Oh, to be a Shepherd!

Each year, one of the nativity characters seems to capture me. This year, it is the shepherds.

How much do you know about shepherds in the first century BC?

SOCIAL OUTCASTS

One of the things we hear often is that shepherds were social outcasts and not well regarded. I’m not sure that I agree. That conclusion is drawn on scant evidence, much of it compiled quite a bit later than the events of which we speak.

The biblical argument is that shepherding is a noble vocation–simple, but worthy. Abraham, Moses, King David, the prophet Amos–all were shepherds. There were women, too–Rachel, Zipporah (one of Moses’ daughters), Rebekah, Leah, Solomon’s love in his song (Song of Solomon). Furthermore, Jesus uses the metaphor often.

However, I do believe that the shepherds would not have been highly regarded by the religious leadership of the time. They spent much of their time in the fields with sheep. Things like baths and ritual cleanliness would not have been high on the priority list. To be blunt, they would have smelled, been a little dirty, and thoroughly “nose blind” to it.

I don’t think this makes them outcasts. Lonely or loners, perhaps. Not well social-connected, probably. A job for the youngest son or one who most needed to work, almost certainly. But it seems to me that they were simply humble, hard working men and women.

Oh, to have been a shepherd on that night! What must it have been like? Share on X

TEMPLE SHEEP

We do know that the sacrificial system of the temple was in full swing. Parts of the Talmud, a Jewish religious text, describe priests wading knee deep in blood and as many as 1.2 million lambs being slaughtered on a single day for Passover. (Don’t worry. That’s the extent of the sacrifice description here.) Scholars once thought that was hyperbole, but archaeological evidence seems to be supporting the assertion.

The Temple was, in fact, the city’s economic heart. Several times a year, all adult males were required to come to Jerusalem for holy days. Sacrifices were a part of these observances. Some would bring their sacrifice with them from home. However, others would purchase them when they arrived.

Reportedly, so many sheep were needed that the priests had flocks of sheep being raised in the hills around Jerusalem. One of these areas would have been Bethlehem. Bethlehem is only 5 or 6 miles from Jerusalem.

In my mind, I wonder if the shepherds to which the angel appeared were raising flocks for the temple. I like the idea that news of the birth of one who would do away with the sacrificial system came first to those raising innocent sheep, to ponder that he came to save the lives of those animals as much as he did mine.

SHEPHERD’S FIELD OR SHEPHERD’S CAVE

I’ve been to the shepherd’s field in Israel. I should say that I’ve been to the cave. Much of the biblical story appears to have happened in caves, not in houses or barns as we depict. In the evenings, shepherds would gather their flocks in to caves, which stayed cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. They could sit just inside the cave’s overhang and watch the flock outside if the weather was good, or gather them inside behind them if it was cold or rainy.

I imagine two to four shepherds settled in around a fire, perhaps finishing an evening meal, when the angels burst upon the scene with their message.

Cave at Shepherd’s Field, Bethlehem

The Discussion that Follows

I imagine the discussion that followed, once they caught their breath from seeing angels!

“We gotta go! We have to find this child!”

“What about the sheep?”

“They’ll be fine.”

What must it have been like to race down the hill toward the city, wandering through the street, searching for the sounds of a baby floating on the night air!

How long did it take them?

What do you do when you arrive? Do you know? Do you peep around the corner?

Did Mary and Joseph expect to have shepherds joining their revelry, with stories of angels and choirs?

Jesus tells a story about the shepherd leaving the 99 to search for the one. The shepherds left the many to search for The One.

Oh, to have been among the shepherds that night!