The Christmas Story You May Have Missed

It’s said that a good story bears repeating.  And while telling the same story over and over again can become boring and tedious, it seems we never tire of the images we know and love – the angels announcing the birth of the Christ-child; the shepherds cowering in fear as the glory of God filled the night sky; and the wise men following the star and offering gifts to the child.  But one image in that story may hold more significance than you imagined, because for the shepherds who would behold the Child in the manger, the story holds a richness that we may have never fully appreciated.

The prophet, Micah, foretold the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem in this passage that most of us have heard countless times:

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting.”  (Micah 5:2)

That little village about six miles southeast of Jerusalem has a rich history in Scripture that began about 2,000 years before the birth of Jesus when Rachel, the beloved wife of Jacob, was buried just outside the village. 

So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath that is, Bethlehem. ²⁰ And Jacob set a pillar on her grave, which is the pillar of Rachel’s grave to this day.  ²¹ Then Israel (Jacob) journeyed and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder.  Genesis 35:19-21

God’s amazing story of redemption is woven even more deeply into the prophecy of Micah just a few verses before the more famous passage mentioned above:

…So the Lord will reign over them in Mount Zion From now on, even forever.  And you, O tower of the flock (Migdal Eder), the stronghold of the daughter of Zion, to you shall it come, even the former dominion shall come, the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.”  (Micah 4:7-8)

There it is again!  Did you notice that mention of the Tower of Eder?  Bethlehem was a special place, not just because of its history, but because the lambs raised in the hills north of there were destined for use as sacrifices in the temple in Jerusalem.  Migdal Eder was a watchtower just north of Bethlehem, from which shepherds could keep an eye out for threats to the flock.  From the tower, watchful eyes could keep a lookout for packs of wild animals or thieves who might threaten the temple flocks. 

When the temple lambs were to be born, the ewes were brought in from the fields and kept in the cave at the tower’s base, which essentially became a birthing station for sacrificial lambs.  After inspecting the lambs to assure they were unblemished and fit for sacrifice, shepherds, like those in our Christmas story, would bind the newborn lambs with rags, or swaddling cloths, and place them in a manger to keep them calm and free from harm. 

If you re-read Luke 2, you’ll notice the angel only instructed the shepherds: “You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”  While they likely wondered WHY Jesus would be born in a place and manner reserved for sacrificial lambs, they didn’t have to think very hard about WHERE to find Him.  Because there was only one manger where sacrificial lambs were laid – the cave under the Tower of Eder.  The tower had stood as a sentinel for 100 generations before Jesus was born, but it had never witnessed anything like what was to happen that night. 

Those blessed shepherds found the Baby where they expected, and discovered more than they had ever hoped.  That’s what happens when we seek after Jesus.  We encounter all the love and light and hope and life we could ever imagine.  All found in the lovely face of that precious Child.  The One in the manger at Migdal Eder.

May you find what you really seek this Christmas.

Jacob