Daily Devotions – Hard Bible Passages

Daily Devotions – Hard Bible Passages

Photo by Cristian Newman on Unsplash

 

Click this link to hear an audio version of the below text narrated by SOTH member Jerry Rhinehart:

 

Matthew 2:16-18 (NIV)
16 When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. 17 Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled: 18 “A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.”

 

Have you ever come across a difficult Bible passage that you do not know what to do with? The despot, Herod, tries to destroy Jesus, his supposed political opponent by killing all the young boys in Bethlehem under the age of 2. How could God let this happen?! But here is something else to consider: this story reveals that truth of the Bible. The Bible is not some fairy-tale written to make us feel better and live happier lives. The Bible is filled with real pain and suffering just like we experience in our lives or see on the news. And passages like this show us that God does care. He cares so much that he has a plan to destroy evil and bring eternal life. Herod might think he gets the final word, but Herod is dead and gone. Jesus has risen from the grave and reigns eternal. God cares about our suffering and has a plan to bring it to an end.