“And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda;for out of thee shall come a Governor that shall rule my people Israel.”[3]
The angels disappeared, and the heavenly depths resumed their accustomed calm. But the scene and the words sank deep into the hearts of the shepherds, who believed without questioning this wonderful announcement. The time foretold by the prophets—had it truly come? Was the long watching of the true-hearted Jew really at an end?
Making haste in the eagerness of their hope, the shepherdswent to Bethlehem, and found Mary, Joseph, and the babe lying in the manger. Having this corroboration of the angels’ words, they told to all whom they met the marvellous scene which they had witnessed. All wondered; for it was not thus that they had expected the Messiah to come. But Mary, the mother, kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.
Although the birth of Jesus was thus heralded by a choir of angels, it seems not to have been universally recognized that the Messiah had come. The evidence is abundant, from passages taken from both Roman and Jewish writers, that there was a general expectation at the time, throughout the East, that some one was soon to be born in Judæa who would rule the world. The ideas prevailing respecting the nature of his reign were extremely vague. Tacitus, Suetonius, Zoroaster, all allude to this coming man, whose advent had been so minutely foretold in the sacred writings of the Jews.
The Persian priests, or Magi, were among the most learned men of those times. Whatever of science then was known was inseparably blended with religion. Astrology and astronomy were kindred studies. The Persian Magi were surprised by the appearance of a star, or meteor, of wonderful brilliancy. They interpreted it as a sign that the long-expected Messiah was born. As they approached the meteor, it moved before them. A deputation of their number was appointed to follow it. It led them to Judæa. They then began eagerly to inquire where the child was born. Herod the king heard these strange tidings. He trembled from fear that this prophetically-announced Messiah would assume kingly power, and eject him from his throne. In great anxiety he sent for the most approved interpreters of the Bible, and inquired of them if the prophets had announced the place in which the Messiah should be born. They replied that the place was Bethlehem, citing in proof the prediction of the prophet Micah. Herod, having determined to take the life of the child, called the Magi before him, and directed them to go immediately to Bethlehem, and, as soon as they had found the young child, to report to him, saying that he wished to worship him also.
The meteor, which had led them from the plains of Persia, and which had perhaps, for a time, vanished, re-appeared, and went before them till it came and stood over where the young child was. After paying the divine babe the tribute of their homage and adoration, instead of returning to Herod with the information, admonished by God, they departed by an unfrequented route to their own country.
The infamous king, thus baffled, in his rage sent officers to put to death all the children in the city of Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years of age and under. He supposed that in that number the infant Jesus would surely be included. But Joseph, warned by God in a dream, escaped by night with Mary and the babe into Egypt, about forty miles south of Bethlehem. There the holy family remained for several months, until the wretched Herod died, devoured by a terrible disease. But, as his son Archelaus ascended the throne vacated by Herod, Joseph did not deem it safe to return to Judæa, but, by a circuitous route, found his way back to the obscure hamlet of Nazareth, buried among the mountains of Galilee. Here, we are informed, “the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon him.”
Before the flight into Egypt, all the ceremonies enjoined by the Mosaic law upon the birth of a child of Jewish parents were strictly observed. At the presentation of the babe in the temple, the aged Simeon, then the officiating priest, recognized him as the long-looked-for Messiah. Anna too, the prophetess, gave thanks to the Lord for him.
After these scenes, a veil is dropped over the child-life of Jesus. It is lifted but once, when, at the age of twelve, the child attended his parents to Jerusalem. Being separated from Joseph and Mary in the crowd, they sought anxiously for him, and found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, hearing them, and asking them questions. All who heard the questions and the answers of the child were amazed at his wisdom. To the tender reproof of his mother, he answered as though the meaning of his life were just beginningto dawn upon him: “How is it that ye sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?”
His parents did not understand him; but he returned with them to Nazareth. Here among the hills of Galilee, in a village so obscure that its name is not mentioned in the Old Testament, the youthful years of Jesus passed unnoticed away until he had attained the age of thirty. According to the Jewish law, a man could not take upon himself priestly duties until he was thirty years old. Not until then was he considered to have obtained that maturity of character which would warrant him in assuming the office of a teacher, or which would enable him to realize the sacredness of the priestly calling. No record of these years is given us, save that contained in the declaration, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.”