One popular Christmas song describes this season as “the most wonderful time of the year.” Sadly, this isn’t true for everyone. Matthew chapter 2 is a sobering reminder that the coming of Christ was not all angel song and celebration. Indeed, the events Matthew narrates in these verses anticipate the great divide Jesus would speak of later. In Matthew 10:34, He warns, “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” Jesus also vividly described this conflict in the parable of the tenants in Matthew 21:33–45.

Herod attempted to use the Magi to discover Jesus’ whereabouts so that he could execute a potential rival for the throne. This was not unusual for Herod, who had already left a bloody trail behind him and would eventually murder his three oldest sons. When Herod “realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi,” he resorted to mass execution (v. 16). But God had anticipated this move, warning both the Magi and Joseph in advance (vv. 12–13). Matthew saw in this tragedy a mirror of Israel’s earlier grief. When Matthew says these things “fulfilled” what the prophet had written in Jeremiah 31:15, he indicates that God was not surprised by any of Herod’s actions.

God’s plan takes into account any eventuality that we may face. Every setback, tragedy, or evil action against us is taken into account. God was not responsible for Herod’s wicked plan. But neither was He held hostage by it. Jeremiah’s words are also evidence that God does not lightly dismiss the grief that the collateral damage of sin leaves in its wake. The One who numbers the hairs on our head also keeps a record of our tears (Matt. 10:30; Ps. 56:8).