By Jim Barnette, Ph.D.
Samford University and Brookwood Baptist Church, Mountain Brook
The Angels’ Announcement
Luke 2:1–14
Jesus was born according to God’s time and place. (1–7)
The emperor mentioned is Octavian, the grand-nephew and adopted heir of Julius Caesar. Born in 63 B.C., Octavian was confirmed by the Roman Senate as emperor in 27 B.C. He was given the title Augustus, meaning “august” and “revered.” The title connoted not only political power but religious reverence. The emperor made Judea into a Roman province administered directly by a Roman governor. This was the occasion for taking a census for Roman taxation.
In 6 B.C., Quirinius became governor of Syria, the Roman province just to the northeast of Judea. He carried out the census of Judea as the Romans initiated direct rule of the Hebrew province. The idea that God’s chosen people living in the Holy Land should pay tribute to a pagan government was considered an abomination to most Jews (see Luke 20:20–26). The rage against Roman domination led eventually to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.
Wrapping an infant in bands of cloth was a normal practice of the day. The strips kept the child warm and his or her limbs straight to prevent movement that could cause a fall.
The word sometimes translated “inn” basically means “lodging” and also may be translated “room” or “guest room.” Its only other occurrence in the New Testament is in Luke 22:11 for the “upper room.” Some scholars suggest that the place where they slept was in a cave. Many such caves exist in Bethlehem today, and they are not unlike the slot caves that are found among the canyons of the American southwest. That Jesus was placed in a feeding trough highlights His humble beginnings, though some suggest that this act is a foreshadowing of the failure of humanity to receive the Lord.
This idea emerges out of the prophecy of Isaiah 1:3, which states that “the donkey [knows] its master’s crib; but Israel does not know, my people do not understand.”
Angels announced the birth of Christ, the Messiah. (8–14)
Shepherds in the first-century Hellenistic world were considered low-life dregs of society. They were scorned as shiftless, lazy, dishonest people who grazed their flocks on the lands of other people. They were perceived much like gypsies are today in parts of the world. That the good news of Christ’s birth would come first to these unclean ruffians once again speaks of the Messiah King whose reach includes the disenfranchised underdogs of the world.
The “good news of great joy” is for “all people.” This universal offer of grace is a major theme throughout Luke’s Gospel as well as Acts. Indeed, through the Spirit’s coming in power, this best of news would be carried from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).
The doxology, “glory to God in the highest,” climaxes this portion of the birth narrative. Its two parts relate to heaven and earth respectively. In Luke’s telling of the triumphal entry, the crowds cry, “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” (Luke 19:38). In Ephesians 3:21, Paul speaks of God’s glory, not now but “in the Church and in Christ Jesus.” The Messiah brings “peace” to His people. Those whom Jesus healed or forgave on the basis of their faith could “go in peace” (see Luke 7:50, 8:48).
Little would the great Augustus know that the Pax Romana during his reign would be eclipsed by the peace that the Christ child would bring to souls both in this world and in the heavenly life to come.
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