When Was Jesus Born? Part 1
The cornerstone of our faith is Yeshua the Messiah. We believe that He is God and that He was sent by the Father to show us how to properly understand the Torah. We believe He gave His life as atonement for the sins past, present, and future of those who have accepted His divine sovereignty and His sacrifice on their behalf, so that all who believe in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. Through Messiah’s words, we see that the biblical Sabbath day, dietary laws, and all of the other commandments given to Moses at Sinai, are still very much a part of how God wants us to walk as modern-day believers.
Over the next two months (articles), we will look at the birth of Messiah. There are still many topics that prove to be divisive inside the body of believers. One of those is the birth of Messiah. There is no doubt that Messiah’s birth as a human is one of the most revolutionary historical events to ever take place. However, there is much debate and even arguments over when He was born and whether or not we are to memorialize His birth. In these articles, we hope to lay out and honestly look at some of the most commonly held theories as to when He was born , as well as whether there is Biblical precedence to having some sort of celebration/memorialization of His birth annually.
What Does the Bible Say About Birthdays and Birth Celebrations?
In the United States of America, birthdays are a widely celebrated cultural practice. Regardless of religion, birthdays are widely celebrated with gifts, favorite foods, and even parties. America has been blessed with more wealth per capita than most other countries and so, American birthdays are far more elaborate than many other cultures. There are some Christian denominations, such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses and some sacred name-based denominations, that do not celebrate birthdays. It is a commonly held concept that Judaism also doesn’t celebrate birthdays. But this isn’t entirely true, as Judaism does mark years of life in order to celebrate bar and bat mitzvahs (a Jewish coming of age ritual for boys and girls). Birthday celebrations are only mentioned a couple of times in the Bible. In these cases, they are referring to leaders like Pharaoh and Herod.
On the third day, which was Pharaoh's birthday, he made a feast for all his servants and lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants. Genesis 40:20
But when Herod's birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company and pleased Herod, so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask. Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.” And the king was sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he commanded it to be given. He sent and had John beheaded in the prison, ... Matthew 14:6—12
As you can see, these two examples aren’t exactly something you would want to replicate for your child or even yourself. The celebration of their birthdays wasn’t something that would have been honoring to God. The Bible does talk a lot about birth, but not from the context of celebrations. This is why there are some in the Messianic faith who choose not to celebrate or memorialize their birthdays. While the Scriptures never condone or condemn the celebration of birthdays, they don’t speak highly of the few times they are ever mentioned. Birthdays in the Bible were held for kings and leaders of other cultures, yet never mentioned for Hebrews. Some will use passages in Isaiah or Ecclesiastes to try to justify not celebrating a birthday, yet those are a stretch when it comes to our modern celebrations and not entirely relevant to the point of this article.
However, the announcements of births do appear in the Scriptures multiple times. We see that God tells Abraham that Sarah will become pregnant and give birth even at their older age.
They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.” The Lord said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah. So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?” The Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.” Genesis 18:9—14
God uses the announcement of the birth of Abraham and Sarah’s child to provide a promise and hope. The announcement has nothing to do with throwing a birthday party like our current culture promotes, but reflects the promise that God’s covenants continue through to multiple generations, and that through individuals, God’s perfect plan can be carried out. In Luke, we also see the announcement of John the Baptizer’s birth.
But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”
And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.” Luke 1:13—20
This time, Gabriel, in the presence of God, comes to announce to Zechariah that his wife will bear him a son. This son will have a special calling and a special mission. Therefore, Zechariah will have to raise his son to understand that there are certain requirements that John will have to meet. He will have to stay away from alcohol so that his witness will not be impugned.
Luke also writes about the announcement of Yeshua’s conception and birth.Gabriel announces to a virgin that she will conceive of a child to whom God Himself will give the throne of David. He also reveals to Mary that her relative has also had a similar announcement, and although she was considered to be barren, she has conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit.
And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”
And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. Luke 1:34—38
Luke then goes on to tell the story of the birth of Yeshua, including one of the only accounts in the Bible where the heavens meet with earth to announce the birth of the Messiah.
And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!”
When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. Luke 2: 8—20
We can see through Luke’s account this birth announcement was different. An angel appears to shepherds to announce the birth, and then the angel was joined by a multitude of the heavenly host rejoicing and praising God. Can you imagine what it would have been like to be one of those shepherds? The fear, the emotions, the questions! Luke tells us that once the shepherds found Mary, Joseph, and Yeshua, they shared their testimony, and they were in wonder. Remembering what the angel Gabriel had told her previously, Mary treasured up these things.
Therefore, we can establish that the announcement of births is biblical, yet our common traditions of annual celebration are not. Modern celebrations are secular customs adapted into our current culture. Does that make them anti-biblical? Not necessarily since we also see that there is a precedent set in the Bible that Yeshua’s actual birth was celebrated and widely known. However, it is a stretch to adapt modern cultural elements into any current celebration of remembering Messiah’s birth. To make the celebration of Messiah’s birth common by cakes, balloons, and yard signs seems unfitting for a King, and in some ways, feels like a mockery of just how revolutionary the announcement was. Nonetheless, if we have already set the precedent that we celebrate historical events like the defeat of Haman, the cleansing of the Temple during Hanukkah, Israel’s Independence Day, the Yom Kippur war, Holocaust Memorial Day and any other historical events, why would we not place a higher emphasis on one of the greatest events in history?
Next month we will continue by examining the theories of when Messiah was born. We will look at the spring birth, fall birth, and even the December birth. We will go through what the Bible says and see how each theory holds up to the Scriptures.
