―(22) Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,
(23) Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name
Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us‖. As in the previous explanation of these verses: In
quoting this verse in Isaiah, it tells us the way this verse was understood by the Jewish people of that day.
They knew it was speaking of a virgin birth. That is the literal meaning of that verse.
―(24) Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him
his wife: (25) And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name
JESUS‖. Indeed, YHWH did work out Miriam‘s relationship with Yoseph. In this concluding segment two
things must be noted.
First, Yoseph immediately obeyed the angel, being a righteous and spiritual man himself. He took Miriam to
be his wife and followed through with the marriage ceremony.
Secondly, it clearly says ―he knew her not‖, meaning he had no sexual relations with her until she brought
forth a Son.
After the birth of Y‘shua, they did have subsequent sexual relations; and this falsifies the common claim that
Miriam remained a virgin for the rest of her life. The teaching of the ―perpetual virginity‖ of Miriam is not
Scriptural. Not only did she not remain a virgin; but furthermore, she possibly gave birth to as many as six
other children (Mat 13:55-56).
We continue with Luke chapter 2:
(1) ―And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the
world should be taxed.
(2) (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
(3) And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
(4) 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:)
(5) To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.
(6) And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.
(7) 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‖.
―(1) And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the
world should be taxed. (2) (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) (3) And
all went to be taxed, every one into his own city‖. The Romans forced the people to go to their
hometowns for tax (registration) purposes. The detail can be seen under the section ―Matt 2:2-4 A Star out
of Jacob‖.
―(4) 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:)‖ Under normal
circumstances, the registration was a Roman law exercised under Jewish custom. The practical Romans
normally had a census taken for taxation in one‘s own city of residence. To keep peace with the Jews,
however, the Romans allowed the Jews to return to their tribal cities to enroll and pay taxes. As descendants
of David, Yoseph and Miriam were required to return to Bethlehem. When viewed from a human perspective,
Yoseph and Miriam came to Bethlehem because it was required by the law. From the divine perspective,
however, YHWH was acting providentially to bring them to the place where Micah had prophesied that the
Messiah would be born (Micah 5:2-5).
―(5) To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child‖. At the birth of Y‘shua, Miriam is still
noted as Yoseph‘s espoused wife because they still had not consummated the marriage through having
sexual relations.
―(6) And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. (7)
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‖. Most people will be surprised to know that Y‘shua was
actually born in a ―stable‖. Many people lived in caves in Y‘shua‘s time. A section in the cave was also
allocated for the owner‘s animals, to be protected from the elements of nature. But Y‘shua‘s stable was not a
cave as will be explained later.
This is also a good time to discuss the year of Y‘shua‘s birth. Let‘s do it on several points. Some scholars say
we know that Y‘shua had to be born prior to the year 4 B.C., for the simple reason that in that year Herod the
Great died. At the time of Y‘shua‘s birth, Herod was still living. They claim the decree of Cyrenius came in the