Were they just humble shepherds who visited the baby Jesus that night, or were they priests?
Micah 4:8, “And you, O tower of the flock, 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.”
A popular view today is that this verse refers to a shepherd’s watchtower just north of Bethlehem. Why? Because the only other mention of such a tower (called in Genesis 35:21 “Migdal Eder” or “the Tower of Eder”) places it near Bethlehem and because Micah 4:8 shadows Micah 5:2, which names Bethlehem as the Messiah’s birthplace.
It is therefore presumed that the shepherds associated with Jesus’ birth were a special group of Levites who raised sheep for the temple; that they regularly swaddled newborn lambs in the lower level of this tower to keep the lambs from injuring themselves (which would disqualify them from being used for temple sacrifices); and that these Levitical shepherds hurried from their fields on Christmas night to find the baby Jesus, the Lamb of God, inside their tower lying in the very manger that they used to swaddle their lambs.
In support of this view most modern proponents refer to the following excerpt from Alfred Edersheim’s book, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, “That the Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem was a settled conviction. Equally so was the belief that He was to be revealed from Migdal Eder, ‘the tower of the flock.’ This Migdal Eder was not the watchtower for the ordinary flocks which pastured on the barren sheepground beyond Bethlehem, but lay close to the town on the road to Jerusalem. A passage in the Mishnah (Shek.7:4) leads to the conclusion that the flocks, which pastured there, were destined for Temple-sacrifices, and, accordingly, that the shepherds, who watched over them were not ordinary shepherds.”
However, here’s what Shekalim 7:4 (in the Mishnah) actually says, “An animal that was found between Jerusalem and Migdal Eder, or a similar distance in any direction, the males are [considered] burnt offerings. The females are [considered] peace offerings. Rabbi Yehuda says, those which are fitting as a Pesach offering are [considered] Pesach offerings if it is thirty days before the festival.” This tractate teaches only what to do with lost things. It’s not discussing shepherding as a profession or temple flocks in particular.
I like the writings of Alfred Edersheim very much, but here he uncharacteristically reads too much into this quote from the Mishnah. Let’s always be careful before popularizing a view that has weak biblical or historical support.
The story of the Christmas shepherds raising sheep for the temple and their discovery of baby Jesus lying in the very manger that they used to swaddle newborn lambs sure captures the imagination, but sadly there’s little to no sound, supporting evidence for it that I can find.
Daniel McCabe
Luke Chapter 2 explains: And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.