The Good Shepherd | Page 3

names put down there instead of having them put down in their own homes. Now, both Joseph and Mary belonged to the family of the great king David, who was born in Bethlehem. So Mary had to prepare for a long journey, and go with her husband to Bethlehem. Bethlehem is six miles from Jerusalem. It is on the top of a hill, and people have to climb up a steep road to get into the town.
An inn is a large house that people stay at when they are on a journey. The inns in Palestine have four walls, with a door in front, and with a great empty space for camels and horses inside. In the middle of the empty space is a fountain; and all round the walls, a little bit higher than the part where the animals are, there are a number of places like empty stone arbors. These empty places are called leewans, and they are open in front, so that everybody can see into them. Yet Mary and Joseph, after all their long journey from Nazareth, could not find even an empty leewan to lie down in.
[Illustration: The shepherd's care.]
Near that inn there was a place in which asses and camels were kept. It was perhaps a cave in the side of the hill. And because there was no room for them in the inn, Mary and Joseph had to go into that stable to sleep, and in that stable Jesus Christ was born. Mary wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in the manger in the place where the animals' food was kept.
On the hill where Bethlehem stands there are green places where shepherds feed their flocks. There are wild animals in Palestine; and all night long the shepherds of Bethlehem watched to see that no harm happened to their sheep. One night an angel of the Lord stood by them and a bright light shown round about them. The shepherds were afraid; but the angel said, 'FEAR NOT; FOR BEHOLD, I BRING YOU GOOD TIDINGS (OR NEWS) 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 suddenly there was seen with the angel a number of the angels of heaven. And they praised God, and said, 'GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST, AND ON EARTH PEACE, GOOD WILL TOWARD MEN.'
When the light faded, and the song ended, and the angels had gone back into heaven, the shepherds climbed quickly over the hillside to Bethlehem. And there, in the stable near the inn, they found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in the manger, as the angels had said.
Jesus was the eldest son of His mother. And the eldest sons in Jewish houses, when they were forty days old, were taken to the Temple, and given to God.
So now, when Jesus was nearly six weeks old, He was brought from Bethlehem by Mary and Joseph to the Temple at Jerusalem. The mothers used to take a lamb with them, or two pigeons, as a sacrifice to God. Mary took two pigeons. She was not rich enough to buy a lamb.
A long way on the eastern side of the Jordan, there were countries where the people used to watch the sun and the moon and the stars very carefully. If they saw anything new and strange in the heavens, they thought it meant that something wonderful was going to happen. But some of them knew and had heard from the Jews about God, and about the Messiah who was coming; and they, like the Jews, were longing for Jesus.
One day these wise men saw a bright star which they had never seen before. And as they looked at it they felt sure that a great King of the Jews had been born in Judaea. So they took camels and rich presents of gold and sweet-smelling stuff--such as people gave to kings in those days--and they loaded their camels, and left their homes, and rode for many weeks till they came to Jerusalem. And when they got there they said, 'Where is He that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen His star in the east, and are come to worship Him.'
[Illustration: Bethlehem.]
When Herod heard about these wise men he was troubled. He sent for the best priests, and other clever men, and asked them where Christ would be born. And they said to him, 'In Bethlehem of Judaea.' They had read that in the Bible. Then Herod said to the wise men, 'Go and search out carefully about the young Child; and when ye have found Him, bring me word, that I also may come and worship Him.'
When the wise