"And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. ... And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, "KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."" (Revelation 19:11-13 & 16)
Revelation 19 is an awesome picture of Christ on His white horse, coming forth to dispose of His enemies. A picture that is filled with beauty and ugliness at the same time. A picture of both life and death. Much can be said of this passage, but I want to just focus on one aspect, the name of Christ that is revealed to us in verse 16 - King of kings.
Herod the Great
This month, the Israel Museum is opening a large exhibit which highlights the life and architecture of Herod the Great, the controversial king of Israel at the time of Jesus' birth. Herod was a practising Jew from Idumea (Edom), a place where many Jews had settled and commingled with the locals. His mother was an Arab Nabataean noblewoman. However, due to his heritage the Pharisees did not see him as being Jewish, and the fact that he was made king of Israel by the Romans only made matters worse. Furthermore, he also executed some of his sons as well as his wife Mariamne, a Hasmonaean princess.
Despite all this, Herod sought to find favour with his people and set out to build the nation through an extensive architectural programme. His most notable building projects were:
- The extending of the Temple Mount - construction took about a year and a half, and in order to comply with religious law, Herod employed 1,000 priests as masons and carpenters. Today, only the Western Wall still stands and is considered by the Jews to be the holiest place of the structure.
- The fortification of Masada - situated in the south of Israel facing the Dead Sea, this fort was used by the Jewish Zealots as a refuge from the Romans during the First Jewish-Roman War (66–73 AD).
- The port city of Caesarea - a Roman administrative capital that Herod named in honour of Augustus Caesar. This was an incredible architectural feat, as Herod had to have the harbour deepened as it was initially too shallow to be used as a port. It was as a result of this that Flavius Josephus, a first-century Jewish historian, wrote of him, "Thus the king conquered nature herself."
- Herodian - Herod's last grand project that was a volcano-shaped hill, built to serve two purposes: a fortified palace for the royal family, and as the future tomb of Herod (His tomb was only discovered in 2007).
The True King of Kings
Two events stand out in contrast to the legacy that Herod left behind.
Firstly it was in the city of Caesarea that Peter first brought the Gospel of Jesus to the Gentiles (see Acts 10:1). As a result of Herod's port, the Gospel began to spread to the rest of the world. A legacy far greater than anything Herod could have ever left behind himself.
But more than that, Herodian was built just outside the little town of Bethlehem. What a testimony to God and His plan to bring the Messiah into the world. The very man that would try to kill Jesus at His birth would be buried just a few years later only a few kilometres away, overlooking the town where Jesus was born. And the baby that he tried to kill would end up changing the world far more than Herod could ever dream or imagine.
Let us worship Jesus today as He truly is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
Just a Thought!
© 2013
No comments:
Post a Comment