Do We Know When Jesus Was Actually Born?
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America, and most of the Western world, sets aside December 25th to celebrate Christmas. Our whole culture revolves around the holiday. Schools give two weeks off, businesses close for a day or more, and companies give their employees extra vacation.
But do we know the month when Jesus was actually born? Was it really December? While the Bible doesn’t specify a date for the birth of Christ, Scripture and history give us clues to explore when the Good News came to earth in a baby.
What Does the Bible Say about the Time of Jesus’ Birth?
Luke 2:8 describes shepherds “living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night” when the angel announced the birth of Jesus. In Israel, shepherds usually kept their flocks outside from spring through early fall during milder weather conditions. The winter months got too cold and rainy for the flocks to be outside to graze, making it unlikely shepherds would have been out in the fields at night during the winter. Luke 2 implies a warmer season, from the spring to fall.
Another clue comes from John the Baptist’s timeline. Luke 1 tells how John’s father, Zechariah, a Levite priest from the family of Abijah, saw an angel while serving in the Temple. Scholars suggest Zechariah would have been serving around late May or early June. Soon after, his wife Elizabeth conceived a son, John, and Luke further explains that six months later, the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary. Gabriel announces that she would bear Christ. As a general timeline, this would place Jesus’ conception around the winter (December), placing his birth in September, the autumn.
In September or early October, the Jews would have celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles, or Sukkot. This festival celebrated God dwelling with his people while they lived in tents. From these previous biblical notes, if Jesus had been born in the fall, it would have been interesting if Jesus had been born with the name “Emmanuel,” meaning “God with us,” during the Feast of Tabernacles. Prophetic and historical books pointed to the Feast of Tabernacles and its importance when the Jews came back from exile (Zechariah, Ezra, Nehemiah).
The Bible might not specify a day, but Jesus’ birth happened at God’s appointed time. Galatians 4:4-5 says, “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His son, born of a virgin, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law.”
What Time of Year Did Romans Do a Census?
Luke also mentions Jesus’ birth during the Roman census. The Roman Empire conducted censuses for different reasons: taxation, military draft, and general control. While the exact timing for these censuses varied, they usually happened during the warmer months, often in the late spring or summer when travel was easier. Warmer weather allowed people from all over the empire to return to their hometowns to register without having to deal with the winter cold. Additionally, the summer or early fall months wouldn’t interrupt or disrupt the farming cycles of planting and harvesting. Historical Roman records exist and provide a glimpse into how and when these were organized.
Luke 2 mentions a census ordered by Caesar Augustus just before Jesus’ birth. This forced Joseph and Mary to travel to Bethlehem, King David’s home city. The journey would have been difficult for a pregnant woman. They probably walked due to their poverty, and Scripture never mentions a donkey or colt. Luke doesn’t give a month for the census, but it’s likely it took place during warmer seasons, consistent with Roman practices.
Rome conducted censuses every 14 years, generally, although they might sometimes happen more depending on the Caesar, the local needs, and the imperial situation. By Jesus’ time, the census system had become amazingly organized, with officials and local governors working to coordinate registering the populace. Judea operated under Roman rule but also had some local powers, and the administration generally followed the Roman tradition of warmer weather.
Exact records of this census under Caesar Augustus aren’t available. However, we can be pretty sure the census happened in the summer or early fall.
For Luke to mention this particular census, he places Jesus’ birth directly within history at a time many people at the time might have remembered. The records of that census likely still existed in the first century.
The census context also has an interesting Old Testament connection. In 2 Samuel 24, King David ordered a census of Israel’s fighting men. This action violated Mosaic law and showed David’s pride. The Law warned against censuses for personal or military purposes since Israel’s strength came from God alone, not numbers or physical power (Exodus 30:12). David’s census shifted his focus to worldly resources. God viewed this pride as sin and responded by sending a plague upon Israel. The plague only stopped after David repented and offered sacrifices.
The Roman census would have been seen by the Jews as a symbol of Rome’s control and oppressive nature. Luke may have included this detail to show how Jesus (called the Son of David) was humbly born under Roman rule but established a kingdom unlike any other—one based on peace, humility, and heavenly authority.
How Did December Become the Month We Celebrate Christmas?
A leading theory for why Christianity chose December 25 for Christmas comes from the influence of the Roman pagan festival of Saturnalia, a popular winter celebration of the god Saturn. One of Rome’s most celebrated holidays, Saturnalia (from December 17-23) included feasting, gift-giving, and parties. Around the same time, the Romans celebrated the winter solstice, a time of the sun’s rebirth as days began to lengthen. In 274 AD, the Roman Emperor Aurelian established December 25 as the feast day of Sol Invictus (the unconquered sun), symbolizing the light conquering darkness.
Later church leaders probably saw an opportunity to use these holidays already celebrated across the empire. While local customs also existed, the Roman Empire universally observed these days. Christians could use December 25 to point to Jesus, the true Light of the World (John 8:12). By assigning Jesus’ birth to December 25, the church could help the culture more easily give up their pagan focus and now use the same time to worship Christ.
In 336 AD, the Roman Emperor Constantine officially recognized December 25 as Christmas, making it part of the Christian liturgical calendar. The church in Rome started observing Christmas on this day, and the practice spread throughout the empire over the following years. By the end of the 4th century, most of the Western church accepted December 25 as Christmas. Some Eastern churches in Egypt and Syria celebrated Jesus’ birth on January 6, which the West now calls Epiphany.
This all led to our modern December 25th date for Christmas.
Should Christians Celebrate Christmas in December?
A few Christians resist celebrating Christmas on December 25 due to the ties to pagan traditions. They argue that because the Bible doesn’t specify December 25 as the day, we should avoid observing a day with non-Christian background. Additionally, as we’ve discussed, the biblical and historical evidence we do have point to a spring to fall month for Christ's birth rather than December. Romans 12:2 encourages us to, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world,” which these Christians interpret as a call to avoid traditions from pagan sources.
Some Christians argue Christmas has become too secular and materialistic, focusing more on getting gifts or making money for businesses than the true message of Christ’s birth. Most media and decorations around Christmas are intentionally secular to be more inclusive. Nothing can be more inclusive for all people than the Gospel of the Son the Father sent to save the world. In this view, December 25 causes distraction from Christ, often willfully. It might be better to celebrate his birth in a simpler, less commercialized way, even on a different day.
At the same time, many Christians support celebrating on December 25. The world may commercialize it or dismiss God through it, but the cultural, common date for Christmas can open opportunities to have spiritual conversations. During the modern Christmas season, people may be more willing to hear biblical stories and consider the mighty work of Christ. Just because the world celebrates in wrong ways doesn’t mean believers have to. Christians are free to celebrate the birth of Jesus how and when they like.
Early Christian leaders saw the potential to redeem the date associated with pagan celebrations to point to Jesus. Missionaries have done this throughout Christian history, using local customs or stories to point to a higher truth, like Paul in Athens (Acts 17). While the modern Christmas has become fairly secularized, Christians can still redeem the season in new and creative ways.
Ultimately, the New Testament expresses these historical works (the birth of Christ, the death and resurrection) as simultaneous eternal events. Celebrating on a specific day can also be legalistic. There’s no power in observing a day. The Old Testament days and traditions like Sabbath, Passover, Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles were completely fulfilled in Christ. Being born of the Spirit with Christ within us, we live in these traditions every moment. We can celebrate Easter or Christmas as a day, but these are also realities in which to live (God with us, the cross, the resurrection).
Paul says in Romans 14:5-6, “One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind.” Neither side should judge or condemn the other. Ultimately, celebrating Christmas on December 25 provides us with an opportunity to join together in remembering Jesus’ birth, even if the Bible doesn’t give a specific month or date. The focus must also remain upon honoring the birth of Jesus with our lives and spreading his message to the world.
Peace.
Further Reading
When Was Jesus Actually Born?
When Was Jesus Born, and Was it on Christmas, December 25th?
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