The Nineteenth Day of Advent

The Nineteenth Day of Advent, 2017

Thursday, December 21, 2017

The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes, and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

Genesis 49:10

Here is a verse with a wonderful message that is very easy to miss! Look at the reference: Genesis 49:10. The very first book in the Bible. But wait a minute; aren’t we talking about Christmas and the birth of Christ? What has this Genesis verse to do with that? Plenty!

The word “Shiloh” can be translated “the one to whom the scepter belongs,” and scepters belong to rulers, those in authority, to kings. So, the one who is to be in authority in Judah will be a king and authority will pass to him.

Then who is this Shiloh to whom authority will go? I did a little digging and found that “Shiloh” is a name derived from the Hebrew word for peace. Interesting. Shiloh will come with great authority, a ruler or prince of a kingdom. So this Prince Shiloh will take the meaning of his name into his title, and he’ll be called the “Prince of Peace.” Sound familiar? And the “kingdom?” Remember that Jesus spoke often about the fact that he had come to establish the “Kingdom of God.” Shiloh will be the Prince of Peace in the Kingdom of God!

So right here Jesus is in Genesis! Jacob, whose name had been changed by God to Israel when he made him a great nation, prophesied to his sons that the Messiah would come from the tribe of Judah!

And that is exactly what happened. Matthew tells us that Jesus was born from the tribe of Judah (Matthew 1:2). Two thousand years after Israel gave the prophesy Christ was born! We may be a people who are impatient and want everything now, but God is not! He has incredible plans for this world he created, and time is not a factor for him! Israel prophesied, and every Christmas we get to celebrate the reality of his prophesy accomplished!

Father, We are so grateful that you are not a spur-of-the-moment God – that you make plans and then wait until the perfect time for them to be fulfilled. Help us to learn patience from you, to be less eager for everything that we want to be accomplished right now! Help us not to accept substitutes but to learn to wait – patiently – for the best! Amen.

The Light of the World
prepared for Homosassa United Methodist Church, 2008,
by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator.