In Psalm 89, the writer recalls God’s promises to David: “Once for all I have sworn by my holiness; I will not lie to David. His offspring shall endure forever, his throne as long as the sun before me. Like the moon it shall be established forever, a faithfulness witness in the skies” (Ps. 89:35–37). God didn’t cross his fingers behind his back when he made promises to David. He did not lie. What he swore to do, he did. What he promised to send, he sent.

Note: This post is free for all subscribers. If you’ve been encouraged by the content of this newsletter, and if you’d like to have complete and unending access to the huge archive of biblical theology articles, I hope you will consider becoming a supporter.

In one sense, the Messiah’s birth was a surprise. The residents in Bethlehem hadn’t been nagging Mary about when she was going to bear the Christ. The shepherds on a hillside hadn’t been high-fiving one another and saying, “This is the night it’s going to happen!”

Yet, in another sense, the Messiah’s birth wasn’t a surprise. There were promises, and they reached back to ancient days. In Genesis 3:15, the Lord said that a son from Eve would crush the serpent. In Genesis 12, 15, 17, and 22, a promised son of Abraham would come and would possess the gate of his enemies. In Genesis 49:10, the deliverer would not only descend through Jacob but, in particular, through Jacob’s son Judah. In 2 Samuel 7, the deliverer would be a king, a son from David who would rule forever on the throne. In Micah 5:2, the promised shepherd-king would be born in Bethlehem. And in Daniel 2, the long-awaited king and kingdom would come during the fourth empire from Daniel’s day—the first empire being Babylon, and the second through fourth being Persia, Greece, and Rome.

Sure enough, in the days of Caesar Augustus, the baby Jesus was born in Bethlehem and into the house of David.

Read More