Adventure - Day 10
Herod the Great WANNA-BE King
“Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.” King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?” “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote: ‘And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah, are not least among the ruling cities of Judah, for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’” Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared. Then he told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!”
…Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him. He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, based on the wise men’s report of the star’s first appearance. Herod’s brutal action fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: “A cry was heard in Ramah— weeping and great mourning. Rachel weeps for her children, refusing to be comforted, for they are dead.””
Matthew 2:1-8, 16-18 NLT
Many of you know some of the history of the wanna-be king, Herod The Great. I say wanna-be, because it seems that at every corner, he wanted Rome to recognize his worth, and he wanted Israel to recognize his power. Likely, Herod knew of the prophecies of a Messiah, and he was power hungry enough to have probably envisioned himself as the fulfillment of those prophecies.
But Herod was no prince of peace. He was paranoid, constantly afraid of losing power and influence. He was willing to kill family, his own sons, to hold onto that power, and he willingly and all to easily compromised his values and his people to hold onto that power.
So imagine what it felt like for Herod to have foreigners from the east come to him and announce, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews?”
I don’t know the manners the wise men were raised with, but they apparently didn’t mind disrespecting the sitting king. Herod lived in a palace, wore a crown, and was currently serving as the King of the Jews, both as commissioned by Rome, and by his own blood-sweat, and tears (not to mention the blood of those he killed to get there).
So how dare the wise men come into his palace and ask about the new king. But Herod had always been concerned about a new ruler coming from the east. He tried to build fortresses and fortify cities on their east borders to keep that threat at bay. So when visitors came from the East, he anxiety went through the roof.
He must have hid his surprise well, however, because he was able to get the wise men to share important details about the location of this alleged new king. He also tricked them into thinking he too wanted to worship this new king, when in reality all Herod wanted to do was eradicate the threat to his throne.
Fast-forward just over 2,000 years, and something quite fascinating happened to the reputation and power of Herod the Great; it got up and left. His influence was passed on to his children, the ones he didn’t kill, but little is known about his line after the second generation.
And just to put an exclamation mark on his life vs that of the newborn king he was so threatened by, here’s a story:
Before Herod died, he built an archaeological marvel called Herodium. It was a man-made mountain built to protect, but also built as a tomb for the once great king. To this day, over 200,000 people every year visit Herodium to see this unusual human accomplishment.
Just a few miles away, however, in the basement of what is known as the church of the Holy Seplucher, is the tomb of that baby born during Herod’s reign. A baby born in the small village of Bethlehem to a carpentar and a teenage woman. That tomb, the one that Jesus’ body laid in for three days, is visited each year by millions of people from around the world.
So you tell me, who made the biggest impact and held the most power? Who was the real king of the Jews?
JOURNAL
…Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him. He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, based on the wise men’s report of the star’s first appearance. Herod’s brutal action fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: “A cry was heard in Ramah— weeping and great mourning. Rachel weeps for her children, refusing to be comforted, for they are dead.””
Matthew 2:1-8, 16-18 NLT
Many of you know some of the history of the wanna-be king, Herod The Great. I say wanna-be, because it seems that at every corner, he wanted Rome to recognize his worth, and he wanted Israel to recognize his power. Likely, Herod knew of the prophecies of a Messiah, and he was power hungry enough to have probably envisioned himself as the fulfillment of those prophecies.
But Herod was no prince of peace. He was paranoid, constantly afraid of losing power and influence. He was willing to kill family, his own sons, to hold onto that power, and he willingly and all to easily compromised his values and his people to hold onto that power.
So imagine what it felt like for Herod to have foreigners from the east come to him and announce, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews?”
I don’t know the manners the wise men were raised with, but they apparently didn’t mind disrespecting the sitting king. Herod lived in a palace, wore a crown, and was currently serving as the King of the Jews, both as commissioned by Rome, and by his own blood-sweat, and tears (not to mention the blood of those he killed to get there).
So how dare the wise men come into his palace and ask about the new king. But Herod had always been concerned about a new ruler coming from the east. He tried to build fortresses and fortify cities on their east borders to keep that threat at bay. So when visitors came from the East, he anxiety went through the roof.
He must have hid his surprise well, however, because he was able to get the wise men to share important details about the location of this alleged new king. He also tricked them into thinking he too wanted to worship this new king, when in reality all Herod wanted to do was eradicate the threat to his throne.
Fast-forward just over 2,000 years, and something quite fascinating happened to the reputation and power of Herod the Great; it got up and left. His influence was passed on to his children, the ones he didn’t kill, but little is known about his line after the second generation.
And just to put an exclamation mark on his life vs that of the newborn king he was so threatened by, here’s a story:
Before Herod died, he built an archaeological marvel called Herodium. It was a man-made mountain built to protect, but also built as a tomb for the once great king. To this day, over 200,000 people every year visit Herodium to see this unusual human accomplishment.
Just a few miles away, however, in the basement of what is known as the church of the Holy Seplucher, is the tomb of that baby born during Herod’s reign. A baby born in the small village of Bethlehem to a carpentar and a teenage woman. That tomb, the one that Jesus’ body laid in for three days, is visited each year by millions of people from around the world.
So you tell me, who made the biggest impact and held the most power? Who was the real king of the Jews?
JOURNAL
- What do you think drives us to want to be the rulers of our own little kingdoms?
- Why do you think the influence and impact of Jesus was so much greater than that of Herod, beyond the obvious fact that He was God? What was it about His message that had a greater appeal?
- Who is the king of your life? Is it you? Is it your job, your circumstances, your bank account? What would it take to surrender the reign of your life, today, to the king of all Kings?
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