ìThen 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 enquired of the wise men.î
Matthew 2:16 (emphasis mine)
Even the time of year that is supposed to be the birth of Christ proves itself false
under a discerning eye. From December to February, it is actually quite cold in the
land of Israel. The Bible tells us that when Jesus was born in Bethlehem, there
were shepherds watching their flocks at night when the angel appeared,
announcing the birth of the Savior.
ì...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 told them], For unto you is born
this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the
Lord.î Luke 2:8; 9; 11
However, it is not the custom of shepherds to watch their flocks in this manner
later than the end of October.
During the time that Christ was to be born, Caesar had decreed that the entire
world should be taxed.
ìAnd it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree
from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.î
Luke 2:1
Unlike the days we live in, taxes were collected from the people in person
instead of mailed in. Each family had to travel to their hometowns, and this
process usually took quite a while. The middle of winter would not have been a
very good time to be making your way to your destination. The cold and the
shortness of daylight hours to travel would have made collecting taxes quite
difficult. During that time of year, in that part of the world, the conditions are harsh
enough that Jesus later warned His disciples:
ìBut pray ye that your flight be not in the winter...î
Matthew 24:20
There are those that have tried to calculate the exact time of the birth of Christ,
but I am not one of them. Perhaps it was April 17, in 6 BC, or sometime in the year
7 BC. Many seem to believe that Jesus was actually born on Rosh Hashanah (the
Jewish New Year) in the year 3 BC. Rosh Hashanah usually occurs on the
Gregorian calendar sometime around the 30th of September.