That the Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem, was a settled conviction. It was in this special manger, Migdal Eder, that Jesus was born after Mary and Joseph could not find other lodging. Equally so, was the belief that He was to be revealed from Migdal Eder, the tower of the flock. ThisMigdal Eder was not the watchtower for the ordinary flockswhich pastured on the barren sheep ground beyond Bethlehem, but lay close to the town, on the road to Jerusalem. I was raised on a sheep farm and tended sheep for 15 years. Equally so was the belief, that He was to be revealed from Migdal Eder, the tower of the flock. I believe all of the following will ultimately be shown to point to Migdal Edar as the birthplace of Jesus: The shepherds who while watching their flocks by night became aware of exactly where to find the newborn Messiah in Bethlehem, The special lambs born and raised in the fields of Bethlehem, to be used specifically as Temple sacrifices, The account of the death of Jacobs wife Rachel, on the outskirts of Bethlehem. Non-Israelites and uncircumcised ones were precluded from participating in the feast of the paschal lamb because the occasion was one of reaffirming Gods covenant with the Israelites. At the same time, Mish. The shepherds in charge of these special lambs were from the tribe of Levi. If theres snow on the ground, they will be in the barn not because its cold but because they cant get to the grass, and the hay is in the barn. Aramaic is one of the Semitic languages, an important group of languages known almost from the beginning of human history and including Arabic, Hebrew, Ethiopic, and Akkadian [ancient Babylonian and Assyrian]). On the ground floor, a room was designated for the delivery and protection of these special lambs. Ephrath means ash heap and place of fruitfulness, and seems to refer to Isaiah 61:3, which mentions beauty from ashes . The events and Holy days of the Old Testament, were a foreshadowing of the earthly life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. WebThese were the men who raised the lambs that were to be sacrificed in the Temple. When Habib was explaining the many intricate steps of the sheeps life I was astounded by the parallelism to Jesus Christ. They were not to break any of the bones of the lamb (Exodus 12:46). It was a place fit for the Lamb of the Eternal to be born. Following the rededication of the Temple by King Hezekiah, the priests are described as tossing the blood of the paschal lamb upon the altar (II Chronicles 30:16). It was not just any stable in Bethlehem. The Levitical shepherds would take the sheep to specific caves used for birthing the sacrificial lambs. The word in Hebrew means repetition, which means that it was memorized material. Migdal Eder was a tower used from ancient times by the Levitical shepherds to protect their sheep and lambs from enemies and from wild beasts. Herod died shortly after his murderous order. Since these sheep needed to remain outside the shepherds were also outside, not using the cave during the awful winter (rainy season). And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roasted with fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it (Exodus12:8). This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The shepherds of Bethlehem were in charge of raising sheep for the temple sacrifices. Summary: There was a place just outside of the town of Bethlehem, but still within the region commonly known as Bethlehem, where Passover lambs were kept by specially trained and purified shepherds. An analysis of bones found in an ancient Suppose each family brought one or two animals (which, down through history, was the norm). I am currently researching the shepherds from Luke and shepherds/shepherding throughout the Bible. It does not store any personal data. Is there a logical place where God would choose to have His Son born, one which would be described by the angel to the shepherds in the country as being . Beyond this, and with regard to the other points you raise in your comment, youll have to provide specific references from the Mishnah and Gemara, so that I can look them up, or else Im just taking your word for it, like I did for that of Alfred Edersheim. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. And God said unto him, I am God Almighty, be fruitful and multiply: a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee will I give the land. I am going to be focusing mainly on the knowledge that we gained about the biblical period from our experiences today. How do I choose between my boyfriend and my best friend? literally House of God], he and all the people that were with him. The caves were specially cared for to keep them clean and prepared for the birthing process. However, the other evidence provided here is strong; and I believe the case for confirming Migdal Edar as the birthplace of Jesus is compelling. Sources: This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Paganism spread throughout Israel and Judea and reduced the number of Jews who made the annual pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Actually, scientists now know that these ancient astronomers saw a series of conjunctions involving Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, Regulus (the brightest star in the constellation of Leo), Mercury and Mars. First His birth, then His death, resurrection, etc, The Eternal commands us to begin the year and everything on the first day of the month of Nissan. And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel. Once the sheeps blood was completely spilled for all of the sins the priest would return to the people and proclaim, It is finished. there were shepherds living out in the fields. The church was led astray in the 4th Century AD and has since steadfastly supported the traditional site of the cave under the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem as the birthplace of Jesus. I am trying to find evidence in the Talmud and Mishah but it is long and difficult. It is the new year, everything starts anew. 4 We were therefore buried with Him through immersion into death, that as Messiah was raised from the dead by the esteem of the Father, so also we should walk in newness of life. Why is it important that he would be born at this time? Yeshua lay in the tomb after living a life without sin. It is a Holy Day but there is no command for the males to be in Jerusalem on this day therefore, Yoseph (Joseph) could be in Bethlehem. According to Rabbi Abraham Bloch, the main distinction between the Hag HaPesach and Hag HaMatzot lies in the historical area that each seeks to reflect. The new lambs would, according to some sources, be wrapped in special swaddling clothes once certified. A public celebration of Passover with the slaughtering of paschal lambs was the climax of the festivities. Rachel and Jacob would one dayweep no more, as both would share eternal life in the presence of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For an overview and complete chapter listing of this fascinating study, click here. There is a teaching in the modern church that shepherds were outcasts, sinners, untrustworthy, banned from the Temple because they smelled and were unclean. So the December birth date is, at the very least, doubtful. . An analysis of bones found in an ancient The sacrifices were only to be offered by the hands of the Kohanim.Before building the Temple in It was prophesied that he would be a descendant of David, the shepherd king who was also born in Bethlehem around a thousand years prior to Yeshua (. GOD CONTINUE TO HAVE FAVOR,GRACE AND PEACE UPON YOUR LIFE,AS YOU DO HIS WILL. If our tour guide were not with us we would not have noticed the importance of the design and the significance of the fixtures within the church. Nothing suggests there were full time special shepherds enlisted to keep watch over sheep. But how do you get a descendant of King David to be delivered among the Passover lambs of Bethlehem? Yeshua the Living Bread was born in the House of Bread. Sheq. Yeshua, who was the fulfilment of the foreshadowing of the sacrificial lambs, was also sacrificed during the Passover so it follows that he would have been born around the same season in springtime. To this day, they slaughter a lamb at sunset, read Exodus Chapter 12, and eat the Passover meal after midnight together with unleavened bread (matzah) and bitter herbs. But Deborah, Rebekahs nurse, died, and she was buried beneath Bethel under an oak: and the name of it was called Allon-bachuth. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. . He once and for all would take away the sins of the world (Heb 10:10, 12), thus rendering their jobs as temple shepherds unnecessary. Comprised of the Mishnah and the Gemara, it contains the opinions of thousands of rabbis from different periods in Jewish history. Gods ultimate plan of redemption is further seenin the account of Abrahams willingness to offer his son, Isaac, on an altar at Gods command (Genesis 22). Again, it is the day that everything becomes new and everything else becomes old. We dont tell people that Christ was born on THIS actual day, but rather that, we celebrate the fact that He WAS born. As we have seen many times,bits and pieces from Scripture, taken together, often provide a road map. It should be noted that Ephrath (or Ephratah) was the ancient name for the area which later was called Bethlehem. What were the lambs born in Bethlehem used for? What makes Bethlehem so unique, aside from being Yeshuas birthplace, is the fact that the lambs born and raised in Bethlehem were used for the temple sacrifices, according to rabbinic writings. A little-known fact about Bethlehem is that since it was a relatively close, two-hour walk away from the Temple, it was a location where sheep were raised for the Pilgrims from distant lands brought animals to sacrifice at the temple in Jerusalem, fueling the city's economy, new research suggests. The priest passed the basin to his fellow priest, and he to his fellow, each receiving a full basin and giving back an empty one. This feast coincided with the feast of the paschal lamb. Just go to the highlands of Scotland or to N. Ireland! In the year 720 BCE, King Hezekiah set out to restore the ancient covenant. What makes Bethlehem so unique, aside from being Yeshuas birthplace, is the fact that the lambs born and raised in Bethlehem were used for the temple sacrifices, according to rabbinic writings. Jesus is the perfect lamb sacrifice, which God provided to pay for the sin debt of mankind. Luke has the most complete account of the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, as recorded in Chapter 2: And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and linage of David) To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. The hills around Bethlehem were home to the hundreds of lambs used in ritual worship at the Temple. Such sheep were kept in the environs of Jerusalem including Bethlehem which lies just five miles south of that city. In the writings of Hippolytus, early church father (ca. Jesus was not born behind an inn, in a smelly stable where the donkeys and other animals of travelers were kept. The Mishnah states it is because livestock eats crops. People finding free livestock would want to offer something they did not have to pay for. The religious revival that began with Samuel continued through the reign of King David and reached its zenith under King Solomon with the construction of the [First] Temple in Jerusalem [ca. When the ewes would come into heat, the rams would sense this, and mate. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. He proclaimed, It is finished, and then passed away. The word Nisan, means new beginning. The Sadducees, in charge of Temple sacrifices, also owned the Bethlehem fields and the lambs raised there.
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