Jesus- his birth: A
Set texts Matthew 1:18 - 2:23
- 18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came
about[a]: His mother Mary was pledged to be
married to Joseph, but before they came
together, she was found to be pregnant through
the Holy Spirit.
- 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give
him the name Jesus,[c] because he will save his
people from their sins.”
- “Where is the one who has been born king of the
Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have
come to worship him.”
- After they had heard the king, they went on their
way, and the star they had seen when it rose
went ahead of them until it stopped over the
place where the child was.
Luke 1:26 – 2.40
- The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you
who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
- You will conceive and give birth to a son, and
you are to call him Jesus.
Key words Exegesis:
It typically refers to the detailed interpretation of
scriptures (e.g., the Bible, Quran, Torah). Example:
Biblical exegesis involves analysing the original Greek
or Hebrew texts to understand their meaning
accurately.
The birth All the New Testament writers had a consensus that
narratives in Jesus was the son of God. However, only two gospels
Matthew and Luke (Matthew/ Luke) discuss and provide information on
how Jesus came into the world (birth narrative)
Birth narrative
Matthew’s version Matthew is very Joseph centric. He describes how an
un-named angel's conducted the annunciation to Mary
which leads to the divine conception of Jesus and his
following birth in Bethlehem. Matthew goes on to
describe how the first non-jews that had the honour of
beholding baby Jesus were the magi who had followed
him as they were guided by a star ‘from the east’
either in Babylonia, Egypt or Arabia. There is no
indication of just how many magi there were, but we
traditionally have been led to believe it was three; as
, they bore the three gifts of ‘gold, frankincense and
myrrh’. Matthew provides a cinematic account on how
the wise men undermine King Herod and consequently
stir his wrath as he devises a maleficent plan to
slaughter all the children in Bethlehem under the age
of 2. Joseph is informed in a dream in a divine
visitation that he is to leave with Mary and find refuge
in Egypt. They return to Bethlehem following Herod’s
death.
Luke’s version Luke is very Mary centric. Gabriel conducts the
annunciation and informs her of her pregnancy.
Marriage between Joseph and Marry makes no
mention. A visit to a long distance relative does,
however. The pregnant cousins Mary and Elizabeth
meet with one another and so do John and Jesus.
Elizabeth expresses her joy at this in what is called the
magnificat. Luke delves a little more into the life of
John the Baptist and his family. We are told of
Zechariah’s Benedictus. Luke now describes a census
called by Ceasar Augustus which made it necessary for
the engaged Mary and Joseph to travel to Bethlehem
for registration. While this is happening, Mary goes into
Labour and Joseph is frantically trying to find an inn for
Mary and Joseph to give birth to Baby Jesus. This never
happens and Mary and Joseph have to settle for either
a stable or an outhouse. Luke then transitions from
Mary and Joseph to shepherds in a field that have been
informed by an angel that Jesus has been born. They
are described as going to Bethlehem to visit Jesus (in
the same way dignitaries go and visit a monarch etc.).
Following Jesus birth he is presented in the Temple in
Jerusalem. Simeon and the prophetess Anna instantly
recognise him as the messiah and Simeon is recorded
as speaking the hymn known as the Nunc Dimittis.
Differences in Matthew:
accounts ü Writes from Josephs viewpoint
ü Exclusively records Joseph and Mary’s marriage,
the appearance of the star, the visit of the Wise
Men, Herod’s decree to slaughter the infants and
the trip to Egypt
ü Has extensive fulfilment quotations
ü Tells us that Jesus was born in a house
Luke:
- Writes from Mary’s point of view
- Does not include fulfilment quotations
- Exclusively records Mary’s visit to Elizabeth, the
, birth of John the Baptist, the visit of the
shepherds, the presentation of Christ in the
Temple, and the three hymns (the Magnificat,
the Benedictus, and the Nunc Dimittis)
- mentions that Jesus was born in a manger
Differences
between the Birth Angels Matthew has an angel appear to Mary
Narratives in but they are unnamed (references to
Matthew and Luke Isaiah 7:14)
Angel Gabriel appears to appears to
Mary (the annunciation)
Mary and Joseph marries Mary (1:24)
Joseph Joseph is engaged to Mary
Mary visits Elizabeth
Mary’s song – The Magnificat
The Birth of John the Baptist
Zechariah’s prophecy- the Bendictus
The census
Visitors The Wise Men (references to Micah 5:2
and 2 Samuel 5:2)
The shepherds
Herod The slaughter of the infants (references
from Jeremiah 31:15)
Temple The presentation of Christ in the Temple
Simeon’s song- Nunc Dimittis
Return The flight to Egypt (references from
Journey Hosea 11:1)
The return to Nazareth from Egypt
(possible reference to Judges 13:5,7)
The return of Nazareth from Jerusalem
Chronolog Matthew simply states that Jesus was
y born in the days of Herod the King
The historicity of
Luke is more specific. We are informed
the accounts
that it was during the days that Quirinius
was governor of Syria
Historicity simply means the historical accuracy
something has.
- Matthew as an author provides us with a greater
level of historical accuracy. Mentioning Herod’s
massacre of the infants. However, quite
interestingly, this massacre is not reported by
, any other contemporary historian. It has been
suggested that Matthew desperately wanted
Jesus' birth story to be likened to that of Moses’
where Pharoah decreed the slaughter of all first-
born males in the land.
- Luke chronology appears to be mistaken; we are
not certain whether Quirinius was governor
during the days of HEROD as the dates around
Herod’s death (4BC) make this erroneous. It may
be true that Quirinius held a census between
6&7 BC but there is no evidence of a first
enrolment that took place that took place 7
years earlier except by what Luke said. Luke
may have investigated “everything to write an
orderly account but there are still various details
that do not seem to match up.
- There is also a query with the three hymns that
Luke uses in his narrative. The Magnificat,
Benedictus and Nunc Dimittis were all already
being used in the early church before Luke
attributed them to the various gospel characters.
Supernatural The supernatural tone that surrounds Jesus' birth act
events in the as a cause for concern with those who doubt it
accounts historicity.
Matthew writes:
- of how an angel appears to Joseph on three
visitations.
- An angel also informs the three wise men of
Jesus’ birth and instructs them to follow the star
in the sky
Luke writes:
- Of how Gabriel appears to Mary
- How the pre-natal John the Baptist was able to
recognise the pre-natal Jesus in his mothers
womb
- The shepherds are supernaturally visited by a
choir of angles
- The prophetess Anna discerns that Jesus is the
messiah that was foretold in the scriptures when
he enters the temple to be dedicated.
Both Matthew and Luke:
- Write of the divine conception of Jesus. He was
human by virtue of his mother and divine by
virtue of being conceived by God.
Harmonising the There are some things that are similar in both
Set texts Matthew 1:18 - 2:23
- 18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came
about[a]: His mother Mary was pledged to be
married to Joseph, but before they came
together, she was found to be pregnant through
the Holy Spirit.
- 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give
him the name Jesus,[c] because he will save his
people from their sins.”
- “Where is the one who has been born king of the
Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have
come to worship him.”
- After they had heard the king, they went on their
way, and the star they had seen when it rose
went ahead of them until it stopped over the
place where the child was.
Luke 1:26 – 2.40
- The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you
who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
- You will conceive and give birth to a son, and
you are to call him Jesus.
Key words Exegesis:
It typically refers to the detailed interpretation of
scriptures (e.g., the Bible, Quran, Torah). Example:
Biblical exegesis involves analysing the original Greek
or Hebrew texts to understand their meaning
accurately.
The birth All the New Testament writers had a consensus that
narratives in Jesus was the son of God. However, only two gospels
Matthew and Luke (Matthew/ Luke) discuss and provide information on
how Jesus came into the world (birth narrative)
Birth narrative
Matthew’s version Matthew is very Joseph centric. He describes how an
un-named angel's conducted the annunciation to Mary
which leads to the divine conception of Jesus and his
following birth in Bethlehem. Matthew goes on to
describe how the first non-jews that had the honour of
beholding baby Jesus were the magi who had followed
him as they were guided by a star ‘from the east’
either in Babylonia, Egypt or Arabia. There is no
indication of just how many magi there were, but we
traditionally have been led to believe it was three; as
, they bore the three gifts of ‘gold, frankincense and
myrrh’. Matthew provides a cinematic account on how
the wise men undermine King Herod and consequently
stir his wrath as he devises a maleficent plan to
slaughter all the children in Bethlehem under the age
of 2. Joseph is informed in a dream in a divine
visitation that he is to leave with Mary and find refuge
in Egypt. They return to Bethlehem following Herod’s
death.
Luke’s version Luke is very Mary centric. Gabriel conducts the
annunciation and informs her of her pregnancy.
Marriage between Joseph and Marry makes no
mention. A visit to a long distance relative does,
however. The pregnant cousins Mary and Elizabeth
meet with one another and so do John and Jesus.
Elizabeth expresses her joy at this in what is called the
magnificat. Luke delves a little more into the life of
John the Baptist and his family. We are told of
Zechariah’s Benedictus. Luke now describes a census
called by Ceasar Augustus which made it necessary for
the engaged Mary and Joseph to travel to Bethlehem
for registration. While this is happening, Mary goes into
Labour and Joseph is frantically trying to find an inn for
Mary and Joseph to give birth to Baby Jesus. This never
happens and Mary and Joseph have to settle for either
a stable or an outhouse. Luke then transitions from
Mary and Joseph to shepherds in a field that have been
informed by an angel that Jesus has been born. They
are described as going to Bethlehem to visit Jesus (in
the same way dignitaries go and visit a monarch etc.).
Following Jesus birth he is presented in the Temple in
Jerusalem. Simeon and the prophetess Anna instantly
recognise him as the messiah and Simeon is recorded
as speaking the hymn known as the Nunc Dimittis.
Differences in Matthew:
accounts ü Writes from Josephs viewpoint
ü Exclusively records Joseph and Mary’s marriage,
the appearance of the star, the visit of the Wise
Men, Herod’s decree to slaughter the infants and
the trip to Egypt
ü Has extensive fulfilment quotations
ü Tells us that Jesus was born in a house
Luke:
- Writes from Mary’s point of view
- Does not include fulfilment quotations
- Exclusively records Mary’s visit to Elizabeth, the
, birth of John the Baptist, the visit of the
shepherds, the presentation of Christ in the
Temple, and the three hymns (the Magnificat,
the Benedictus, and the Nunc Dimittis)
- mentions that Jesus was born in a manger
Differences
between the Birth Angels Matthew has an angel appear to Mary
Narratives in but they are unnamed (references to
Matthew and Luke Isaiah 7:14)
Angel Gabriel appears to appears to
Mary (the annunciation)
Mary and Joseph marries Mary (1:24)
Joseph Joseph is engaged to Mary
Mary visits Elizabeth
Mary’s song – The Magnificat
The Birth of John the Baptist
Zechariah’s prophecy- the Bendictus
The census
Visitors The Wise Men (references to Micah 5:2
and 2 Samuel 5:2)
The shepherds
Herod The slaughter of the infants (references
from Jeremiah 31:15)
Temple The presentation of Christ in the Temple
Simeon’s song- Nunc Dimittis
Return The flight to Egypt (references from
Journey Hosea 11:1)
The return to Nazareth from Egypt
(possible reference to Judges 13:5,7)
The return of Nazareth from Jerusalem
Chronolog Matthew simply states that Jesus was
y born in the days of Herod the King
The historicity of
Luke is more specific. We are informed
the accounts
that it was during the days that Quirinius
was governor of Syria
Historicity simply means the historical accuracy
something has.
- Matthew as an author provides us with a greater
level of historical accuracy. Mentioning Herod’s
massacre of the infants. However, quite
interestingly, this massacre is not reported by
, any other contemporary historian. It has been
suggested that Matthew desperately wanted
Jesus' birth story to be likened to that of Moses’
where Pharoah decreed the slaughter of all first-
born males in the land.
- Luke chronology appears to be mistaken; we are
not certain whether Quirinius was governor
during the days of HEROD as the dates around
Herod’s death (4BC) make this erroneous. It may
be true that Quirinius held a census between
6&7 BC but there is no evidence of a first
enrolment that took place that took place 7
years earlier except by what Luke said. Luke
may have investigated “everything to write an
orderly account but there are still various details
that do not seem to match up.
- There is also a query with the three hymns that
Luke uses in his narrative. The Magnificat,
Benedictus and Nunc Dimittis were all already
being used in the early church before Luke
attributed them to the various gospel characters.
Supernatural The supernatural tone that surrounds Jesus' birth act
events in the as a cause for concern with those who doubt it
accounts historicity.
Matthew writes:
- of how an angel appears to Joseph on three
visitations.
- An angel also informs the three wise men of
Jesus’ birth and instructs them to follow the star
in the sky
Luke writes:
- Of how Gabriel appears to Mary
- How the pre-natal John the Baptist was able to
recognise the pre-natal Jesus in his mothers
womb
- The shepherds are supernaturally visited by a
choir of angles
- The prophetess Anna discerns that Jesus is the
messiah that was foretold in the scriptures when
he enters the temple to be dedicated.
Both Matthew and Luke:
- Write of the divine conception of Jesus. He was
human by virtue of his mother and divine by
virtue of being conceived by God.
Harmonising the There are some things that are similar in both
