THE GOSPELS: LESSON 5:
THE BIRTH OF JESUS, PART TWO - THE BIRTH

TEXT: LUKE 2: 1 - 21 AND MATTHEW 1: 18 - 25

          In Luke 1: 26 - 56 the story of how the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and the events just prior to Jesus’ birth are recounted. Now we turn to the birth itself and how the events played out. We also will look at how these things affected Joseph and how the angel comforted and instructed him. 

LUKE 2: 1 - 21 -- THE BIRTH OF JESUS FROM MARY’S VIEWPOINT.

VERSES 1 - 7: HOW JESUS CAME TO BE BORN IN BETHLEHEM.

Verse 1: “In those days . . .” The historians Josephus, Tacitus and Seutonius all relate that there was a general expectation in the days of King Herod that the Messiah was soon to be revealed to the world. This was primarily because of the prophecy of Daniel 9: 24 - 27:

25. Know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time. 26. And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off, and shall have nothing; and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war; desolations are decreed. 27. And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week; and for half of the week he shall cause sacrifice and offering to cease; and upon the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.

          The seventy weeks (62 + 7 + 1) are generally believed to be weeks of years, that is 70 X 7 or 490 years. From the rebuilding of Jerusalem until the crucifixion of the Messiah was almost exactly 490 years. So, in 4 or 5 BC the Messiah was expected to arrive at any moment.

Verse 2: the enrollment of Quirinius (Cyrenius). Actually, as verse one says, the decree originated with Caesar Augustus and was to be done in ALL the Roman Empire (the world). Quirinius was twice “governor” of Syria, once from about 5 BC until 1 BC and again after the death of Archelaus, in about 7 AD.

“This taxing . . .” The Greek word apographo actually means “to write off,” and means to mark the name off a list, so doesn’t mean tax at all, but means “enroll.” That is, to have your name enrolled for a later taxation. Since the Romans typically levied taxes after harvest time (in early fall) many have concluded that Jesus was born in the fall. However since we are talking of names being added to the tax rolls, we can only guess at the time of year. Roman announcements of this magnitude (ALL the world) were commonly made at the beginning of their year (January), so the older guess of Jesus’ birthday (Old Christmas, January 6) is still certainly plausible.

Verses 3 - 5: “all went to their own city . . .” Each went to their ancestral city, not their place of residence, or Jesus would have been born in Nazareth. Both Joseph and Mary were of the line of David, so they went to the city of David, Bethlehem. They went to Bethlehem to follow an imperial edict – to be enrolled for taxation. Rome had to know every citizen in the empire so they could extract the full measure of tribute.

Verses 6, 7: Jesus was born. He was wrapped in “swaddling clothes” and laid in a “manger” because there was no room in the “inn.” Calling Jesus “first born” raises two points. 1. Since Mary was a virgin, Jesus had to be the first child born. 2. The implication (maybe?) is that since Jesus is called the “first born,” Mary must have had other children later. This is borne out by Matthew 12: 46, 47.

Swaddling clothes: the baby was wrapped with clean linen cloths immediately after birth. This kept it warm, but primarily the baby was wrapped because they believed it calmed the child. It was wrapped much like a mummy. Interestingly, this is also how Jesus was prepared for his burial at the end of his earthly life.

Manger: a wooden feed trough which held the grain for the cattle. Being shaped much like a crude hand-made crib, it made an ideal bed for the infant.

Inn: a resting place, especially a place to lodge for the night during a journey. This same word can also mean a guest chamber, so some think that the “inn” was actually a relative’s house. I think that is a strained rendering of the word. The traditional meaning of an inn or lodging house seems most appropriate.

VERSES 8 - 21: THE STORY OF THE SHEPHERDS.

Verse 8: There are still shepherds in the vicinity of Bethlehem. They still watch their sheep by night. The fact that they were watching at night has no bearing on the season of the year, for in a semi-tropical climate freezing cold nights were (and still are) uncommon.

Verse 9: Again note that when angels meet humans there is always initial fear.

Verses 10 - 12: The angel announces the birth of the Messiah. (Christ (Greek)= Messiah (Hebrew).) They would not be likely to find too many newborns still wearing swaddling clothes lying in mangers. When they found one, he was the Messiah and Savior! Note that Jesus is given a three-fold identity: Savior, Christ (Messiah) and Lord.

Verses 13, 14: As soon as the announcement was made, a “multitude” of heavenly beings began praising God and expressing God’s favor (good will) and desire for peace to men.

Verses 15, 16: After the “angel show” the shepherds went quickly over to Bethlehem to see what the angel (Gabriel, see Matt. 1: 20, below) was talking about. All was as the angel had said. What did they do with the sheep? Obviously they had to take them to a sheepfold or leave a man behind to watch. We don’t really know. Perhaps they were in such a state of excitement they just left the sheep and went, but who knows?

Verses 17 - 19: AFTER they confirmed Gabriel’s story they obviously told everyone they met about the miraculous events of the night. Those shepherds were the very first gospel preachers. Those who heard their message “wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.”

Mary kept all those events stored away like treasures in her heart. This same phrase is used in verse 52, following the time when Jesus got separated from his parents in Jerusalem. Mary was a close friend to three of the four gospel writers, Mark, Luke, and John, and surely shared her reminiscences with them.

Verse 20: The shepherds returned to their flocks and praised God that they had been counted worthy to be witnesses of such events. We can only speculate, but surely if they lived long enough to hear the gospel from Jesus’ own lips they became his disciples.

Verse 21: Again, as in the case of John, Jesus is circumcised and named when he is eight days old, as the Law of Moses stipulated. He had been given his name by Gabriel even before he had been conceived!

MATTHEW 1: 18 - 25 -- THE BIRTH OF JESUS FROM JOSEPH’S VIEWPOINT.

Verses 18, 19: This is what happened after Mary went back to Nazareth from Elizabeth’s house in the third month of her pregnancy. She was “betrothed” to Joseph and she became pregnant, but Joseph didn’t know how. He had the option under the Law of Moses to have Mary stoned to death for infidelity, but he was a “just” man, so he decided to divorce her privately. “Just” comes from the Greek word dikaios meaning “fair minded.”

Verses 20, 21: While Joseph was still thinking about what he should do, the angel tells him what is going on. The angel, of course, is Gabriel. Since Gabriel had been named earlier, he is merely referred to as “the angel.”

Note the three main things Gabriel explains: 1. Mary is pregnant by a miracle. 2. She will bear a son who will be named Jesus. (Pretty extraordinary before ultrasounds.) 3. This son will save his people from their sins. (Another way to say he is the promised Messiah.)

Verses 22, 23: The prophecy of Isaiah 7: 14 is explained to Joseph.

Verses 24, 25: Joseph did as he had been commanded. Note that Joseph did NOT have sexual relations with Mary until after Jesus was born. The Catholics teach that Mary and Joseph NEVER had relations, but according to this passage and the one in Luke 2, that is just not true.

Note the characteristics of the man who would raise Jesus to maturity:

1. He was righteous.

2. He was contemplative, he did not rush into things.

3. He was fair minded.

4. He was obedient.

TO SEE THE MOST LIKELY TIMETABLE OF THE EVENTS SURROUNDING JESUS' BIRTH, CLICK HERE.