BARBARANNE KELLY | CONTRIBUTOR

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to be ruler in Israel,
whose coming forth is from of old,
from ancient days. — Micah 5:2

Do you ever get lost while traveling, and need to stop to ask for directions? It’s tempting to read the journey of the wise men in the Gospel of Matthew in terms of the logistics of pre-modern travel. The wise men’s astronomical GPS (the star) led them to the region of Judea, but to find their specific destination they needed to ask the local folks—road signs and maps to the birthplace of the Messiah not yet in existence.

However, when Micah prophesied the birthplace of the Messiah centuries before the fact, the Lord was revealing far more than a location on a map for the sake of future travelers. Micah 5:2, speaks a word of hope to despairing people lost in their sins. This word of hope is a single signpost among many for lost and weary sinners, pointing the way to the birth of Christ. And the road to Bethlehem, joining other roads to become a highway of God’s covenant faithfulness, began in God’s covenant promise to David, a promise of peace and rest that would be achieved by the son of David whose kingdom would be established forever (2 Sam. 7:12–13).

Though there were good kings among the sons of David, even the best of them were only fallen men. The few who were faithful could not undo the wickedness of those who had been unfaithful. Of all the kings of Judah, not one lived up to the promise of David’s greater son (1 Chron. 17:1–14). By Micah’s day, the judgment of the Lord was poised to strike because of the faithlessness of God’s people; they would soon be overcome by their enemies and hauled off to exile in a foreign country.

And yet, even as prophecies of fearsome destruction flow from his lips, Micah breaks to speak of one who will be born in Bethlehem “who is to be ruler in Israel.” Who could this be but the promised son of David? When he says this ruler’s “coming forth is from of old, from ancient days,” he is certainly recalling the multitude of prophecies already made concerning David’s greater son, for this ruler “shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,” (4; cf. 2 Sam. 5:2).

This language of shepherding reminds Micah’s hearers of the humble origins of the king who was the apple of God’s eye, whose delight and trust in the Lord his God spilled out into the writing of the Shepherd psalm (Ps. 23), and whose reign was merely a down payment on their Messianic hopes. Under the reign of this promised Shepherd-King, his flock “shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. And he shall be their peace,” because his shepherding will not be in his own name, but “in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God” (4–5a).

This is the King the people of God needed as their world crumbled around them and they were scattered among the nations. From the land of the Chaldeans the Lord reiterated his promise through his exiled prophet: “I will rescue my flock… And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd” (Ezekiel 3:22–23). God’s promise gave hope to people under siege and facing the prospect of exile in Micah’s day, the prophets spoke of hope while in exile, and the hope echoed down through the years as the exiles returned to Israel. But the sound of hope grew faint as David’s throne remained empty.

When would the Lord send the promised son of David?

Centuries later, recording the events of the wise men and their inquiry into the birthplace of “the king of the Jews,” Matthew seized upon the same hope for his readers and shook it back into life with the opening words of his Gospel, deliberately emphasizing the Davidic sonship of Jesus, then telling of the wise men journeying to Jerusalem and asking the locals for directions. Word gets to Herod the king (not of David’s line), who then asks the chief priests and scribes where the Messiah is to be born, and “They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:

‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who will shepherd my people Israel.’” — Matthew 2:6

Our Savior, David’s greater Son, was born in the humble town of Bethlehem, not that we might find him, but that as a Shepherd, he might seek and save the lost and wandering sheep of his flock and lead them gently home. He came as The King, inheriting the throne that lasts forever, so that goodness and mercy will surely follow the subjects of his kingdom all the days of our lives, and we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

O Father, would you cause this joyful news to enliven our hearts with the same hopes shared by your people from the beginning. We are a people besieged by wickedness from the world without, and from our own hearts within. We need Jesus, our Shepherd-King, who will draw us into his flock, making us dwell secure under his all-sufficient reign, and bringing us peace with you and with one another. Thank you for the good news of great joy this advent season, that this King, the promised son of David, was not only born in Bethlehem, but that you have established his kingdom forever. Amen.

Photo by Jonathan Meyer on Unsplash