It had to be Bethlehem

Tracing the steps that took Mary & Joseph to Bethlehem, is not as hard as you think.

The fantasy of Christmas surrounds us from the music, movies and adverts, to decorating the home with the many ornaments collected over the years.  But there is a truth about Christmas that is so often believed to be fantasy too.

The Bible is not full of written myths but is an accurate laying out of God’s word from before the beginning to the very end.  Let us look at one such prophecy concerning the birth of Jesus.

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for Me
One who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
from ancient times.” Micah 5v2

Bethlehem is situated about 8km (5miles) south of Jerusalem along the main ridge route to Egypt.  It is the main setting for the book of Ruth, King David’s great-grandmother and the tribal home of both Mary & Joseph who lived in Nazareth.  Although Mary knew she was carrying the Messiah, what reason would they have to take the difficult mountainous journey of over 112km (70miles) to make sure her son would be born in Bethlehem?  The angel Gabriel had not instructed them to do that.  It is also highly unlikely that they were simply trying to add credibility to Jesus’ claim by using Micah’s prophecy as proof.  The simple fact is that Jesus was to be born in Bethlehem and God, the supreme organiser, arranged it so.

“In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.  (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.)  And everyone went to their own town to register.  So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.  He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.  While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son.  She wrapped Him in cloths and placed Him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.”  Luke 2v1-7

Emperor Augustus had supreme military power and while dominating the Mediterranean region he also ushered in a period of prosperity and peace.  When he made the order for “all the inhabited earth” to be counted he meant the world of the Roman Empire ostensibly for military purposes.  This census once instigated was to be done every 14 years and initially did not involve the Jews who were exempt from military service.

He then declared a new census to number each nation by family and tribe; the principle being that every man must return to the city from which his family sprang in order to be registered.  As Joseph belonged to the house and line of David, this meant Bethlehem.

Augustus may have been trying to get greater control over the various parts of his empire but ironically organised that Jesus, Son of Mary, Son of David, Son of God, would be born in the town of David – fulfilling Micah’s prophecy.

First published in 2023