The
first Christians did not celebrate the Messiah’s birth, so the date has been forgotten.
It was first assumed that Christ was born on December 25 in a calendar in 354 A.D.
The
Bible says there were shepherds in the field when the Messiah was born. However, the Holy Land is cold, rainy, and sometimes snowy
in December. The shepherds and their flocks would not be out in the fields on
cold winter nights. They would be so only in spring and autumn when they watched
over the lambs being born.
John
the Baptist was six months older than Christ, his cousin. John was conceived about
June or July. Hence Christ was conceived around December or January and was born
nine months later in September or October. The shepherds and their flocks would
be out in the fields then.
Joseph
and Mary traveled to Bethlehem to be taxed when Cyrenius was governor of Syria in
6 to 1 B.C. The taxation was completed by 3 B.C.; so Christ must have been born
between 6 B.C. and 3 B.C.
King Herod died after the birth of
Christ. It was he who ordered the slaughter of children in Bethlehem. He is known to have died after a lunar eclipse before the feast of Passover in April. There
was a lunar eclipse visible in Israel on March 13, 4 B.C. Most chronologists assume
Herod died on April 1, 4 B.C.
The Bible tells us: “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt
among us…” (John 1:14a). The use
of the Greek word translated “dwelt” is very unusual. It means “tabernacled.” Therefore,
“dwelt among us” should have been
literally translated as “tabernacled
among us.” It is a very clear Biblical
sign to us that the Messiah was born during the Feast of Tabernacles in October
of 5 B.C.
Detailed explanation:
Virtually all Christians are familiar
with the Biblical story of the birth of the Messiah. We find a brief account in
the book of Luke. “And she brought forth
her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a
manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the
same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone
round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear
not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all
people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is
Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:7-11).
One
piece of basic detail, however, is missing – a reference to the date. When was
the Messiah born? The Bible does not plainly give us the answer. Author Alexander
Hislop (The Two Babylons, 1957)
explains: “The early Christian church did not celebrate Jesus’ birth,
and therefore the exact date was not preserved in festivals.”
December 25?
Yet,
much of the world today celebrates Christmas Day on December 25 as Christ’s
birthday. According to the Encyclopaedia
Britannica, “December 25 was first identified as the date of Christ’s birth
by Sextus Julius Africanus in 221
A.D.” Editor Richard Cavendish, in the magazine series Man, Myth & Magic (1995, Vol. 3, p. 480), noted: “It was only
in the 4th century that 25 December was officially decreed to be the
birthday of Christ.”
The
supposed birth of Christ on December 25 was proclaimed by the Church fathers in
A.D. 440. Around 550 A.D., December 25 became an official holiday in Rome under
Emperor Justinian. Cavendish added that it “was another 500 years (9th
century)” before the original term for the festival, Midwinter Feast, “was
abandoned in favor of the word Christmas.”
Winter birth?
Was
the Messiah really born on December 25 in midwinter? It is highly doubtful –
for several reasons:
Cold winter weather. The Holy Land is cold, rainy, and sometimes snowy in December, which is well into
the winter season. The shepherds and their flocks in the Bible story would not
have stayed out in the fields on cold nights during winter.
Seedlings growing. September to October in autumn were
the usual sowing time in Judea. By December, the plants would have grown quite
tall, and the farmers would not have allowed the shepherds’ animals foraging in
their fields.
People’s animosity. Emperor Augustus Caesar would not
have risked ordering a census and taxation
requiring Roman subjects to travel to their hometowns in the cold winter weather. It could have provoked
protests and even revolts.
Probable seasons.
There
were only two seasons in the year when shepherds in Judea watched over their
flocks in the fields at night – in spring and autumn when lambs were being
born. At other times of the year, the flocks were kept in sheepfolds to protect
them from the weather and wild animals.
Christ’s cousin, John the Baptist.
We
can find clues to the date of Christ’s birth from the story of His cousin, John
the Baptist. John was conceived six months earlier than Christ.
God
sent the angel Gabriel to speak to a young virgin named Mary in the town of
Nazareth in Galilee. “And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was
called barren” (Luke 1:36). Mary was a cousin of John’s mother, Elisabeth,
who was already six months pregnant when Gabriel appeared to Mary. Soon thereafter,
Mary conceived. Hence, John was some six months older than Christ.
John’s father, Zacharias.
John’s
father was a priest named Zacharias. “There
was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias,
of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and
her name was Elisabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all
the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. And they had no child,
because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in
years” (Luke 1:5-7).
Groupings of priests. Zacharias was a member of the priestly
course or group of Abia (Abijah), the 8th among the 24 courses of
priests who served in the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, as had been arranged
centuries earlier by King David.
“And David divided
them into courses among the sons of Levi… Thus were they divided by lot, one
sort with another… Now the first lot came forth to Jehoiarib, the second to
Jedaiah, The third to Harim, the fourth to Seorim, The fifth to Malchijah, the
sixth to Mijamin, The seventh to Hakkoz, the eighth to Abijah… The three
and twentieth to Delaiah, the four and twentieth to Maaziah. These were the
orderings of them in their service to come into the house of the LORD,
according to their manner, under Aaron their father, as the LORD God of Israel
had commanded him” (1
Chron 23:6a; 24:5a, 7-10,18-19).
Each
course or group served for one week in the Temple, beginning in Nisan
(March-April), the first month of the Hebrew religious year (Ex 12:2), which
began at the first sighting of the new moon crescent on or after the spring
equinox (equal lengths of night and day), today
on March 19, 20, or 21 in the modern-day Gregorian calendar.
So,
if Nisan (Abib or Aviv in today’s Jewish calendar) began in late March,
Zacharias must have begun serving at the Holy Temple in late May.
Angel
appears to Zacharias.
The
angel Gabriel came and foretold the birth of a son to Zacharias and Elisabeth
in their old age. “And it came to pass,
that while he executed the priest's office before God in the order of his
course, According to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to burn
incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. And the whole multitude of
the people were praying without at the time of incense. And there appeared unto
him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense…
But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and
thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John” (Luke
1:8-11,13).
“And it came to pass,
that, as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to
his own house. And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid
herself five months, saying, Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days
wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men” (Luke 1:23-25). Zacharias must have
ended his Temple service and gone home at the end of May or early June. Gabriel’s
message came true as foretold. Elisabeth conceived. Considering the travel time
on foot in those days and Zacharias’s and Elisabeth’s advanced ages, she
probably conceived in late June or even early July.
Conception by Mary.
Six
months later, the angel Gabriel also appeared to Mary, Elisabeth’s cousin. “And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel
was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, To a virgin espoused
to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name
was Mary… And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son,
and shalt call his name JESUS… Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this
be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy
Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee:
therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the
Son of God” (Luke 1:26-27,31,34-35).
The
angel Gabriel announced the coming birth of the Messiah to Mary when Elisabeth
was six months pregnant. So, Mary probably conceived in late December or early
January. Therefore, the birth of Christ nine months later must have been in
late September or early October. This falls within the autumn lambing season,
when the shepherds were out in the fields watching over the lambs being born.
How beautiful! How wise the Almighty Father! The Lamb of God was born during one of the year’s lambing seasons! Now, if we can only find out what particular day and year that was.
|
Hebrew months |
Modern-day equivalents
|
Event |
|
Iyar |
April-May |
Zacharias at Temple |
|
Sivan |
May-June |
Zacharias went home |
|
Tammuz |
June-July |
Elisabeth conceived |
|
Av |
July-August |
(1) |
|
Elul |
August-September |
(2) |
|
Tishri |
September-October |
(3) |
|
Heshvan |
October-November |
(4) |
|
Kislev |
November-December |
(5) |
|
Tevet |
December-January |
(6) Mary conceived |
|
Shevat |
January-February |
(1) |
|
Adar |
February-March |
(2) |
|
Nisan |
March-April |
(3) |
|
Iyar |
April-May |
(4) |
|
Sivan |
May-June |
(5) |
|
Tammuz |
June-July |
(6) |
|
Av |
July-August |
(7) |
|
Elul |
August-September |
(8) |
|
Tishri |
September-October |
(9) Christ was born |
Taxation
by Augustus Caesar.
Joseph
and Mary traveled to Bethlehem to comply with an order from the Roman Emperor. “And it came to pass in those days, that
there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be
taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)” (Luke
2:1-2). Emperor Augustus Caesar ordered an empire-wide census and taxation to
know the exact resources of the Roman Empire. This decree required every man to
return to the city of his family’s origin.
“And all went to be
taxed, every one into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out
of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called
Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife,
being great with child” (Luke
2:3-5). Bethlehem was the city of all those descended from King David,
including Joseph, Mary’s husband.
Birth
year of the Messiah.
The Encarta
Encyclopedia (article Millennium) informs us that, according to many
scholars, Dionysius Exiguus, the monk who introduced the B.C./A.D. dating
system in 532 A.D., had made various errors in calculating Christ’s birth year.
Historical evidence indicates that the Messiah was not born in 1 B.C., but
earlier.
Pope
agreed. Reporter Sorcha
Pollak in her article “Pope Benedict Disputes Jesus’ Date of Birth” (Nov. 22,
2012; Internet) wrote that the Pope “revealed in the third installment of his
trilogy… that Jesus may have been born earlier than previously thought… the
Pope explains in his book that Exiguus, who is considered the inventor of the
Christian calendar, ‘made a mistake in his calculations by several years.’ The
actual date of Jesus’ birth was several years before.”
Cyrenius
twice governor.
Historical records show that the census and taxation was ordered by Augustus Caesar
in 8 B.C., but it was implemented province by province. Provincial Italy was
taxed in 8-7 B.C., and Rome itself was taxed in 7-6 B.C. As for the Roman province
of Judea, Luke said it was taxed when “Cyrenius
was governor of Syria.” When was that?
Cyrenius, also known as Roman senator
Publius Sulpicius Quirinius, was twice governor of Syria (which included
Judea). His first term was for 5 years between 6 B.C. and 1 B.C.; the second
was in 6 to 7 A.D. Since the latter period is much later than the traditionally
presumed birth of Christ in 1 B.C., the taxation must have taken place sometime
within 6 to 1 B.C. Although decreed in 8 B.C. (but not carried out in Judea
until 2 years later), the taxation was completed by late 3 B.C. This suggests
that Christ was born sometime between 6 B.C. and 3 B.C.
Birth of the Messiah.
A
journey of some 90 miles on foot and a donkey must have been quite exhausting
for a woman in her ninth month of pregnancy. Mary gave birth soon after she and
Joseph arrived in Bethlehem. “And so it was, that, while they were
there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought
forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in
a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn” (Luke 2:6-7).
No room in the inn. The
inns being full supports the belief that it was the time of one of the
festivals that God has commanded to Israel. “Three
times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord GOD” (Ex
23:17). These festivals are: Passover (March or April); Pentecost (May or June);
and Feast of Tabernacles (September or October). Jerusalem was filled with
pilgrims to the Holy Temple, many of whom had to look for lodging in nearby
towns, such as Bethlehem.
Wise
men from the east.
“Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days
of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,
Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in
the east, and are come to worship him” (Matt
2:1-2). The wise men had the temerity
to ask King Herod for the whereabouts of the newly born Jewish king. It was a
thinly veiled insult. (Herod, the Rome-appointed king of Judea, was an
Idumaean, a non-Jew.)
Three kings? The wise men were not kings, nor
were there only three. The word used for “wise men” in the New Testament’s Greek
text was magoi, transliterated as magi in English. They were members of a
hereditary priestly class among the ancient Medes and Persians, and part of a
council equivalent to a modern Parliament that ruled the Parthian Empire. Their
functions included the election of the Parthian monarch. Hence, the magi were
king-makers, not kings.
Jewish wise men? The wise men could have been Jews,
descendants of the prophet Daniel and others who were taken captive to Babylon
after the invasions of Judah in 606 and 586 B.C., but who chose to stay in the
east and did not return to Jerusalem following the fall of Babylon to the
Medo-Persians in 539 B.C. Why else would they come looking for the “King of the
Jews” to worship if they were not themselves Jews? Judea at the time was just a
province of the Roman Empire.
The star of
Bethlehem.
The
wise men told Herod that they had followed a star they saw from the east. “Then Herod, when he had privily called the
wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared” (Matt
2:7). Herod asked them to tell him where they would find the child, pretending
he would also pay homage to the newborn king.
“When they had heard the king, they departed;
and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came
and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced
with exceeding great joy”
(Matt 2:9-10).
The
child was already in a house when the wise men found him. “And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with
Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him…” (Matt 2:11a).
A nova or a comet? According to astronomer Barry
Setterfield, the star of Bethlehem could be anything that shone and moved
across the sky, such as a planet or grouping of planets, a nova, or a comet. Novae
or unstable stars shine long; there was one faint nova in 4 B.C. Comets can
travel through the background stars at the rate of 1 or 2 degrees per day. They
may be visible to the naked eye for 100 days or so. On a journey to Judea from
Persia of about 6 weeks, a comet would have been visible long enough for the magi
to see. A comet swept across the heavens in 4 B.C.
Slaughter of
children.
The
wise men avoided Herod on their way home. “And
being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they
departed into their own country another way” (Matt 2:12).
Realizing the magi had ignored him and
left, Herod ordered the slaughter of infants in Bethlehem. “Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was
exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in
Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under,
according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men”
(Matt 2:16).
“Then
was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, In Rama was
there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel
weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not” (Matt 2:17-18).
Day the Messiah was born.
The gospel writer John hinted that the
Messiah was born during the Feast of Tabernacles. “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us… (John
1:14a; underscoring by the author).
The use of the Greek word translated “dwelt” (skenosen) is very unusual. It came from skenos (to tent, encamp) and skeno (hut, booth, temporary dwelling)
and is also the root-word of Skenopegia,
Feast of Tabernacles or Booths, when Jews stayed in booths or temporary
shelters to commemorate their 40 years of wandering in the wilderness after the
Exodus from Egypt on their way to the Promised Land.
Feast of Tabernacles. Therefore, “dwelt among us” should have been literally rendered as “tabernacled among us.” It is a very strong Biblical hint that Christ was born
during the Feast of Tabernacles!
The seven-day Feast of Tabernacles, as commanded by God to
Israel, is usually celebrated in early October – more specifically, on the 15th-21st
days from the new moon on or after the autumn equinox (September 22 or 23). “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, The fifteenth day of this seventh
month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the LORD” (Lev
23:33-34).
Herod's
death. As we know, Christ
was born before Herod died. In the book Antiquities
of the Jews (XVII, 167), Jewish historian Flavius Josephus recorded that
King Herod, who ordered the slaughter of children in Bethlehem, died after an
eclipse of the moon, sometime before Passover (early April) in spring. The Encyclopaedia Britannica reports (under
Eclipse) that the “only springtime lunar eclipses visible in Israel between 17
BCE and 3 CE took place on March 23, 5 BCE, and March 13, 4 BCE… the latter
date is usually preferred by chronologists – implying that Herod died in the
spring of 4 BCE.” It is thus often assumed that Herod died about April 1, 4
B.C. In that case, the Feast of Tabernacles before that was in October of 5
B.C.
Feast of Tabernacles
5 B.C.
Conclusion: the Messiah was most likely
born in the autumn lambing season – during the seven-day Feast of Tabernacles
in October of 5 B.C.
Birth of the Messiah
(Summary
of Events)
|
Date |
Year |
Event |
Note |
|
|
8 BC |
Census
and taxation |
Caesar’s
decree |
|
|
6-3 BC |
Taxation
in Judea |
Cyrenius
governor |
|
October |
5
BC |
Feast of Tabernacles |
Christ was born |
|
|
|
Wise
men arrived* |
|
|
|
|
Children
slaughtered |
Herod’s
order |
|
March
13 |
4 BC |
Lunar
eclipse |
|
|
April
1 |
4 BC |
Herod
died |
|
|
April |
4 BC |
Passover |
|
*4 BC, a nova and a comet appeared –
star of Bethlehem?
Excerpted from the booklet The Forgotten Messiah (28 pages) by M.M. Tauson. Printed copies available at Amazon.com - For free pdf copies of our booklets, click the Booklets and/or Google Drive tabs on the menu bar.
Bible quotations are from the King James Version (KJV) unless otherwise indicated.
