When Kings Feel Threatened By Babies

On the 4^th day of Christmastide, Mother Church invited us to ponder the events of the massacre of babies as depicted in Matthew 2:16 -18. A quick look at the person behind this murderous act reveals a ruthless king; a mad man, well-known for his murderous nature; a tyrant, who realizes that he has been beaten at his plotting. He becomes so enraged that his insanity sends grown men (some of them even fathers) to kill all boys aged two years and below in and around Bethlehem. His reason for this rampage was that one of these babies was the much-anticipated King of the Jews! He, the great king, had not (and was never) going to allow anyone (not even his son – he killed his first-born son!), let alone some newborn Bethlehemite, to destabilize his plans for the throne. He even had a final testament about it that provided for his sons – Archelaus was to be king of Judaea and Samaria, while Philip and Antipas shared the remainder as tetrarchs. He sure had a solid plan; of course, pending Emperor Augustus’ sanction of the same.

This powerful Roman-appointed king of Judaea (37–4 BCE) built many fortresses, aqueducts, theatres, and other public buildings and generally raised the prosperity of his land; yet he was afraid of a baby. His reign lasted 33 years, but he was a disturbed man both mentally and physically. Over the years, he became the centre of political and family intrigues that eventually set off his fall into disarray. His suspicious nature caused him to alter his will three times and finally to disinherit and kill his firstborn, Antipater.

Unfortunately, Herod’s mental instability was fed by scheming and deceptions within his own family. He was prone to violent attacks of jealousy, which weakness was used to poison his mind against his second wife, whom he murdered along with her two sons, her brother, her grandfather, and her mother. Shortly before his death, he ordered the killing of the infants of Bethlehem. When he finally lost the favour of the emperor Augustus, Herod unsuccessfully attempted suicide, and later died of an incurable illness anyway.

This rather sad description of King Herod the Great does not excuse the abominable action of the massacre of innocent babies who were committed at his behest. However, Herod is not the only king on record to have felt threatened enough to issue an edict for the killing of babies. The first chapter of the Book of Exodus reveals how the fortunes of the people of Israel, whose ancestors took refuge in neighbouring Egypt courtesy of famine, had taken a turn for the worse.

Now Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation which had migrated died, but the Israelites were exceedingly fruitful; they multiplied greatly, increased in numbers, and became so numerous that the land was filled with them.

Then a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt. “Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become far too numerous for us. Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country (Exodus 1:6-10).

The once-beloved Israelites would soon become oppressed slaves under Egyptian masters. Nonetheless, no matter how ruthlessly they were handled, the more the Israelites multiplied and spread. This scared the Egyptians even more. The king then instructed the Hebrew midwives to kill all the boys that they delivered while sparing the baby girls, but the midwives feared God and let the boys live (Exodus 1:16-17). Because of this noble act, the number of Israelites increased even more. The Pharaoh, being overly concerned about a seemingly possible imagined revolt against him, then ordered all his people to throw into the Nile every Hebrew boy that was born but to let every girl live (Exodus 1:22).

What is common about these two kings that we should be wary of in our own lives? Each one of us has a God-ordained life purpose. In our quest to do the will of God, we inevitably must encounter people (Pharaoh or Herod) who will try to stop us. Worse still, these worldly spirits can dominate our humanity and influence how we respond to others by being Pharaoh or Herod. Every Christian must understand the attributes of these two spirits and endeavour to overcome them. Whether you are the influenced or the influencer, know that the Pharaoh spirit and/or the Herod spirit will:

1. Distract you from your true purpose

Every one of God’s children is born with a divine purpose, which surpasses our plans for ourselves and guarantees a fulfilled life. The Lord God, who knew you before you were formed in the womb, who set you apart before you were born, also appoints you for a role in this world (Jeremiah 1:5). Moses got distracted when he killed the Egyptian and fled from Egypt to live in Midian (Exodus 2:15). Joseph had to flee with baby Jesus from Bethlehem to escape the murderers of Herod (Matthew 2:13). The spirits of Pharaoh and Herod symbolize oppression, stagnation and attempts to prevent God’s people from achieving their life purpose. We can fall victim to these spirits and stand in the way of God’s work or we can be stopped from doing God’s work because of them.

However, the Spirit of God symbolizes love, salvation, increase, and meaning in one’s life. Being filled with the Holy Spirit will help you to experience the fullness of the power and grace of God in every area of your life. Take a look at the Blessed Virgin Mary – being overshadowed by the Holy Spirit meant that nothing could distract her from her purpose (to bear Jesus), which she fulfilled to completion. The good news is that when you get distracted in the course of fulfilling your purpose, and even deviate from the designated path and change your destination, the Lord God remains faithful to the cause to which He called you from the beginning, and will redirect you (Proverbs 16:9, Psalm 37:23). Despite the menaces of the two kings, Moses was called from Midian and commissioned to bring the Israelites out of Egypt (Exodus 3:10) and Joseph was called from Egypt to return the Child and his mother to Israel (Matthew 2:19-23, Hosea 11:1).

2. Confuse your identity

Many people have an identity crisis and don’t know their worth. Moses lived a dual identity (Israelite slave and Egyptian prince) for many years. This conflicted identity played a crucial role in the character of Moses. You might face a similar challenge, but God knows who you truly are because He has chosen you. He has good plans for you (Jeremiah 29:11). Knowing that Moses was ready to lead the Israelites, God commissioned Moses (Exodus 3:10), even though Moses objected to this, citing how unsuited to the task he was (Exodus 3:11). Despite God’s reassurance of His presence, Moses’ self-doubt pushed God to give him a confirmatory sign. So, God repurposed Moses’ ordinary tool of sheep-keeping (the staff) for uses he would never have imagined possible (Exodus 4:3-5). Moses’ morbid fear of Herod clouded his value system and nearly cost him his life purpose.

It is a shame that Herod was already pushing close to seventy years when he massacred Bethlehem’s babies. How much more wealth and power could ever change this fact? But Herod’s real issue was the status he had acquired fraudulently. He could not bring himself to acknowledge that he was not an authentic king of the Jews. He had spent much of his time mistreating his subjects with brutality and ruling them through submission. He did not even spare his own family from this high-handedness. He confused his identity (imposter king) by thinking of himself as the only viable king of Judea. He was wrong. The coming of Jesus signified the end of his tyrannical reign. Unfortunately, this terror haunted him even to his death (cf. “Herod’s Evil”).

3. Fight the next generation

The massacre of Israelite baby boys was borne of the fear that they would grow and become powerful and fight against Pharaoh. As for Herod, the massacre of the innocents was borne of the fear of the true King of the Jews’ accession to the throne (Herod was not of Jewish royalty). Nevertheless, such criminal acts should not defeat the Christian’s purpose. We must know that God’s people are assured of acceleration and groundbreaking success, despite the Pharaohs and Herods of this world. Future generations are already taken care of in God’s greater salvation plan. The Lord promises to pour out His Spirit on all mankind, that sons and daughters will prophesy, old men will dream dreams, and young men will see visions (Joel 2:28).

4. Harden your heart

If we love God, we obey His Word and keep His commandments (John 14:15). A hardened spirit and an obstinate heart refuse to carry out God’s Will. Pharaoh would not let the Israelites go, and this stubbornness cost him his son’s life. Disobedience to God prevents us from partaking in the divine Blessings. Worse still, after finally allowing the Israelites to leave Egypt, Pharaoh changed his mind and pursued them into the midst of the sea (Exodus 14:23-28). This was not the first time that Pharaoh was acting with his hardened heart. His first instruction on infanticide was limited to only the midwives. But when they did not heed, he ordered all the people to do the same!

The lesson here is that you must have a deep relationship with God so that you do not falter when faced with external attacks. You must remain steadfast to put your trust in God when faced with a formidable enemy. The midwives did, and God rewarded them with their own families. Herod never imagined that his signal corps and his system of fortifications could fail, but the Lord God intervened in the affairs of human history to protect His Son from the fate that men had planned. Herod’s hardened spirit and obstinate heart made him very enraged that he ordered the massacre of holy innocents. Sadly, for him, this signalled his horrible ending.

5. Cloud your Motivations

Although Pharaoh’s motivation for killing the Israelite baby boys seems different from Herod’s, both kings had an inherent fear of losing power and fear of losing their status. These two kings expose how violent the power of politics is on the human mind. These are things that lie close to our hearts. Are you a king who feels threatened by a baby? Sometimes we face situations that make us agents of Pharaoh’s or Herod’s spirit. We can be lured to do their bidding and try to destroy God’s plans. We must be vigilant. We must be careful which side we choose to work with.

The good news is that when the Lord Jesus is born in our hearts, he breaks the spiritual violence lying therein. His mercy enters the world of conflict within us. His life-giving spirit overcomes our life-taking spirit. Although a voice may be heard in our hearts wailing in loud lamentation and refusing to be consoled, the Birth of Jesus brings the angels singing in the joyful exaltation of the presence of the Lord (Luke 2:8-10) and signals a new hope that all violence will be overcome.

Take-Home Message

One thing we know for sure is that there always is a Pharaoh or a Herod who will rise against God’s work. We must remember God’s true Word, “I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it” (Matthew 16:18b).