December 13

Scripture Reading

Matthew 2:13-15

Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

Hosea 11:1

When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.

Devotion

Recently, my family and I were in Egypt, and we had the opportunity to visit the old city of Cairo, which would have been little more than a village in the time of Jesus. Located within the old city is the Church of St. Sergius and Bacchus, which was built over an ancient cave. According to tradition, this cave is the place where Joseph, Mary, and the infant Jesus lived while they were hiding in Egypt. Here in this little cramped cave, the King of kings, the Lord of glory, spent the first couple of years of his life in obscurity, waiting to reveal himself and proclaim the kingdom of God.

While the infant Jesus was quietly living in a small village in Egypt, the wider world around him was being shaken by great empires. In 30 B.C., the Romans conquered the powerful Ptolemaic kingdom, which had ruled Egypt for almost 300 years. The Romans were now consolidating their power in the East and were focused on conquering another great eastern kingdom: the Parthians.

The Parthians ruled an expansive empire from India to modern-day Syria. It was actually the Parthians who were responsible for Herod the Great becoming the king of Judea. In 40 B.C., the Parthians invaded Judea, which had been under Roman control for the previous 20 years. In 37 B.C., Herod (who was an Idumean, not a Jew) led a Roman army into Judea and expelled the Parthians. As a reward, the Roman senate appointed Herod as king of Judea.

Herod ruled over Judea from 37 to 4 B.C., and he reigned with an iron fist. Herod was a larger-than-life figure and a true megalomaniac. He was known for his ostentatious living and extravagant building projects, most notably the reconstruction of the temple in Jerusalem. Herod was also politically ruthless. He executed three of his own sons because he suspected them of trying to usurp the throne. He also murdered his wife, Mariamne, her mother, and her grandfather. It is no wonder, then, that Herod sought to kill the infant Jesus, who was being proclaimed as the Son of David and the future king of the Jews.

Behind the world scene—behind the machinations of great empires like the Romans and the Parthians and powerful rulers like Herod—God was at work. Certainly, Caesar Augustus and the Roman senate thought that they were shaping their own destinies. Most definitely, Herod thought that he was in control of his kingdom and his future. But, behind the scenes, God was sovereignly directing the course of world events and preparing the way for his son.

It is noteworthy that in Matt 2:13-15, the infant Jesus is never called by name, nor is he called “the Messiah” or “the Christ.” He is only referred to as “the child.” In fact, in the entire passage from Matthew 2:7 to 2:23, Jesus is called “the child” nine times. It is almost as if Matthew is making a point here: the great powers of the world are always moving and shaking, but God’s power—the true power—is working quietly behind the scenes in small, almost imperceptible ways to accomplish his will and establish his kingdom.

In a time like ours, when great political turbulence shakes the world, it is comforting to know that God is in control. We can look out at the world and be easily disturbed and disheartened. The Russia-Ukraine war rages on. The Middle East is on the verge of all-out war. Politics in the US and around the world seem to presage uncertain times and instability. But God is at work behind the scenes in small yet significant ways. Missionaries are going out, the gospel is being proclaimed, people are being saved, lives are being transformed, churches are being planted, and the kingdom of God is expanding. Behind the scenes of war, economics, politics, and social upheaval, God is there, and he is at work.

Reflection

1. How do you think God is working behind the scenes globally, nationally, and in your immediate context?

2. What are some of the small ways that God is working behind the scenes in your own life?

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Notes

Song: Silent Night, Michael W. Smith.

Scripture quotations are from the ESV®Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright© 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.