Luke 2:1-9

The Census and the Birth of Jesus

2:1 Now ¹  in those days a decree ²  went out from Caesar ³  Augustus ⁴  to register ⁵  all the empire ⁶  for taxes. 2:2 This was the first registration, taken when Quirinius was governor ⁷  of Syria. 2:3 Everyone ⁸  went to his own town ⁹  to be registered. 2:4 So ¹⁰  Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth ¹¹  in Galilee to Judea, to the city ¹²  of David called Bethlehem, ¹³  because he was of the house ¹⁴  and family line ¹⁵  of David. 2:5 He went ¹⁶  to be registered with Mary, who was promised in marriage to him, ¹⁷  and who was expecting a child. 2:6 While ¹⁸  they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. ¹⁹  2:7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in strips of cloth ²⁰  and laid him in a manger, ²¹  because there was no place for them in the inn. ²² 

The Shepherds’ Visit

2:8 Now ²³  there were shepherds ²⁴  nearby ²⁵  living out in the field, keeping guard ²⁶  over their flock at night. 2:9 An ²⁷  angel of the Lord ²⁸  appeared to ²⁹  them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were absolutely terrified. ³⁰ 

[2:1]  ¹ tn Grk “Now it happened that.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[2:1]  ² sn This decree was a formal decree from the Roman Senate.

[2:1]  ³ tn Or “from the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[2:1]  ⁴ sn Caesar Augustus refers to Octavian, who was Caesar from 27 b.c. to a.d. 14. He was known for his administrative prowess.

[2:1]  ⁵ tn Grk “that all the empire should be registered for taxes.” The passive infinitive ἀπογράφεσθαι (apografesqai) has been rendered as an active in the translation to improve the English style. The verb is regarded as a technical term for official registration in tax lists (BDAG 108 s.v. ἀπογράφω a).

[2:1]  ⁶ tn Grk “the whole (inhabited) world,” but this was a way to refer to the Roman empire (L&N 1.83).

[2:2]  ⁷ tn Or “was a minister of Syria.” This term could simply refer to an administrative role Quirinius held as opposed to being governor (Josephus, Ant. 18.4.2 [18.88]). See also Luke 2:1.

[2:3]  ⁸ tn Grk “And everyone.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[2:3]  ⁹ tn Or “hometown” (so CEV).

[2:4]  ¹⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the consequential nature of the action.

[2:4]  ¹¹ sn On Nazareth see Luke 1:26.

[2:4]  ¹² tn Or “town.” The translation “city” is used here because of its collocation with “of David,” suggesting its importance, though not its size.

[2:4]  ¹³ sn The journey from Nazareth to the city of David called Bethlehem was a journey of about 90 mi (150 km). Bethlehem was a small village located about 7 miles south-southwest of Jerusalem.

[2:4]  ¹⁴ sn Luke’s use of the term “house” probably alludes to the original promise made to David outlined in the Nathan oracle of 2 Sam 7:12-16, especially in light of earlier connections between Jesus and David made in Luke 1:32. Further, the mention of Bethlehem reminds one of the promise of Mic 5:2, namely, that a great king would emerge from Bethlehem to rule over God’s people.

[2:4]  ¹⁵ tn Or “family,” “lineage.”

[2:5]  ¹⁶ tn The words “He went” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied to begin a new sentence in the translation. The Greek sentence is longer and more complex than normal contemporary English usage.

[2:5]  ¹⁷ tn Traditionally, “Mary, his betrothed.” Although often rendered in contemporary English as “Mary, who was engaged to him,” this may give the modern reader a wrong impression, since Jewish marriages in this period were typically arranged marriages. The term ἐμνηστευμένῃ (emnhsteumenh) may suggest that the marriage is not yet consummated, not necessarily that they are not currently married. Some mss read “the betrothed to him wife”; others, simply “his wife.” These readings, though probably not original, may give the right sense.

[2:6]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “And it happened that while.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated. Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[2:6]  ¹⁹ tn The words “her child” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied to clarify what was being delivered. The wording here is like Luke 1:57. Grk “the days for her to give birth were fulfilled.”

[2:7]  ²⁰ sn The strips of cloth (traditionally, “swaddling cloths”) were strips of linen that would be wrapped around the arms and legs of an infant to keep the limbs protected.

[2:7]  ²¹ tn Or “a feeding trough.”

[2:7]  ²² tn The Greek word κατάλυμα is flexible, and usage in the LXX and NT refers to a variety of places for lodging (see BDAG 521 s.v.). Most likely Joseph and Mary sought lodging in the public accommodations in the city of Bethlehem (see J. Nolland, Luke [WBC], 1:105), which would have been crude shelters for people and animals. However, it has been suggested by various scholars that Joseph and Mary were staying with relatives in Bethlehem (e.g., C. S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, 194; B. Witherington, “Birth of Jesus,” DJG, 69-70); if that were so the term would refer to the guest room in the relatives’ house, which would have been filled beyond capacity with all the other relatives who had to journey to Bethlehem for the census.

[2:8]  ²³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

[2:8]  ²⁴ sn Some argue that shepherds were among the culturally despised, but the evidence for this view of shepherds is late, coming from 5th century Jewish materials. December 25 as the celebrated date of Jesus’ birth arose around the time of Constantine (ca. a.d. 306-337), though it is mentioned in material from Hippolytus (a.d. 165-235). Some think that the reason for celebration on this date was that it coincided with the pagan Roman festival of Saturnalia, and Christians could celebrate their own festival at this time without fear of persecution. On the basis of the statement that the shepherds were living out in the field, keeping guard over their flock at night it is often suggested that Jesus’ birth took place in early spring, since it was only at lambing time that shepherds stood guard over their flocks in the field. This is not absolutely certain, however.

[2:8]  ²⁵ tn Grk “in that region.”

[2:8]  ²⁶ tn Grk “living in the field (see BDAG 15 s.v. ἀγραυλέω) and guarding their flock.”

[2:9]  ²⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[2:9]  ²⁸ tn Or “the angel of the Lord.” See the note on the word “Lord” in 1:11.

[2:9]  ²⁹ tn Or “stood in front of.”

[2:9]  ³⁰ tn Grk “they feared a great fear” (a Semitic idiom which intensifies the main idea, in this case their fear).