Jesus and the Nativity

Since this is Easter Weekend, it is a reminder of what God sent to us. While his birth is normally reserved for the winter solstice holidays, Good Friday and Easter are the culmination of his life and ministry, his death and resurrection and ascension, which got its start from somewhere.

With that in mind, a refresher on Jesus's birth with some interesting curiosities and insights.

- Ben Parker


Jesus: When the wise men came to visit Jesus he was he still in the manger?

By Barbara A Parker

Mathew delves into the nativity story quite deeply.

• Math 2: 1-2,  '(Amplified Bible) Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold wise men (astrologers) from the east came to Jerusalem, asking, where is He Who was born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east at it’s rising and have come to worship Him.'

• Verse 11, 'And on going into the house, they saw the Child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped Him.  Then opening their gifts they presented to Him gifts-gold, frankincense and myrrh.'

• Here he is called a young child, living in a house. Herod seeks to destroy Jesus. He commands that all male babies 2 years and younger be slain in the village of Bethlehem, according to the time he had diligently inquired of the wise men.

• If Jesus had been a mere baby he would have ordered only baby boys  slaughtered.

• Luke 2:7, 'she brought forth her first born son and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn.'

• At Herod’s decree the city was full of people who had come there to be taxed and counted in their home town. Joseph originally was from Bethlehem so he had to take his very pregnant wife on a long journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem for the taxing.

• Luke 12-18 tells how the angels announced his arrival to the shepherds. They came and worshiped him at the stable where Mary had laid Him in the manger for a straw bed, because she could find nothing else.

• History tells us that Bethlehem, only being 2 miles from Jerusalem was the town where the lambs were kept for sacrifice at the temple. Jesus was born in a stable perhaps with said lambs looking on. He is called the Lamb of God. Also Bethlehem means house of bread. He was the bread of life according to the Lord’s Supper.

• In Luke 2 verse 21, when he was 8 days old He was circumcised and named Jesus, which was the name given him by Gabriele the messenger angel from God.

• After Mary’s purification, which according to Jewish law took 33 days past the date of circumcision, they took Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. They returned and lived in a house in Bethlehem which was where they resided when the wise men showed up.

• In Mathew it is revealed to Joseph in a dream that Herod will try to kill Jesus so the family flees to Egypt until Herod dies.  Upon news of Herod’s death they return to Nazareth to live, where Joseph resumes his job as a carpenter, the trade Jesus takes up as a young man.

When you see the nativity sets and the Christmas cards depicting the wise men and the shepherds together at the stable it is very incorrect. They should do some researching rather than just relying on tradition. Tradition can be so wrong about things.

Jesus’ Nativity: Who were the wise men at Jesus’ birth?

Who were the wise men that followed the star into Judea to meet their king?

Mathew 2:1 says they came from the east country. That seems strange. Would the Orientals know anything about his star or care? 

The Amplified Bible calls them astrologers. But there has to be more to it than that. Looking up references to the east country, you find that Genesis 25:5-6 speaks of Abraham sending his children of his concubines into the east country away from his son Isaac. After the death of his wife Sarah he had remarried a woman named Keturah and had many other children by her. Isaac was the son of promise so he gave the others gifts and sent them away into the east country. Some names of the tribes derived from these children were Sheba and Dedan. The Queen of Sheba who came many years later to visit King Solomon was from the tribe of Sheba.

Genesis 21:14 tells how he sent away Hagar and her son the father of the Arab countries.

Amazing how they are all related but have such relations problems.

The star is prophesied in Numbers 24:17. Balaam the Prophet says, 'I see him but not now: I behold him, but He is not near. A star shall come forth out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel…'. These wise men from the east, as kin of Abraham would likely know of the prophecy and star of his coming.