for a period of ten years, claiming the name “Caesar” in the process.¹

This act of naming him a dictator didn’t sit well with those still alive who sided with Pompey. But what prompted the beginning of the end was when Julius declared himself emperor for life in 44 B.C. Just two years in, and the power overtook him. Ten years wasn’t going to be long enough. He wanted it all, and he wanted it now. An all too familiar, oft-sang “tune” in human history.

Two men, Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus, better known as Brutus and Cassius, believed assassinating the dictator for life Caesar would help restore the Roman Republic to its former glory and take Rome back to a representative republic. Thus, they conspired with another senator and stabbed Julius twenty-three times on the Senate floor, in front of a statue of Pompey, no less.

Oh, the irony.

However, their seditious act had the opposite effect of what they desired. It emboldened those who believed Brutus and Cassius were right. War broke out, and as a result, two others, both military men, led Roman forces against the sympathizers following Brutus and Cassius, winning a decisive battle in Philippi. The year was 42 B.C.

One of those two military men was Octavian, who would later, in 27 B.C., change his name to Augustus (see Luke 2:1) and become the first emperor of the newly established Roman Empire. The other military man was Marcus Antonius. You know him better as Marc Antony. He and Octavian were contemporaries of such notable historical figures as Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, Cicero, as well as an individual whose name you may also have heard: Herod.

Secular and Biblical History Collide

During this coup attempt of Brutus and Cassius, the ruler of Judea at the time, a man by the name of Antipater (pronounced An-TIP-pa-ter), was a loyal supporter of Julius Caesar and Rome. He remained in his position until his murder in 43 B.C., the year after Julius Caesar’s assassination. When Octavian and Marcus Antonius finally won the battle against Brutus and Cassius in Philippi in 42 B.C., which was the year after Antipater’s death, they appointed Antipater’s sons, Phasael and Herod, as joint rulers of Judea. The Romans referred to them as “governors” at that time, which was a common, official title the Romans used, even of their own people, as was mentioned earlier concerning Julius as the governor of Gaul (cf. Matthew 27:11; Mark 15:1; Luke 23:1; John 18:28-29).

Enter The Persians

Two years later, in 40 B.C., anti-Rome, pro-Brutus and Cassius sentiments were still running high, especially in the region we now call the Middle East. The Persian Empire (also called the Medo-Persian Empire, the Medes and the Persians, and the Parthian Empire) decided to take advantage of the situation. They invaded Judea in 40 B.C., towards the end of the Hasmonean dynasty which lasted from 140-37 B.C., and set up a Hasmonean leader, by the name of Antigonus (pronounced An-TIG-gon-us), to act as leader of that region. He was to be the “priest-king of Jerusalem.”

The Persians captured and killed one of the co-governors of Judea, Phasael. The other co-governor, Herod, escaped to Rome and no doubt, told them the entire story of the Persian invasion.

It was shortly thereafter that the Roman Senate, under the leadership of Octavian and Marcus Antonius, declared Herod “King of the Jews.” With the full support of the Roman Empire, Herod traveled back to retake that region of the Empire. It was no easy task, but with his Roman-supplied army, Herod laid siege to Jerusalem for three months before it fell in 37 B.C., thus ending the Hasmonean Dynasty and beginning the reign of King Herod.

The Plot Thickens

During this time when Herod was retaking Judea, the Persian Empire was undergoing some turmoil of its own. Their newly established king, Phraates IV, was just starting his reign, and he did so in a very violent manner. He murdered his own father and brothers so that he could usurp the throne. It was a case of “the apple and the tree” syndrome, for his father did the exact same thing.

The next year, in 36 B.C., Marcus Antonius invaded the Persian Empire, but Phraates IV defeated Antonius’s army and sent them away with heavy losses.

Two years later, in 34 B.C., one of Phraates IV’s vassal kings aligned with the Romans and Marcus Antonius. They started a kerfuffle within the Persian Empire, challenging the Persian king.

This sequence of events started a civil war within the Persian Empire, and Tiridates II of Armenia drove Phraates IV from the throne in 32 B.C. Phraates IV escaped and lived with a ruthless band of cutthroat nomads known as “Scythians” for some time (see Colossians 3:11) until he came back and regained his throne years later. At that point, Tiridates II fled to Rome with one of Phraates IV’s sons as a hostage. This entire saga led Octavian to make peace with Phraates IV and return his son.

Octavian (his name was Augustus by this time) reigned as Emperor of Rome until 14 A.D. He had many other battles, one notable skirmish involved fighting against Marcus Antonius, who had aligned himself with Cleopatra after they had become lovers. The two lovebirds were defeated by Octavian and his general, Marcus Agrippa. Antonius and Cleopatra fled back to Egypt and eventually committed suicide. As a result, Octavian occupied Egypt and made it part of the Empire.

Phraates IV Opens the Door for the Magi

During his second stint, Phraates IV reigned as the Persian King until 2 B.C.² In his last few years, Phraates IV’s health was declining, and decisions he was making didn’t make sense. Particularly, he was viewed as being a pawn of Rome, and corruption encircled his throne. As a result, the leaders within the Persian Empire knew his time was short, both physically and politically. 

It was in these waning years when the leaders surrounding Phraates IV believed his frail leadership would cause other empires, namely Rome, to launch another offensive the Persian Empire could not overcome.

Therefore, they sent their “kingmakers” on a quest. A quest to find a new king. With that mandate, a band of Persian leaders, known as the Magi, left the region of the Medes and the Persians, heading east, following a “star.”

Thought for the Week:

Today, in the twenty-first century, I believe we read the biblical accounts of such figures as the Magi, Herod, and the like, and somehow, we see them as groups or individuals detached from reality, detached from history. We read these stories almost like the parables Jesus used to get across great spiritual truths to His disciples and the multitudes. Seeing them as historical fact is somewhat foreign to us.

Yet, when we dig, we see that God’s Word is chocked full of historical events. These events sometimes happened in conjunction with biblical accounts, like when Joseph and Mary had to go to Bethlehem because of the census, recorded in Luke 2, ordered by none other than Octavian, who by that time had changed his name to Augustus Caesar. Sometimes historical events, recorded by secular writers, help to fill in gaps the Bible doesn’t see necessary to record. Yet, when we get those details, the Word of God and its meaning come alive for those of us living so many centuries removed.

We never want to take the history surrounding the people and regions of the Bible for granted. Their lives and actions were all part of God’s plan, because as you may have heard, it’s all HIS-story anyway. As Christians, if you believe in Jesus, then you must believe God controls the destinies of men and women and uses them when He sees fit. If you don’t believe me, then ask Julius, Octavian, Brutus, Cassius, Cleopatra, Marc Antony, and Herod—just to name a few—and see if they agree.

If you still don’t believe me, then ask yourself this: How did the Magi know to look for a “star,” let alone follow it? Who told them? Who gave them that information? How did they know, when they got to Jerusalem, to ask for “the One who has been born ‘King of the Jews’?”

A careful study of Scripture shows us that centuries earlier, God made sure a faithful servant named Daniel was in a prominent, influential position within the Babylonian Empire. When the Medo-Persians defeated Babylon and became the reigning superpower, Daniel was elevated in that Empire as well. “Chief of the Magi,” he was called (Daniel 4:9; 5:11). Daniel was the president of the organization. He was the CEO. He was the “high priest.” And you have to believe someone as faithful as Daniel—who had survived hungry lions and a fiery furnace because of his unwavering faith—would be faithful enough to share the truth about the God of Israel, His introduction of a Messiah, and His redemptive plan for both Jew and Gentile with the bunch of Zoroastrianism-believing, Persian priests.

As you can see, God is in control of it all.  

 

NEXT WEEK:

The gripping conclusion of the story of the Magi and Israel’s second rejection of their king.

 

Endnotes

1. Julius Caesar proclaimed himself as “Caesar,” which comes from the word cesar, which means “an emperor, a ruler, a dictator.” The word has been used across the world and transliterated into Russian (czar), Middle English (keiser), German (kaiser), among others.

He was also the person who developed the Julian calendar, and in doing so, named a month after himself, which is now known as July. And his successor, Augustus, named a month after himself as well. Guess which one that is?

            Julius wasn’t all bad. There were some things he did for the good of the Republic:

§  Regulating the distribution of subsidized grain

§  Increasing the size of the Roman Senate to represent more people

§  Reduce government debt

§  Support military veterans

§  Granting Roman citizenship to people in Rome’s distant territories

§  Reform the tax codes

 2. This historical information was gathered from multiple sources, most of which were brittanica.com (Subjects viewed: Octavian; Marcus Antonius; Cleopatra; Phraates IV; Tiridates II). Another crucial source was Bruce, F. F. New Testament History. (New York, BY; Doubleday, 1966), pp. 1-40. One last source for the information on Julius Caesar was from the History.com Editors. “Julius Caesar.” History.com. Nov. 4, 2019. Web. June 10, 2022. <https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/julius-caesar>  

 

Pictured courtesy of Pixabay.com

"Julius Caesar" by efrye

"Juliua Caesar Assassination" by GDJ

"Christmas" by Ambroz