Christmas Song #4: A Reason For Silence

It was a time of falling and rising empires. The great Assyrian Empire was all that anyone remembered. And Judah had watched when the northern kingdom of Israel had finally fallen in 722 BC.

A century later, there was another power growing in the east – the Chaldeans, also known as the Babylonians. The young empire quickly began to gobble up territory. They would soon become an instrument of God’s judgement as their armies headed toward Judah.

But although God would use the Babylonians for His purposes, He would also judge their sin. They had no intention of going out on some holy mission. Instead, in their pride, they rejected God. In their greed, they went out to steal from other nations. Their method was violence.

Successful? Oh yes, they were succeeding in their tyranny. Gaining wealth and power. But God gave them a stern warning:

Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house,
to set his nest on high,
to be safe from the reach of harm!
You have devised shame for your house
by cutting off many peoples;
you have forfeited your life.

Habakkuk 2:9-10

But why should the great Babylon listen to the prophet from some small neighbour nation? After all, the Chaldeans had their own gods. Surely this sudden rise to power was a sign that their gods were stronger and greater than anything Judah had to offer!

But Yahweh mocks the false gods of Babylon:

What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,
a metal image, a teacher of lies?
For its maker trusts in his own creation
when he makes speechless idols!
Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
But Yahweh is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.

Habakkuk 2:18-20

The foolishness of walking into a pagan temple and trusting in a metal image! But let’s see the temple of Yahweh in our mind’s eye. Lamps, incense, a curtain – but no image of metal or wood or gold. Instead, the presence of the invisible God, transcendent, apart from His creation, all-powerful Lord.

This passage might remind you of Psalm 46:10 – “Be still, and know that I am God” (a verse we talked about last year). Not so much a call to quiet meditation, but a violent command to stop foolish war against God and His people.

The Lord of all is warning the earth of judgement, with a voice louder than all the confused conflicting shouts of the little creatures of the earth. Be QUIET! There is a King and He is in His temple.

In this Christmas carol, God’s demand for silence is a precursor to the coming of Christ. Yes, He was coming as a baby, but don’t be fooled – His is Lord of all.

Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly minded,
For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth,
Our full homage to demand.

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence

He comes with blessing – but it is blessing for those who recognize Him for who He is – Lord of all. And so we all called to worship – to give our “full homage”. That is, the allegiance and honour that we owe Him as King.

Tyranny and greed may have its day. But tyrants are truly on “the wrong side of history”. Look! The King descends to take His earthly throne.