OceanSide church of Christ

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BIBLE GEOGRAPHY

 

The City of Bethlehem (1)

Victor M. Eskew

 

             We will soon enter the Christmas season.  We will begin to hear Christmas carols played on the radio and sung in many stores.  One of the carols that will be heard is entitled:  “O Little Town of Bethlehem.”  This is a song written in 1868 by an Episcopal priest whose name was Phillip Brooks.  The organist of his church, Lewis Redner, put the words to music.  This song is popular because Jesus was born in Bethlehem, and, unfortunately, many mistakenly believe that Christmas commemorates the birth of Christ. 

            The city of Bethlehem is mentioned around

50 times in the Bible.  It is only mentioned eight times

in the New Testament (Matt. 2:1, 5, 6, 8, 16; Luke 2:4,

15; John 7:42).  Let’s look at this city that rested

2,550 above sea level some 5 to 6 miles south of Jeru-

salem.  Bethlehem is not the original name of the city. 

Earlier it was called Ephrath (Gen. 35:19).  It even-

tually acquired the name “Bethlehem.”  This name

means “house of bread.”  It may have adopted this

name because of the abundance of grain that was pro-

duced around the city (Ruth 2:2-3).

            There are two Bethlehems mentioned in the Bible.  One of them was located in the territory of Judah.  The other was found in the land of Zebulon (Josh. 19:10, 15).  The prominent Bethlehem is distinguished from the other by referencing it as “Bethlehem of Judea” or “Bethlehem-Ephrath.”  It is interesting that when the division of the land of Palestine was made in the days of Joshua, Bethlehem as not listed among the cities of Judah.  Thus, it does not appear to have been an extremely important city early on in Israel’s history.

 

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            Bethlehem is first mentioned in the Bible in connection with the death of Rachel.  “And they journeyed from Bethel; and there was but a little way to come to Ephrath:  and Rachel travailed, and she had hard labor.  And it came to pass, when she was in hard labor, that the midwife said unto her, Fear not; thou shalt have this son also.  And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing, (for she died) that she called his name Ben-oni:  but his father called him Benjamin.  And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem.  And Jacob set a pillar upon her grave:  that is the pillar of Rachel’s grave unto this day” (Gen. 35:16-20).     

            One of the things that put Bethlehem on the map was the fact that David, the king of Israel was from that town (I Sam. 16:1).  In fact, Samuel the prophet anointed David as king in Bethlehem.  “And Samuel did that which the Lord spake, and came to Bethlehem…” (I Sam. 16:4).  He called the family of Jesse to a sacrifice and sanctified them.  Each one of the sons of Jesse came before Samuel, but none was chosen.  “And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children?  And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep.  And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him:  for we will not sit down till he come hither.  And he sent, and brought him in.  And he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to.  And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him:  for this is he.  Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren:  and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from the day forward…” (I Sam. 16:11-13).  Because the most prominent king of Israel came from Bethlehem, the city was often referred to as “the city of David” (see Luke 2:11).

            It is interesting how God can take little places and make them great.  Even to this day, Bethlehem is a major tourist attraction.  There are some 4.5 million people who visit Israel each year.  The towns that are the most visited are Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Nazareth.  It is simply the fact that David was born in Bethlehem that causes it to be a sought after destination?  No.  There was another who made the place of interest to almost all in the world.  We will discuss that event and some other interesting facts about Bethlehem in our next article.