Determining The Year Jesus Was Born
See also: Chronology of JesusIf the story of the star was inspired by an actual event, this event might have occurred at the time Jesus was born. The Gospel of Matthew describes the birth of Jesus as taking place when Herod was king. According to Josephus, Herod died after a lunar eclipse. This is usually identified as the eclipse of March 13, 4 BC. The narrative implies that Jesus was born sometime between the first appearance of the star and the appearance of the Magi at Herod's court. That the king is said to have ordered the execution of boys two years of age and younger, implies that the star made its appearance within the preceding two years. Modern scholars date the birth of Jesus as 6–4 BC. Early Christian writers, such as Tertullian and Irenaeus, gave the date as 2 BC or 3 BC.
The Gospel of Luke implies that the birth took place when Herod was alive, but it also says that Jesus was born during the census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria. However Quirinius did not become governor until AD 6, nine years after Herod died. The Luke account also describes the family of Jesus leaving Bethlehem shortly after the birth.
Read more about this topic: Star Of Bethlehem
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