Today's Scripture Micah 5:2
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.
The prophet Micah uttered these words that are planted like a gem in the Old Testament. God had a plan from the beginning of time that would change the world forever.
Mention of “Bethlehem” floods our minds with the familiarity of the Christmas story. From our current vantage point, we know that Bethlehem became holy ground that long-ago night when a baby’s cry rent the air, and God wrapped Himself in flesh to dwell among us.
When Adam and Eve were placed in the Garden of Eden, Bethlehem did not exist. But God knew.
When the children of Israel exited Egypt for a land flowing with milk and honey, they had no idea what would happen on a Judean hillside centuries later. But God knew.
When David sat on his throne in Jerusalem, and generations of kings descended from him, they had no understanding of a baby in a manger. But God knew.
When Micah spoke centuries before the blessed event, Bethlehem was a little-known town. But God knew.
In an insignificant place on the map, an eternal Ruler would come forth. God knew. Micah spoke. Seven hundred years later, the Messiah was born.