Things I can’t find in the Bible
Jesus was born on December 25th in the year 0
The Christian calendar is off 6 years (from faulty data in the 6th century when Dionysius Exiguus converted the Roman calendar to the Christian BC/AD system), plus Clement of Alexandria (an Egyptian historian) writes in 200 A.D. That, The birth of Christ took place in the 28th year of Augustus, the 25th day of Pachon” the best guess is May 14th, 6 B.C.
Mary rode a donkey to Bethlehem
No mention of a donkey, but if they had one, Joseph would had rode it according to accepted practices of the time.
The couple traveled for weeks
Nazareth to Bethlehem = 70 miles, or a three to four day journey
They were all alone
Everybody would be on the road for the Census, plus Joseph’s entire family would be converging on Bethlehem (because like Joseph they were all from the “house and lineage of David”)
Mary and Joseph came stumbling in at midnight on December 24th, and had the baby the minute they got there
The census would be a well planned public works project with lots of notice, and pregnancy has a well defined time line, so there’s no reason for M & J not to get there days if not weeks early. Luke 2:6 simples says. “while they were there”.
It would be too dangerous to travel at night, and there would be no need.
There was no room at the inn
The word that is translated “Inn” is is the word “kataluma” and it refers to a guest area in a private home (the same word as in Luke 22:11). If it had been a hotel, the word would be “pandoceion” (like Luke 10:35)
The manger was the hotel parking garage
Livestock was very valuable. Archeology suggests that the home would be built over a cave, where the family could keep the animals, or a two story house, with the family upstairs, and the animals on the ground floor.
They lay the baby in a wooden A-frame feeding trough
Probably carved from stone, or carved out of the cave wall, the manger would make a relatively safe bed
M & J’s last name was Christ, so they named the baby Jesus Christ
Christ is the title, his name was Jesus. meaning “Jehovah saves”. He is “The Christ” (the Greeks translation of the Hebrew "Messiah")
Also, his middle initial was not “H”
The shepherds were in nearby fields, watching the sheep graze
They would have found shelter for the sleeping sheep, probably in a cave outside of town.
The heavenly choir bursts into Silent Night.
Luke 2:13 states “the angles were saying”
The three wise men showed up just after the shepherds
The Maji were probably a year or two later (travel time) and it is only assumed that there were three, because of three gifts. If you are making an extended journey with valuable gifts to see “a king” you would want to bring a large party.
Does this take anything away form Christmas? On the contrary, it just makes it that much more real for me.
The Christian calendar is off 6 years (from faulty data in the 6th century when Dionysius Exiguus converted the Roman calendar to the Christian BC/AD system), plus Clement of Alexandria (an Egyptian historian) writes in 200 A.D. That, The birth of Christ took place in the 28th year of Augustus, the 25th day of Pachon” the best guess is May 14th, 6 B.C.
Mary rode a donkey to Bethlehem
No mention of a donkey, but if they had one, Joseph would had rode it according to accepted practices of the time.
The couple traveled for weeks
Nazareth to Bethlehem = 70 miles, or a three to four day journey
They were all alone
Everybody would be on the road for the Census, plus Joseph’s entire family would be converging on Bethlehem (because like Joseph they were all from the “house and lineage of David”)
Mary and Joseph came stumbling in at midnight on December 24th, and had the baby the minute they got there
The census would be a well planned public works project with lots of notice, and pregnancy has a well defined time line, so there’s no reason for M & J not to get there days if not weeks early. Luke 2:6 simples says. “while they were there”.
It would be too dangerous to travel at night, and there would be no need.
There was no room at the inn
The word that is translated “Inn” is is the word “kataluma” and it refers to a guest area in a private home (the same word as in Luke 22:11). If it had been a hotel, the word would be “pandoceion” (like Luke 10:35)
The manger was the hotel parking garage
Livestock was very valuable. Archeology suggests that the home would be built over a cave, where the family could keep the animals, or a two story house, with the family upstairs, and the animals on the ground floor.
They lay the baby in a wooden A-frame feeding trough
Probably carved from stone, or carved out of the cave wall, the manger would make a relatively safe bed
M & J’s last name was Christ, so they named the baby Jesus Christ
Christ is the title, his name was Jesus. meaning “Jehovah saves”. He is “The Christ” (the Greeks translation of the Hebrew "Messiah")
Also, his middle initial was not “H”
The shepherds were in nearby fields, watching the sheep graze
They would have found shelter for the sleeping sheep, probably in a cave outside of town.
The heavenly choir bursts into Silent Night.
Luke 2:13 states “the angles were saying”
The three wise men showed up just after the shepherds
The Maji were probably a year or two later (travel time) and it is only assumed that there were three, because of three gifts. If you are making an extended journey with valuable gifts to see “a king” you would want to bring a large party.
Does this take anything away form Christmas? On the contrary, it just makes it that much more real for me.
posted by Jim | 7:17 AM
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