The Shepherds and the Tower of the Flock
Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” (Luke 2:10-12)
What is so amazing to me is that this incredible event was not given to the religious or political rulers of Israel but to shepherds keeping their flocks in the fields.
Church scholars’ link these fields to a unique biblical location called Migdal Eder, which translated means the “tower of the flock”. These scholars believe that Jesus was born in a stable on the outskirts of Bethlehem at Migdal Eder.
The first time Migdal Eder is mentioned in the Bible is in Genesis 35:21. The place Israel went to after Rachel died after giving birth to Benjamin, the youngest son of Jacob.
This area is on the outskirts of Bethlehem and is also noted in the Talmudic writings (the central text of Jewish writings). According to the Talmud, all stock found in the area surrounding Jerusalem “as far as Migdal Eder” (i.e. right up to Bethlehem), 9-10km away, were deemed to be holy and consecrated and could only be used for sacrifices in the Temple, There was thus a special, dedicated sacrificial circle around the city of Jerusalem right up to Bethlehem (specifically Migdal Eder)
This means the shepherds in the fields of Bethlehem who first heard the Good News from the angels were not really ordinary shepherds but served the sacrificial system of the Temple.
These “priestly” shepherds kept watch over the flock, day and night. When one was ready to give birth, she would be brought to the Tower of the Flock or Migdal Eder and held in the pens and stable at Migdal Eder, and there she would give birth. The priestly shepherds would inspect the newborn to look for any defects. They would determine if the animal was worthy to be a sacrifice. Those that were chosen as being suitable were tendered very carefully to the extent that historians say they would wrap the selected newborn lambs in swaddling clothes! This to ensure they remained not only warm in the colder nights but also to remain unblemished (for sacrifice at the temple at a later stage). Remember at certain times of the year it can even snow in this area! Jesus too was placed in a manger and like a newborn lamb, wrapped in swaddling clothes
This is also probably why the shepherds knew exactly which manger to go to. It was the one of which the prophet Micah spoke—the Tower of the Flock or the Watchtower of the Flock.
Micah 4:8 (NIV)8 As for you, watchtower of the flock, stronghold[a] of Daughter Zion,
the former dominion will be restored to you; kingship will come to Daughter Jerusalem.”
So already from the moment Jesus entered the world the ultimate reason for His arrival was alluded to. Jesus would become the sacrificial Lamb of God, the ultimate sacrifice, which would carry away not only the sins of Israel but of the whole world. Thirty three years later, no further sacrifice was to be needed, as the Lamb of God was sacrificed.
This picture gives us insight as to why the Shepherds were told before the religious leaders, how the shepherds knew where to find the baby Jesus, why Jesus was born in a stable and how Jesus fulfilled every part of the sacrificial system!
Communion: Luke 22:14-20