[429 words]
“And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn” (Luke 2:4–7).
The image of a pregnant Mary riding on a donkey on her way to Bethlehem is taken for granted by most folks. Yet, there is no verse that says such is the way she made her way from Nazareth to the location she would give birth to our Lord. Is it a possibility? Sure. Is it explicitly stated in Scripture? No, it is not.
One thing we do know, travel in this region and at this time was a very dangerous enterprise. Further, finding a safe place to spend the night was a very difficult challenge (consider Luke 10:25-37; Judges 19:15; Genesis 19:1-3). Evidently, in order to be safe, travelers preferred to stay with family. If family was not a possibility, they sought out friends of friends—some type of prior connection so that they would feel safe.
Mary was given safe passage to Bethlehem. Once there, Mary was given a safe, though unconventional, place to give birth. Once born, in spite of the wicked plans of Herod the Great, Jesus was given safe passage into adolescence from infancy (Matthew 2:13-15).
Every step of the way, God the Father was providing for God the Son.
But that is not all! The Almighty also provided safe passage for the “wise men from the east” (Matthew 2:1). It is estimated that they traveled some 800-1,200 miles to see the Christ. Upon being so blessed as to see and worship Him, they were warned to leave Bethlehem a different way than they had arrived (Matthew 2:11-12). Any direction they would go, any path they took to get home, potentially took them into places Herod ruled. Any route home would take them to places where they might be intercepted by Herod’s soldiers. The magi undertook this journey at great personal risk. The Lord provided them safe passage.
May we all trust in the Lord to provide safe spiritual passage for us, knowing that He kept all safe going to and from Bethlehem so many years ago.
Bart Warren
South Green Street church of Christ
Glasgow, KY