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to convince the lowly and humble
classes that in fact a Savior was that
day being born?
He did so by a number of divine
miracles, intricately inverwoven into
the fabric of history, extending so
far back in time that it boggles the
mind.
Although we cannot cover them
here in detail , the miracles having to
do with Jesus' birth-the decree of
Augustus , the building of the
Temple, the beginning of His minis–
try, the decrees of Cyrus and Arta–
xerxes, and many other events (see
Daniel, chapter 11)- are tightly
meshed into a network of Old Tes–
tament prophecies, and testify in–
con trovertibly to one fact: Jesus
Christ of Nazareth was in truth the
Son ofGod.
All the religious leaders knew,
and the common folk believed in–
tensely
in,
Isaiah's prophecy: " Be–
hold, a virgin. shall conceive, and
bear a son, and shall call his name
Immanuel [which means 'God with
us']" (lsa.
1:
14). They knew lsaiah
had said: For unto us a child is
born, unto usa son is given: and the
government shall be upon his shoul–
der: and bis name shall be called
Wonderful, Counsellor [wonder of a
Counselor], The rnighty God, The
everlasting Father, The Prince of
Peace. Of the increase of his govern–
ment and peace there shall be no
end, upon the throne of David, and
upon his kingdom, to arder it, and
to establish it with judgment and
with justice from henceforth even
for ever" (lsa. 9:2, 6-7).
But how would God manage to
avoid the contemptuous slander of
"impostor" heaped upon Jesus, not
only by His detractors, persecutors
and religiousantagonists, buteven by
His own closest disciples and personal
friends? How would the common
people be convinced utlerly thatJesus
was in fact fulfilling the many proph–
ecies oflsaiah, Daniel and elsewhere,
andwas in fact the promised Messiah,
that "Prophet" who would come to
deliver Israel and to qualify to inherit
the throne ofDavid?
First, God sent a humble group of
shepherds from sufficiently far away
so that no one could clairn collusion.
An angel appeared to them and
said, "Unto you
is
born this day in
the city ofDavid a Saviour, which is
6
Christ the Lord" (Luke 2: 11). They
were not given any address-only a
sign that they would find the baby
wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying
in a manger. This meant He would
be so newly born that there would
be no opportunity for either the
purchase or making of clothes for
Him , that He would still be
wrapped in a soft blanket, lying on a
bed of straw, and would not yet be
moved toan inn ora private borne.
They were no doubt quite excited
about the vision they had seen, and
it is inconceivable that they were
not elated with a combinat ion of
awe, fright, and yet subdued joy
over having actually heard the voice
of an angel, and seen an over–
whelmingly bright light seemingly
coming very near to them out of the
heavens. Because of these miracles
they fuUy expected to find the Sav–
ior of mankind lying in swaddling
clothes in a manger. They probably
asked any number of people around
the streets and marketplaces of
Bethlehem where they could find a
baby who had been born in aman–
ger, and repeated time and again
to the excited questions they were
asked precisely what had happened.
FinaUy, with the question having
been asked sufficiently about the
town, perhaps one servant ata nearby
inn recaUed that Joseph or a friend
had come urgently asking aid and
that one ofthe women in the kitchen
had rushed off to help during the
birth. Severa! of them may have ex–
claimed about the fact that a woman
had to be turned away from the inn in
sueh an advanced state of pregnancy
when a lot of other people had been
put up in more suitable accom–
modations, and there no doubt was
sorne tongue-wagging about the un–
fortunate circumstances that led to
her giving birth in a stable.
Actually, the Creator was suc–
ceeding in announcing the birth
through three separate groups of in–
dividuals: the shepherds themselves,
al! the citizenry and townfolk they
queried and who subsequently be–
carne involved, and Joseph and his
own family.
Herod's Persecutlon
The events of the first few weeks
after Jesus' birth caused widespread
attention.
It
is evident that Herod
was terribly shaken by what he had
heard. The Bible says "he was trou–
bled,
and al/ Jerusalem with him"
(Matt. 2:3), and claims he "gathered
all the chief priests [who probably
were Sadducees] and scribes of the
people together" and "demanded of
them where Christ should be born"
(verse 4). All of the scholars were
aware tha t this very likely was the
time of the birth ofChrist.
Pious frauds and sincere schol–
ars- astronomers, astrologers, seers
and soothsayers alike-were almost
universally expecting that sorne
great event would occur at about
this time in history, and were look–
ing for the Messiah.
When Herod called together the
"chief priests and scribes of the
people," this was tantamount to the
President of the United States hav–
ing a combined meeting of the Cab–
inet and Supreme Court . The
"Supreme Court" of the Jewish na–
tion, the Sanhedrin, the greatest re–
ligious body of the nation, declared
in unanimi"ty that Jesus the Savior
would be born in Bethlehem, a city
of David! (This they determined
from the prophecy of Christ's birth
found in the Old Testament book of
Micah [5:2].)
Herod waited awhile, and then, in
a fit of insane rage, "sent forth , and
slew all the children that were in
Bethlehem, and in all the coasts
thereof, from two years old and un–
der, according to the time which he
had diligently inquired of the wise
men" (Matt. 2: 16).
But by that time it was too late.
Joseph and Mary had escaped to
Egypt, taking the young Jesus with
them and remaining until this
vicious despot passed from the
scene.
From the young lad's return with
His parents from Egypt to the
northern Palestinian city of Naza–
reth, there is no further mention of
Jesus until the moment He is seen
sitt ing in the Temple at Jerusalem,
both listening to questions and ask–
ing His own questions of the most
learned doctors of the law, and as–
tonishing them with His under–
standing and His answers (Luke
2:46-47).
(Another excerpt from
The Real
Jesus
will be coming next
month.)
o
The
PLAIN TRUTH December 1977