To understand what happened around the time that Jesus was born, we must keep in mind the current culture of that day. For instance, after a male or female passed puberty, they were considered adults. For them there was no playtime or TV time or video time. They went straight from being a child to an adult overnight. Also, it was the custom of a young girl in her mid-teens to be engaged for marriage. Therefore, Mary was probably somewhere between fourteen and sixteen years old while Joseph was ten or fifteen years older than her. The reason that we know his age is because he already had an established carpenter career and by the time of the crucifixion of Christ he was nowhere on the scene.
When the Bible says that Mary and Joseph were betrothed that was different than today. Their parents arranged the marriage probably when they were young. Also, betrothed does not mean married as it might be today. It meant that they were engaged for probably a year and then followed by a lengthy and celebratory event.
When Joseph went to Bethlehem to register for taxation, Mary being a female did not have to go. However, Joseph did not want to leave her on her own for fear she would face mockery by being pregnant before they were married. The Bible says he did not know Mary until after Jesus was born. Later several sons and daughters were born to them according to the Bible. There is no evidence in the Bible that Mary rode on an animal to Bethlehem. Imagine how difficult it was for her to walk many miles with Joseph being nine months pregnant.
The Bible says there was no room for them in the inn. It was not like a motel as we would assume today. When they were guided toward the stable, it could have been a cave or even a lean to for animals to be tethered. Tradition sometimes says that the keeper of the inn directed Joseph to where Mary would give birth to Jesus. There is no keeper of an inn stated in the Bible.
After giving birth to Jesus, she wrapped him in swaddling clothes. What they probably did was apply salt to his skin and then wrap him in 4 inch wide lengths of cloth so that his hands and feet could hardly move, while only showing his face. The custom of the day was to wrap all babies in this manner. When the angel sent the shepherds to Jesus, it was not to find him wrapped in swaddling clothes. It was, instead, that they would find if they went, and when they found Jesus, he would be asleep in a manger or a feed trough for animals.
Many scholars believe that Jesus was probably born in the spring because the shepherds were out of the fields watching their flock. This would not have happened had it been in winter. Also, some believe that the reason an angel appeared to those particular shepherds was because those were designated as sacrifices to be used by the temple priests.
The reason we have accepted December is the month of Jesus birth comes from history. The Romans observed a holiday called Saturnalia in which the slaves were given the day off and gifts were exchanged. Christians used this time away from work as an opportunity to reflect on the birth of Jesus. This is a good example of how Christians can take a heathen thing and use it for God’s glory. The organized Christian church did not observe the birth of Jesus until 336 AD.
Even though church hymns say that Angels sang to the shepherds, this is not supported by the Scripture. The Bible says the angel told the shepherds that a Savior was born. After the announcement, the single angel was accompanied by a multitude of other angels praising God. Imagine how frightening and yet exciting it was for the shepherds to be gathered around their fire at night, and then an angel came out of the darkness with God’s glory shining around!
The wise men did not arrive until Jesus was two years old and living in a house with Mary and Joseph. The wise men probably walked 800 to 1000 miles from present day Iran. In fact, they might have come from India or China; no one knows for sure other than they came from the East.
It might be a mistake to call the wisemen Magi because they were not magicians. The wise men were astrologers, scientists. It was their tradition that when a star appeared, it was an indication that a king was born. Likely the wisemen belonged to a religion called Zoroastrianism. They believed in one God and one that was evil. Fire was used as a symbol or an aid in their worship. Several Persian kings observed or participated in Zoroastrianism.
There is a debate whether Joseph was a carpenter who build houses or tables. This writer prefers the latter because Joseph needed to earn a living and pay for a house where they lived. This was probably not possible as a house builder. When the angel told Joseph to take his family to Egypt, it is likely he could have worked there as a builder of furniture.
However, the three gifts given to Jesus by the wisemen likely was used to finance the family’s stay while in Egypt. Probably Joseph died just as Jesus approached manhood which necessitated Jesus to be the head of the family. That is why from the cross he asked John to take care of his mother Mary.
On a personal note, as I drove in my neighborhood, my heart was broken. I saw all the Christmas lights and displays. Yet, I only saw two manger scenes in front of all the homes we passed. There were plenty of snowmen and plenty of Santas, but no Jesus. How sad!
Christian Writer 