Now there were shepherds nearby living out in the field, keeping guard over their flock at night.

But one after another they all began to make excuses. The first said to him, 'I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please excuse me.'

"Now his older son was in the field. As he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.

"Would any one of you say to your slave who comes in from the field after plowing or shepherding sheep, 'Come at once and sit down for a meal'?

On that day, anyone who is on the roof, with his goods in the house, must not come down to take them away, and likewise the person in the field must not turn back.