The Story of Migdal Eder

700 years before Jesus was born, the prophet Michah wrote these words:

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” - Micah 5:2

This was the promise of The Messiah that would come, saying that He would be born in Bethlehem. Bethlehem is located just 1,000 paces south of Jerusalem. Also, Bethlehem is the place where the sacrificial lambs were raised for the temple sacrifices in Jerusalem. The sacrifices were used to take away the sins of the people. Remember these words from John the Baptist, when he saw Jesus coming?

"The next day he (John The Baptist) saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" - John 1:29

Let’s go back to the Book of Micah.

"And you, O tower of the flock, hill of the daughter of Zion, to you shall it come, the former dominion shall come, kingship for the daughter of Jerusalem." - Micah 4:8

The Hebrew words Migdal Eder translate to “watch tower of the flock”. The shepherds used the old abandoned military watch tower to “keep watch over their flocks by night” (Luke 2:8).

It gets even more interesting. The bottom of the watch tower was used for birthing lambs. Because the lambs were to be used for sacrifice, the shepherds had to take special precautions to keep them spotless. The shepherds (are you ready for this?) wrapped the spotless lambs in swaddling cloth.

Was the basement of Migdal Eder also the birthplace of Jesus? The Bible doesn’t really say that, straight out, but it sure makes sense. It does say that Jesus was born in a manger (Luke 2:7) and there were mangers at Migdal Eder . . . in the basement . . . where the special shepherds were, keeping watch over their sacrificial lambs.

You know, all of this stuff is really cool to me. The more I study the Bible and dig into its rich content like this, it just literally comes to life for me. But the really important thing to remember, whether you are a Bible geek like me of just prefer to keep things simple, Jesus was born a human. He was born, to die. A sacrificial lamb.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will - 6to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, 9he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment - to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ." - Ephesians 1:3-10

Merry Christmas. May God bless you during this advent season as we celebrate His birth and await His second advent – His glorious return. Amen.