A HOLY DIFFERENT KIND OF STORY: BEDLAM IN BETHLEHEM: THE MASSACRE

This is the last day I will share my "Christmas Musings," inspired by "The Miracle of the Christmas Child."  Today I continue to flesh out the characters in this beloved account of the birth of Christ, breathing life into a small portion of the story. 

This is a gruesome scene, but none-the-less, one that is an important part of the story.  As we morn for those lost in the Sandy Hook killings, let's be mindful that throughout history, many horrible things have been done by evil men for selfish desires.  There is only one who is perfect.  His name is JESUS!

source

Herod was livid. The wise men had promised to return from Bethlehem and report their findings, but God had warned them in a dream to journey home another way. The Magi never returned to Jerusalem. They did not trust Herod, nor his desire to "worship the young child." Truly, the sages were relieved.

But not Herod. This lit a fire in his being which began a horrendous event that would be remembered by Jewish mothers throughout the ages. "Brutus, gather the army IMMEDIATELY," ordered the king. "Make haste; search for this threat to my kingdom and destroy it! If you cannot find him, kill every male child in the village from two years and younger. He must not live. Go...NOW!"

Brutus obeyed. It was this very army Joseph caught sight of on their way out of Bethlehem. The thundering sound of hooves awakened the townspeople. Little did they know, although it was prophesied, that soon their young sons would be ripped from their arms and slaughtered.

Screaming. Chaos. Moaning. Confusion. Sobbing. The night was full of sounds and turbulence. Of bedlam. There was no mercy, no time for contesting. Doors were broken down, torches swung into the still dark rooms of sleepy households. Babes grabbed unmercifully from mother's arms. Grabbed from the place where they laid asleep just minutes ago, dreaming in peace. Woe to the male child, who was identified as such, dragged screaming from the abode, and slaughtered in the street.

The blood ran first with a trickle, and then with what seemed to be a stream. It flowed down towards the valley, where the sheep lay quietly grazing, unaware of the turmoil above them. Then the words of the prophet Jeremiah came to be: "In Ramah was there were voices of lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning. Rachel was weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they had perished."

Many years from now, blood from a lamb, the precious "Lamb of God" would trickle down a wooden cross. But this time, the flow would signify salvation and not death.  Fathers lost their only sons this night, but one day, God will not only lose, but offer up, His son for the salvation of the entire world.

But this Son did not lie in the grave forever.  No!  He rose from the dead, and in fact, conquered death, so we someday, could live together with Jesus Christ in Heaven.  Death on this earth is not the end.  We all will live forever. Either with Jesus Christ our Saviour and King of Kings, or in utter darkness far from any hope or comfort.

The decision is yours...

John 3:16 says, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life."