We get a healthy dose of the story of Christ's birth this time of year:A very pregnant Mary and her fiancee Joseph travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem, and Mary is riding on a donkey. As they are entering Bethlehem city limits, Mary starts going into labor, but they find there is no room at all in any inn. They have to settle for the barn out back, and, surrounded by talking cattle, sheep, chickens and other animals, Jesus is born and placed in a manger to sleep. And this newborn did not make a sound.
Meanwhile, there are shepherds in the field, and a myriad of angels appears and begins singing in Latin! And then three kings from eastern countries come to Jerusalem by following a wandering star that later shows them the way to Jesus by stopping and shining over the barn where the baby Jesus is sleeping. The shepherds and kings together kneel in worship, and Jesus is presented with the gold, frankincense and myrrh.
Is any of this true? The only place we can find anything concerning the events of the birth of Jesus are Matthew 2 and Luke 2.
1. Did Mary go into labor as soon as they arrived in Bethlehem? Maybe, but the Bible actually indicates they were in Bethlehem for a time before she went into labor. "...while they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth" (Luke 2:6).
2. Did Mary ride on a donkey? Maybe, but the Bible does not say.
3. Was Jesus born in a barn or stable? A manger is quite common in a stable or barn--it is a feeding trough for barnyard animals. But the Greek word translated as "inn" in Luke 2:7 is used only 3 times in the New Testament. The other two times, it is translated as "guest room" (Mark 14:14; Luke 22:11). It is more likely that Joseph and Mary stayed with relatives in Bethlehem, and preparations had not been made to welcome a baby into the world, so a manger was brought inside, washed out, and used as a crib. Or maybe the room in which they stayed was too small to have a crib, so a smaller manger was employed. Jesus was probably not born in a stable.
4. Did the animals talk at Jesus' birth? This point is far less common than the others covered here, but I remember it from my childhood. Maybe it was in a cartoon or something, but I've always carried around with me the idea that the animals actually spoke in amazement at the birth of Jesus. Given that He was probably born in a house rather than a stable, this becomes moot, but the Bible does not say whether the animals talked when Jesus was born.
5. Did Jesus cry when He was a baby? I figure Philippians 2:7 might indicate that He did--He was the Word made flesh. His flesh gestated in Mary's womb just like every other baby. He was born just like every other baby. Why wouldn't He cry like every other baby? I think some people have this perfect little idea of infant Jesus looking up at Mary with big blue eyes and saying in a British accent, "Mother, don't worry about feeding me. I shall command the birds to drop manna on my lips until I am filled. And do not worry about changing diapers. I shall manipulate my physical aspects to do away with diapers altogether!" No, He cried! If Jesus wept when Mary told Him of Lazarus' passing (John 11:35), He cried as a baby. He had smelly diapers. He was human in every aspect so that He could say to any one of us on the planet that He is one of us! He gave up His godhood and became a man. This is the gospel in its purest form. If Jesus didn't get scared at animal noises and cry (which is not a sin or anything to be embarrassed about), how was He human? But that's all beside the point--the Bible doesn't mention anything about whether He cried or not.
6. Were there shepherds in the fields the night of December 25? Maybe. Some say Winter was not a time to have sheep out in the fields, but the climate of Judaea south of Jerusalem in the winter months could support it. But they were more likely out in the fields with sheep from March thru September, and I believe that Jesus was born at or closer to Passover.
7. Did the angels sing for the shepherds? Well, they praised God, and that's all the Bible says. One angel appeared to the shepherds and told them where to look for the new King. And then myriads of angels appeared and began to praise God--probably in Hebrew or Aramaic or Greek (depending on the language of the shepherds--they would have praised in a manner that the shepherds understood what they were saying).
8. How many kings or wise men were there? The Bible calls them magi which was a group of wise men. The Bible never calls them kings. They brought three different types of gifts--gold, frankincense and myrrh. This doesn't necessarily mean three wise men each gave a gift (though it is possible). It could be that a group of wise men presented gold, another group presented frankincense, and another group presented myrrh. The Bible just doesn't place any importance on how many wise men there were. But you know the saying, though--"The more, the merrier." What if a large number of wise men came to Bethlehem to see the new king--a large enough party that, when they ignored Herod's request to inform him of Jesus' whereabouts, Herod became threatened enough and paranoid enough to attempt to murder the new King?
9. Did the star wander around in the sky until it stopped over the place where Jesus lay? Most likely not. Following the stars was the GPS of the 1st Century. Constellations were identified and used to determine direction at night, and the magi were simply doing this. The wording in English in Matthew 2:9, however, makes it seem like the star moved around. Apparently, there was a bright star that was an indication to the magi of a new king born in Judaea. And they simply used this star as a navigation point in the sky. My translation of Matthew 2:9 is:
"When they heard the king, they left, and, BEHOLD! the star they saw in the east led them until it showed itself fixed over the place the young child was."
10. Did the wise men show up the same night Jesus was born? Probably not. The way Matthew records the event, it seems the magi came to Jerusalem later. Herod slew all the male infants in Bethlehem that were two years old and younger according to the time the magi told him the star appeared. So Jesus was probably six months to a year old from birth before the magi came. I've written elsewhere that I believe Jesus was born around Passover of 1 B.C., and there was a noted eclipse that occurred December 29, 1 B.C., and Herod died soon after that. I think Jesus and family left for Egypt about this time, which means Jesus was about 9 months old at that time, but 18 months if they continued to reckon his age from conception as the ancients had done for over 3500 years.
Perhaps there are other misconceptions and ideas that you can think of, but these are the ones I'm familiar with. If you know of others, let me know.
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