The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Matthew 2:5-8, “3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

4 Gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born.

5 They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for this is what has been written by the prophet:

6 ‘AND YOU, BETHLEHEM, LAND OF JUDAH, ARE BY NO MEANS LEAST AMONG THE LEADERS OF JUDAH; FOR OUT OF YOU SHALL COME FORTH A RULER WHO WILL SHEPHERD MY PEOPLE ISRAEL.'”

7 Then Herod secretly called the magi and determined from them the exact time the star appeared.

8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.”

Did you ever become angry because someone took or wanted to take your

place, say in a line? Well, Herod was stirred to his socks! He was King!

And now these Magi were saying that some Child was born to be King and

the Child was there in somewhere nearby Jerusalem. Herod kept his composure

with the Magi. But he moved quickly to investigate whether what they said was so.

He summoned the religious leaders, and they confirmed what the Magi had said,

pointing to Micah 5:2. This Child would supplant Herod’s rule and become far

greater than Herod. Bethlehem was only four miles from Jerusalem, so Herod

sent the Magi to find the Child and bring him word. He said he wanted to worship

Him, but he was lying in his teeth. Oh, remember that I said the word for “child”

was important. Luke uses ?????? brephos, an infant, a newly-born; Matthew

uses ??????? paidion, a young child. Later, in verse 11, the Magi find the Child

in a house (????? oikia) instead of a stable. All of this tells us that the shepherds

and the Magi came at different times, not on the same night. And what the

Magi brought was very significant. Just wait!

Love and Prayers to you all,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas