When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” 16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying, and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. – Luke 2:15-201
If you’ve had a child, you know how exciting that event is for you and your family. I remember the day my daughter was born and the overwhelming excitement that filled my heart. One of the first things I wanted to do was to go out and tell everyone I knew that she was finally here. It’s the kind of news that you want to make sure everyone knows.
Now if you aren’t a parent, there are most likely other newsworthy events that I am sure you have wanted to share with family and friends. Maybe it was that moment you made the varsity team or were cast as the lead in the high school play (or just the excitement of making the cast). Maybe it was getting into the first college of your choice, getting your first job, or that promotion you had been working hard for. Maybe it was finding that someone special, the one who you knew you wanted to spend your life with, and then the excitement of the engagement or the marriage itself.
We have probably all had those life events that we just had to tell someone. Sharing news is something we all want to do, and the more people we can tell it to the better. Sometimes the news has to wait for the appropriate time to be shared.
When I think of Joseph and Mary, I think of their missed opportunity to share about their being pregnant with Jesus. I mean, think about the excitement that comes from even that announcement to one’s family and friends. But then, we have to think about how scandalous this would have been in their day. Luke 1:27 reminds us “…a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.”
They were betrothed to be married, meaning that they were legally bound to one another, and the only way to be released from this betrothal was a divorce. We might consider this to be legally married today. The difference would be that they would have waited till the official wedding night to consummate the marriage, in other words, to engage in sexual intercourse. This is why we believe Mary was a virgin when she learned she was pregnant with Jesus. And Joseph knew the consequences of what might happen if this was found out about (Matthew 1:19), “because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.”
As Joseph found out the true nature of this child, he was more accepting of Mary’s being pregnant with this child (Matthew 1:20-21).
But after he had considered this (the divorce), an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.’
Finally, this child was born, after the family headed off to the city where Joseph needed to register for the census, in a most uncomfortable setting, a barn, in a trough meant for hay for the cattle. “…And she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them” (Luke 2:7). They seemed content with their situation, but unfortunately, there was no one to tell the good news to, at least not for themselves.
That didn’t mean that someone else didn’t share the news. The angel of the Lord, most certainly at the direction of God, found some to announce the birth of Jesus to…shepherds (Luke 2:8-11)!
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
Shepherds, not the mayor of Bethlehem, not to royalty or too high ranking government officials, not even to the all-important religious leaders of the community; God let the news known first to shepherds.
These men watched over sheep during the night, keeping them safe from the predators that might creep out from their liars, and caring for these animals that were a major part of the economy as well as for religious services. And it’s not that this was an uncommon occupation, even for Biblical standards. We can think of some of the heroes of the Bible who themselves tended sheep, like Abraham, Jacob, Moses, and even King David.
Shepherds in this day, though, were not seen in a very glowing light. Their occupation would have had a very low status, in fact, some have likened it to being a tax collector or one who followed other animals and cleaned up what they deposited on the ground. The religious community would have not recognized them in the temple as they were considered to be unclean.
In ancient Israel, shepherds were generally considered “unclean” in the community of God’s people because of the work they did. They were in daily contact with dirty, smelly sheep, their manure, their blood from cuts and scrapes, and the insects that buzzed around them. All of this meant that shepherds were almost never clean enough to worship with God’s people in God’s presence. So they were generally treated as outsiders.2
Jesus, though, welcomed strangers into his presence, counting them as friends and even colleagues, when you think of the disciples (who were also students). He welcomed tax collectors, prostitutes, women and children, and even Gentiles and Samaritans. He treated these persons with respect and with dignity, sharing the message of the Kingdom of God with them. So why wouldn’t his Father, God, welcome the shepherds an opportunity to visit the infant Jesus, their Savior, just after his birth.
When we are first introduced to these shepherds, we find them with their sheep at night time. You can imagine that it’s probably pretty quiet, except for the sheep who are probably baaing and bleating as they scourge for food, and maybe the usual night sounds that come from insects and other animals. There are probably even the nonexistent noises that they are most certainly hearing in their heads, haha.
The sky might be clear, but bright from the stars that are shining. How unimaginable that is for most of us who live in areas where light pollution causes the night sky to not be as clear as it might be. And the shepherds are probably sitting with one another telling stories, talking about the day, maybe even eating an evening meal or snack, while also keeping an eye open for wild animals that could attack their flocks. It’s probably just another night for them out in the field. Little did they know how that night, how their lives, would be about to change.
“An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified” (Luke 2:9). Yeah, I would say that might be a little frightening, to be where they are and all of a sudden this heavenly being shows up out of nowhere. They might have closed their eyes, getting ready to get up from where they’ve been sitting, and wanted to take off and just run away. They might have been too frozen to move. I don’t know about you, but I’m not sure how I might have reacted, I do know I would have been scared like they were.
The angel of the Lord sensed their fear and offered encouragement and reassurance, when the angel said, “Do not be afraid.” Easier said than done, but they do seem to listen.
The angel tells them the reason for appearing to them, “I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord” (Luke 2:10-11). Now, I have to wonder what the first reaction was from the shepherds when they first hear this news. “Why us?” “Do you have the right people?”
I mean remember, these were shepherds, lowly shepherds, and the angel of the Lord has appeared to share this news with them. This news about the Savior, the Messiah, the anointed one, who has been born in the neighboring city. And all this is good news, for everyone!
What will these shepherds do with this announcement that has been shared with them? We have to return to the text used earlier. It lets us see how the shepherds reacted to the news given to them by the angel, and it looks as if they got over their fear pretty quickly. “When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about’” (Luke 2:15).
They got excited about what they heard and they had to go see this for themselves, and they found it to be as they were told. “So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger” (Luke 2:16).
I always like to read that they “hurried off.” They wanted to see this child, this important child that the angel spoke of. They didn’t dawdle, they didn’t even take time to pen up the sheep, they ran to see Jesus, as the text says, they hurried off.
When they arrived in the city, at the place where they were told to go, they found the couple, and they found the baby. They found Jesus! There he was, lying in the manger, a common feed trough for animals, now a makeshift bed for a baby. You can only imagine what their reaction might have been, the feelings they must have felt deep inside. What an honor to be invited to see this child.
I remember the joy and excitement on the faces of mine and my wife’s parents and grandparents when they saw our daughter for the first time. The look is so indescribable. It just makes you truly able to visualize the looks on the shepherds on that night. And afterward, they did what we might expect, they left and told everyone what they had seen. “When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told to them about this child” (Luke 2:17).
They probably ran away from the manger as fast as they had run to them. They wanted to share the news with each and every person they met along the way. “Guess who we saw?” “The Savior has been born.” “He’s a baby, and he’s back that way, in a manger.” Just imagine all the things they might have said as they ran throughout the city of Bethlehem, on their way back to the fields.
Those who heard the news were excited as well, not thinking the shepherds were crazy. Luke 2:18 says, “and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.” They knew the prophecies, they knew what to be expected, they just didn’t know when. These shepherds had seen what all of those gathered in the city were looking forward to seeing (at least those who might have heard the prophecies), and they too were amazed just listening to what was being said. It makes you wonder if some of these persons went to see for themselves, to see what the shepherds had seen. To think that some of these folks might have come to get just a glimpse of this child who was destined to be someone special, who was someone special.
The shepherds and Mary knew; they knew he was special. Mary was witness to this excitement and the exhilaration displayed by the shepherds, hearing them share what had been offered to them and now being offered to her, Joseph, and to the baby Jesus.
And what did Mary do with all of this, the text tells us: “…Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart” (Luke 2:19).
She thoughtfully reflects on all that has happened and is happening. I imagine she even thinks back to the moment God tells her that she has been chosen for this important event. That she was to be the one to carry the child that is God’s Son.
Maybe she even reflects on her own words expressed after meeting with Elizabeth (Luke 1:46-55):
My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me—holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.
Her heart is full after this event in her life.
But what about the shepherds?
The text tells us this: “The shepherds returned, glorifying, and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told” (Luke 2:20).
Imagine what the rest of their evening must have been like.
They go back to the place where it all started and go back to work.
I wonder what the conversation must have been as they came back to the fields overlooking their sheep and had time to themselves.
The night probably went by fast.
So what about us?
Who are we? Are we Mary, reflecting upon the events related to Jesus’ birth? Pondering all that has been said, all that was revealed to strangers and told to her, becoming overcome with joyful emotions as to the importance of the one in whom she looks upon in the manger?
Do we think about the importance of Christ in our own lives?
Are we shepherds, sharing the good news of what we’ve seen and heard with all those we meet? Maybe not even speaking words, but allowing the excitement within us well out so that others may look for that themselves.
Or are we both?
Let us ponder upon what Jesus has done for us in our lives.
Let us share it with those who we meet, exclaiming the good news that we too have been told, that we have read, that we have experienced in our own lives.
And let us do it with joy, glorifying and praising the name of Jesus wherever we go.
Marty Doss is the pastor of the Mount Bethel Church of the Brethren in Dayton, Virginia, where he has served since 2014. A 2004 graduate of Eastern Mennonite Seminary, he lives in the college town Harrisonburg with his wife Cheryl, daughter Jill, and their little shihpom (dog) Cleo. Marty also co-hosts the 2 Preachers Talking podcast with former Brethren Life & Thought contributor Jon Prater.
- Unless noted, all scripture texts are from the New International Version.
- Sytsma, Bill, https://todaydevotional.com/devotions/unclean-shepherds-2014-12-11.