Little Bethlehem
“But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.”Micah 5:2 (KJV)
Centuries before the birth of Jesus, Micah named the town. “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel.”
When Herod asked the chief priests where the Christ would be born, they didn’t have to guess. They quoted Micah: “And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.”
Bethlehem was little. God chose it anyway. That is how he tends to work. A small town, a young couple, a feeding trough for a bed.
But don’t miss the end of Micah’s verse: “whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” The baby born in little Bethlehem had no beginning. The eternal Son came into time, in the smallest of places, on a night like tonight.
Read it yourself
Read Micah 5:2–5. What does verse 5 say this man shall be?
Where do you feel small? What does it mean that God chose little Bethlehem?
Eternal Son, you came into our small world in a small town. Thank you for coming. Be born again in my heart this Christmas. Amen.