And this is a sign for you: you will find an infant bound in cloth bands and lying in a manger.”​—Luke 2:1-12.

The glorious angel had told them the “good news of a great joy,” and now they had to verify the historical basis for this good news by going and becoming eyewitnesses of this birth in a manger of Bethlehem the city of David. The angel had given them the “sign” to distinguish this newborn boy from any other boys that might be born that night inside or outside of Bethlehem.