The Shepherd's Story

It was a quiet, peaceful night on the outskirts of Bethlehem. The sky was clear and the air was heavy with dew. Several flocks of sheep were scattered throughout the fields, sleeping contentedly despite the bitter temperature. At least the cold night air gave them a reprieve from the flies that incessantly swarmed during the heat of the day.

Eli gazed out over the field, his eyes accustomed to the darkness. Though the moon was hidden below the horizon, the scattering of stars in the heavens provided just enough light to see by.  This was Eli’s favorite time of day: the sheep were resting contentedly and the earth still held a bit of warmth from the afternoon sun. 

He was laying on the ground, wrapped in his heavy wool cloak, using a stone for a pillow. His son lay nearby, curled up under his heavy outer cloak. They boy shifted uncomfortably in his sleep. At 7 years old, this was his first year in the fields and he was not yet accustomed to sleeping in the dirt. He would get used to it soon enough.

Eli contemplated waking his son to help him keep watch. After all, this was the time of night when the predators were on the prowl. But he decided against it. “Let the boy sleep,” he thought. “He’d earned it after a long day of chasing down stray sheep.” Eli remembered how exhausting it had been his first year in the field helping his own father tend the flock.

A cold breeze rustled the tufts of grass that sprouted from the rocky soil.
Eli pulled his cloak tight and began to reminisce about his own childhood.
He never chose to become a shepherd. Truth be told, he hadn’t much of a choice in the matter. His father was a shepherd, as was his grandfather. In a way, he was born to be a shepherd. But Eli didn’t mind. He loved being under the stars, surrounded by the sheep.

Admittedly, shepherds were looked down upon by city-dwellers. They treated them like dirty, uneducated outsiders. But he’d love to see one of those “civilized” folk give up the comforts of their straw-lined beds to spend even one evening out here in the dirt.

Even the local priest gave him a hard time for failing to darken the doorway of the synagogue, but someone had to watch the sheep. And besides, these sheep were being raised for the Feast of Pentecost. In a way, keeping them safe was his act of worship. Eli smiled at the thought.

Suddenly, he was startled from his reverie by a blindingly bright light in the night sky. It was as if the heavens had split opened to reveal a being clothed with sunlight. Eli could hear startled gasps from the other shepherds tending their flocks nearby, so he knew he wasn’t imagining this. But the sight of this radiant man caused his heart to freeze up in fear. In all his years, he’d never seen anything like it. He must be an angel, an emissary of Yahweh.

The angel spoke with a deep, powerful voice that broke the silence of the night: “Don’t be afraid. I come bearing good news that will cause great joy for all people.” Pointing towards Bethlehem, the angel continued: “Today, in the town of David, a Savior has been born – He is the long-awaited Messiah, the Lord of Life. Go see for yourself. This is what you are to look for: a baby wrapped in a blanket and laying in a feeding trough.”

Suddenly, a great angelic choir filled the sky. If Eli thought the first angel had been bright, this crowd was blinding. He used his hand to shield his eyes from the radiance. As he and the other shepherds watched in trembling awe, this angelic choir cried out in a joyful chorus:

“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to those on whom his favor rests.”

Then, as suddenly as they appeared, the angelic multitude disappeared.
Eli lay there in silent shock for several moments, his heart racing in his chest. Whenever he closed his eyes, he could see angelic silhouettes burned into his vision.

“Abba, what was that?!” his son timidly asked, his voice heavy with sleep.
Eli looked over at the boy, not sure how to answer. After a moment, he admitted, “I’m not sure, son. Stay here with the flock while I go find out.” With that, Eli quickly made his way over to the center of the field where the rest of the shepherds were congregating.

But none of the other shepherds had an explanation. Even Jacob, the oldest of the shepherds, admitted he had never heard of anything like this happening. But one thing was certain – the angel had told them to go to Bethlehem to find a baby wrapped in a blanket and laying in a feeding trough, so that’s what they would do.

Eli made his way over to the flock and, with the help of his son, they roused the sheep and began to quickly make their way back towards Bethlehem.
It was slower going with a flock in tow, but he couldn’t just leave the sheep in the fields unattended. So their journey into the town was accompanied by the confused bleating of sleepy sheep.

As the shepherds led their flocks through the narrow streets of Bethlehem, they began to knock on any door with its oil lamp still burning in the window, hoping someone knew where to find this child laying in a manger. But nobody seemed to have any idea what they were talking about. Door after door was shut in their face, and as they moved deeper into Bethlehem, they left scores of irritated people in their wake grumbling about drunken shepherds disturbing the peace.

It wasn’t until Eli knocked on the door to the village inn that they finally caught a break. The inn-keeper admitted that he’d turned away a pregnant woman and her husband earlier that night, but he said they might be sleeping in the stable where they housed the guests’ livestock. Eli quickly turned and motioned for the other shepherds to follow him around back.
He didn’t even notice as the inn-keeper abruptly slammed the door shut, a look of contempt on his face.

When Eli rounded the corner, he found a small cave cut into the hillside that was being used to stable the livestock of the inn’s guests. And there was light inside. Eli and his son left their flock with another shepherd so that they could come closer. As they drew near the entrance, they saw a man tending to a young woman who was resting in the hay. Next to them was a wooden feeding trough that had been converted into a makeshift cradle. Just as the angel had said!

Surprisingly, there were no other visitors, no dignitaries there to welcome the long-awaited messiah. Not even the local priest, who Eli figured would have been the first to find out.

They entered the stable slowly so as not to frighten the new parents.
People were typically standoffish towards shepherds on a good day,
let alone a young couple with a newborn baby in the dead of night.

The couple was surprised to see them, but Eli quickly explained that they’d been commissioned by an Angel of the Lord to come see the one born to be the Messiah. He also told them that their child’s birth had been celebrated by an angelic choir. Eli would have laughed at the surprised look on the young parents’ faces if he hadn’t been so overwhelmed himself by everything he’d seen tonight.

As he spoke, Eli’s eyes kept drifting back to the tiny, olive-skinned baby laying in a feeding trough. Was this really God’s chosen redeemer, the one the prophets of old had had spoken of? Eli found it ironic that for centuries, the people of Israel had been waiting for this night, for this child’s arrival, and when he finally came the only ones there to greet him were a bunch of uneducated shepherds!

He couldn’t help but wonder why God would have sent His angels to share the good news with them. Or why Yahweh would allow His redeemer to be born in a stable instead of a palace!  It was unexpected to say the least, but Eli couldn’t argue with what he saw before him. It was just as the angel had said.

Not wanting to overstay his welcome, Eli thanked the young couple for their hospitality and then he and his son began to drive their flock back through the streets of Bethlehem. But as they went, they didn’t go silently. That night, they shared what they’d seen with anyone they met in the streets. And as they made their way back out to the fields, they joined with a heavenly choir, glorifying God and celebrating the birth of His son, Jesus, the Messiah.