Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) infanticide at Bethlehem
Matthew 2:16-18 NASB
¹⁶Then when Herod saw that he had been tricked by the magi, he became very enraged, and sent and slew all the male children who were in Bethlehem and all its vicinity, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the magi.
¹⁷Then what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: ¹⁸ “A voice was heard in Ramah, Weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children; And she refused to be comforted, Because they were no more.”
Devotional
As the twentieth century drew to a close, many people reflected on what had happened in that century
Obviously, it had been a century full of violence.
What terrible wars have been waged.
What a sadness, and what a child’s suffering there was.
In how many countries were children hunted and killed?
When will this ever stop?
The first decades of this century were not much better.
In these bible verses we clearly read how the murder of children started immediately with the first era.
Herod was afraid of the Child.
The devil tries to destroy the child Jesus and so Herod carries out his diabolical plan. All two-year-old boys from Bethlehem and the surrounding area were killed.
Lives, especially children’s lives, don’t count with Herod.
He only cares about his own power, which he did not want to give to anyone or anything.
Has much changed in twenty centuries?
How do those in power, make armies fight against each other, and destroy people in order to be the boss, or to stay in charge.
But what remains of those earthly kingdoms?
There are no earthly millennial kingdoms.
One empire endures and will conquer.
That is the Kingdom of the Child who came to earth as a Prince of peace.
Jesus will conquer, He alone will win the final victory!
Twitter: @SchoemakerHarry
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