Matthew 2:5-6 - And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.
Like young David, tending the fields of his father, Jesse, the City of David was often thought of as the least among the princes of Judah.
Greatness often takes us by surprise.
It took David by surprise. It certainly so took Jesse and his brothers.
Who me? We surmise by our surprise that our eyes have been playing games with our minds and our ears have distorted the garbled sound of, “Yes, you.”
It took a miracle of the manipulation of history for a Nazarene couple to fulfill prophecy and experience the birth of this son in Bethlehem. It took the hand of God guiding events that would seem much larger and more significant than this to bring it all to pass.
The Son of David would be born in David’s city. The unlikely King would provide a line of succession for an unlikely Savior born in an unlikely place.
Never underestimate the greatness of God’s plan for your life, your place, and your time. He is still guiding the course of events to His own ends.
Bethlehem, the House of Bread, figured into the redemption story in a way that might have seen disproportionate to its civic significance. God, on the other hand, measures importance by what He brings forth from our lives, places, times, and events.
Who me? Yes, you.
Picture - 1698 de Bruijin View of Bethlehem
