After His birth in a stable in Bethlehem, the baby Jesus was placed in a manger, a feeding trough for livestock. This manger may have been hewed out of rock. Stone mangers about tree feet long, eighteen inches wide, and two feet deep have been discovered in the ruins of King Ahab’s stables at the ancient city of Megiddo.
Continue reading BIBLE CUSTOMS AND CURIOSITIES (A KING IN A STABLE)
The very name Bethlehem immediately awakens thoughts of carol lyrics and the story of Christmas. Yet the tale of that little town reaches far back into history, when the Promised Land was just a promise. The village is first mentioned, almost as a sad footnote, in the itinerary of Jacob’s trip back from Haran with his growing family, only to have his beloved Rachel go into labor just outside Ephrath (Gen 35:16) and die while giving birth to the youngest of the patriarch’s sons, Benjamin. Her burial place is identified as Bethlehem (Gen 35:19). Continue reading BIBLE SIGNS AND SYMBOLS (BETHLEHEM)
Manger – A feedingtrough, crib, or open box in a stable designed to hold fodder for livestock. In Bible times, mangers were made of clay mixed with straw or from stones cemented with mud. In structures built by King Ahab at Megiddo, a manger cut from a limestone block was discovered. Mangers were also carved in natural outcroppings of rock,