1096 from the feeble p lain t to a tone th a t shall wake the dead. Hosanna! Hosan na! Glory be to God th a t Jesu s came from th ro n e to manger, th a t we m ight rise from m anger to throne, and th a t all the gates are open, and th a t th e door of heaven th a t once swung th is way to let Jesu s out, now swings th e o th er way to let us in. Let all th e bellmen of heaven lay hold of the rope and ring out th e n ew s:; “ Behold, I b ring you good tid ;ngs of g reat joy, which shall be to all people, for unto you is born th is day in the city of David a Savior which is Christ, th e L o rd !” Bethlehem lies upon a hillside over looking a beautiful valley, rich w ith suc culent grasses on which g reat flocks of sheep were sent to graze in th e tim e of Christ, and over which shepherds ' were appointed to watch. I t was so in th e days of David, perhaps long before, and it is so still. These shepherds were accounted faith fu l, honest and relig ious; th e ir occupation has ever been a symbol of hum ility and providential V care, and th e shepherd ’s crook has been made to tak e its place in church ritu a l ism as a token of complacency w ith the Divine will, as well also to serve as an emblem of priestly authority. It is not strange th a t to these faith fu l watchers th e first news of th e b irth should be conveyed; b u t it was no t by messengers a-foot, nor by acclaims of priests, nor by cymbals and hautboys in th e hands of worshippers. The efful gence of the day would have been need ed to give them dispatch. The tim e was night, a holy night, when silence was n a tu re ’s invocation, and the sta rs blazed th e ir orisons w ith trem blings of ecstasy. W hile “ n igh t,” in all languages, is th e symbol for gloom and suffering, it is often really cheerful, b righ t and im pressive. I speak not of such nights as come down w ith no star: pouring light from above, or silvered wave tossing up ligh t from beneath— murky, hurtling , pprtentous— b u t such as you often see
THE K I NG ' S B U S I N E S S when the pomp and magnificence of heaven tu rn out on n igh t parade; and it seems as though th e song which the morning sta rs began so long ago were chim ing yet among the constellations, and th e sons of God were shouting for joy. Such nights th e sailor blesses from th e forecastle, and th e trap p er on the vast prairie, and the belated trav eler by th e roadside, and th e soldier /from the tent. E arth ly hosts gazing upon heaven ly, and shepherds guarding th e ir flocks a-field, while angel hands above them set the silver bells a-ringing: “ Glory to God in th e highest, and on earth peace, good-will tow ard men.” On th is blessed n igh t the angel of the Lord rode out from th e mansions of ala b aster, down th e steep from th e skies, draw ing w ith him stream s of dazzling radiance like shadows of sun and stars, and w ith a ru sh of glories floated over the heads of th e sta rtled shepherds as they were keeping th e ir quiet, perhaps half-sleeping watch. It was Gabriel, th e holy messenger, who now came bear ing more joyful tidings th a n ever be fore unfolded. But a flaming presence, a t once so aw ful and magnificent, stru ck th e sim ple shepherds w ith fear, for they did not imm ediately perceive th e im port of th e angel’s coming. F ear came upon them ; and I imagine th a t a sigh t of so wondrous a spectacle, a revelation of sublime glorification floating in a blaz ing sea, would bring a flush of fear to th e bravest h eart. But th e shining mes senger a t once spake peace to th e shep herds by these inspiring words: “F ear not, for, behold, I bring you good tid ings o f great joy, which shall be to a il people, fo r unto you is born th is day in th e city o f David a savior, which is Christ th e Lord. And th is sh a ll be the sign un to you: Y e sh a ll And th e babe wrapped in sw addling clothes, lying in a manger.” To th e splendor of the holy messen ger th ere suddenly flamed up a yet
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