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#5 -The Sign of the
Manger
The Sign of the Manger
When I was a child, I was disturbed for a time by the thought of the infant Jesus lying in a manger. I felt it was odd and demeaning, even slightly disgusting, for such an important Person to be placed where normally food for animals would be. Maybe the animals would eat him!
I had forgotten all about this until recently when I was studying Luke 2 to confirm the opinion of a friend that the star is not mentioned in connection with the shepherds. Verse 12, "And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger", caught my eye. Now the "sign" must be the "babe ... in a manger". This is the part that is unusual enough both to guide the shepherds in a small village (no star needed) and to constitute a sign of sort that the Jews in Jesus' day were always looking for. Now, what exactly, is the meaning of the sign of the manger? The origin of the Greek word translated manger is, like manger, from a verb meaning "to eat". The Greek is also, interestingly enough, related to the word for "father", probably in the sense of "nourisher". The following are some of the scriptures I was led to:
Luke 2:34. "And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign that will be spoken against;". There is a beautiful reference here, I believe, to baptism as a sign of partaking in the crucifixion and resurrection, but the link between the sign spoken against and the sign of the manger is mainly by proximity in Luke and the fact that Simeon in verse 32 speaks of a "light to lighten the Gentiles" which seems to give significance to the star.
John 6:26-69. In part: "... (v. 53) Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. ... (v. 60) This is a hard saying; who can hear it? ... (v. 66) From that time many of his disciples went back and walked no more with him." This must have been a particularly difficult saying for those who lived by the Jewish dietary laws. Blood, of course, was absolutely prohibited, and man does not chew cud and his "hoof" might be considered cloven. This is significant since the star was for the gentile wise men, the manger was for the Jews. Here we have a sign spoken against, probably more clearly and directly than statements against allusions to the crucifixion and resurrection.
The sign of the manger, then, was, perhaps, a message to the leaders (shepherds) of Israel to show them where their people (sheep) should be fed. And, although the evidence is not overwhelming, it looks as though my childhood repulsion was correct and has been resolved by scripture. In my childhood church, the communion service contained this line: "Feed on Him in thy heart, by faith, and be thankful." This now has a special meaning for me in the Christmas season.
jvb circa. 1995
Author's Notes:
I have been meaning to rewrite this, but some friends of mine whose opinion I much respect, have admired it in its present form. So I am merely adding these notes.
I am afraid that I may have embellished my feelings as a child. It is difficult to remember, but I think I was mostly worried about the animals getting enough to eat with Jesus in their way. This is the way we all are by nature and too often. We worry about Jesus getting in the way of whatever it is that we think needs doing.
The traditional King James Version translation of the angelic message to the shepherds obscures the focus of the message towards Israel. It is better translated "to all the people (or nation) (of Israel)" rather than "to all people." Our Lord is the Savior of the gentiles also, of course, but that is announced elsewhere.
jvb 1/6/2000