“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.””
Luke 2:8-11 NIV
There is debate within our culture (both within and outside of the Church) of what, exactly, a Biblically accurate angel looks like. I find this Bible Gateway Field Guide to be quite helpful in teasing apart the types of angels depicted throughout Scripture. Most angels, however, when they are described in the Bible, are quite terrifying. Additionally, although angels are depicted (as in this passage) as friendly messengers of God, they are perhaps more often depicted as horrifying tidings of God’s wrath and power. Far from the comforting image we culturally associate with an angel – something coming to our rescue in a great time of distress – many angels in the Bible are powerful entities tasked with worshiping God, protecting the Garden of Eden from newly sinful human beings, or destroying sinful cities like the messengers sent to Sodom and Gomorrah. Regardless of the appearance of the angel of the Lord sent to the shepherds in Luke 2, a glorified being appearing out of thin air would cause distress regardless of their appearance.
I mean, really try to picture this experience the shepherds had. Imagine that, instead of an angel, the shepherds are greeted by their partners or parents or friends – still out of thin air. Even if a familiar person greeted you suddenly out of nowhere, the experience would be jarring. This, I think, is the first reason the shepherds were terrified.
These shepherds are going about their daily (or, perhaps more accurately, nightly) business. It was an ordinary day for them, helping their sheep to find new grazing ground, protecting them from predators, and keeping them from wandering off. Then, without warning, without asking for it, these simple and ordinary shepherds (who, by the way, were likely men and women), had an encounter with heaven itself. The appearance of a heavenly creature would have been disorienting, unexpected, startling.
The second reason I think the shepherds were terrified was because an angel’s visit was not often accompanied by glad tidings. I can’t help but wonder if there were shepherds in the midst who had recently sinned – told a lie to someone, stepped out on their marriage, thought something unkind about another – and were momentarily panicked that this angel was sent to put them back in their place, restore holiness to God’s people. When you consider that shepherds were among the lowest social class in society, I think this explanation gains even more traction. These were people who were used to be talked down upon by society. The idea that God, the most powerful and holy entity in existence, would choose to deliver the first Christmas message to a ragtag group of outcasts had to be culturally unexpected. These shepherds were likely more used to hearing a word of condemnation than a word of good news.
In the midst of their terror, for these reasons or others, the angel of the Lord, a supernatural entity, told them not to be afraid. In fact, the angels convey the message that they are not the only people who are touching heaven. A baby, fully God and fully man, has just been born, fulfilling centuries of prophecy, bringing heaven to all of humanity.
When the heavenly realm bleeds into our earthly one, our common response is shock and fear. It doesn’t have to be. Heaven is all around us. As Paul writes, we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. As such, no matter what we’re facing, we can face it without fear. God is near. God is for us. God is on the move.
As we move through Advent season, we’ll explore how the story of Jesus’ birth is one that invites us to not be afraid.
Questions for further reflection:
(Feel free to comment below, comment on social media, or reflect on your own!)
- How do you think you would react if an angel of the Lord appeared during your workday?
- Does the realization that shepherds could be women surprise you? In what way do our preconceived notions of gender shape our understanding of Scripture?
- Who would be the most unexpected group to be the first to hear of something new God is doing today? How might you spend part of your advent season among this group?
- Have you experienced ways in which heaven has pierced the veil of the earthly realm? What was that experience like?
Bryce Van Vleet is the #1 selling author of Tired Pages and Before We All Die Let’s Have One Last Chat by the Fireside. He also hosts the podcast Death in Dakota, sells poetry art here, and masquerades as the spoken word artist Liihey. You can support him by clicking through blog posts or donating (scroll to the bottom of the page).
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