It is the time of year when we often hear the phrase, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!” The angels declared this when they appeared to the shepherds at the time of Christ’s birth. What most of us don’t understand today is just how tumultuous the world was at that moment. Peace was a radical idea.
We hear about King Herod (who ruled over the Jews on behalf of the Roman Empire) in the scriptures because he sought to kill any supposed Messiah. In fact, Mary and Joseph fled to Egypt to escape a wide scale slaughter of infant boys. This was just another chapter in a long history of violence and terror at the hands of “Herod the Great.”
He had already murdered multiple members of his family, including his own wife, as well as any potential claimant to the throne from the previously ruling family of Hasmoneans. Around the time of Christ’ birth, his firstborn son Antipater II was executed for alleged treason. The historian Josephus wrote that “the miseries which Herod in the course of a few years had inflicted on the Jews surpassed all that their forefathers had suffered during all the time since they left Babylon to return to their country” (War 2.86).
His effective ruthlessness held Judea together, despite the factions within the land. After a somewhat mysterious illness that caused both physical and psychological havoc, he died a gruesome death.
An angel appeared to Joseph in a dream and told him to take his family back home, but when they learned that Herod Archelaus, the 18-year-old son of Herod the Great, had succeeded to the throne they settled in Nazareth to maintain a safe distance. Archelaus’ massacre of 3,000 Jews in Jerusalem during Passover would have been widely known. The fragmentation of Jewish opposition groups ensured that violence continued, both between loyalist and separatist Jews as well as directly against Roman authorities.
Into this world of violence came “the Prince of Peace.” He came with incomprehensible commands like, “Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also” (Matthew 5:39) and “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:43). And yet, paradoxically, He also warned, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth” (Matthew 10:34). Why? Because “my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives…” (John 14:27).
The peace Jesus brings is not what our fallen world calls peace. It is not an outward absence of disturbance, but an inward state that remains undisturbed in every circumstance. This is why Paul later wrote “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). It is, in purely human terms, something that doesn’t make sense.
Many Jews missed the arrival of the Messiah because they expected someone who would bring peace by restoring their political power and freeing them from Rome and her oppressive overseers. History shows that this did not happen. In fact, Rome grew even more tyrannical and deadly as her persecution of Christians increased after Jesus’ death and resurrection and eventually led to the complete destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in 70 AD. Despite the lack of worldly peace, Christ’s followers exhibited that peace that passes understanding, even to the point of martyrdom. They possessed the peace that only Christ can give, even as the world grew more violent.
Today, much of our world remains the same. The Middle East erupts in constant chaos. In various parts of the world, religious zealots seek to wipe out so-called infidels. Russia continues to threaten Ukraine. China continues to threaten Taiwan. Other dictators and warlords carry on in the spirit of Herod the Great.
In our own country we have periodic unrest in our streets. Jewish students feel threatened on campuses. Violent gang members have come across our open borders. An insurance executive was gunned down in plain sight. It may be Christmas time, but there’s not much peace.
Interestingly, when we hear the phrase “peace on earth,” it is rarely followed up with the rest of the angels’ declaration: “among those with whom He is pleased.” How do we please God? By trusting in the One who was born on Christmas Day. And by hearing His words and obeying them.
Anyone who tells you that they can bring peace can only say that in the context of reducing or preventing public violence. They can do little to comfort the turmoil inside each one of us. There is only One who can bring true peace – the kind that remains regardless of the turbulence around us – and His name is Immanuel, God with us. He is Christ the Messiah.
