God Speaks
Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, 2 “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.”
3 King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. 4 He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?”
5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote:
6 ‘And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah,
are not least among the ruling cities of Judah,
for a ruler will come from you
who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’”
7 Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared. 8 Then he told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!”
9 After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were filled with joy! 11 They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12 When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.
13 After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”
14 That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother, 15 and they stayed there until Herod’s death. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “I called my Son out of Egypt.”
16 Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him. He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, based on the wise men’s report of the star’s first appearance. 17 Herod’s brutal action fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:
18 “A cry was heard in Ramah—
weeping and great mourning.
Rachel weeps for her children,
refusing to be comforted,
for they are dead.”
19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt. 20 “Get up!” the angel said. “Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead.”
21 So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel with Jesus and his mother. 22 But when he learned that the new ruler of Judea was Herod’s son Archelaus, he was afraid to go there. Then, after being warned in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee. 23 So the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth. This fulfilled what the prophets had said: “He will be called a Nazarene.”
Source: New Living Translation: BibleGateway.com
We Respond
Reflection: Consider the following questions regarding Matthew 2:
1. What does Matthew 2 tell me about God?
2. What does Matthew 2 tell me about the human beings He created?
Here is one possible answer to each of these questions. Ask the Holy Spirit if there are any others for you personally to ponder.
1. God uses various ways to communicate with the people He created. He especially wants His chosen ones to pay attention and follow through on what He tells or shows them.
2. If they are wise, people will be curious, seek out, and worship Jesus, the one who was born to be King of the Jews, even if they have to go to great lengths to do so.
Prayer:
3. How might I pray regarding Micah 1 and 2?
Dear loving God who guides and protects His people, You use many ways to direct Your people, including dreams as You did three times with Joseph, Jesus’s stepfather [see Matthew 1:20, 2:13, and 2:19]. You guided the wise men by a special sign in the sky (star), the words written by a prophet in the Old Testament, the command of a ruler, and a dream [Matthew 2:2, 5-6, 8, 12]. Help me to be open, alert, and obedient to every way You choose to lead me. Let me not be afraid, but take precautions when evil occurs as I am carrying out Your plans and purposes [Matthew 2:13-23]. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
4. What action does the LORD want me to take in response to Matthew 2?
- I will ask God the Holy Spirit to examine my attitudes to see if there is anything blocking my willingness to obey God wholeheartedly.
- I will be courageous and do whatever the LORD shows me to do.
- I will ask the Lord and other people to explain what the dreams I’ve had mean and what to do about them.
- I will seek God’s help and obey His directions in watching over, providing for, and protecting my family as Joseph did.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.