When King David carried the Ark of God (that on which "the Lord of hosts sits enthroned on the Cherubim") into Jerusalem he did so with rejoicing and a complete and willful humility before God, dancing before the Lord with all of his might.
Unfortunately for her, however, David's wife and King Saul's daughter, Michal, was outraged by his behaviour and so despised him in her heart.
Michal went on to voice her thoughts to David in a sharp rebuke, pointing out to him his supposedly vulgar and shameless appearance before his female servants. David's reply was sharp, decisive and powerful.
Now flash foward to Matthew 21:1-11 and Jesus' triumphal entrance into Jerusalem.
Like the Ark's entrance into Jerusalem, there was much rejoicing and great humility. What we see in this later grand entrance, however, in place of the nation's earthly king dancing naked before the throne, is The King of all creation, unimaginably humbling himself by substituting his royal throne for the back of a donkey.
What a shadow of things to come can be seen in Michal's pride!
The Ark was a stumbling block to Michal; her pride causing her to be put away and childlessness all of her days.
Christ is a stumbling block to the nation of Israel; her pride likewise causing her to be put away and childless. Not one true child of Abraham will be born to her until her death, when she is brought into repentance and finally recognizes Jesus as her promised King and only savior.
In the retelling of Michal's tragedy, the lowly female servants are ultimately held in the place of honor that she should have expected. In Israel's version of this tragedy, the gentile nation's are now given the place of honor that should by all accounts be reserved for the sons of Abraham and David.
After having written all of this, I can only imagine that you're wondering how on earth this post can have anything to do with an introduction to the book of Matthew, as the title indicates. Well, all I can say is please hang in there, I'm just getting warmed up.
This entry was posted
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