Matthew 1:1-19 – God’s Provision

My Bible’s intro to this book says that Matthew’s main point was to prove to the Jews that Jesus was their long-awaited Messiah.  So, Matthew opens with Jesus’ geneaology, which would have been very important to the Jews. Matthew uses “the exile to Babylon” as a significant reference point in verses 1:11, 12, & 17.

When something like this is mentioned numerous times, I like to look it up elsewhere in scripture as well as get the Jewish perspective of the event from online resources.  In Jeremiah 25:11, Jeremiah predicts the fall of Judah:

“Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north…and I will send Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon…against this land and against its inhabitants…and this whole land shall be a desolation and a horror, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.“

In 606 B.C., the prophecy came true and Jerusalem, the Holy City, fell to Babylon.  Nebuchadnezzar then enslaved some of the inhabitants and deported them out of Judah to Babylon. Eventually Judah ceased to be an independent nation and Jerusalem and the temple were completely destroyed. There is little known about the remaining people in Judah. Given that many of the Psalms and the books of Lamentation and Job were written during this time, it is thought that the overall sentiment was one of utter despair and hopelessness. The Jews thought that God had abandoned them.    

In an effort to earn God’s favor again, the Babylonian Jews repented and began to imagine a reunified society, where all Israelites would be together. The book of Isaiah discusses the restoration and judgement of Judah and Ezekiel looks forward to a new covenant between God and His people.  There is a renewed hope for salvation.

And it comes.  Long before the Persian King shows up, God speaks through Isaiah saying, “This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him . . . ‘I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me’” (Isaiah 45:1, 4).  In 539 B.C. King Cyrus of Persia overthrows the Babylonians and takes possession of the land.  In 2 Chronicles 36:22, 23, Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled:

“In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:  “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: “‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up, and may the LORD their God be with them.'”

Scripture tells us that God specifically ordained Cyrus for this role and then compelled Cyrus not only to release the Jews back to their homeland, but to rebuild the temple so that their God would be honored. Amazing!!!! No wonder this exile has such a significant place in Jewish history.  

The exiled Jews would have had NO IDEA that God was working behind the scenes to preserve them.  It would have been so easy (and natural) to give up hope and assume that God had forgotten them forever.  Instead, God was working behind the scenes to raise up a man named Cyrus who would become King of Persia and enable the Jews to become an even greater nation than they had been before. God put the Jews in a position (let’s be honest – again)where they were entirely dependent on His provision of salvation through someone else. They did not win or earn their freedom, they had to wait for God to provide.  How hard to trust that God would come through!!! But hadn’t that been the pattern for generations? God’s great provision, falling away from their faith, God’s consequence, repentance, God’s great provision, falling away from faith, God’s consequence, repentance, God’s provision… No wonder Jeremiah kept telling the Jews to listen and pay attention! ( Jer. 7:12, 24, 26; 11:7, 13:15).

God’s provision for the Jews for salvation and redemption is succeeded by His provision for us in Christ. We are entirely dependent on Him to save us. But, even as a believer, it is difficult for me to believe that God will come through sometimes.  For salvation, yes! But in my everyday life? … When something goes wrong or I’m feeling worried, I wonder if God will provide. I can feel hopeless, abandoned, forgotten. I can question whether God even exists.  But the truth is that He is always working in the background for our good and His glory. Our problems on this earth are merely threads that He is weaving into an amazing tapestry. There is a bigger picture, of which we only experience a small part.  Occasionally, like the Jews, we get a glimpse of it and our faith is renewed, our hope surges, as we are reaffirmed that He is real, He is working, and He does hear our prayers. But even when we cannot see it, we can trust that He is in control and He has a plan.  Out of these verses in Jeremiah, when the Jews were fraught with despair and enslaved in Babylon, we get this comforting, well-known, promise from God:

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”  Jer. 29:11

    
Do you feel like God has forgotten you? Is there anything you need to trust Him with today? Thinking back over your life, how have you seen God provide for you? Are you paying attention to His providence in your life?