Reflections on Bethlehem: The Birthplace of Shepherd Kings
By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe
"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)
Bethlehem figured in the Christmas story centuries before the birth of Christ.
Bethlehem figured in the Christmas story centuries before the birth of Christ.
Rachel, Jacob’s favorite wife, was
buried near Bethlehem. Ruth and Naomi
traveled to Bethlehem where Ruth married Boaz the son of Rahab and Salmon and
founded the royal house of David.
Matthew 1:5-6 (NKJV)
“Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king.”
“Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king.”
The prophet Isaiah spoke of the
importance of the lineage of Ruth and Boaz:
Isaiah 11:1 (NKJV)
“There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.”
“There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.”
The rod that came forth from Jesse
is metaphorically both the shepherd’s staff and the king’s scepter.
The people of God, the Israelites,
were a shepherding people. Their great
king David, the son of Jesse, was a shepherd.
He tended his father’s flocks in the fields of Bethlehem. He grew up near the fields that Ruth had
gleaned. He grazed his sheep were centuries
later the army of heaven announced the birth of Messiah to shepherds from
Bethlehem.
When David, the youngest son of
Jesse, was a young man, the prophet Samuel came to Bethlehem with a directive
from the Lord to anoint the one who would replace Saul as king. David was called in from tending the
sheep. There,in Bethlehem, in the
presence of Jesse and his older sons, Samuel anointed David to be the next king
of Israel.
Many years later, David, shepherd,
king and psalmist wrote, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want” (Psalm
23:1).
Jesus confirmed His own role as
shepherd. John 10:7-11
(NKJV)
"Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.
"Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.
There is so much more. Remember Balaam? Remember the pagan prophet hired to curse
Israel? Remember the warrior angel
blocking the path? Remember the talking
donkey? (Numbers 22)
Remember the prophecy delivered by
the humbled Balaam? The prophecy that spoke of the glory to come in the
fulfillment of time?
Numbers 24:15-17 (NKJV)
“”So he took up his oracle and said: "The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor, And the utterance of the man whose eyes are opened;
The utterance of him who hears the words of God, And has the knowledge of the Most High, Who sees the vision of the Almighty, Who falls down, with eyes wide open: ‘I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; A Star shall come out of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, And batter the brow of Moab, And destroy all the sons of tumult.’”
“”So he took up his oracle and said: "The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor, And the utterance of the man whose eyes are opened;
The utterance of him who hears the words of God, And has the knowledge of the Most High, Who sees the vision of the Almighty, Who falls down, with eyes wide open: ‘I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; A Star shall come out of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, And batter the brow of Moab, And destroy all the sons of tumult.’”
The symbol of David’s kingdom, the
Star of David, appears on Israel’s flag today.
David’s kingdom was a partial fulfillment of the prophecy of
Balaam. Jesus Christ is the fulfillment.
Hundreds of years after the reign of
David, that star spoken of by Balaam appeared.
The Wise Men of the East followed it to Jerusalem and then to Bethlehem.
Matthew 2:1-2 (NKJV)
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,
2 saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,
2 saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."
Matthew 2:7-10 (NKJV)
“Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."
When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.”
“Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."
When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.”
David was a shepherd who
became a king. Jesus was a king who
became a shepherd who became a shepherding king. Both were born in Bethlehem.
"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)
What the world may see as unimportant is not unimportant to God. That includes you.
What the world may see as unimportant is not unimportant to God. That includes you.
Reflections on Bethlehem: The Birthplace of Shepherd Kings
By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe
"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)
Bethlehem figured in the Christmas story centuries before the birth of Christ.
Bethlehem figured in the Christmas story centuries before the birth of Christ.
Rachel, Jacob’s favorite wife, was buried near Bethlehem. Ruth and Naomi traveled to Bethlehem where Ruth married Boaz the son of Rahab and Salmon and founded the royal house of David.
Matthew 1:5-6 (NKJV)
“Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king.”
“Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king.”
The prophet Isaiah spoke of the importance of the lineage of Ruth and Boaz:
Isaiah 11:1 (NKJV)
“There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.”
“There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.”
The rod that came forth from Jesse is metaphorically both the shepherd’s staff and the king’s scepter.
The people of God, the Israelites, were a shepherding people. Their great king David, the son of Jesse, was a shepherd. He tended his father’s flocks in the fields of Bethlehem. He grew up near the fields that Ruth had gleaned. He grazed his sheep were centuries later the army of heaven announced the birth of Messiah to shepherds from Bethlehem.
When David, the youngest son of Jesse, was a young man, the prophet Samuel came to Bethlehem with a directive from the Lord to anoint the one who would replace Saul as king. David was called in from tending the sheep. There,in Bethlehem, in the presence of Jesse and his older sons, Samuel anointed David to be the next king of Israel.
Many years later, David, shepherd, king and psalmist wrote, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1).
Jesus confirmed His own role as shepherd. John 10:7-11 (NKJV)
"Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.
"Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.
There is so much more. Remember Balaam? Remember the pagan prophet hired to curse Israel? Remember the warrior angel blocking the path? Remember the talking donkey? (Numbers 22)
Remember the prophecy delivered by the humbled Balaam? The prophecy that spoke of the glory to come in the fulfillment of time?
Numbers 24:15-17 (NKJV)
“”So he took up his oracle and said: "The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor, And the utterance of the man whose eyes are opened;
The utterance of him who hears the words of God, And has the knowledge of the Most High, Who sees the vision of the Almighty, Who falls down, with eyes wide open: ‘I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; A Star shall come out of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, And batter the brow of Moab, And destroy all the sons of tumult.’”
“”So he took up his oracle and said: "The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor, And the utterance of the man whose eyes are opened;
The utterance of him who hears the words of God, And has the knowledge of the Most High, Who sees the vision of the Almighty, Who falls down, with eyes wide open: ‘I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; A Star shall come out of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, And batter the brow of Moab, And destroy all the sons of tumult.’”
The symbol of David’s kingdom, the Star of David, appears on Israel’s flag today. David’s kingdom was a partial fulfillment of the prophecy of Balaam. Jesus Christ is the fulfillment.
Hundreds of years after the reign of David, that star spoken of by Balaam appeared. The Wise Men of the East followed it to Jerusalem and then to Bethlehem.
Matthew 2:1-2 (NKJV)
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,
2 saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,
2 saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."
Matthew 2:7-10 (NKJV)
“Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."
When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.”
“Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."
When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.”
David was a shepherd who became a king. Jesus was a king who became a shepherd who became a shepherding king. Both were born in Bethlehem.
"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)
What the world may see as unimportant is not unimportant to God. That includes you. No matter how insignificant we may feel, we are not insignificant to God.
What the world may see as unimportant is not unimportant to God. That includes you. No matter how insignificant we may feel, we are not insignificant to God.
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