No One Knows
We really don’t know when Jesus was born, and we should really contemplate why God seems to have chosen to hide this momentous date, especially when the Lord has been so specific on pretty much everything else in Jesus’ life.
Take for instance one of the nine Biblical feasts that Jesus celebrated when He walked the earth was the Feast of First Fruits. Please refer to “Walking in a Winter One-der-land” http://wp.me/p158HG-gN and “Winter One-der-land” http://wp.me/p158HG-aH .
In Hebrew, the Feast of First Fruits is called Bikkurim. Deuteronomy 26:2 speaks about God telling the children of Israel, “… you shall take some of the first fruit of all the produce of the ground, …and put it in a basket and go to the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide.”[1] Yeshua (i.e., Jesus) resurrected conquering death forever on Bikkurim being the first fruit of many brethren (Rom. 8:29); and “… we ourselves, having the fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body” (Rom. 8:23).
On this same day of Bikkurim, Noah’s ark came up out of the waters and rested securely on Mount Ararat.[2] On First Fruits, God parted the Red Sea so His people could pass through the waters, and come up safely on the other side.[3] Also, on First Fruits, God’s people were saved from certain death in Persia, because Queen Esther stood firmly for her people and God made a way on this day to have Haman hung on his own gallows.[4] The Jewish people knew the history of salvation that happened on this day when Yeshua rose from the dead. His resurrection made it possible for His body to be redeemed. Yeshua brought His body to the cross as the meal-offering for His disloyal wife.
“For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the Body. But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. Husbands love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her” (Eph.5:23-25 NASB).
VIRGIN BIRTH CLUES
Even though we really don’t know when Jesus was born, we do know from clues in the Bible that Jesus was not born in winter due to several reasons.
Let’s first look at Luke 2:8 – “…there were some shepherds staying out in the fields, and keeping watch over their flock by night.” Spring or fall is the most likely season for shepherds watching their flock at night, possibly even summer, but not winter. Most scholars agree that Jesus was born somewhere around the time of the fall Feasts of the Lord (Lev. 23).
One way to reach this conclusion is through the story of the birth of John the Baptist in Luke 1. (BTW – John the Baptist was Jesus cousin through his mother, Mary, and he was conceived 6 months prior.)
From the book of 1 Chronicles chapter 24, we know when Zechariah’s (John the Baptist’s father) priestly division of Abijah served in the Temple (Luke 1:5). We also know that “shortly after” Zechariah returned home, Elizabeth became pregnant in her old age. Additionally, we know that 6 months later the angel Gabriel visited Mary and she became pregnant by the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:26). From these details, we can make an educated guess that brings us to the seventh month of the Jewish (i.e., Biblical) calendar – Tishri – for the timeframe of the birth of Jesus (Yeshua).
Today, many people believe that Yeshua was born during the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot in Hebrew), but there is one major obstacle to this theory. All Jewish men were commanded to be in Jerusalem during Sukkot, which made it impossible for everyone to be in their own town to register (Luke 2:3) at that time. BTW – The common time for a census was between August and October. December in Israel was normally rainy and cold, and a time when travel was difficult.
To pinpoint the time (season) of Jesus’ birth, we need to look up at the stars to see when salvation came nigh (Luke 21:28). The Aramaic name Jesus went by when walked the earth was Yeshua. His name carried the meaning of “salvation.” The Bible tells us that God created the stars to serve to mark seasons and days and years (Genesis 1:14).
Scientists are amazed to find that every civilization in history has always referred to the same constellations in the stars. This means that before the 70 nations were disbursed from the Tower of Babel, the then-known world understood the meaning behind the stars. This makes sense, because the highest priestly caste of the ancient pagan world was the “Chaldeans” – experts in divination, magic and astronomy (some dabbling in astrology).
Dr. D. James Kennedy believes God taught Adam the meaning behind the stars [something like you name the animals, now let me show you My stars], which was then handed down to succeeding generations.
Matthew 2:1-2 – “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.’”
There are two main branches of this passage we need to examine to obtain understanding of when Jesus could have been possibly born: “his star in the east” and the Magi (i.e., Daniel).
HIS STAR IN THE EAST
Three Bible passages, with Messianic overtones, describe the star of “the one … born king of the Jews.” (I’m just going to mention excerpts from these Bible passages, so you may want to write down their addresses and look them up later):
[1] Numbers 24:17-19 (We are going to concentrate on the phrase) “… A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel…”
[2] Genesis 49: 8-10 (is a prophesy about Judah … which is the lineage of Jesus according to Matthew 1:3) “… Like a lion … The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet.”
[3] Psalm 110:1-4 “You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.”
We see in Numbers 24 that a star called a scepter will come out from Jacob. In Genesis 49, we see that scepter being narrowed down to come out of the tribe of Judah, who is called the lion. And in Psalm 110, we see that the Messiah will come after the order of Melchizedek (king of righteousness).
The stars include the planets. Jupiter is also called “Zedek” in Hebrew and means righteous. It has always been connected with the Messiah, the Righteous One. The brightest star in the constellation of Leo, the lion (symbol of Judah), is Regiel, which means “king” or “Melech” in Hebrew. The Wise Men said, “We saw his star in the east.” With the help of computers, we can calculate the exact position of those star thousands of years back in time [the wonders of technology].
On September 12th, on the Feast of Trumpets in the year 3 BC, Regiel (Melech) and Jupiter (Zedek) began to make a helical (pronounced he-li-kal, form a spiral, they rolled or wrapped together) rising as one star forming Melchizedek. And what’s more is this Melchizedek star appeared between the feet of Leo (Judah) on the eastern horizon just before sunrise.
This helical rising of Regiel and Jupiter happens once in about 80 years. However, with one year it happened two more times in connection with the Biblical Feast of deliverance Purim as well as the Biblical Feast of Shavuot (Pentecost), which in Jesus’ time celebrated the giving of the Word of God at Mount Sinai. For Christians, Pentecost is also the festival in which God chose to give His people the Holy Spirit.
According to Jewish tradition, Adam was created by God on the Feast of Trumpets (Rosh ha Shana in Hebrew), so they call it the day of creation or the birthday of the world. Trumpets were also used to announce the arrival of a king.
But something else happened in the heavens that night of the Feast of Trumpets in 3 BC. Between 6:18 and 7:39 PM local Jerusalem time on September 11th (just as the Feast of Trumpets began), Virgo (the Virgin) was “clothed in the sun” with the new moon under her feet, exactly as described in the book of Revelation 12:1-5:
“A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. She gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.”
That year (3 B.C.) the sun was in the sign of Virgo for 20 days (between August 27th and September 15th), but only for about 1 ½ hours during that time was the moon under the feet of Virgo. And it happened exactly when the Feast of Trumpets began on 11 September 3 B.C.
Let’s try to wrap our heads around this: At exactly the moment when Mary may have been in labor giving birth to the Messiah, the stars very likely could have been lining up according to Revelation 12, displaying a woman in labor who was clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of 12 stars on her head … while the watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem announced the new moon … as shofars (ram’s horn trumpets) blew, which very likely could have been announcing that “the one, born king of the Jews” was coming. Later on that same night, on September 12th, Regiel (Melech) and Jupiter (Zedek) began the helical (he-li-kal) rising (coming together as one star – Melchizedek), which literally was like God declaring in the heavens that His king of the Jews was born – a different order had arrived. I believe that God did this, one because He could, and two because it fulfills the command to look up at the heavens to see that people’s salvation had come down into their realm (earth). The Messiah, Yeshua, had arrived.
THE MAGI (DANIEL)
Daniel was in charge of the “Chaldeans,” a group of highly trained intellectuals and astronomers for more than 60 years (the ungodly Chaldeans dabbled in the occult – astrology, divination and magic).
After accurately interpreting one of King Nebuchadnezzar’s troubling dreams, Daniel was promoted to Prime Minister of Babylon, which made him an extremely wealthy young man. The Scriptures state that Daniel multiplied in wealth two more times during the reigns of Belshazzar and again under Darius the Mede. Daniel was one of the richest men in the kingdom. During the course of Daniel’s life, he received many dreams and visions about kingdoms to come and the end of the age.
Near the end of his life, Daniel was visited by the Archangel Gabriel and given very exact signs concerning the coming of the Messiah, but was instructed to seal up some of the information [keep it close to his chest]. Daniel died in Babylon, a eunuch with no heir to whom he could leave his wealth, but there’s little doubt that he would have made careful plans for the distribution of his vast treasure.
Daniel would have naturally trusted the sealed up information, concerning the coming of the Messiah, and the execution of his will to his most trusted companions – the godly Chaldeans or Magi, which is the common term for Chaldean astronomers in Greek.
What became of Daniel’s estate? It would be approximately 500 years before any hint of Daniel’s treasure re-appears on the pages of Scripture.
The man on the street will probably tell you that three Wise Men found Jesus wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger. But there’s a problem with this scenario, because it’s based on a tradition of man instead of the testimony of Scripture. In Matthew chapter 2, there are an undesignated number of wise men that come to a house (not a manger) where they found a young child (probably a toddler) and his mother. The tradition of 3 Wise Men probably stems from the 3 type of gifts that the Magi brought: gold, frankincense and myrrh. (Please refer to “We Three Magi” http://wp.me/p158HG-pi ).
It’s fairly absurd to suggest that a trio laden with treasure crossed the torrid sands of the desert without the protection of a large armed caravan. They would have been fools, not wise men, to have ventured unaccompanied into the desert.
It is definitely possible that these Magi were not only entrusted with the knowledge of the exact signs in the sky to look for (concerning the coming of the Messiah), but also entrusted with Daniel’s treasure to bring to the Messiah – “the one, born king of the Jews.”
I believe that following Daniel’s instructions to the T, a select group of Chaldean Wise Men watched the skies for more than 500 years. They awaited the Great Sign in the Heavens. When they saw “it,” the executioners of Daniel’s will brought their treasure-laden caravan into Jerusalem and proclaimed: “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him” (Matthew 2:1-2).
Herod inquired of the chief priests and scribes (according to Matthew 2:4), then sent the Wise Men to Bethlehem where the prophet Micah said he would be born (Micah 5:2).
After the Chaldeans delivered their treasure to the Messiah, they were warned in a dream to secretly depart from Israel. And the very night that the Chaldean astronomers delivered Daniel’s treasure, Joseph was told in a dream to take Mary and little Jesus to Egypt.
Think about this a minute: Forty days after Jesus’ birth, Joseph could only afford the poor man’s sacrifice of two pigeons at his step-son’s dedication. But on the very night the family had to flee to Egypt or Jesus would have been killed, the provision for their flight arrived by Magi courier. It sounds like God’s supernatural provision to me.
DEC 25TH IS ANCIENT SUN GODS’ BIRTHDAY
If God chose to hide when Jesus was born, there’s a reason why. Even though we really don’t know when Jesus was born, we do know that every sun god in all cultures throughout antiquity had their birthday celebrated on December 25th before the Roman (Julian) shift in time.
For example: The pagan sun worship of Mithraism, with its sun god Mithra, had a winter festival called “The Nativity,” or “The Nativity of the Sun,” or “The Nativity of the Unconquered Sun.” The Catholic Encyclopedia admits: The Nativity of the Unconquered Sun, celebrated on the 25th of December, has a strong claim on the responsibility of our December date.
In fact, Mithra’s Winter Festival (celebrating the sun god’s birth) was assimilated into the Christian Church’s ecclesiastical calendar in 379 AD. The “official” Church compromised with a heretical Arianism philosophy, which regarded Jesus solely as a human agent while still proclaiming that Jesus sustained His place in the Holy Trinity. NOTE: The earliest Christians viewed birthday celebrations as heathen.
The first recorded evidence of Christmas actually taking place on December 25th isn’t found until the time of Constantine in AD 336. Constantine’s original piety was associated with the sun. For more information, please see “Where Christmas Comes From – Part 1” http://wp.me/p158HG-1t and “Where Christmas Comes From Part 2” http://wp.me/p158HG-2m.
~ Robin Main
www.sapphirethroneministries.com
www.santa-tizing.com
www.mysticmentoring.com
Copyright Dec. 24, 2012 – Author: Robin Main.
The information in this article and more details can be found in Chapter 5 “The Golden Snare” or Chapter 6 “The Golden Calf” in my book: SANTA-TIZING: What’s wrong with Christmas and how to clean it up (available on amazon http://www.amazon.com/SANTA-TIZING-Whats-wrong-Christmas-clean/dp/1607911159/).
*****
.
RESOURCES AVAILABLE:
.
• Ascension Manual book => https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578188511
• Understanding the Order of Melchizedek: Complete Series book => https://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Order-Melchizedek-Robin-Main/dp/0998598240/
• MEL GEL Study Guide book => https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578188538/
• MEL GEL Study Guide: Volume 2 book => https://www.amazon.com/dp/0998598232/
• Set of Hebrew Living Letter Flash Cards => https://www.sapphirethroneministries.com/flashcards
• Blazing New Wine of Hanukkah: Bridal Restoration of DNA book => https://www.amazon.com/Blazing-Wine-Hanukkah-Bridal-Restoration/dp/1634430026/
• SANTA-TIZING: What’s wrong with Christmas and how to clean it up book => https://www.amazon.com/SANTA-TIZING-Whats-wrong-Christmas-clean/dp/1607911159/ was written to fulfill a vow made to Yeshua’s face to tell the Christian Church that “Christmas will be the Golden Calf of America.” It took 10 years of full-time research, a golden scribe angel and the Spirit’s leading to unearthing His Truth in the sands of time. It covers every argument that you have ever heard about Christmas.
*****
Resources for this article:
The Pagan-Christian Connection Exposed by Michael J. Rood
“When Was Messiah Born?” via www.watchman.org
The Real Meaning of the Zodiac by Dr. D. James Kennedy
Footnotes:
[1] Micha’el Washer , Messianic Jewish Calendar, Festival Commentary 1993-94, 5753-5754, Bikkurim – April (Nisan-Iyar). Technically, the words “First Fruits” in Dt 26:2 is not bikkurim but simply the Hebrew words for well….first + fruits.
[2] Chumney, The Seven Festivals of the Messiah, 70.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Ibid., 70-71.
SANTA-TIZING's Blog 