Have you ever had something that you anticipated so much that you “couldn’t wait” to do it?
It could be waiting for Christmas morning or attending a game to watch your favorite sports team. Was it a vacation with your loved ones or the chance to take a much-needed break from the hustle and bustle of everyday life? Whatever it may have been, in the moment, did it just seem unfair to have to wait for such a moment?
Right now, my “can’t wait” moment is waiting to meet my first baby. I will be rocking, cradling, and singing him to sleep in a few months. But until then, he is safe and growing like a weed. And while my husband and I eagerly plan, paint, and pray over his nursery, there are some things in life that, no matter how much we anticipate, we just have to let God work and trust Him in the waiting.
In the light of eternity, waiting nine months, a year, weeks, or even days is short. Nevertheless, this theme is discussed many times throughout the Bible.
- Abraham waited for a son (Genesis 25).
- The Israelites waited for rescue (Exodus 2).
- Ruth waited to be redeemed (Ruth 2).
- Joseph waited in a pit (Genesis 37).
- Jonah waited to be freed from a big fish (Jonah 2).
- Simeon waited for Jesus to be born (Luke 2).
- Paul waited in a prison cell (Acts 16).
However, the Bible also describes another period of waiting that is even harder to fathom: four hundred years.
According to biblical scholars, that is the estimated time between the Old and New Testaments. During this season of waiting, nothing prophetic was written, no signs or wonders, just time passed as they looked for the hope the Messiah would bring. For these reasons, some professors call it the “years of silence.”
To end the Old Testament, the last words of Malichi were filled with hope. The Lord had promised to send Someone who would restore what the curse had destroyed!
Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse (Malichi 4:5-6).
And that was it.
For those who believed, I’m sure their faith was tested. I imagine that the faith of the ones who believed dwindled. And for the one who never believed – well, I can only think that there was some scoffing involved.
But then. Four hundred years later, the waiting was over.
Just as it was prophesied, the Messiah was born.
Matthew 1:1 says,
The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham…
Following this verse, the lineage of Jesus is presented, and powerful names of old are mentioned to ensure that it was known that this Jesus was the promised one. Once their Messiah arrived, how could they ever doubt His goodness or provision?
The better question is, why do we?
Today, we have been given something that those living during this age were not: both parts of the story.
We are living in an age when we can see how the Lord spoke in the Old Testament and fulfilled those promises in the New Testament!
And thankfully, the story doesn’t end in Matthew 1, but with Revelation 22:20-21.
He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.
Right now, we are waiting for that glorious second coming.
No matter how dark, dreary, and dreadful the news of the world might appear, we are given hope that someday—hopefully soon—He will return a triumphant, righteous Ruler.
I can’t wait to see my Savior face-to-face. But until then, I’ll rest in the waiting, knowing that His plans, promises, and prophecy will be fulfilled.
