War of the Star Pt. 4 (The Fulfillment): Matthew 2
Introduction
Have you ever shaken a Christmas present, desperate to guess its contents? That anticipation, that mixture of excitement and apprehension, is a feeling we all understand. We’re impatient, worried we might not get what we wished for, and the possibility of disappointment hangs heavy in the air. We want to prepare ourselves to cope with the emotion of disappointment. We have been waiting so long, wondering if our hopes will be fulfilled.
This impatience, this anxiety about receiving what we expect, mirrors the response of many first century Jews to Jesus. They, too, had a gift—a promise—wrapped in the Old Testament. They were waiting so long for a hero to come and bring them back to a place where they could fully enjoy the blessings of God. Much like ours at Christmas, their anticipation was fraught with a tension between hope and fear. Jesus didn’t appear to be the hero, the Messiah they were anticipating. Some shook the gift, the Old Testament promises and stories, and were disappointed with the Messiah they heard inside. Many others shook the gift and were blown away at how Christ fulfilled the entire story of the Old Testament. He exceeded their expectations and met all their deepest longings.
Today, we will explore Matthew Chapter 2, a passage that reveals how Matthew, the gospel writer, unveils Jesus as the ultimate fulfillment of those long-held expectations. Matthew was not disappointed with how Jesus fulfilled the promises of the Old Testament. He even saw Jesus fulfill needs many didn’t anticipate would be met. He portrays Jesus as being more than anyone was hoping for. He doesn't just present Jesus as a new figure in the Bible storyline; he demonstrates how Jesus is the culmination of the Old Testament story, the answer to its hopes, and the resolution to its disappointments. He shakes the gift-wrapped promises of the Old Testament and outpours the glorious truth of Jesus Christ.
Big Idea: Matthew shakes the Old Testament and hears Jesus. Let's unwrap this gift together, exploring key passages to understand how Jesus fulfills the prophecies and patterns found within the Hebrew Scriptures. Now, I want to prepare you for how Matthew handles the Old Testament and how he sees Jesus fulfilling it. Matthew’s idea of “fulfillment” is probably different from ours. We often think of prophetic fulfillment as accurately predicting next week's lottery numbers. That is not how Matthew and the other New Testament writers use the term. It means that sometimes, but not all the time. The first of the “fulfillment” passages is straightforward; the others are more abstract and will stretch us a bit.
A King in Bethlehem – A Straightforward Fulfillment
Matthew 2:6, “And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.”
Matthew quotes Micah 5:2. Micah, prophesying centuries before the birth of Jesus in the 8th century BC, spoke of a future ruler, a shepherd who would lead Israel. This prophecy, uttered amidst the turmoil of Israel's impending fall, offered a beacon of hope—a promise of future restoration. A king who acts with the kindness and gentleness of a shepherd would lead Israel back to a place of enjoying God’s blessings.
Micah's prophecy is explicitly messianic, referring to the Messiah, the promised Hero of the Old Testament. Jewish rabbis, even before the coming of Jesus, interpreted this passage as pointing to the Messiah, and John 7:42 confirms this understanding within the Jewish community.
John 7:40-42, “40 When they heard these words, some of the people said, “This really is the Prophet.” 41 Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Is the Christ to come from Galilee? 42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the offspring of David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?”
They knew the Messiah would come from Bethlehem—the birthplace of King David, the king to whom God promised an everlasting dynasty. Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem is not a coincidence; it's a deliberate fulfillment of a specific, direct prophecy, announcing Him as the rightful heir to David's throne, the promised King. He was born not only in the lineage of David but also in his hometown. This is Matthew’s first “shake” of the Old Testament; each will reveal something new about Jesus. He is the kind King they had waited for, who would shepherd His people with care and gentleness.
Beyond Predictions: Divine Déjà Vu
While the prophecy of Jesus' birth in Bethlehem is a clear-cut prediction, Matthew's other fulfillments are less straightforward. They aren't predictions of future events but rather examples of divine déjà vu. Matthew will see the events of Jesus' birth as moments that connect with Israel’s past. These connections highlight how God blesses His people through his Son, Jesus Christ. Matthew will see the present moments of Jesus’ birth as being “replays” of God’s faithfulness to His people. It is if Matthew witnesses the events of Jesus' life and says, “Wait, we have seen this before. And this moment is better than last time.” These connections show us that God's faithfulness extends throughout history, culminating in the person of Jesus. In Matthew’s eyes, the whole Old Testament is a shadow of Christ, and now that He has arrived, we celebrate how He is the climax of the divine story.
The Obedient Son – A Pattern Repeated
Matthew 2:14-15, “14 And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt 15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, ‘Out of Egypt I called my son.’”
This quote comes from Hosea 11:1. Now, it’s important to note that while the rabbis anticipated a “new exodus,” they didn’t interpret this particular passage as directly messianic. They looked forward to a day when God would deliver them from the current oppressors as He did with Egypt approximately 1,500 years before. The “son" in Hosea is Israel, not the Messiah. This is made abundantly clear in the context of Chapters 10 and 11 of Hosea, which recounts the rebellious actions of Israel. Messiah was not being marked with these mistakes. The prophet is clearly speaking of Israel’s failure.
However, Matthew sees a deeper, more profound connection. He recognizes a pattern—a repetition of God's redemptive action. Just as God rescued Israel from Egypt, He now rescues Jesus from Herod's murderous intent. Divine déjà vu! Matthew, in connecting these events, portrays Jesus as God’s Son, the new and true Israel. Matthew had seen this kind of rescue before, and this is better. It is better because Jesus is a better, more obedient Son. Jesus, unlike the rebellious “son” Israel, is perfectly obedient; He is the new Israel who experiences the fullness of the Father’s blessing. Jesus becomes the embodiment of the faithful Son, the one who perfectly fulfills the promises made to the old Israel. He is both the kind King they were waiting for and the obedient Son they failed to be.
The Ultimate Comforter – A New Covenant
Matthew 2:18, “17 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah: 18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.”
Matthew links the massacre of the innocent baby boys in Bethlehem to Jeremiah's prophecy. This heart-wrenching prophecy spoke to the exiled mothers of Israel, their children torn away and carried off to Babylon. Ramah was six miles north of Jerusalem, and the exiles leaving the capital of Jerusalem had to walk through it to reach Babylon. God comforted these weeping mothers by promising He would one day bring Israel back into the Promised Land. Again, the rabbis did not connect this passage to the Messiah’s birth. They did not read this as predicting a massacre at the time of the Messiah’s birth. How can Matthew make this connection?
Matthew, seeing the tragedy of Bethlehem, hears the echoes of Jeremiah’s lament of the mothers of Israel. Divine déjà vu! He interprets the pain of the exile as a foreshadowing of the immense grief experienced by those who were mourning the loss of their children in Bethlehem. Matthew sees the grief and looks back to how God has comforted those in grief. Just as God provided comfort to the mothers of Israel, He would provide comfort to the mothers of Bethlehem, and in a greater way. He highlights that God, through Christ, offers the ultimate comfort—the new covenant that Jeremiah spoke of in the same chapter (Jeremiah 31:31-34).
The mothers of those exiled were comforted by a future return. The mothers of Bethlehem were comforted by the hope that Christ would usher in a new covenant, which offers the permanent forgiveness of sins through the death and resurrection of Christ, restored fellowship with God, and a hope of life with God after death. The sorrow of the Old Testament finds its resolution in the promise of God's new and eternal covenant in Jesus Christ. He is a kind King, obedient Son, and the ultimate Comforter who brings the hope of reconciliation and eternal life. Matthew is shaking the Old Testament and loving what he hears. He hears the gift of a Messiah who fulfills all the promises of the Old Testament.
The Humble Messiah – A Prophetic Portrait
Matthew 2:23, “And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene.”
Matthew's final fulfillment is the most mysterious and challenging. There is no explicit Old Testament prophecy predicting that the Messiah would live in Nazareth. Some scholars have attempted to connect this to the word "Nezer," meaning "branch" or "shoot," found in some messianic prophecies, such as Isaiah 11:1, or to the concept of a Nazarite, but these connections remain tenuous at best.
Matthew's usage of the plural "prophets" and the absence of a direct quote suggest he's not referring to a single, specific prophecy but to a broader, overarching prophetic theme. Matthew is summarizing the overall prophetic portrayal of the Messiah—a humble, seemingly unimpressive figure, whose origins are far from the grandeur of royal lineage (Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53:1-5). The choice of Nazareth, a relatively unknown town far from Jerusalem's prominence, subtly underscores this theme. Jesus’ humble beginnings and location, contrary to worldly expectations, fulfills the deeper prophecies that foretold a Messiah who would not be immediately recognizable as a king. Pinpointing someone as coming from Nazareth was seen as an insult. This derogatory use of the term is showcased by Nathanael in the gospel of John, who would later become one of the closest followers of Jesus. Nathanael, a native of Cana, only a few miles from Nazareth, knew Nazareth was not a good place.
John 1:45-46, “45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ‘We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.’ 46 Nathanael said to him, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?’ Philip said to him ‘Come and see.’”
Jesus was not impressive by worldly standards. He was humble and lowly. Altogether, He is the kind King, obedient Son, and Comforter who, in His humility, truly fulfills the hopes and expectations found across the tapestry of the Old Testament.
Conclusion
Matthew shakes the Old Testament and hears Jesus. He sees the whole Old Testament story as pointing to Jesus. The hopes and disappointments of the Old Testament story all find their fulfillment and resolution in Jesus Christ. The same is true for us. Our stories are filled with hopes and disappointments. When we shake the promises of Christ, when we confront our deepest needs—our longing to be known, our desperate need to be loved—we, too, hear the call of Jesus. Whether we are already followers of Christ or are still searching, the message of Matthew 2 resonates deeply. Christ is the hero we have all been waiting for. Jesus is the answer, the fulfillment of our deepest longings, the gift that brings eternal hope and lasting peace. He is the King we awaited, the Son who obeys, the Comforter who heals, and the humble Messiah who shows us the way to God.