Bethlehem - Micah 5:2

The inspiration for this painting came from a beautiful photograph of Bethlehem that I came across in a magazine a few years ago. It reminded me of a Scripture that is found tucked away in one of the books written by the minor prophet Micah:

“But you Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.”

Micah 5:2 (Micah 5:1 in the Hebrew Bible) Most, if not all, other faiths reject the notion that the Messiah is equal to God. He can be a good man – even a righteous man; the Messiah can be a prophet who will have the ability to bring peace to mankind – a man who will redeem the Jewish people from their enemies but according to Judaism and other faiths outside Christianity, the Messiah is not divine. However, the Old Testament indicates that the Messiah will be more than a normal man. The Scripture from Micah 5:2 proves that the origins of Messiah are both supernatural and eternal. The words “from everlasting” are mimei olam in the Hebrew and literally mean from the days of eternity. The only One whose origins are from the days of eternity, is God. Therefore we can conclude that the Messiah is both human and divine. There are many Scriptures that point to the divinity of the Messiah in the Old Testament. Just to mention a few - Genesis 1:26-27, Psalm 2:7-12, Psalm 110:1, Proverbs 30:4, Isaiah 9:6-7, Jeremiah 23:6, Daniel 3:25, Daniel 7:13-14. The fulfilment of this prophecy is found in Matthew 2:1-6 “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king…..” and in the first part of Luke chapter 2. The word “Bethlehem” in the Hebrew is Beit Lechem and means House of Bread. It is no co-incidence that Jesus said of Himself, “I AM the Bread of Life.”​