In the Days of Herod
In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah…. Luke 1:5
Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem….. Matthew 2:1
Tucked into the narrative of the birth of Jesus is this phrase that carries such weight, especially this year.
In the days of Herod.
Regardless of personal political affiliation, I think that the current political climate gives us the clearest picture in our modern era of what these words meant to the listener in the ancient near east. Decades from now, when a person says, “In the days of Trump…” a picture of strife and chaos will become clear.
In the days of Herod, a different King with a different kind of Kingdom steps into the world. In fact, the ones that study the mystery of the stars saw something different that stirred their hearts to worship. They tell the king of the day that they have traveled to worship an infant King. Herod sends them to search out this powerful baby.
It’s almost as if Herod sent people to the border searching for a dangerous child…..
And in the days of Herod, the Prince of Peace comes. In these current days of seeing migrant families teargassed, I need a different King. In the days of strife, I long for the One who ushers in shalom.
Joseph is told in a dream that he must flee, and so Mary and Joseph continue to protect God’s Promised One by seeking refuge in Egypt.
In the days of Herod, the Name above all other names becomes an anonymous migrant.
Perhaps we ought to sing Silent Night this year only after remembering the lament that Rachel refused to be comforted because her children are no more (Matthew 2:18, Jeremiah 31:15). The King becomes a migrant while a voice is heard, the sound of weeping and loud lamentation.
Will we be so emboldened by the story of our King to refuse to be comforted by a simplistic hope? Will we lament, because it is the most hope-filled act we can do this Advent? Lament is not a cry into the dark, but a cry that agrees with the Story of Scripture that all is not well. We long for the return of our King. We join in loud lamentation because there is a God that is with us who actually hears our cry.