We just celebrated the birth of Christ. When he was an infant, his body was rubbed with salt, and he was wrapped with strips of linen or cotton 4 to 5 inches wide and 5 to 6 yards long. A band was placed under his chin and over his forehead. His arms and legs were bound by the strips of cloth so that he could not move. This custom is recorded as far back as Ezekiel 16:4. On the eighth day after his birth, Jesus was circumcised according to custom which was also the day Jesus was officially named. Male infants were named with the father’s first name followed by his own. The word bar means son. That is why Jesus referred to Peter as Simon bar- jonah. The disciple Thomas like many other men of the day was also given a second name which in his case was Didymus. However, Jesus was named by God himself through an angel when he spoke to Mary.
After giving birth, the mother went through a period of purification for seven days if it was a boy and 14 days if it was a girl. Then she remained at home 33 days for the boy and 66 days for the girl. After that, the mother was to go to the Temple and make childbirth offerings. If she was wealthy it would be a lamb to be offered. However, the poor were allowed to use two young pigeons or a pair of turtle doves.
(Girls were named after things in nature or pleasant characteristics. For instance, Dorcas can be translated to a gazelle, Rhoda rose, Salome peace, Deborah bee, Esther star and Rachel lamb. In In the early years of Jesus life Mary did most of his training. (Proverbs 31:1) This is also probably why the apostle Paul referred to Timothy’s mother and grandmother for their faith as women of renown.
It should be emphasized when Mary, Joseph, and Jesus went to the Temple for his circumcision and naming, the sacrifices they made had nothing to do with Jesus. The sacrifices were for Mary’s purification after giving birth. At that time, they met two remarkable people. Simeon, according to Scripture, was filled with the Holy Spirit who revealed to him that he would not see death until he had seen the Christ. When he saw Jesus, he took him into his arms blessing God and praying that he was ready to die because he had seen God’s salvation. It was always God’s intent for the Gentiles to be part of his divine family as recorded by Simeon. He offered a prophecy to Mary saying that a sword would pierce her soul. Obviously, this came true at the foot of the cross. Anna was identified as a prophetess who was only married seven years after which she was widowed for 84 years. She spoke of Jesus as the one to whom people would look for redemption. (Luke 1)
When Jesus was two years old, the Magi followed the star from the East saying they came to worship him and gave him gifts. These gifts were undoubtedly useful for when the angel told Joseph to flee with his family to Egypt. The Magi found the holy family living in a house. Undoubtedly, Joseph brought his carpenter tools with him when they went on their long journey to Bethlehem. Equally so, he must’ve set up a woodworking business so that he would have the money to rent the house. In the meantime, Joseph took his family back to Nazareth where they started. Since the Magi did not return to Herod telling him where Jesus would be found, King Herod was extremely angry believing that he had been mocked. To make an effort that Jesus would be killed and not a royal competitor, he ordered all two-year-old boys to be slain in Bethlehem and even the surrounding areas. The grief related to these murders by the families was prophesied in Jeremiah 31:35 and other Scriptures.
This is not just the story of Jesus and his birth. It is a confirmation and recognition that God is always in charge. In the case of Jesus, he used an innkeeper to direct the pregnant Mary and Joseph to the place where she could give birth. In the case of the shepherds, they became the first evangelists telling others about the good news of Jesus’ birth. Today, we have a common connection with all of these people that Jesus had a miraculous birth all for the sake of dying on the cross and being resurrected from the dead for every one of us who would believe.
Christian Writer 