Let us take a closer look at these two scriptures:

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. Micah 5:2 (ESV)

And Joseph also went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the town of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, To be enrolled with Mary, his espoused (married) wife, who was about to become a mother. And while they were there, the time came for her delivery, And she gave birth to her Son, her Firstborn; and she wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger (i), because there was no room or place for them in the inn. And in that vicinity there were shepherds living [out under the open sky] in the field, watching [in shifts] over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord flashed and shone all about them, and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them, Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people. For to you is born this day in the town of David a Savior, Who is Christ (the Messiah) the Lord! And this will be a sign for you [by which you will recognize Him]: you will find [after searching] a Baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger(ii).Then suddenly there appeared with the angel an army of the troops of heaven (a heavenly knighthood), praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest [heaven], and on earth peace among men with whom He is well pleased [men of goodwill, of His favor]. When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing (saying) that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us. So they went with haste and [by searching] found Mary and Joseph, and the Baby lying in a manger (iii). And when they saw it, they made known what had been told them concerning this Child, And all who heard it were astounded and marveled at what the shepherds told them. Luke 2:4-18 (AMPC)

Micah revealed that the personality born was from the distant past, from ancient days, not having better words to describe God’s appointed ruler whose genealogy is from the eternal past; yet He was born so lowly?

The angels in Luke’s report would speak of the sign by which He would be recognised! Swaddling clothes and manger, and why would this be repeated thrice, if it was not to speak to something deeper!

• *The swaddling clothes constitute a sign of Jewish royalty, and an affirmation of Jesus’ identity as the Davidic king of the Jewish people but furthermore, it was a Jewish custom to bind the lambs who were destined to be sacrificed in the Temple, swaddling their legs. This action further solidifies Jesus being known as the “Lamb of God,” who was sacrificed for our salvation—*Author Unknown
• *It is not common knowledge the significance of the manger that Jesus was laid in. Mangers are animal feeding troughs but in ancient Israel they were made of stone — not what you would see in a modern-day nativity scene. Not comfortable, but great for protection. That’s why those who were experts in this matter, the priests, would put their newborn lambs in them for protection. But not just any lamb, the unblemished perfect lambs that were used in the sacrifice for sins—*Author Unknown
• *Bethlehem, where Jesus was born was FAMOUS for their UNBLEMISHED LAMBS used for the sacrifice. These lambs had to be perfect so they would wrap them tightly in cloth and lie them in the manger to keep them safe. This is exactly why the only time mangers are mentioned in Jesus’ birth story it is being told to shepherds. “This will be a sign for you, you will find a baby wrapped in cloth and lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12). The shepherds would have understood this powerful parallel! THEY KNEW what the cloth and the manger meant! This baby would be THE PERFECT LAMB OF GOD! The Messiah who would sacrifice His life for the sins of the whole world. He wasn’t just a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger, He was GOD: perfect, sinless and Holy, humbling Himself to become the perfect sacrifice to reconcile us back to Himself!! That Perfect Lamb, is WHO we celebrate—*Author Unknown
• **More about Bethlehem. In Hebrew Bethlehem means the house of bread. But here’s a deeper thing, Hebrew is alphanumeric. That means that every letter has a numerical value. “Bethlehem”, house bread has a numerical value of 490. “Nativity” in Hebrew equals 490. To be perfect, or complete, “tamim” in Hebrew equals 490. Why is that significant? Because Jesus born in Bethlehem (490) was the perfect “tamim” sacrifice (490). Peter comes to Jesus and asking, how many times do I have to forgive? 7 times? And Jesus answered no. 70 times seven, 490! Why did He pick that number? You can’t be perfect or complete unless you extend the bread of forgiveness—**Rabbi Jason Sobel

Beloved, Jesus connects bread and forgiveness. He taught us in prayer ‘give us this day our daily bread, forgive us of our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us’. At the Lord’s Supper, He broke the matzah, the unleavened bread and said, this is My body which is broken for you, which is significant because Yeshua Jesus affirms, I am the bread of life. Is there no reason to celebrate Jesus? Judge for yourself and worship Him who brought us to this place of privilege by grace. Shalom.



Pastor Afolabi Oladele