Christmas Shepherds

Jeremiah 33:10-16

What do we know about the Christmas shepherds of Luke 2?

We know they were in the fields near Bethlehem. Luke 2:8 says, “In the same region, shepherds were staying out in the fields and keeping watch at night over their flock.”

We know they were afraid. Luke 2:9 says, “Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.”

We know the shepherds were given good news. Luke 2:10-11 says, “But the angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: Today in the city of David a Savior was born for you, who is the Messiah, the Lord.”

We know they were given a sign. Luke 2:12 says, “This will be the sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped tightly in cloth and lying in a manger.””

We know they were greeted by angels. Luke 2:13-14 says, “Suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying: Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to people he favors!”

We know they spread the good news. Luke 2:17 says, “After seeing them, they reported the message they were told about this child,”

And of course we know they praised God. Luke 2:20 says, “The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had seen and heard, which were just as they had been told.”

Why were the shepherds chosen?

Shepherds were the lowest of society. They just regular people like truck drivers, plumbers, store clerks. So one theory is that the shepherds were chosen in order to tell us that the good news isn’t just for the elite.

But Luke doesn’t tell us the reason the shepherds were chosen so at best we are speculating. But where Luke is silent, Jeremiah speaks loud and clear.

So, can Jeremiah 33 give us some more insight into why the shepherds were chosen? I think so.

Jeremiah’s Promise

Let’s backtrack a little. Israel needed some good news. The Babylonians were attacking and intending to destroy Jerusalem.

The land was deserted.

Jeremiah 33:10 (CSB)

“This is what the Lord says: In this place, which you say is a ruin, without people or animals—that is, in Judah’s cities and Jerusalem’s streets that are a desolation without people, without inhabitants, and without animals—

It was a wasteland. There weren’t any people in the streets—no kids playing, no dogs or cats. It was a silent ghost town but God promised it wouldn’t stay that way.

Last week we talked about three “great and incomprehensible things” that God promised to do. God said he would punish all sinners but would also forgive and give health and healing.

The verses we’re looking at today go into more detail about what God promises to do. There are three descriptions of the kind of restoration God had planned for Israel. The first is found in verse 11.

Jeremiah 33:11 (CSB)

There will be heard again a sound of joy and gladness, the voice of the groom and the bride...

Weddings

Planning a wedding is an investment in the future. The wedding invitations, the dress, the bridal party, the flowers, the ceremony, the cake, the reception, the toast—are all done in faith, believing that the future will be bright and joyful.

So having a big wedding ceremony while your country is being invaded is not very likely. At best during a time of war you might have a rushed, simple ceremony but it would be bitter-sweet as you watched the enemy literally marching down the street. No, the best weddings happen when a nation is at peace and that’s what God promised would happen again.

God also promised that Thanksgiving would return.

Thanksgiving

The real day of Thanksgiving goes back long before the days of the Plymouth colonists.

Jeremiah 33:11 goes on to say,

Jeremiah 33:11 (CSB)

...and the voice of those saying, Give thanks to the Lord of Armies, for the Lord is good; his faithful love endures forever as they bring thanksgiving sacrifices to the temple of the Lord. For I will restore the fortunes of the land as in former times, says the Lord.

It’s not a time for national celebration when a foreign army is literally laying siege to your capital. You don’t carve up the turkey and bake an apple pie when your sons and daughters are being carted up and taken into captivity.

But God promised they would once again celebrate and give thanks in the temple of the Lord.

Imagine the joy and thanksgiving you would feel if you had been kidnapped and then released. There are 17 missionaries who know what that’s like right now. On December 16th, all 17 missionaries that were kidnapped in Haiti were released and are now safe. Imagine the joy they felt when they arrived home. Imagine the celebrations that will occur in their home churches today.

That’s what God promised would happen for his people, only on a much larger scale.

So, God promised weddings and thanksgiving, but he also promised that farming would be restored.

Farming

Jeremiah 33:12 CSB

“This is what the Lord of Armies says: In this desolate place—without people or animals—and in all its cities there will once more be a grazing land where shepherds may rest flocks.

When an army invades, at least in ancient times, one of the first things they did was destroy the farmland farm animals. So when the Babylonians attacked that’s what they did. They left Israel desolate—without crops or livestock.

But God promised to restore all of that. He promised them that the sheep would once again graze peacefully and the shepherds would be out watching over their flocks.

Jeremiah 33:13 CSB

The flocks will again pass under the hands of the one who counts them in the cities of the hill country, the cities of the Judean foothills, the cities of the Negev, the land of Benjamin—the areas around Jerusalem and in Judah’s cities, says the Lord.

The areas around Jerusalem, including Bethlehem, would once again be filled with sheep and shepherds. Considering that the Babylonians had destroyed everything this would have been hard for the Israelites to believe but it was God’s unchangeable promise.

But these peaceful images are just a preview of the real peace that was promised in the coming of the King.

The King is called...

A Righteous Branch

Jeremiah 33:15–16 CSB

In those days and at that time I will cause a Righteous Branch to sprout up for David, and he will administer justice and righteousness in the land. In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell securely, and this is what she will be named: The Lord Is Our Righteousness.

This King was promised to be a descendant of King David and would save God’s people.

The passage says he would come “in those days” referring to the time Jeremiah had just previously described—a time of joyful weddings, national thanksgiving, and peaceful farming.

The Messiah would come during a time of relative peace. Compared with the destruction and chaos that the Israelites were going through when Jeremiah wrote, the Messiah would come during a time of tranquility.

Let’s read verse 12 again.

Jeremiah 33:12 CSB

“This is what the Lord of Armies says: In this desolate place—without people or animals—and in all its cities there will once more be a grazing land where shepherds may rest flocks.

That’s when God said the Messiah would come—when shepherds were once again tending to their sheep. So the Christmas story in Matthew and Luke is a fulfilment of these promises in Jeremiah. That’s why there were shepherds out in the fields watching over the sheep at night.

Why does it matter?

It matters because once again the Bible proves that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. Verses and verses in Old Testament all point to Jesus as the King that God promised to send.

There aren’t just a few verses here and there but thousands of verses in the Old Testament that all point us to Jesus as the Messiah.

Jesus’ birth took place just as God said it would happen. God said it would be a virgin birth, in the town of Bethlehem and it was. He said the shepherds would be out in the fields, and they were.

So all of this matters because it proves that God’s word can be trusted even down to the most minor details.

And God’s word can be trusted in regards to who Jesus is too.

Jeremiah says Jesus it the one who will administer justice and righteousness in the land leading to salvation and security. So after Jesus was born, he grew up to reign supreme over sin.

The people wanted him fix the problem with the Romans but Jesus came to fix a much bigger problem. He came to save his people from their sins, and to protect his people from eternal judgment and the wrath of God.

Now, Jeremiah has spent time on this theme before.

Jeremiah 23:5–6 CSB

“Look, the days are coming”—this is the Lord’s declaration— “when I will raise up a Righteous Branch for David. He will reign wisely as king and administer justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. This is the name he will be called: The Lord Is Our Righteousness.

Israel's greatest problem is the same problem we all have which is a sin problem. But if we are in Christ Jesus, then “the Lord is our righteousness.” Therefore, his righteousness becomes our righteousness.

This is the good news of great joy that the angels proclaimed to the shepherds and it’s the reason the shepherds ran off to see the baby lying in a manger and then returned “glorifying and praising God.”

The coming of the Messiah was good news for the shepherds and for you and me too. But it had to come to the shepherds first to fulfill Jeremiah’s prophecy and give us just one more reason to put our compete trust in Christ.

As Luke 2:14 says, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”