Burning Bush Blogs
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Category: Personal Study
Thread: How the OT reveals Jesus
Post Topic: Prophecy – Birth
Post in Thread: #1
Next: Prophecy – Miracles
Scripture: Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:1-6
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel…
Micah 5:2
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea…Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? King Herod…called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law… he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea…
Matthew 2:2; Matthew 2:4-5
Observations
Context
- Bethlehem Ephrathah is an unimportant, small town in Judah, a bit south of Jerusalem.
- Bethlehem is also the hometown of King David. It was a shepherding community.
- The Magi likely traveled from Babylon. It is believed they knew about the prophecy from Daniel, who was in captivity there.
The Prophecy of Micah
- From Bethlehem would come Judah’s future messiah and king.
- The prophecy would have been well-known among Jews of Jesus’ time. The Messiah would come from Bethlehem to redeem his people.
Fulfillment in Matthew
- Magi visit Herod to ask where they can go to worship the newly-born king of the Jews.
- Herod freaks out. Another king?
- He asks all the priests and teachers where this birth is to happen. Later, we find out he wants to eliminate this threat to his throne.
- They tell Herod it is Bethlehem. They also quote other verses in Micah 2 that say that the Messiah will shepherd his people.
Interpretation
Setting/Author – Micah
- Micah prophesized Jesus’ birth about 700 years before His birth.
- From a small town in SW Judah, he criticized injustices of the elite, prophesied the Assyrian attack on Israel, which happened in 722 BCE, and the Messiah’s birth in Bethlehem.
Setting/Author – Matthew
- A former tax-collector, Jesus’ disciple Matthew traveled with Him throughout His ministry.
- Matthew gave the most complete account of Jesus’ life and teachings.
- He used the Old Testament often to show Jesus’ fulfillment in the New Testament.
Genre
- Micah – Biblical Poetry
- Matthew – Narrative / story & Jesus’ discourse sections
Imagine
You’re Matthew, remembering the prophet Micah, and understanding the significance of Jesus’ being born in Bethlehem. This rabbi, who rescued you from the despised tax collector’s booth, is God Incarnate. You get to walk the dusty roads of Galilee and beyond, recording his life and message. How amazed and excited would you be?
Takeaways
- David went from a humble shepherd boy in Bethlehem to a king in Jerusalem. Jesus, known as the Good Shepherd, also got his humble start in Bethlehem, where he was born in a stable.
- Jesus is both the humble shepherd and the powerful king who has overcome the grave.
- The Magi, Gentiles from a distant land, knew of the prophecy of the Jewish king from hundreds of years earlier.
- Fulfilled prophecy can disarm the skeptic and encourage the believer.
- The odds of Jesus fulfilling just one prophecy is very small.
- Scholars have estimated the odds of one man fulfilling eight is 10 17 (one in 100,000,000,000,000). Click here to learn more
Correlation
- Luke 24:13-35 After the resurrection, 2 grieving disciples were walking 7 miles from Jerusalem to Emmaus. Jesus appears to them, but they don’t know who he is. He explains how from Moses to the prophets and writings, that the entire Old Testament spoke of him. Later they said their hearts burned within them as he spoke.
Application
Generic Applications
- The entire Bible from Genesis to Revelation is one story, entirely about Jesus.
- God uses our situations to bring about his plan – like the Romans ruling over Palestine.
- Jesus was raised in Nazareth, where Joseph and Mary were from.
- The only reason this prophecy was fulfilled is that the Romans called for everyone to return to their hometowns for a census.
- Joseph and a pregnant Mary had to return to his hometown of Bethlehem.
Personalize it
- How can I discover more prophecies to grow my own faith as well as to share Jesus with others?
- In our difficult stages of life, God can still use us to fulfill his plans.
- Mary was not yet married. Not an optimal time to start showing a baby in the womb.
- The imposition of the census by the Romans could not be ignored. They’d have to make the dangerous journey south.
- Am I in the midst of one of life’s journeys? Does the timing of an obstacle seem awkward, at best?
- How might God use me in the midst of my trials?
Bible study methodology adapted from Searching the Scriptures with permission from Tyndale House:
Swindoll, Charles, Searching the Scriptures. Tyndale House Publishers, 2016.
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