What happened at the birth of Jesus Christ?

Answer 1

Nativity scenes apparently display "what happened on the night of Jesus' birth". There is the familiar picture of the three wise men and the shepherds gazing with adoration at the Christ child in the manger, with his loving parents Joseph and Mary and a menagerie of domestic animals looking on. If we allow The Bible to speak for itself we see that the baby Jesus was laid in a manger. A manger is a feeding trough for domestic animals. Luke 2.7, 12, 16 says nothing about any animals being present. What about the three wise men or Magi gazing at the baby in the manger when the Bible clearly says that the Magi entered a house to see Jesus (Matthew 2.11) A series of traditions have managed to pass off as legitimate Bible facts in churches around the world. The Gospels according to Luke and Matthew speaks of Jesus' birth in a manger in Bethlehem, the shepherds' visit and his circumcision on the eight day. It also records Jesus' presentation in the Temple at Jerusalem.

Shepherds living out in the fields nearby were told the good news of Jesus' birth by angels. They were given a sign, 'a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger'. The shepherds went to see this baby and 'returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told' . It is clear that the shepherds saw the baby Jesus soon after he was born, probably the very same night. On the eight day of his birth, Jesus was circumcised according to the Law (Lev 12.3)When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord as commanded in Exodus 13.2, 12 Luke chapter 2 makes it clear that,

1. The shepherds saw the baby Jesus soon after he was born, probably the very same night.

2. He was circumcised on the eight day of his birth.

3. After the days of purification were over (8+33=41 days), Jesus parents took him to Jerusalem to offer the customary sacrifice prescribed by the Law. They were so poor that they could only offer the poor man's burnt and sin offering. (two doves or two young pigeons) Matthew 2:1-12 speaks of the Magi from the east coming to Jerusalem in search of 'one who has been born king of the Jews' Vs 2. The Magi saw the star of Jesus Christ 'in the east' and traveled far to 'worship him'. In the days of camel and caravan travels, it is unconceivable that they reached Bethlehem any time soon. Herod finds from the Magi the exact time the star had appeared. Later when Herod realized that the Magi had outwitted him, he gave order for all boys who were two and under in Bethlehem and its vicinity, to be killed based on the time he had determined by minutely questioning the Magi. Herod knew the exact time the star appeared so he limited his killing to boys who were two years and below. Matthew 2:9-11 The Magi followed the star and reached a house above which the star stopped. They entered the house and saw the child. This verse makes it clear that the Magi did not visit Jesus at the manger but at a house. The baby is now a child, a toddler and they worshiped him. Luke chapter 2, verses 12 & 16 makes it clear that the Christ the shepherds went to see and saw was just a newborn baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in the manger. A baby lying thus was to be a sign unto the shepherds. However, Matthew 2.11 clearly states "And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him". The Magi saw a child, not a newborn baby. In fact, it may have been over a year after the birth of Jesus before the wise men even arrived! This theory is supported well when we read that King Herod commands his soldiers to kill all the infants in Bethlehem two years old and under (Matthew 2:16). They (the magi) opened their treasures and presented Jesus with costly gifts of gold incense and myrrh. They gave three types of gifts that represented His royalty, priesthood and prophetic role. On a more practical level, these gifts turned the fortune of the poor Jewish family, enabling them to travel far to Egypt to escape the anger of Herod. When Joseph and Mary took baby Jesus to the Temple, they were still poor which is why they offered the poor man's burnt and sin offering. If they had gold or any of the other gifts, they would not have withheld it. This too proves that the Magi visited afterwards.

Answer 2

The Gospels of Matthew and Luke both have Jesus born in Bethlehem during the reign of King Herod the Great, in fulfilment of an apparent prophecy in Micah 5:2. In most other respects, the two gospels are as different as they could be.

In Matthew, Bethlehem appears to be the home town of Jesus' parents, Joseph and Mary. After Jesus was born, Magi came following a star from the east to see the new Messiah, whom they found in a house in Bethlehem. But Herod was afraid that Jesus would become king in his place. (Since Herod died as an old man in 4 BCE, this would have to have been many years earlier, before Herod was elderly and knew that his time was almost up). Jesus and his family fled immediately to Egypt, while Herod had all the infants killed, in order to remove a supposed rival. After Herod died, the family returned but then, being warned in a dream, turned aside and migrated to Nazareth in Galilee.

In Luke, Nazareth was the home town of Joseph and Mary, who travelled to Bethlehem for a census. After Jesus was born, shepherds came to see Jesus, whom they found in a manger in Bethlehem. A few days after the birth, his parents took Jesus to the Temple for circumcision, as was normal custom, then returned peacefully to Nazareth.

Both gospels, in the form that we have them today, say that Mary was a virgin, but also provide a detailed genealogy going back through Joseph and the great Zorobabel, son of Salathiel, to King David, but give totally different genealogies. They even disagree on the father of Joseph and the paternal grandfather of Zorobabel. They both disagree with the Old Testament genealogy for the kings of Judah.

Both gospels have an angel announce the divine conception of Jesus, but one gospel says the angel spoke to Mary, the other says the angel spoke to Joseph. We could say that these accounts did not really happen as the stories would not make sense if both were true. Simply, neither gospel author knew about account in the other gospel and each wrote his own midrash.

Answer 3

Shepherds outside Bethelehem who were "abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night" [Luke 2:8], came to see Jesus that same night [verses 11-12, 16]. and the Wise Men [there were more than 3!] came all the way from Persia to see Jesus also that same night, but the Pharisees and Sadduccees didn't. The Pharisees and Sadduccees were in Jerusalem just 5 miles away and had told the Wise Men they knew He would be born in Bethelehem but didn't even bother to go themselves.

Answer 4

A:

Although Mark's Gospel was the first New Testament gospel to be written, it does not mention the birth of Jesus. Uta Ranke-Heinemann (Putting Away Childish Things) says that the nativity accounts subsequently added to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke (the only two that report about Jesus' birth) are, with respect to time, place, and circumstances, a collection of legends.

Answer 5

The Romans were conquering the world; and they had already conquered Judea, Jesus' homeland, by this time.

Answer 6

It was a clear frosty night.