The Weekly Bulletin of the Livingston Church of Christ

Meeting at 639 2nd Street, Livingston, CA 95334

Office: (209) 394-3511 | Preacher: Jovan Payes
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Luke 1-3: Jesus and Bible Chronology (1)| Jovan Payes December, 5 2010

There are some who question the assertion that the Bible despite its News and Notes
religious or theological nature is in fact a book accurately grounded in
history. The Bible is not a mythic history, in need to be stripped of its A Note to Our Visitors:
ancient notions of the supernatural and redressed for its modern Welcome! We want you to
know you are our honored
readers.
guests. Let us know how we
Consider, for example, the case of the Gospel of Luke. Luke affirms
can serve you. We have free
that his two volume work Luke-Acts is of the highest caliber on order
biblical literature and offer
with the histories of great repute in the ancient world. Luke 1.1-4 makes free home bible studies.
this point clear in transparent language. In this piece, we will consider
Remember to turn in our
events in the life of Jesus in light of the historical chronology depicted
Dream Sunday Packets.
in Luke 1-3.
Hope everyone had a lovely
(1) Herod (I) the Great ruled over Judea (Luke 1.5) between 37 BC Thanksgiving!
and 4 BC (33 years). As in Matthew (2.1), the birth of Jesus is situated at
Daily Bible Readings, see
some point before his death. A perceived chronological problem arises
schedule on back.
when one understands that Jesus was born before Herod died, and his
death occurred in 4 BC. Was Jesus really born Before Christ? Yes; and, of Remember in Prayer: our
Dreams, Fred (neck), Linda
course not!
(knee), Gerald (recovery),
For a person separated from the Ancient world by two millennia, it
Hazel (@ Emmanuel),
may be a shock to know that time was not always regulated by the birth
LeAnne Figueroa
of Christ. It was typical for events to be dated by the year upon which (pregnancy), Rose Mary,
they fell in the life or ruling years of a king. For example, Jerusalem was Lucy (lungs) and Victor
besieged by Nebuchadnezzar “in the third year of the reign of Barrios (work), Mike (back),
Jehoiakim king of Judah” (Dan. 1.1). This method was quite common Shelly (foot tendons),
until the 6th century AD. Connie Payes (dialysis), Elsa
A monk by the name of Dionysius Exiguus (c. AD 525 to AD 544), Avalos (Alzheimer’s).
devised a new calendar system (the Easter cycle) marking every event Dec. 10-12 | Ripon church of
which occurs “this side” of the birth of Jesus as occurring “in the year of Christ hosting meeting with
our Lord”. In the Latin of the church, this is anno Domini (AD). Jesus’ Joe Wells on California
birth was made, therefore, the centerpiece of the modern calendar with Missions Seminar. Friday @
BC and AD used to mark the eras before and after his birth respectively 7PM, Saturday 10AM-2PM,
(Feehan 300). and Sunday 9AM-11AM.
Despite Dionysius’ “humble” efforts, his computations were off by a
few years and the effect was to push the birth of Jesus back earlier on
the calendar into the first decade BC, creating the perceived oddity of
Jesus being born Before Christ. Dionysius’ alternative name is Dennis,
and here we can say with tongue and cheek, “thanks Dennis the
 Luke 1-3: Jesus and Bible Chronology (Continued)
Schedule of Services
Menace”. Nevertheless, the Scriptures have always affirmed that Jesus
Sunday Services
was born during the reign of Herod (Matt. 2.1, Luke 1.5). Consequently,
Bible Class 10 AM
what may appear as a chronological oddity turns out to be snuggly fit
(Classes for All Ages)
together.
Morning Worship 11 AM Furthermore, the infamous account of Herod’s infanticide campaign
Evening Worship 6 PM demonstrates that Jesus was quite young when Herod died in 4 BC.
4th Sunday Services Matthew writes that he mounts an assault upon all boys “two years and
Bible Class 10 AM
younger” in Bethlehem and its vicinity in hopes of ridding himself of a
(Classes for All Ages)
threat to his throne (Matt. 2.16-18). Joseph and family, however, had
Morning Worship 11 AM
fled to Egypt until the death of Herod and the ascension of Archelaus in
Birthday Fellowship Meal
4 BC (Matt. 2.13-15, 19-23). Archelaus was eventually deposed and
Afternoon 1:30 PM
exiled ten years later in AD 6.
Wednesday Services
Using Herod’s calculations of two plus years (which may have been
Bible Classes 7 PM
an over precaution on Herod’s part), one might reasonably provide a
(Classes for All Ages)
smudgy timeframe of anywhere as early as 7/6 BC to as late as 5/4 BC
Daily Bible Readings
for the birth of Jesus (South 16). Do these calculations fit with other
11/28 Judges 7
historical markers in the Gospel Accounts? They do very much.
11/29 Judges 8
11/30 Judges 9 (2) Caesar Augustus was Emperor of Rome (Luke 2.1) from 31 BC to
12/1 Judges 10 AD 14 (45 years), and he declared for an imperial registration of its
12/2 Judges 11 citizens (Luke 2.1). And consistent with known Roman policy, citizens
12/3 Judges 12 “residing out of their provinces” were “to return to their own homes”
12/4 Judges 13 (McRay 155). Hence, being of the household of King David, Joseph and
a betrothed pregnant Mary traveled to Bethlehem, the city of David, to
be registered (Luke 2.4).
In addition, consider this registration’s association with Quirinius
“governor of Syria” (Luke 2.2). Recently, archaeologist Jerry Vardaman
found small letters on an ancient coin regarding Quirinius:
While, inscriptional evidence reveals that there was more than one
ruler with this name, a Quirinius within the time frame of Jesus’ birth
has been found on a coin placing him as proconsul of Syria and Cilicia
from 11 BC until after 4 BC. (Price 299)
This is extraordinary new evidence, dispelling skeptical comments for
years that Luke’s census account “should be discounted” as part of a
spiritual fiction (Grant 216).
TO BE CONTINUED…
Sources
Feehan, Lawrence. “Dionysius Exiguus.” Page 300 in New International Dictionary of the
Christian Church. Edited by J.D. Douglas. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 1974.
Grant, Michael. Jesus: An Historian’s Review of the Gospels. New York, N.Y.: Scribner’s
Sons, 1977.
McRay, John. Archaeology and the New Testament. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker, 1991.
Price, Randall. The Stones Cry Out. Eugene, Ore.: Harvest House, 1997.
South, Tommy. What Can We Know About Jesus? A Historical Perspective. Searcy, Ark.:
Truth for Today, 2008.