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The story of the events surrounding Jesus’ miraculous ****** birth, commonly known as the nativity story or the Christmas story, are found in the gospels of Matthew and Luke (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post.
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Log in or register now.). Strictly speaking, Jesus’ birth itself is directly described in only a few short verses:
“but kept her a ****** until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus,” (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.).
“While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn,” (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.).
You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. goes on to describe other events that occurred the same night as the birth (specifically, the angels appearing to the shepherds who then go to see the baby and tell the community). The rest of the passages in either Matthew or Luke relate important events that either led up to Christ’s birth or followed shortly after it but did not occur on the same day. These events, however, pointed to the prophetic and supernatural significance of the birth.
“Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: ‘Behold, the ****** shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,’ which translated means, ‘God with us.’ And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a ****** until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus,” (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.).
The emphasis here is on the angelic message, the Old Testament prophecy, and the related events that preceded Jesus’ birth. The actual event of the birth is only mentioned to affirm that Mary was still a ****** and that Joseph obediently named the boy “Jesus.” Matthew then continues his narrative by saying:
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea…” (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.).
Matthew 2 then goes on to describe the familiar stories of the magi following the star to come and bring gifts and worship the newborn king, and Herod’s subsequent rage and slaughter of the innocent children of Bethlehem. While the ****** birth of Christ is of the utmost importance to Matthew, he conveys that importance by pointing out the prophecies, the angelic testimony, the heavenly signs, and the evil opposition that surrounded the general time of the event rather than describing the scene of the stable and the manger. Thus, what we call the “Christmas story” did not occur on a single day but rather over the course of several months up to a few years. Nevertheless, it does form a coherent narrative that centers around the miraculous, prophesied birth of the divine Messiah.
“but kept her a ****** until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus,” (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.).
“While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn,” (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.).
You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. goes on to describe other events that occurred the same night as the birth (specifically, the angels appearing to the shepherds who then go to see the baby and tell the community). The rest of the passages in either Matthew or Luke relate important events that either led up to Christ’s birth or followed shortly after it but did not occur on the same day. These events, however, pointed to the prophetic and supernatural significance of the birth.
Matthew’s account and the night of Jesus’ birth
While Matthew draws great attention to the ****** birth of Jesus and attaches great importance to the event, he doesn’t actually describe the night of the birth itself. After providing a genealogy of Jesus (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.), he begins his narrative with a detailed account of important events leading up to the birth with only an almost passing reference to the birth itself:“Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: ‘Behold, the ****** shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,’ which translated means, ‘God with us.’ And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a ****** until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus,” (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.).
The emphasis here is on the angelic message, the Old Testament prophecy, and the related events that preceded Jesus’ birth. The actual event of the birth is only mentioned to affirm that Mary was still a ****** and that Joseph obediently named the boy “Jesus.” Matthew then continues his narrative by saying:
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea…” (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.).
Matthew 2 then goes on to describe the familiar stories of the magi following the star to come and bring gifts and worship the newborn king, and Herod’s subsequent rage and slaughter of the innocent children of Bethlehem. While the ****** birth of Christ is of the utmost importance to Matthew, he conveys that importance by pointing out the prophecies, the angelic testimony, the heavenly signs, and the evil opposition that surrounded the general time of the event rather than describing the scene of the stable and the manger. Thus, what we call the “Christmas story” did not occur on a single day but rather over the course of several months up to a few years. Nevertheless, it does form a coherent narrative that centers around the miraculous, prophesied birth of the divine Messiah.
A biblical chronology of the Christmas story
The following outline lays out the biblical order of events with references on where to find them in the gospel accounts:- An angel appears to Mary to announce that she, a ******, will give birth to the Son of God (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- The miraculous ******al conception occurs. God the Son, the Eternal Word, takes on flesh (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Mary visits Elizabeth, where the unborn John the Baptist leaps in the womb in recognition of the unborn Jesus (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now., You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Mary’s song of praise and thanksgiving (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Mary remains with Elizabeth three months, then returns home (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Mary is found to be with child. Joseph, her betrothed, plans to quietly break off their marriage, but an angel tells him of the miraculous, ******al conception in fulfillment of prophecy and that the child will save His people. Joseph is told to take Mary to be his wife (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Due to a Roman census, Joseph and Mary travel to Bethlehem (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Jesus is born to the ****** Mary in Bethlehem (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now., You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Angels appear to a group of shepherds nearby and declare the birth of Jesus (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- The shepherds go to Bethlehem, see the child, spread the word, and return to their flocks, rejoicing (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Eight days later, Jesus is *********ed (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- After Marys’ purification (a minimum of forty days after Jesus’ birth), she and Joseph travel to the temple in Jerusalem to present Jesus to the Lord (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- A man named Simeon, whom the Holy Spirit was upon, prophecies that the baby Jesus is the Messiah (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- An elderly prophetess named Anna identifies Jesus as the “redemption of Jerusalem” (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Sometime later, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem seeking the one who had been born king of Jews, claiming they saw “His star” (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Herod gathers a group of priests and scholars to determine where the Messiah was to be born (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Herod meets with the magi, asks when the star first appeared and instructs them to report back to him when they find the child (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- The magi proceed to Bethlehem, as they followed the star till it stood over a house where the child was (note: Now Joseph and Mary are in a house as this is after Jesus’ birth). The magi worship the child and present royal gifts (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- The magi are warned in a dream not to return to Herod and so depart by another route (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- An angel warns Joseph of Herod’s wicked plans and he flees to Egypt with his wife and young child (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Herod attempts to kill the child by having every male child in or around Bethlehem that is two years old or younger put to death (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)
- Sometime later, after Herod’s death, Joseph brings his family to Nazareth in Galilee, where Jesus will grow up (You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now., You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.)