Comments for July 2

v.44 - Even though Jonathan was saved by the power of the people, as it were, it would seem that he was still under the curse which had never come to his ears. It seems frightening to me to think that such a situation could exist. Could we be punished for not obeying a law we had never heard? Within the law of the land this is certainly possible. Let us be sure to study God's law and save ourselves this possible embarrassment.

v.45 We see an example of how Saul was swayed by the people. He was not in control. Of course he would have been foolish to have killed Jonathan. However it was the people, and not Saul. who saw the folly of his words.

v.6 gives us an insight into Jonathan as a man of great faith and courage. May we learn from him.

14:2 We learn that Saul had 600 men with him. This is so also in 13:15. Why do we find such a small number of men with Saul? Was it that the kingdom was really fragmented or was it that the people would not align behind Saul? Whatever the reason we must realise that it was a very small number of men.

DON'T JUST SIT THERE!

While Israel trembled in fear of the Philistines, and their Leader, King Saul, stayed under a pomegranate tree in Migron, Jonathan decided to do something about the situation. It appears that Jonathan was not in a position to motivate or command all of Israel, so he did what he could with what he had. Jonathan and his armour bearer went across to the Philistines with a great faith in the LORD their God. There they attacked and killed about twenty men. Twenty men were only a drop in the bucket as far as the Philistine army were concerned, but the attack against them sparked a wave of panic that spread through the whole Philistine army. It ended in the defeat of the Philistines as Israel recognised the panic they were in, seized the moment, attacked and overcame them

In many ways we are like Jonathan. We are not in a position to do great things - to lead the whole of Israel against the enemy, but we can do what we are able to, within our sphere of influence. By controlling ourselves and being proactive in our own lives, we will motivate others to do the same and to follow our lead. Then, from small beginnings, we may be able to achieve great things with the help of the LORD our God.

:3 So we learn that Icabod had an older brother. He must have been older because their mother died in childbearing. (1 Samuel 4:20)

14:14-16  Jonathan realised that the fight would not be his. He was willing, unlike his father, to trust God. Consequently, even though Jonathan and his armourbearer slew some of the Philistines the majority of the deaths were a consequence of the Philistines fighting each other.  The deliverance was clearly of God.  There are a number of occasions when Israel's enemies fought amongst themselves (Judg 7:22, 2Chron 20:23)

V.6 From start to finish the entire project was dominated, not by a desire for personal glory, but by faith in the God of Israel  It may be the Lord will like wise work for us, for there is no restraint to the Lord to save by few or many. Other examples are: Abraham's steward.(Gen 24:14)  and just as Gideon sought reassurance from the Lord, Judg 6:36-40  

Wasn't Saul foolish in cursing any of the people who eat food? (1Sam 14:24)  It very nearly cost him the life of his son Jonathan  -  or it could have cost him the kingdom, in the light of the rising of the people against him, and in Jonathan's defence (1Sam 14:45).

Vs.31,32 A great decimation of the Philistines occurred and great spoil was taken.  The Philistines had the latest weapons, such as the two-edged long iron sword.  We have no further information, but would this not be a golden opportunity for the Israelites to gather the armour of the dead Philistines? 

V.6 It may be that the Lord will work for us: This expression did not imply a doubt; it signified simply that the object he aimed at was not in his own power, but it depended upon God; and that he expected success neither from his own strength nor his own merit.

How mediation works

Jonathan put God to the test in this incident. It was as if Jonathan blackmailed the Heavenly Father.

Have a close look at Jonathan's wording in verses 14:8-10.  Jonathan gives God the option of saving all Israel (v10) which is what happens. Lets call this option 1. Now lets look at option 2 "If they say thus 'Wait until we come to you' ...then we will stand still in our place and not go up to them" (v9). Now think about where Jonathan and his armour bearer would be standing at this point. "Let us cross over to these men, and we will show ourselves to them." So lets get this straight - option 2:

1) they would be in full view of the Philistines

2) They would call out, drawing attention to themselves

3) The philistines would call out for them to wait whilst they came over

4) Jonathan and armour bearer would wait where they were

5) knowing that the LORD wasn't with them

Option 2 spelled certain death! The very sign that Jonathan had chosen to show that God wasn't with them, was designed by Jonathan to be the signal of their own death. Jonathan had given God an all or nothing ultimatum. "Refuse my request, and lose me as well", or in other words "if you want to save me, save Israel too!".

This is a very key principle. The same principle exists in the approach of Esther to King Ahasuerus. She gave him an ultimatum "revoke your irrevocable commandment, or you will lose me" or in other words "if you want to save me, save Israel too!" (Est 7:1-4). This principle is called mediation, and it is based upon using your confidence in the Love that God has for you in order to persuade, or even compel Him to save others. Jonathan was so confident that the LORD loved him and wouldn't want to lose him, that he could gamble his own life, and the life of his companion. This principle has its most perfect fulfilment in Jesus Christ, who with his death was declaring "if you want to save me, save my brethren too!".

14:18    More correctly Saul called for the ephod – the ark had been in the land of the Philistines and returned to obscurity in Israel by this time.

V.36,37,41  Saul seeks to act without first enquiring of the Lord by Urim and Thummim according to the Septuagint's rendering of v41 "Why have you not answered your servant today? If the fault is in me or my son Jonathan, respond with Urim, but if the men of Israel are at fault, respond with Thummim."

14:21 The seeming casual comment that there were Hebrews with the Philistines indicates the depths to which Israel had sunk. Not only were they afraid of the Philistines but they actually went and fought with them against Israel.

As we read through this chapter we clearly see that Saul's main concern was for his personal victory, even at the expense of the needs of the people. The people had spent all day chasing the Philistines, until they could go no further owing to the lack of strength, because of the decree issued by the king forbidding the eating of food. Jonathon, because he did not hear the order of his father, ate of the honeycomb. Once the time expired of the kings decree, we see that the army commenced killing and eating the animals without waiting for this to be done according to the law. (Lev 3:17). Saul's hasty and unnecessary decree caused the army of Israel to sin.

14:13  In telling us that the enemy ‘fell before’ Jonathan we are seeing a fulfilment of the promise of Lev 26:8

V.2 The pomegranate tree (more like a large bush) was brought to this region from Carthage.  Its red fruit was used in making spiced wine as well as in the manufacture of Morocco leather.  Morocco leather is made from sheepskin.  The grain side of the hide is dyed red (pomegranate juice) and then the hide is tanned by hand.  This whole effect produces the unique bird's-eye pattern.

V.21 The word Hebrews here does not indicate whether these people were deserters or captives.  The Septuagint states slaves rather than Hebrews.

V.24 By making this ridiculous command, we see Saul's questionable mentality. Mental sickness (evil spirit) would later be imposed upon him by Yahweh (1Sam 16:14).

14:1-2 Notice Jonathan is involved in the battle but Saul is hiding away in a distant part of Gibeah!

Vs.11,12 The mighty Philistines would not expect any under-manned and under-armed Israelites to actually attack their military post.  And so, they probably thought that Jonathan and his armourbearer were deserters.  There were men of Israel who had deserted and joined the Philistines.  With that assumption in mind, the Philistines welcomed them to come into the command post.

Vs.13,14 The Philistines’ guard was down, and Jonathan took them by surprise.  All twenty men in the command post were killed, with divine help.  The size of the command post was listed as half an acre.  The measurement half an acre was probably a colloquial expression denoting a small area and not an exact measurement..  

Vs.15,16 This unbelievable event sent shock waves through the people as the story spread. The camp of the Philistines was in commotion and disarray, and men began to disperse in all directions.  The angels of Yahweh were at work just like they would be later against the Syrians (2Kin 7:5-7).

V.19 The priest’s hands had been raised to invoke Yahweh.  Saul heard the increasing noise of confusion in the Philistine camp and perceived that the prayer had been answered.  Now was the time to act.

Vs.20-22 Israel gathered itself together, joined by the Hebrew deserters from the Philistine camp and the fugitives who were hiding in the mountains of Ephraim. 

V.24 The battle would last the whole day.  Saul had sworn an oath that none of his soldiers should eat anything until the battle was over.  This was a stupid and senseless thing to do as his soldiers would become needlessly weak.

Vs.29-31 Jonathan, who had inadvertently eaten the honey, thought his father’s oath was stupid, and said so.

V.32 The famished troops ate raw meat which contained blood. Eating blood was a sin (Deut 12:15,16).

V.35 All previous altars had been built by Samuel.

V.45 The soldiers’ conscience would not allow a foolish vow to kill the hero of the day. The king (God’s appointed) had been challenged, but there was no complaint from Yahweh.  Saul was showing poor leadership.

14:16-18 Saul would not have needed the priest to tell him what was happening if he had bothered to lead the people into battle – like the kings of the nations round about did – he would have known what was happening. It is all too easy for us to sit on the sidelines and ask others what is happening rather than getting involved ourselves.

14:6   Jonathan’s description of the Philistines as ‘these uncircumcised’ is matched later by David – 1Sam 17:36 – clearly, as will become clear later in the record, Jonathan and David were of the same mind. Hence their immediate friendship.

14:7   What a wonderful armour bearer – after all he would be in the forefront of any action. A man who shared Jonathan’s faith, it seems.

14:6-15         Jonathan and his armour bearer’s victory against the Philistines shows that God will fulfil His promise – Lev 26:8 – that a large army would not be required to gain the victory if faith was shown. 

14:12   Jonathan, against all that one might expect given the circumstances, sees God at work because the sign that he has asked for was given to him.

14:8-10       Jonathan, having made a decision to fight the Philistines, seeks a sign from God, showing that he placed his trust in God.

14:45    In telling us that Saul took any “valiant man” to himself we realise Saul behaved like a king of the nations. He was concerned to strengthen himself militarily. However it indicates also that Saul did not place his trust in God.

14:47-48      This inspired summary is about the most positive thing said of Saul in the whole of his reign.

14:3    No show, no ceremony for Jonathan. Simply he and his armour bearer left the camp quietly. When we see a job that needs to be done maybe we could learn from Jonathan. Just get on with it. No fuss. No need to draw attention to what one is doing.

14:18 In 1Chron 13:3 it is said that the Ark was never enquired of during the reign of Saul. A careful reading of what is recorded here might indicate that whilst Saul called for the ark he did not have time to enquire of the ark. All he managed to do was to speak with the priests before, in his eyes at least, the Philistines were enough of a threat to leave off his plan to enquire at the ark.

14:18 In 1Chron 13:3 it is said that the Ark was never enquired of during the reign of Saul. A careful reading of what is recorded here might indicate that whilst Saul called for the ark he did not have time to enquire of the ark. All he managed to do was to speak with the priests before, in his eyes at least, the Philistines were enough of a threat to leave off his plan to enquire at the ark.

14:3 the seeming casual family tree indicates that the line of the high priest was established before we are told anything of the evil behaviour of Phinehas, Eli’s son.

14:1  Jonathan contrasts markedly with Saul his father. Saul was concerned that his father would worry about Saul looking for lost animals -9:4– Jonathan does not seem to consider what his father might think as he was about to embark on a far more hazardous escapade.

14:2 It seems that whilst Jonathan went to the battle, taking the fighting to the Philistines, Saul avoided the conflict by staying close to him even though that was not particularly far from the battle.

v. 5-7 - Here we have a similar contrast between man's thinking and God's thinking to the ones put forward by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. There are lots of aspects of the New Covenant in these last chapters of Isaiah, where the inclusion of the Gentiles is paramount. Here is another aspect of Old Testament teaching that leads directly to the New Covenant which is powered by love. Matt.25:35-40, Luke 11:41, 19:8, Rom.12:20,21.

v.6 - The only time that God asked the people to afflict their souls was on the day of atonement [Leviticus 16:29]. The day of atonement marked the beginning of each year of release and jubilee. Hence 'let the oppressed go free' catches the language of the year of release also. Isaiah 37:30 also uses language of the year of release when it speaks of eating that which groweth of itself. [Leviticus 25:11]. Around the time of the Assyrian invasion there was a year of release which Isaiah alludes to on these two occasions. Despite the wonderful deliverance Yahweh gave them at that time the people did not think about His deliverance and so were unwilling to keep the law with respect to their slaves.

v.8 is full of pictures of the way God cares for His own. We see the crossing of the Red Sea where God protected them as their rereward, keeping the Egyptians at bay until they were all safely across - what great faith was required by those at the back! - We also see the salvation in Jesus, who is the great bringer of the light. A complete picture of salvation in one verse.

58:14 Ride upon the high places of the earth echoes Deuteronomy 32:13 which was a promise that Moses made by inspiration at the end of the wilderness journey.

:1-2 The whole context of the day of atonement here is set against the nation coming to God as if they were faithful but living a sinful life. Their actions belied their words. Whilst the day of atonement was for the forgiveness of sin it was of no benefit to those who only gave God lip service. Likewise for us. We must not only say we are new creatures. We should also live as new creatures.

58:3 We saw on a previous occasion that Isaiah is speaking of the day of atonement. A time when the nation were released from their burdens and sins - but they still require their servants to work for them - see RV mgn and AV mgn.

V.9-11 For us, the message is that faith without works is dead. The work of righteousness is peace; peace with God. Had they attempted to carry out the ordinance of God , the result would have been different.

God was not pleased with Israel’s supposedly pious attitude. Isa 58:3-7 describes the people who did fast, and did wear sackcloth and ashes, but they did it for show.  What God really wanted was for them to help others in God’s Name, to encourage sinners to repent, and to “break every yoke”.  There’s a great lesson about practical Christianity for us, there.

58:11  In speaking of Israel being like ‘a watered garden’ Isaiah provides a ray of hope which Jeremiah was able to draw on when he spoke just before Israel were to be taken to Babylon – Jer 31:12

V.6,9; Luke 11:46 - the yoke of man's oppression vs the way of Christ who makes our burden light Matt 11:28-30; Gal 6:2 following in Christ's example we can help make our neighbour's burdens lighter also

God doesn't respond well to proud demands. In v3 we see this attitude displayed by Israel. In effect they were saying "we've done good things, so why aren't you rewarding us?". Sometimes our own religion can get a bit like that don't you think?

God doesn't reward the proud for the good they've done. Instead He calls to mind all the evil they have done and brings them to account for it (v3-5). It is much better for us to quietly go about doing good without drawing attention to it. This way God will notice and reward us openly (v6-8).

58:3 So Israel, at a time when they should have been showing compassion were oppressing their brethren – see the marginal rendering and the RV marginal rendering.

58:13-14 The prophet, against the background of the way in which Israel had made a mockery of the feasts of God, speaks of the blessing that will follow on from obedience.

V.4 Contentious attitudes should give way to generous attitudes (vs.6,7). 

The formalities of worship mean nothing unless the attitude is right.  From the right attitude come the right actions.  This applies to us as it did to the Israelites.

58:4 Israel had an outward show of piety but their actions showed what was truly in their hearts. Their hearts were busy practicing mischief making the outward show of no avail at all.

GOING THROUGH THE MOTIONS

There is no point just going through the motions. We can pray, fast, read the Bible, attend the meetings and even give of what we have, but if all we are doing is just performing a religious duty, there is no value in it. Going through the motions of religious duty means that we do these things because they are a habit, because they need doing, or just because we feel we should. What God really wants from us is our heart. He wants to see spontaneous, loving action from us toward him and toward each other.

The people of Judah ended up just going through the motions of keeping the law. They would fast, pray and attend feasts. But while they were doing the right religious actions as a matter of course, they neglected to live the way God wanted them to live. Religious life looked good but they exploited their workers, fought, and pleased themselves instead of God. God's word for a life that truly honoured him was, "Then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like noonday. The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail." () And, "Then you will find your joy in the LORD." (v 14)

Let's not be left wondering what it would have been like if we had not just gone through the motions.

V.1 A trumpet was used to demand attention (Exo 19:16).  Yahweh reacts loudly against hypocrisy.

V.2 Israel went through the motions of worship thinking that they were pious, yet their action did not back them up (Prov 25:14).  

V.3 Israel was fasting in mock modesty but feeling self-satisfied (Prov 16:5).

V.5 Fasting for show instead of for humble intent is not acceptable to Yahweh (Matt 6:16-18).

Vs.6,7 Yahweh demands justice not religious window dressing (Psa 82:3).

V.8 This verse makes an allusion to Yahweh’s care of His people as they exited Egypt (Exo 14:19,20).

V.10 See Psa 37:6; 112:4.

V.11 See Isa 41:17,18.

V.12 Here is an allusion to the Kingdom age (Amos 9:11,12).

Vs.13,14 The heritage of Jacob is the Promised Land (Gen 13:15; Psa 135:12).

It is natural, when appraising our worship, to focus on what we do for God. So we might ask the question in v3 "we've worshipped you in the way you asked, so why isn't his enough for You?". But our focus instead should be to take the rest of the advice in this chapter to heart (v6-7, 9-10, and 13) for which the rewards are great (v8-9, 11,14).

58:3 So Israel fasted so that God could see their behaviour. How often do we do things to appear good in God’s eyes? We should do things because we love Him.

58:3Whereas the KJV has ‘exact all your labour’ the margin has ‘things wherewith ye grieve others’ which seems to catch what was happening.  The people were observing the Day of Atonement but not showing mercy to others.

58:12  That there would be one who would repair the breaches clearly, ultimately, looks to Jesus. However the way in which Nehemiah appeals to this passage – Neh 6:1 – shows that Nehemiah was expecting the people to see, at least, a partial fulfilment of this promise in their own days.

58:12 This is the last of a series of passages in which God speaks of Israel’s ‘waste places’ being blessed in one way or another. The others are Isa 5:17, 51:3, 52:9 and here

58:3-6  It would appear that Israel were keeping a fast – possibly the day of atonement. However whilst the nation were going through the motions required by the law of Moses their hearts were not tuned to the requirements of the law. Their hearts were Godless and self-seeking. So even though the outward appearance of what they were doing might have indicated that they were faithful God knew otherwise. This is a warning for us Going to worship of itself is not sufficient. We should desire to go and focus on what we are doing. 

58:6-7 The Day of Atonement could have been seen in Israel as a time for having a depressing view of oneself. The feast recognised that even though animal sacrifices for sin were offered all year round there was still the need for the people to annually confess their sins. It could have been quite depressing. God, through Isaiah, presents a better picture. A picture of generosity towards others. Why? Well the person who had experienced God’s generosity in forgiveness should be very willing to extend his own generosity to others as realisation of the generosity that God had shown him.

1. the second synague reading for the Day of Atonement is Isa 57:14-21 to Isa 58:1-14.

2. Isa 58:1 - the trumpet and the shofar sounded at the Feast of Trumpets and 10 days later to bring in the Day of Atonement; the prophets were commanded by God to be watchmen to the house of Israel (Eze 33:1-33); the sins of the house of Jacob are to be declared.

3. Isa 58:2-6 - V2 pretending to sincerely seek out God and His ways; VS 2-6 unacceptable fasting (Matt 6:16;Matt 9:11-17), only an outward show in approaching God (2Tim 3:5), but they oppressed the labourers and the poor, and they indulged in strife and debate; V4 God will not hear the voices of people who are sincere in their fasting; V5 God's dissatisfaction regarding their 'efforts' on the Day of Atonement; V6 fasting, the Day of Atonement and the Year of Jubilee should have been about the giving up of self to help others break free from the yoke of oppression, "to let the oppressed go free" in the year of Jubilee (and future ultimate deliverance).

4. Isa 58:6-7 - the proper type of fast was exemplified by Jesus who fed the needy literally and in offering his life feeds his friends with the bread of life spiritually; two types of attitudes in worshippers (Luke 18:9-17); V7 helping the hungry, poor and unclothed naturally and spiritually (Israel was expressing a hypocritical formality vs a sincere devotion and didn't truly care for the needy - Matt 25:35-36).

5. Isa 58:8,10- your light breaking forth as the dawn, combined with healing, righteousness and the glory of the Lord as a reward reminds me of the resurrection.

6. Isa 58:9-10 - V9 "Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer"; V9 "thou shalt 'cry<7768>', and he shall say, Here I am" (Mark 14:37;John 20:9-19); V9 the yoke (associated with oppression in V6); VS 9-10 "If...And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon day" (Isa 53:12 Christ poured out his soul unto death, but will be given a portion among the great;John 15:13), during the millennium there will be very little darkness.

7. Isa 58:11 - (if you chose the path of light) the Lord will guide you and you will be like a watered garden (suggestion of Eden before the curse?) and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not (John 7:37-39;John 4:7-15;Eze 47:1-12;Rev 22:1-5).

8. Isa 58:12 - (KJV) "they that shall be of thee" (Thy people);(NIV) "Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins"; (KJV) "repairer of the breach" (this was literally done with Nehemiah, but will be spiritually accomplished when the sin and death is repaired during and at the end of the millennial kingdom era to come (Acts 1:9-11;Mic 4:1-4;Isa 11:1-12;Isa 9:6-10).

9. Isa 58:13 - but so far these conditions have not been adhered to, the observance of the Sabbath has degenerated into a largely superficial meaningless performance mixed with rabbinical superstition (Luke 13:13-17;Col 2:16-17).

10. Isa 58:14 - When Christ returns he will be recognized (Zech 12:10) by many and there will be joy in the Lord and a feasting on the inheritance of your father Jacob (Gen 27:19-29;Gen 28:10-15).

58:1    One of the hardest things is to highlight error without becoming overbearing and being perceived as oppressive.  The way the prophets, and Jesus, highlighted error was to direct their hearers to Scripture. Rather than just saying that error is manifest they encouraged their hearers to assess their position in the light of Scripture. Of course this might not always bring about the desired end – it did not with the prophets or Jesus. However the value is that the one in error is more likely to change his ways if he has seen the error for himself

Isa 58:5-7  The transgression of the house of Jacob were such that they their fasting was done with outward show.  Heads bowed like drooping bulrush, dressed in sackcloth and ashes scattered around (v.5).  However, true fast that the LORD respected is defined as “…to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?”(verse 6).

“Is itnot to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?(verse 7).

True fasting, that is acceptable to the LORD, has nothing to do with our choice of eating habits or abstinence from food on certain days.  Rather it is our committment to abstain from sin and transgressions and to feed the hungry and relief of burdens of others.

Jesus, by his example, showed us the fasting that pleases the LORD.

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.”(Matt 11:28-30).

58:6      God sought to lift “heavy burdens” off the shoulders of Israel in the provision of the Day of Atonement. By contrast – Matt 23:4 – the Jewish leaders in Jesus’ day sought to increase those burdens by reproving the people and requiring them to observe men’s traditions which were designed to afflict the souls of the people. It is possible that we, in our talking about God, might oppress our fellows rather than edify them. Care must be taken to present a balanced Scriptural picture when speaking about Him and His message of salvation .      

58:1-3 When Israel were astray form God they did not recognise that fact. Indeed they thought their approach was completely acceptable. However measured against God’s yardstick they were found wanting. We have to ask ourselves whether we truly appreciate what it is to obey God. It is more than giving assent to a set of rules. It has to be seen in the daily living of a Christ-like life.

Isa 58:1

“CRY aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.”

“The prophet was not sent to the surrounding heathen to tell them of their sins, but to Israel—God’s own people. Sin is by no means confined to those who know not God. The need for condemning sin exists as much, and in a certain sense, more, within the house of God than in the outer darkness. The outer darkness is insensible to appeal; wickedness is its normal condition, so to speak. It knows not God and cares for none of His ways, and reproof would be altogether objectless. But the house of God is professedly founded on submission to the expressed and enjoined will of God. And the people composing it are in danger of resting on this collective profession while individually acting inconsistently with it. Thus it was with Israel: ‘They seek me daily, says the Spirit of God by Isaiah, ‘and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God.’ They crowded the temple at the appointed times; they brought the sacrifices and kept the feasts, and took a certain delight in these things, but privately, they acted in opposition to the spirit on which the whole institution was founded. Jesus tells us what this spirit was. He says, ‘All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets’ (Matt 7:12; Matt 22:37-40).

… Israel gloried in the temple, boasted of their law, attended with a certain delight on the divine institutions connected with them; but they gave not God the glory; they took it all to themselves, which is the universal weakness of human nature. Their boasting was carnal; their pride was a fleshy pride altogether as it is at this day; their satisfaction was with themselves (Zech 7:5) … their rendering of them though actually required of them, were in vain. Their rendering of them was to an extent obedience, because they had been required, but it was obedience without the right intention. There was no intelligence of love towards God. It was salt without savour…

Now, is there no lesson for us in all these things? Doubtless there is. Paul tells us that these things were ‘written for our learning.’ And is it not plain as the noonday that like Israel, we may deceive ourselves as regards our standing towards God, if we content ourselves with a merely technical compliance with the instructions of the house of God? Is there no possibility that we may presume too much upon our knowledge of the truth, and our baptism, and our breaking of bread from week to week? These ways are divine, and in their right place indispensable; but what if at the same time it is man more than God that is before our eyes in the doing of these things? What if we sing and pray merely as the right sort of thing to do without opening the heart to God in all sincerity and fervency and fear? What if the glory of God be but a phrase on our lips, and a sentiment in reality foreign to our hearts? What if we shut up the bowels of our compassion towards those who suffer? What if with plenty in our hands, we think only of our own need, and our own comfort, and our schemes are shaped and burdened only and continually with our own cares and our own interests? What if we never help the heavy burdens under which so many around us are staggering to the grave? What if we practice a habit of absolute indifference to the yokes and the oppressions and difficulties which are crushing to the earth our neighbours on every hand? …

All these things happened unto them as ensamples; and are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are comes. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” (1Cor 10:11,12).

Robert Roberts, SEASONS OF COMFORT, THE OTHER SIDE OF GOD’S CHARACTER, pp. 27-29, Fourth Edition

58:5-6   As with the feasts that God commanded Israel to keep they saw keeping the feast as some sort of virtue without realising that the feasts – on this occasion the Day of Atonement – that the feast was to be kept to remind them of their sinfulness that they might appreciate God’s willingness to forgive the repentant sinner.

58:8 Israel, when delivered from Egypt were healthy  - Psa 105:37 – but due to their sinfulness they were “sick”. However this was all to change. Messiah will come and restore Israel to favour and His name will be seen in all the earth. Then will His people be “all righteous”.

58:1-4 the prophet was called upon to testify against the nation of Israel. Hat must have been a thankless task especially because the nation thought they were doing exactly what God wanted of them. We should give a thought for the trauma that the faithful servants of God suffered just for speaking truth.

58:7-8 Israel were called upon to be generous to those of their brethren that were poor or afflicted. Sadly that did not happen very often. It seems that they did not appreciate that such generosity would be seen as glorifying God.

Jesus makes a similar point ( Matt 25:35-36 only to find that those who had so acted were unaware of the impact of their actions – Matt 25:38 – unlike those Isaiah speaks of who did things so God would see – Isa 58:3. God will reward openly those who selflessly minister to His servants – Matt 6:18.

58:3 How many of the things we do are done so that men and women can see our “righteousness”? Or worse still are done in order that the Father can see?

The motivation for all our actions must be that we are desiring to reflect the life of our saviour.

Israel were not like this. They knew the Law of Moses. They knew about the feasts – especially the Day of Atonement, the focus of this chapter, but their focus was on self rather than God.

58:9-10  The nation were not keeping God’s laws, consequently they had no fellowship with their God. The call was to turn back to Him and fulfil His will and then He would respond to their prayers and calls to Him.

Notice the order of events.

First repentance then fellowship.

2 v. 23 - This verse speaks as though Nazareth was not the original dwelling place of Joseph and/or Mary, but in fact a place that they settled in having fled Judea for fear of Archelaus (v.22), which brings about, we are told, a direct fulfilment of a prophecy, even though it is a prophecy which appears not to be recorded in our Old Testament.

1:1 - The mention of David and Abraham marks the two important milestones in the purpose of God. Abraham, through whom the promises were given and David the king to whom further promises were given. Both of these men had promises made to them of a singular seed who was to come [Gen 22:17, 2Sam 7:12] Both of these promises are applied in the New Testament to Jesus. Genesis 21 in [Rom 9:7] and 2 Samuel [Heb 1:5] Notice the preponderance of occasion where Jesus is spoken of as The son of David in Matthew. Matt 1:1,20, 9:27, 20:30,31, 21:9,15 Compared with Mark and Luke. [Mark 10:47,48, Luke 3:31, 18:38,39] It is a phrase never found in John.

1:3 - Whilst it is not strictly necessary to record the twin son that Tamar bare to Judah he is here. Num 26:20-21, 1Chron 2:3-4] Show that Zara is the twin son of Judah by Tamar. The  inclusion of Pharez in the line would indicate that Judah took Tamar to be his wife. Thus, I presume, the second son is mentioned here to make the point clear that the irregularity was cleared up. This section of the genealogy quotes exactly [Ruth 4:18-20] In fact it is the only part of the family tree in Matthew which can be seen to be drawn from a specific area of the Old Testament.

2:4-5 - The fact that the priests and scribes correctly identified the birthplace of Messiah as Bethlehem only indicates that they sent the 'wise men' in that direction. There is no indication that Jesus was still in Bethlehem. Indeed eight days after his birth he was brought to Jerusalem to be circumcised. [Luke 2:21-24] Then he was taken to Nazareth by his parents [Luke 2:39] The wise men arrived to see Jesus 'in the house' [Matt 2:14] They were then warned not to go back to Herod [Matt 2:12] Joseph was warned that He should take Jesus to Egypt. [Matt 2:13-15] So we can conclude that the visit by the 'wise men' was not at Bethlehem, but rather at Nazareth. That is why, having received directions to Bethlehem from the scribes. [Matt 2:8] The star still guided them on their way. [Matt 2:9]

1:1 In describing Jesus as The son of Abraham the son of David we are instructed to look for fulfilments of the promises to both these individuals in Matthew's gospel

Ch 2 - Matthew records the visit of the wise men whilst Luke records the visit of the shepherds. These two events took place some time apart. The wise men visited Jesus when the family had gone back to Nazareth.

1:25 Notice the precision 'he called his name ...' which observes the command of the angel 'thou shalt call ...' (Matthew 1:21)

ch 2 - There are a number of parallels between the narrative of the birth and death of Jesus.

This fits in with the reason for his name as given in Matthew 1:21

ch.1 - Close examination of this chapter reveals a few startling anomalies:

Having gone through the entire forty two generations leading up to Christ, we find in verse 16 that they were the forefathers of Joseph, whom in verse 25 we’re told had nothing to do with the birth of Christ!
After tracing Joseph right back to his forefather Abraham, in verse 20 the angel calls him the son of David, when surely Abraham was more significant?
In verse 23 we’re told that “they shall call his name Immanuel..”, and then in verse 25 they name him Jesus!

These things must have been put there by God to make us think about them, but why?

A further point to ponder:
A virgin conceiving isn’t actually uncommon. We should not mistake conception with birth. When this prophecy was made in the time of Isaiah, the people may not have been expecting a miracle. The prophecy may have had its fulfilment immediately in Hezekiah’s mother. Here in Matthew the wording of the prophecy is changed from “the virgin shall conceive and bear a son” (Isaiah) to “the virgin shall be with child”, which is of course a miracle!

Did you know all the women mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus weren’t virgins, neither were they with their first partners when they begat their sons, except for Mary?

ch.2

2:1-6 Here we find the reason why Jesus is called “the son of David” in Chapter 1.  Jesus is shown to be the promised king of Micah 5v2.  But why in verse 3 was all Jerusalem, including Herod, troubled at the thought of the promised Messiah coming?  Surely they should have been glad?  Herod's plan to kill the baby seems to have been done through popular demand (see verse 4).

The prophecy in verse 6 may give us a clue to this: “..a ruler who will shepherd My people Israel”.  Would this remind the current shepherds of Israel that if the true shepherd were to come, then their deeds would be exposed? There is a clue in the word “shepherd”, which doesn’t appear in the quotation from Micah. The word of God seems to be giving us a flag to where we ought to look for illumination. In the search the scribes made of Christ in the books of the law, they would have found Jeremiah 23:1-6 which shows that wrath would be executed on the evil shepherds by the promised King, and replaced by good shepherds. Note how this prophecy is in the context of the return of the Jews to their own land, an event which had recently occurred.

A further point to ponder:
In verse 23 we find that the prophet had said “he shall be called a Nazarene”. As far as I know the only place where we can find this is Judges 13:5 speaking of the birth of Samson. How can this apply to Christ if it was spoken of Samson, or am I looking in the wrong passage of scripture?

1 - The five women :3,5,6,16 all could be described as being unsuitable women to be in the line of Christ. Matthew could have left them out and the genealogy would have been complete. Therefore we have to conclude that the inclusion of these women is significant. It would, at least, teach the Jews, that their perception of purity in a genealogy was unsound. One wonders how often we judge people on the basis of their pedigree.

2  - Herod was an Idumean – that is a descendant of Abraham through Esau. So the antipathy Herod had towards Jesus was the continual hatred of Edom of Israel.

The four Gospel accounts each show a different aspect of Christ's character:

Matthew shows His kingly nature

Mark shows Him as a servant

Luke shows His humanity

John shows his spiritual aspect

Matthew, Mark and Luke are called synoptic Gospels.
Synoptic means seeing together. They look at the same events from different vantage points. Thus, to understand an incident fully, the three accounts should be cross-referenced.

The four Gospel accounts mirror the four major Prophecies.
They are also represented by the faces of the four living creatures of Ezekiel (Eze 1:10). Thus, they equate:

Matthew - Isaiah - Lion (king)

Mark - Jeremiah - Ox (servant)

Luke - Ezekiel - Man (humanity)

John - Daniel - Eagle (spirit)

Matthew claims that there are fourteen generations between Abraham and David; fourteen between David and Babylon; and fourteen between Babylon and Christ (1:17). Actually there are more but Matthew has been selective with the genealogy.

The reference to Jesus' being a Nazarene in the Old Testament seems not to be found (2:23). But it is. Isa 11:1 designates Jesus as being the Branch. Branch in Hebrew is netzar. Coming from the same word, Nazareth also means branch. And so, there is the link.

Matt 2  From the very first there was indifference on the part of some towards Christ, and from others out and out hostility V.3-8  But it needed another thirty years, and another Herod before their scheme came to fruition. We are comforted how ever, that the hostility Christ encountered will be done away with in the near future with His return, and establishment of His Kingdom.

2:11 Matthew uses the word 'house' to speak of the place where the Magi worshipped Jesus. Luke 2:7calls the place an 'inn' where the shepherds saw Jesus. Thus the precision of Scripture demands that the two visitations occurred at different places.

2:4 The chief priests and the scribes would have been the Sanhedrin. This is the first time that they are called together to deal with Christ, they were able at this time only able to identify the place of his birth. The Sanhedrin, at there full complement, numbered seventy two. They provided Herod with knowledge that would be a stepping stone toward finding the child, and killing him. It was the highest tribunal, and did eventually condemn Christ to death.

1:22 This is the first of many times that Matthew uses the phrase 'that it might be fulfilled' or a similar phrase. It always worth following up the quotation which will be found noted in the marginal references. Maybe it would be helpful to underline the phrase whenever it occurs in your Bible.

2:5-6   That the religious leaders were able to cite Mic 5:2 to show where Messiah would be born shows that there was an active interest in, and Bible knowledge of, Messiah’s birthplace. Their problem was that they did not know the true nature of messiah – they anticipated a conquering king, not a sacrificial lamb.

1:19 Joseph who was ‘just’ did not rush thoughtless into dealing with the matter of Mary being pregnant. He ‘thought on those things’. Herein a lesson for us. Notice the first thing he did was not to talk about it with others. He applied his mind to the Biblical principles before doing anything. How we could learn from that! It is all too easy to make a snap decision – after all the case was quite clear with Mary. She was with child and the Law was very clear on this point. Of course the relevant thing was that the circumstances need to be thought through. It was the circumstances which cleared Mary of guilt though Joseph did not know this when he ‘thought’ about the issue. We would benefit from doing likewise, even when the matter seems so clear cut.

Prophecies Concerning Jesus (lesson 19 of 20 from "Outline of Basic Bible Teachings" by Wes Booker)

I. His birthplace - Mic 5:2 compare Matt 2:1

II. His preaching of the gospel and healing of the sick - Isa 61:1-2;42:6-7 compare Matt 4:23

III. His wisdom, understanding, and unique righteousness - Isa 11:1-5;Psa 45:2,6,7 compare Heb 1:8-9

IV. His death as a sacrifice for sin. Especially Isa 53 and Psa 22. Specifics:  

     A. He was betrayed for thirty pieces of silver - Zech 11:12-13 compare Matt 27:1-10   B. He was betrayed by Judas, his own "familiar friend" - Psa 55:12-14; 41:9 compare John 18:1-6   C. He was despised and rejected - Isa 53:2-3 compare Matt 27:20-23   D. He did not open his mouth in retaliation - Isa 53:7 compare Matt 27:12-14; 1Pet 2:21-23   E. He was mocked - Psa 69:4,7-12; 22:6-8 compare Matt 27:27-31,39-44   F. The means of his death - crucifixion preceded by wounding and flogging - Isa 53:4-5;Psa 22:16;Zech 12:10;13:6 (KJV) compare John 19:1-3,16-18   G. Soldiers casting lots for his robe - Psa 22:18 compare John 19:24   H. He was crucified among thieves and buried in a rich man's tomb - Isa 53:9 compare Matt 27:38,57-60

V. His resurrection to eternal life - Isa 53:10-12;Psa 22:22-31;Psa 16:10-11 compare Acts 2:29-36;1Cor 15:3-8

VI. His ascension to heaven - Psa 110:1 compare Acts 1:9-11

As you read through the Gospels, note how many prophecies about Jesus were made in the Old Testament (Luke 24:27).

1:21,25 Jesus is the Greek form of the Hebrew yeshua which means Yah saves. The Greek for wise men is magi from which the word magic comes.

1:22 fulfils Isa 7:14.

2:1 Herod the Great was the Edomite who was made king by the Romans.  Jesus was born in the year of his death.  This fulfils the prophecy of Gen 49:10. 

2:5,6 fulfils Mic 5:2.

2:15 fulfils Hos 11:1.

2:17,18 fulfils Jer 31:15.

2:22 Archelaus took over from his father Herod the Great.  However, the Romans gave him the position of ethnarch over Judea, Samaria, and Idumea.  He was never granted the position of king. Archelaus did such an unfavourable job of governing that the Romans banished him to Vienna in Gaul.  After that, the Romans governed the area as a Roman province.  Thus, Gen 49:10 remained true.

2:2 By the time Jesus was born there had been a long time since the promise of ‘Messiah the prince’ Dan 9:25 – and a time period was specified. We also know that there were people at the time of Jesus’ birth looking for ‘the consolation of Israel’ – Luke 2:25– and others looking for ‘the kingdom of God’ - Luke 2:38 so the question about the birth place of ‘the king of the Jews’ was not really an unusual question to ask – doubtless it was a topic of conversation among the faithful Jews at that time.

4:11  Right at the start of his ministry, God sent an angel to minister to Jesus.  This is undoubtedly an indication of what the temptation had taken out of him.  A similar event occurred right at the end of his ministry Luke 22:43 when, again, much effort had been expended.

2:11   When the ‘wise men’ worshipped Jesus they were the first gentiles to do this  - a foreshadowing of the response of gentiles to Jesus. The Jewish shepherds were the first Jews. So both Jew and gentile worshipped the young child Jesus.

CHRIST, JESUS, IMMANUEL

There are three titles of Christ named in Matthew 1: Christ, Jesus and Immanuel.

As Matthew concludes his genealogy, he climaxes it with "Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ." (Matt 1:16) Christ is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew, Messiah, which means "The Anointed One". At the end of the genealogy listing the kingly line it is appropriate that Jesus is named as the Christ, our Anointed king.

When Joseph was told that Mary's child was from the Holy Spirit, he was told, "She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." (v.21) Jesus is the Greek form of the Hebrew Joshua, which means "The Lord Saves". Jesus is our Savior.

And in the prophecy Matthew quotes from Isaiah we learn that "'The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel' - which means 'God with us'." (v.23) As Immanuel Jesus brings us into the presence of God.

What a blessing it is to know him - the Son of God, Anointed by God to be our king, our Savior and the One who brings us back into the presence of God.

Matt 1:1-16; Luke 3:23-38

“THE book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”

While Matthew begins his genealogy with Abraham and ends with Joseph and the birth of Jesus Christ, born of Mary (not begat by Joseph), Luke reverses his genealogy and begins with Christ at age 30, “as was supposed the son of Joseph…” and ends in Adam, the son of God (Luke 3:23,28). Clearly, Matt 1 and Luke 3 offer different genealogies for Jesus. Matthew gives the genealogy of Joseph, who was descended from the line of David, but the line he came from was banned from any further kings reigning over Judah after King Jechoniah. Jeremiah declares: “Thus saith the LORD, (Yahweh), Write ye this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days: for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah” (Jer 22:30; Eze 21:27). Jechoniah was the last king of Judah before the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem in 586 B.C. All the recorded names after Jechoniah reveal the truth of this. No descendant of David after Jechoniah occupied David’s throne, and no one ever occupied the throne that was not a descendant of David.

Joseph's ancestry did not disqualify Jesus' claim to the throne, not being his biological son, and thus Matthew concludes his genealogy as Jesus who was born of Mary. Iraeneus, a Biblical scholar of the 2nd century wrote: "But besides, if indeed He had been the son of Joseph, He could not, according to Jeremiah, be either king or heir…” Since Jechoniah's descendants were forbidden to fulfill their heir-ship to the throne, it is not surprising Matthew stated upfront that Joseph was not the father of Jesus (Matt 1:18-19,25).

Luke 3:23-38 gives us the genealogy of Jesus through his biological mother, Mary who also was a descendent from the royal line of David - not through the banned line of Jechoniah, but through David’s son, Nathan. Joseph was the son-in-law of Heli, not son of Heli. Joseph’s father’s name was Jacob (Matt 1:16). Heli is, therefore, Mary’s father’s name, and is Jesus' grandfather. Luke shows us Jesus could claim direct ancestry back to King David and is a rightful heir through his mother. But, there is more…

We read in v. 24 that Heli was the son of Matthat, who was the son of Levi. This identifies him with the priestly tribe of Levi and descended from Aaron (Num 18). Luke by recording his genealogy right down to Adam reveals Christ’s both kingly and priestly line. Mary’s genealogy merged the priestly line of Levi with the Davidic royal line of Judah! According to Jewish custom, though, the actual genealogy of Joseph was the legal pedigree of Jesus, but Mary’s was the actual bloodline of Jesus as recorded in Luke 3.  

2:13    The way in which Joseph is given the dream immediately after the visit of the wise men may cause us to think that these events happened in Bethlehem. However some time had elapsed since the events in Bethlehem and Joseph and Mary are back in Nazareth.

2:12  Isn’t it interesting that these gentile men could differentiate between a God given dream and the normal dream that man has?

Matt 2:1,2,9,10.

2:23   It is not easy to see in the Old Testament where it says Jesus was to be a Nazarene. However one indication, given the way in which Samson is in certain respects typical of Jesus, is in Judg 13:5

2         When we read this and the previous chapter about the early life of Jesus and his parents we are forced to appreciate that Godly people are not guaranteed an easy life. It was of God that Joseph and Mary had to make the arduous journey to Egypt and then back and find accommodation in Nazareth because of the wickedness of both Herod and Archelaus.

2:3-8  Herod’s instructions to the wise men highlights Herod’s paranoia. He was fearful that his position and status was in question and that he might be removed from his position of privilege. He is the first person who felt their position and status was challenged by Jesus – but he was not the last.

HEARING FROM GOD

Joseph probably could have had quite a pleasant life. His plan was to get married to Mary, have children, work in his carpenter's shop and be the model of a family man for others to see. They may not have been rich, but they would have had a pleasant, comfortable and stable life. But Joseph kept hearing from God.

Firstly he had to get married to a pregnant woman, who was pregnant with a child that was not his. The shame and the wagging tongues would have followed him, and of course no one would have believed him when he said that it was God's child.

Then, after settling in Bethlehem, where the gossip was less, he suddenly had to get up in the middle of the night to flee to Egypt. Any business aspirations were left behind in the rush to exit Bethlehem before Herod killed their new baby.

Joseph couldn't even settle in Egypt. After another short period of time God told Joseph to move back into Israel and then go and live in the slums in Nazareth. No, Joseph was never going to get ahead now, and all because he listened to the Lord.

The point is this: When God spoke, Joseph obeyed. No matter what the consequences, Joseph obeyed God first of all. It is often hard to do, but it is important that we follow the example of Joseph and obey God in small things and in the big things, whatever he tells us to do.

2:16      The way in which the record speaks of Jesus being born might seem a little cumbersome. However it is precisely this description which forces us to understand that Mary was the mother and Joseph was not the father.

Matt 1:5

“And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab…”

A reader writes: “… I have encountered the argument in regard to Rahab telling lies to the soldiers that Scripture condones lying if it’s in a good cause; with the incident of Jacob deceiving his father to obtain the promised birthright (Gen 25:23) being used as ‘proof of concept’ as it were.”

My reply: We are on very dangerous ground if we conclude from these incidences that lying is justified if it is for a "good cause" and take it upon ourselves to decide, which is which! This is opening Pandora’s Box. We need to stick to what Scripture reveals in this regard and act accordingly.

We are told Rahab acted in faith. Rahab knew that her actions against the King and soldiers were treasonous, the penalty being death, and risked her own life in so doing. On the other hand, Rebecca and Jacob demonstrated a lack of faith that what God had promised (Gen 25:23), He is able to perform (Rom 4:21), and went about in a deceptive way in taking matters into their own hands.

Rahab: While it is said that Scripture no where condones Rahab’s “lie,” just her faith and works, it does not condemn it either! In fact, Rahab’s words and actions cannot be separated; she acted on her words, and if her faith and actions are praised, why are her words condemned by us? Our thoughts reveal our actions and our words. The type of actions, as outlined in Mark 7:20-23 and spoken by Christ, makes this very clear (cf. Prov 23:7).

It was out of the abundance of her heart, her mouth spoke (cf. Luke 6:45) and brought forth good fruit and was rewarded (cf. Josh 6:23)! Rahab married Salmon, a Prince of the House of Judah, who was the father of Boaz who married Ruth. She is in the genealogy of Christ and the only other woman mentioned next to Sarah in the hall of the faithful!

The apostle Paul describes her actions as an act of faith (Heb 11:31; cf. Josh 2:9-13), James describes her actions as works justified by her faith (James 2:25; cf. Josh 2:8-13). We, on the other hand, describe her faith and actions as resulting from her lying! The Bible no where tells us Rahab “lied,” we do, along with numerous other Bible commentators. We base this on various Scriptures like, Exo 20:16; Prov 6:12-19; 12:22; Acts 5; Col 3:9 etc. and then take the incidence of Rahab and bunch it in – out of context! Rahab did none of these things, nor did she usurp God’s authority.

Rebecca and Jacob: Both were deceptive and Jacob also lied to his father, Isaac, and all done at the behest of his mother. In acting on their words, which proceeded first in their thought processes, Rebecca had to send Jacob away for fear Esau would kill him, and she never saw him again! Jacob, himself, was deceived by his uncle, Laban, when learning he first married Leah and not Rachel. Their lying was motivated by fear and acted on, which is contrary to faith, trust and love. Their lies and deception is what the Bible warns us against and as a result were not left unpunished. Jacob would have received the promise, regardless. God did not need their ‘help’ to accomplish it!

The differences between these two incidences are so significantly different! Consider further the following passages: Exo 1:15-21; 1Sam 16:1-5; 21:1-3; 27:8-12; Jer 38:24-27, which makes this principle very clear!

2:7     In saying Herod called the wise men “privily” we see a man using secrecy to plan his evil massacre of the one heralded to the wise men possibly indicates that Herod thought that the chief priests would not be in agreement with his policy. Whilst maybe they were not at the time of Jesus’ birth they certainly were towards the end of Jesus’ life.

1:19  “just” Joseph, understanding the principles of  Prov 12:16 did not shame Mary.

2:5-6   We think of the Old Testament prophets speaking their words. However the careful use, by Matthew or “written by the prophet” makes it clear that as well as speaking Micah also wrote down his prophecy.

OVERJOYED

Wise men (Magi) from the east came to worship Jesus after he was born. When they arrived in Jerusalem, they asked, "Where is the one who has been born King of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him." (Matt 2:2). Eventually, after all the knowledgeable men in Jerusalem had consulted their scrolls, the Magi were pointed toward Bethlehem.

It was a star that began their journey, and as they began the final leg of their journey, it was a star that took them to exactly the right place in Bethlehem."They went on their way and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed." (v.9-10).

These men must have been watching out for the birth of the Messiah. At the first sign in the sky, they set out to find him. They were overjoyed to see the star. This was not an emotionless, monotone comment, "Oh, there's the star." No, they were excited, there were high fives all round, they were jumping up and down for joy, singing, shouting, and with great joy on their faces.

We are looking for Jesus' return. I wonder if it will be similar? "At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky." (Matt 24:30). Will we be wise and rejoice at the signs of Jesus' return? Will we be overjoyed to see it?
 

1:21 The name “Jesus” derives from the name ‘Yahweh’ and the verb ‘to save’. The meaning of ‘Yahweh’ is ‘He will be’ and this is reflected in the future  tense of the phrase, “he shall save”, which is the exact meaning of the name ‘Jesus’.

1:18 The “virgin birth” is essential to a correct understanding of the work of Jesus. Matthew’s comment “before they came together” is something that Matthew could not have known for sure unless he was told by God – this is the way in which inspiration works in the Bible. God told the human penmen what to write. 

2:7-9 The wise men who stood before Herod had no reason to doubt Herod’s willingness to worship the baby Jesus and so took him at his word. However an angel warned them not to return to Herod. If they had known the character of Herod they may have been suspicious. Here we see the overriding care that God has for one of His children. He knew Herod’s heart and so intervened to warn the wise men. Our Father is not just concerned for His son Jesus. He is concerned for all of His faithful children. We can take comfort ourselves from the way that God took care of Jesus.

2:4-6  the way in which the chief priests and scribes could easily quote scripture in answer to Herod’s question is ample evidence that the Jews were actually expecting Messiah to be born. If they had thought Messiah’s origins were to be other than “born” they would not have cited Mic 5:2.

2:18 The quotation from Jer 31:15 speaks of the time that the Chaldeans rounded up Jews in preparation for taking them to Babylon.

IF ONLY WE KNEW

Imagine being one of the people listed in the genealogy of Jesus Christ. What an honour that would have been! Imagine the feelings of responsibility as you live your life and bring up your children, knowing that one of your great-grandsons is going to be the saviour of the world. Yet I suspect most of the people listed as ancestors of the Lord Jesus Christ had very little or no idea at all that one of their descendants would be the Messiah.

But what if they had known? Would that knowledge have changed the way they lived? Would Manasseh have lived a better life? Would Boaz have married a Gentile wife? Would Judah have slept with a woman he thought was a prostitute? Would Rehoboam have been more careful with his kingdom?

None of us are going to be included in that majestic roll call as ancestors of the Messiah, but who knows what is down the track for our children, grandchildren or great-grandchildren? Our decisions today could have a huge impact for a long time into the future. Maybe one of our own children or descendants will be used by God for something great.