The Shepherds of Bethlehem
Ask about The Shepherds of Bethlehem
The shepherds were keeping watch over their flock by night in the fields near Bethlehem when the angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone round about them. The angel announced 'good tidings of great joy' - that a Savior, Christ the Lord, had been born that day in the city of David - and a multitude of the heavenly host praised God. The shepherds hurried to Bethlehem, found Mary, Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger, and then spread the news of what they had been told. They returned to their fields glorifying and praising God. That the first announcement of the Messiah's birth went to ordinary working men fits Luke's steady theme of good news for the humble.
Biography
- Occupation
- Shepherds
- Era
- New Testament
Did You Know?
The sign the angel gave was an ordinary one: a newborn 'wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger' (Luke 2:12), a feeding trough for animals and an unlikely cradle for a king.
Bethlehem was David's hometown, and David himself had kept sheep there (1 Samuel 16:11); the angel calls it 'the city of David' (Luke 2:11).
The shepherds became the first people to spread the news of Christ's birth: they 'made known abroad the saying,' and all who heard 'wondered at those things' (Luke 2:17-18).
Key Chapters
Key Passages
The Angel's Announcement
Luke 2:8-12
The news of the Savior comes first to shepherds on a night shift, and the sign they are given is as humble as they are: a baby in a manger.
8nd there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
The Heavenly Host
Luke 2:13-14
Heaven itself breaks into praise, joining glory to God with peace on earth - the birth of this child concerns both.
13nd suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
They Came with Haste
Luke 2:15-20
The shepherds believe, go, see, and tell, becoming the first human messengers of Christ's birth and returning to ordinary work changed by what they had seen.
15nd it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.
