In the winter time, especially around the Winter solstice (Dec 21), the majority of the world celebrates Christmas. There are 3 views of Christmas. According to the world it is a time to be cheerful, buy gifts for their children and others, send postcards to friends and family, buy a tree and place it in their home, etc… According to the churches, Christmas is the time to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. According to the Bible, it is a custom of the heathen.
Lev 18:30 – Therefore shall ye keep mine ordinance, that ye commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God.
Jer 10:2 – Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them.
3 – For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe.
4 – They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not.
5 – They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.
Christmas comes from the Old English cristes maesse, which means the mass of Christ. The word mass gives it away, ding, ding, ding, yes, it is the Mass of Roman Catholicism. Martin Luther said, the pope, priests in general, are parasites living on a gullible Christian society through a “con game” called the mass. Mass comes from the Latin (the Roman Language) missa, which means dismissal or send away to god. The mass is the center and very foundation of Roman Catholicism. Roman Catholicism is built upon the doctrine of the mass. Their tradition says that, Jesus said do this (the Passover) in remembrance of me.
Lk 22:19 – And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.
What were they eating? They were eating the Passover. There are 4 things in the Passover, and one of them is unleavened bread. The mass is when the priest raises the round “leavened” wafer above his head and says a few magical Latin words over it, hoc est corpus (or hocus pocus, presto chango, abracadabra), which is supposed to “change” the wafer and the wine into the physical body and blood of Christ, which is called transubstantiation. If this is what Jesus meant, then Jesus sinned, because there is not to be any leaven at the Passover. Roman Catholicism calls this the real presence. They say that Christ is present in the wafer, which is called the Eucharist. Eucharist is the Greek word eucharistia, meaning thanksgiving. After the priest has “changed” the wafer, he has the congregation walk down the aisle to accept the Eucharist, and this is where the origin of Accept Christ stems from. When they eat the body and drink the blood of Christ, this is called, by definition, cannibalism, whether it is literal or figurative, it is still cannibalism in the eyes of God.
Gen 9:4 – But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.
Lev 17:10 – And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people.
11 – For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.
The mass of Christ is a daily bloodless sacrifice all over the world. They sacrifice Christ daily on their altars, as opposed to the following verses:
Heb 10:10 – By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Heb 10:12 – But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God;
Heb 10:14 – For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.
Missa is feminine in gender. In Spanish it is Misa or La Misa. La signifies it is feminine, and Christ is masculine. I believe we have a problem here. To whom are they really sacrificing and offering it up to?
Jer 7:18 – The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke me to anger.
Jer 44:19 – And when we burned incense to the queen of heaven, and poured out drink offerings unto her, did we make her cakes to worship her, and pour out drink offerings unto her, without our men?
Cakes is the Hebrew word kavvan, meaning sacrificial wafer. The cakes were star shaped (Ishtar – we get the word easter – the goddess of fertility) or crescent shaped (the lord moon or Allah – from the Hebrew word allon, meaning oak. Allah was an oak tree god and was androgynous, meaning it was male and female) and they were offered to the queen of heaven. It makes sense that they were star and crescent shaped, because in the ancient world, many of the gods were deified in the stars and were androgynous. They were called heroes, comes from he and roe (a female deer). It was a male roe. What is another name for the Mary of Roman Catholicism? Isn’t it the queen of heaven? The queen of heaven in the ancient world was Ishtar (in Babylon), which means star. She was also known as Aphrodite (Greek goddess) and Venus (the Roman goddess of sexual love and fertility). They were all a form of Semiramis, the mother, wife and sister of Nimrod. Venus in Latin means wish. How many wishes does a genie (a demon, an idol or a god) grant? 3 wishes, right? What was it that Eve saw in the tree? The ancients said that the tree was the giver of all divine gifts. That is why you find gifts under the christmas tree. How many wishes did Eve get?
Gen 3:6 – And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
There are 3 things that were in the tree:
1 – Eve saw that the tree was good for food
2 – Eve saw that the tree was pleasant to the eyes
3 – Eve saw that the tree was to be desired to make one wise
This is all that is in the world:
I Jn 2:15 – Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
16 – For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
There are 3 things that are in the world or in the tree:
1 – the lust of the flesh – Eve saw that the tree was good for food
2 – the lust of the eyes – Eve saw that the tree was pleasant to the eyes
3 – the pride of life – Eve saw that the tree was to be desired to make one wise
This is all about ancestor worship, it is all about the worship of Adam and Eve (familiar spirits, sun and moon worship and sex worship), the tree (represented as fire worship) and the serpent (animism worship). The tree in the ancient world was called the tree of life. The tree was worshiped in many forms, as a cross (which is the sign of Tammuz).
As the swastika, which is the big dipper in its seasonal phases (a symbol of good luck). The queen of heaven was said to have turned the dial of the big dipper and controlled the seasons:
As a cross with the sun with its rays behind it. This was put behind the Roman Catholic saints, they were sun gods disguised as saints and this was introduced into the church by the Roman Emperor Ceaser (ancient title for the Popes) Constantine to combine pagan worship with Christianity (4th century):
As the Ankh:
The round part of the Ankh represents the womb and the sides of it represents the ovaries, it was sex worship, fertility worship, life worship:
From the Ankh, we get the shape of the Christmas tree:
The tree was always worshipped in the shape of a cone, which is pubic worship, sex worship. It was identified with the sun and worshipped under the form of an oak. We can see through time the evolution of this pagan worship of the tree. Baal was considered the same as the Roman Saturn, and his festival (that of Yule) was kept at Christmas, which was the time of the Saturnalia. All the male gods were nothing more than Nimrod, deified in the stars. That is why we see the star on top of the Christmas tree. The feast of Saturnalia was held every year in the winter solstice. Friends made presents to one another and slaves were indulged with great liberties. A feast was given them at which they sat at a table, while their masters served them. This was called the feast of the lord of misrule. Yule comes from Hu, the Bacchus of the Druids; others derive it from Baal, Bal, or Yiaoul, the Celtic god of fire. The Christmas fire in some parts of the country was always kindled; a fresh log being thrown on and lighted, but taken off before it was consumed, and reserved to kindle the Christmas fire of the following year. The Yule log was always of oak.
Pope Julius I gave Christmas (The Mass of Christ) its pagan name. It did not appear on the calendar as a holiday until 354 A.D. It was not celebrated by the early church. Fleeing Papal persecution during the reformation, the Puritans banned the celebration of Christmas in England (1642). The Protestants in early America considered Christmas to be heresy and passed laws against it, exacting criminal penalties for its celebration. Christmas was not a legal holiday in America until 1856. McClintock and Strong’s Cyclopedia says, The observance of Christmas is not of divine appointment, nor is it of NT origin. The day of Christ’s birth cannot be ascertained from the NT, or indeed from any other source. The fathers of the first three centuries do not speak of any special observance of the nativity. The Catholic Encyclopedia says, Christmas was not among the earliest festivals of the church. Irenaeus and Tertullian omit it from their lists of feasts. Origen, glancing perhaps at the discreditable imperial Natalitia, asserts that in the scriptures sinners alone, not saints, celebrate their birthday. Arnobius can still ridicule the birthdays of the gods. Concerning the date of Christ’s birth, the gospels give no help. Arthur W. Pink said, Christmas is coming! Quite so; but what is “Christmas”? Does not the very term itself denote its source—”Christ-mass.” Thus it is of Romish origin, brought over from Paganism. But, says someone, Christmas is the time when we commemorate the Savior’s birth. It is? And who authorized such commemoration? Certainly God did not. The Redeemer bade His disciples “remember” Him in His death, but there is not a word in Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation which tells us to celebrate His birth. Moreover, who knows when, in what month, He was born? The Bible is silent thereon. Is it without reason that the only “birthday” commemorations mentioned in God’s Word are Pharaoh’s (Gen 40:20) and Herod’s (Mt 14:6)? Is this recorded “for our learning”? If so, have we prayerfully taken it to heart? And who is it that celebrates “Christmas”? The whole “civilized world.” Millions who make no profession of faith in the blood of the Lamb, who “despise and reject Him,” and millions more who while claiming to be His followers yet in works deny Him, join in merrymaking under the pretense of honoring the birth of the Lord Jesus. Putting it on its lowest ground, we would ask, Is it fitting that His friends should unite with His enemies in a worldly round of fleshly gratification? Does any truly born-again soul really think that He whom the world cast out is either pleased or glorified by such participation in the world’s joys? Verily, “the customs of the people are vain”; and it is written, “Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil.” (Ex 23:2) Charles Spurgeon said, This is the season of the year when, whether we wish it or not, we are compelled to think of the birth of Christ. I hold it to be one of the greatest absurdities under heaven to think that there is any religion in keeping Christmas-day. There are no probabilities whatever that our Savior Jesus Christ was born on that day and the observance of it is purely of Popish origin; doubtless those who are Catholics have a right to hallow it, but I do not see how consistent Protestants can account it in the least sacred. However, I wish there were ten or a dozen Christmas-days in the year; for there is work enough in the world, and a little more rest would not hurt laboring people. Christmas-day is really a boon to us, particularly as it enables us to assemble round the family hearth and meet our friends once more. Still, although we do not fall exactly in the track of other people, I see no harm in thinking of the incarnation and birth of the Lord Jesus. We do not wish to be classed with those “Who with more care keep holiday The wrong, than others the right way.” The old Puritans made a parade of work on Christmas-day, just to show that they protested against the observance of it. But we believe they entered that protest so completely, that we are willing, as their descendants, to take the good accidentally conferred by the day, and leave its superstitions to the superstitious. Hasting’s Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics says, There can be little doubt that the Church (Roman Catholic church) was anxious to distract the attention of Christians from the old heathen feast days by celebrating Christian festivals on the same days. On December 25 was the dies natalis solis invicti or the sol novus, especially cultivated by the votaries of Mithraism. Moreover, the Saturnalia closed on December 24. It is not, in the absence of direct evidence, probable that the date was chosen in order to compete with this feast, though as soon as an equation began to be made between Christ and the sun, it was natural to celebrate a Christian feast on the day previously consecrated to the sun. Inside Catholicism says,
Look at what it says, “before Christianity”, the Christmas season was celebrated…before Christianity??? Ding, ding, ding…red flag, red flag. Christmas is older than Christianity? If christmas is older than christianity, then christmas can’t possibly be the birth of Christ. Some will say that December 25th is the birthday of Jesus and that he received gifts on this day. Scripture says, Jesus was born of a virgin, he was God in the flesh and he came to save sinner’s, but Christmas or December 25th has nothing to do with him. Was Jesus born? Yes. Is it recorded in scripture? Yes, but not the date and that’s a big problem if Jesus is said to be born on Dec 25th.
Lk 2:1 – And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
The Roman Emperor Augustus is where we get the month August from. Yes, our months are named after pagan emperors and pagan gods and so are our days of the week. Regarding the tax, this word is the NT Greek word, apographo. Complete Biblical Library says, in classical Greek apographo means to record or to register and in the middle voice, to register oneself. It served as a forensic term of entering a name as charged or accused of a crime (Liddell-Scott). Nonliterary usage associates apographo and its noun counterpart apographe, more specifically with census taking, taxation, and registration (Moulton-Milligan).
2 – (And this taxing (apographe) was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
3 – And all went to be taxed (apographo), every one into his own city (you had to go where your land and family was to register).
4 – And Joseph also went up from Galilee (to Jerusalem), out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea (Southern Judah), unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem (because he was of the house and lineage of David);
5 – To be taxed (apographo) with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child (egkous – pregnant).
6 – And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.
7 – And she brought forth her firstborn son (she gave birth to his physical body. Mary was not a perennial virgin, as per the Roman Catholic Church, because it says, firstborn, which indicates that there had to be at least a 2nd born – Mt 1:25, Mk 6:1-4), and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger (but no wise men yet); because there was no room for them in the inn.
St. Francis of Assissi, a Roman Catholic Bishop was born 1188 A.D. He brought the Nativity scene (the creche) into the church. The Nativity scene was added in the 1200’s from the cult of Adonis (which is a corruption of the word Adonai, a title for God), which was the eternal boy (Cupid), he never died, nor resurrected.
8 – And there were in the same country shepherds (no wise men yet) abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
It was not a custom for shepherds to tend their flocks in the fields by night in winter. It’s impossible for Jesus to be born in December or any of those cold months, because the shepherds were keeping watch over their flock in the fields – Mt 24:20.
9 – And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
10 – And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings (euaggelizo – Our word evangelize. Euaggelion is the word for gospel. Euaggelistis is evangelist) of great joy, which shall be to all (pas – the all, all flesh or all nations) people (laos – people, group of people, tribe, nation).
11 – For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour (all the gods in the ancient world were called saviours), which is Christ the Lord.
12 – And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe (brephos – infant, unborn child or fetus) wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
13 – And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14 – Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
15 – And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds (not wise men) said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.
16 – And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe (brephos) lying in a manger.
Now let us go to Matthews account:
Mt 2:1 – Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,
Wise men is the Greek word magos. It actually says magicians. They were the astrologers of Babylon. It does not say 3 wise men, it just says wise men. There could’ve been 30 of them. It’s about 650 miles by horseback. It would be several months before they get there or at least a month.
2 – Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews (He’s already born)? for we have seen his star in the east (They saw the star while they were in the east, because they came from the east), and are come to worship him.
3 – When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled (for his throne), and all Jerusalem with him.
4 – And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.
5 – And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet (Isa 9:6, Mic 5:2),
6 – And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.
7 – Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared (the star appearing is equated with the time of Jesus birth).
8 – And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child (paidon – little child up to 7 years of age); and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.
9 – When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child (paidon) was.
10 – When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.
11 – And when they were come into the house (not in a manger scene), they saw the young child (paidon) with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.
These were not birth or birthday gifts which the wise men brought. They were gifts of worship to a righteous king. Gold signifies purity throughout scripture. Frankincense was a sweet fragrance offered in the sanctuary (Ex 30:34) with burnt offerings (Lev 2:1, 16) and as an emblem of prayer (Ps 141:2) it represented the divine name (authority) of God (Mal 1:11). Myrrh was used to embalm the dead (particularly the body of Christ – Jn 19:39) and was used along with frankincense as an acceptable sweet savory smell. The death of Jesus is a pure sacrifice. It is a sweet smell and acceptable to the Father.
12 – And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
13 – And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child (paidon) and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child (paidon) to destroy him.
14 –When he arose, he took the young child (paidon) and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:
15 – And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son (Hos 11:1).
I’m sure that many of us have heard that when Christ was in Egypt, he learned their magic. Scripture does not mention how long they were in Egypt, but historians and learned men can cover this area. John Gill’s Expositor says, Eusebius says, that immediately, in a very little time after the slaughter of the children at Bethlehem, the divine vengeance inflicted diseases on him, which quickly brought him to his end; so that, according to the learned Dr. Lightfoot, Jesus was not above three or four months in Egypt. Eusebius’ Ecclesiastical History says, When Christ was born, according to the prophecies, in Bethlehem of Judea, at the time indicated, Herod was not a little disturbed by the enquiry of the magi who came from the east, asking where he who was born King of the Jews was to be found, –for they had seen his star, and this was their reason for taking so long a journey; for they earnestly desired to worship the infant as God, –for he imagined that his kingdom might be endangered; and he enquired therefore of the doctors of the law, who belonged to the Jewish nation, where they expected Christ to be born. When he learned that the prophecy of Micah announced that Bethlehem was to be his birthplace he commanded, in a single edict, all the male infants in Bethlehem, and all its borders, that were two years of age or less, according to the time which he had accurately ascertained from the magi, to be slain, supposing that Jesus, as was indeed likely, would share the same fate as the others of his own age. But the child anticipated the snare, being carried into Egypt by his parents, who had learned from an angel that appeared unto them what was about to happen, These things are recorded by the Holy Scriptures in the Gospel. It is worthwhile, in addition to this, to observe the reward which Herod received for his daring crime against Christ and those of the same age. For immediately, without the least delay, the divine vengeance overtook him while he was still alive, and gave him a foretaste of what he was to receive after death. It is not possible to relate here how he tarnished the supposed felicity of his reign by successive calamities in his family, by the murder of wife and children, and others of his nearest relatives and dearest friends. The account, which casts every other tragic drama into the shade, is detailed at length in the histories of Josephus. How, immediately after his crime against our Savior and the other infants, the punishment sent by God drove him on to his death, we can best learn from the words of that historian who, in the seventeenth book of his Antiquities of the Jews, writes as follows concerning his end:” But the disease of Herod grew more severe, God inflicting punishment for his crimes. For a slow fire burned in him which was not so apparent to those who touched him, but augmented his internal distress; for he had a terrible desire for food which it was not possible to resist. He was affected also with ulceration of the intestines, and with especially severe pains in the colon, while a watery and transparent humor settled about his feet. He suffered also from a similar trouble in his abdomen. Nay more, his privy member was putrefied and produced worms. He found also excessive difficulty in breathing, and it was particularly disagreeable because of the offensiveness of the odor and the rapidity of respiration. He had convulsions also in every limb, which gave him uncontrollable strength. It was said, indeed, by those who possessed the power of divination and wisdom to explain such events, that God had inflicted this punishment upon the King on account of his great impiety.” The writer mentioned above recounts these things in the work referred to. And in the second book of his History he gives a similar account of the same Herod, which runs as follows: “The disease then seized upon his whole body and distracted it by various torments. For he had a slow fever, and the itching of the skin of his whole body was insupportable. He suffered also from continuous pains in his colon, and there were swellings on his feet like those of a person suffering from dropsy, while his abdomen was inflamed and his privy member so putrefied as to produce worms. Besides this he could breathe only in an upright posture, and then only with difficulty, and he had convulsions in all his limbs, so that the diviners said that his diseases were a punishment. But he, although wrestling with such sufferings, nevertheless clung to life and hoped for safety, and devised methods of cure. For instance, crossing over Jordan he used the warm baths at Callirhoë, which flow into the Lake Asphaltites, but are themselves sweet enough to drink. His physicians here thought that they could warm his whole body again by means of heated oil. But when they had let him down into a tub filled with oil, his eyes became weak and turned up like the eyes of a dead person. But when his attendants raised an outcry, he recovered at the noise; but finally, despairing of a cure, he commanded about fifty drachms to be distributed among the soldiers, and great sums to be given to his generals and friends. Then returning he came to Jericho, where, being seized with melancholy, he planned to commit an impious deed, as if challenging death itself. For, collecting from every town the most illustrious men of all Judea, he commanded that they be shut up in the so-called hippodrome. And having summoned Salome, his sister, and her husband, Alexander, he said: ‘I know that the Jews will rejoice at my death. But I may be lamented by others and have a splendid funeral if you are willing to perform my commands. When I shall expire surround these men, who are now under guard, as quickly as possible with soldiers, and slay them, in order that all Judea and every house may weep for me even against their will.'” And after a little Josephus says, “And again he was so tortured by want of food and by a convulsive cough that, overcome by his pains, he planned to anticipate his fate. Taking an apple he asked also for a knife, for he was accustomed to cut apples and eat them. Then looking round to see that there was no one to hinder, he raised his right hand as if to stab himself.” In addition to these things the same writer records that he slew another of his own sons before his death, the third one slain by his command, and that immediately afterward he breathed his last, not without excessive pain. Such was the end of Herod, who suffered a just punishment for his slaughter of the children of Bethlehem, which was the result of his plots against our Saviour. After this an angel appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and commanded him to go to Judea with the child and its mother, revealing to him that those who had sought the life of the child were dead. To this the evangelist adds, “But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in the room of his father Herod he was afraid to go thither; notwithstanding being warned of God in a dream he turned aside into the parts of Galilee.” The Whole Works of Reverend John Lightfoot says, There is none of the evangelists, that recordeth anything concerning Christ, from the time of his return out of Egypt, till he come to be twelve years old, which was for the space of these years; for the better understanding of which times, let us take up some few passages in Josephus, ”Herod reigned thirty four years from the time that Antigonus was taken away; ‘ and thirty-seven years from the time, that he was first declared king by the Romans.” And again “In the tenth year of the reign of Archelaus, the people not enduring his cruelty and tyranny, they accused Archelaus to Cesar, and he banished him to Vienna: and a little after, Cyrenius was sent by Cesar, to tax Syria, and to confiscate Archelaus’s goods.” And “Coponius was also sent with Cyrenius to be governor of Judea.” And “Coponius returning to Rome, Marcus Ambibu”. Thus becometh his successor in that government. And after him, succeeded Annius Rufus, in whose time died Cesar Augustus, the second emperor of the Romans.” Now, when Augustus died, Christ was fourteen years old; as appeareth from this,-that he was twenty-nine years old complete, and beginning to be thirty, in the fifteenth year of Tiberius, the emperor next succeeding. Reckon, then, these times, that Josephus hath mentioned between the death of Herod, and the death of Augustus, namely, the ten years of Archelaus, and after them the government of Coponius, and after him Ambibuchus, and after him Rufus;- and it will necessarily follow, that, when Herod slew Bethlehem children, Christ being then two years old, it was the very last year of his reign.
When studying stuff like this, try to exhaust on the resources you have for information as much as possible. It is tedious, but well worth it.
16 – Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men (because they didn’t come back to tell him), was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under (Jesus was at least 2 years old, not a babe), according to the time (from v7) which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.
Birthdays are pagan in origin. Pagan means ungodly. There are only 2 other birthdays mentioned in the Bible:
Gen 40:20 – And it came to pass the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, that he made a feast unto all his servants: and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and of the chief baker among his servants.
21 – And he restored the chief butler unto his butlership again; and he gave the cup into Pharaoh’s hand:
22 – But he hanged the chief baker: as Joseph had interpreted to them.
Mt 14:6 – But when Herod’s birthday was kept, the daughter of Herodias danced before them, and pleased Herod.
7 – Whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she would ask.
8 – And she, being before instructed of her mother, said, Give me here John Baptist’s head in a charger.
9 – And the king was sorry: nevertheless for the oath’s sake, and them which sat with him at meat, he commanded it to be given her.
10 – And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison.
This same account is in Mark:
Mk 6:21 – And when a convenient day was come, that Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, high captains, and chief estates of Galilee;
22 –And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in, and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, the king said unto the damsel, Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee.
23 – And he sware unto her, Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me, I will give it thee, unto the half of my kingdom.
24 – And she went forth, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist.
25 – And she came in straightway with haste unto the king, and asked, saying, I will that thou give me by and by in a charger the head of John the Baptist.
26 – And the king was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath’s sake, and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her.
27 – And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought: and he went and beheaded him in the prison,
On Jesus birthday, who are we going to hang or who’s head will we chop off? The bible never mentions that we are to celebrate anyone’s birth date, let alone Jesus’ birth date.
Eccl 7:1 – A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one’s birth.
The following are a few reliable sources on the origin of birthdays. McClintock and Strong’s Cyclopedia says, The observance of birthdays may be traced to a very ancient date. In the Bible there is no instance of birthday celebrations among the Jews themselves. The example of Herod the tetrarch (Mt 14:6), the celebration of whose birthday cost John the Baptist his life, can scarcely be regarded as such, the family to which he belonged being notorious for its adoption of heathen customs (birthdays were heathen customs, which is called customs of the nations or heathens). In fact, the later Jews at least regarded birthday celebrations as parts of idolatrous worship (it was idolatry), and this probably on account of the idolatrous rites (rituals) with which they were observed in honor of those who were regarded as the patron gods of the day on which the party was born. James Hasting’s Dictionary of the Bible says, The custom of observing a birthday as a festival seems to have been widely spread in ancient times. In Gen 40:20 we hear of the celebration of the birthday of the king of Egypt, and in the times of the Ptolemies the inscriptions of Rosetta and Canopus bear witness to the same custom. The birthdays of the kings were celebrated with great pomp. They were looked upon as holy, no business was done upon them, and all classes indulged in festivities suitable to the occasion. According to II Mac 6:7 the birthdays of the Syrian kings were commemorated every month by means of sacrifices of which, in the times of Antiochus Epiphanes, the Jews were forced to partake (the Jews were forced to partake in birthdays). Isidore Singer’s The Jewish Encyclopedia says, there are no positive data in the Bible or in rabbinical conclusion concerning birthday festivals among the ancient Jews. This silence on the subject is, however, no warrant for the conclusion that the Jews altogether abstained from following a custom which was general among the Egyptians (Gen 40:20), Persians, Syrians, and Greeks. Even if not common among the people, yet kings and princes probably practiced it, following the custom of their heathen contemporaries (it was heathen). Birthdays might not have been celebrated by the common people with great solemnity, yet they did not pass wholly unnoticed, and were remembered by congratulations, as in modern times. Jeremiah not only cursed the day of his birth, but wished that it should not be blessed (Jer 20:14), as though such hail been the custom (by saying happy birthday). The birthday anniversaries of heathen kings are considered by the rabbis of the Talmud as legal heathen holidays (holy days), which count among those holidays on the three days preceding which Jews are by Talmudic law required to abstain from concluding any business with a heathen. John Gill’s Expositor says, The birthdays of princes, both of their coming into the world, and accession to the throne of government, were kept by the Gentiles (but not the Jews); as by the Egyptians, Gen. 40:20 and by the Persians, and Romans, and other nations, but not by the Jews; who reckon these among the feasts of idolaters (it was idolatry). These (say they) are the feasts of idolaters; the Calends, and the Saturnalia (the ancient title of christmass), the time kept in memory of subduing a kingdom (or when a king takes possession of it, the day of his accession), and the birthday of kings (when they are made and crowned, the day of coronation), and the day of birth, and the day of death. John Lightfoot’s Commentary of the NT from the Talmud and Hebraica says, “The Jewish schools esteem the keeping of birthdays a part of idolatrous worship (it was idolatry to them): perhaps they would pronounce more favourably and flatteringly of thine, O tetrarch, because thine. These are the times of idolaters: the Kalends; the Saturnalia;…the birthday of the kingdom; and the day of a man’s birth”. Some will argue, defend and make excuses for observing pagan days, so they will use Rom 14 as their excuse:
Rom 14:1 – Him that is weak (astheneo – spiritually weak, speaking of the believing Jews) in the faith receive ye (proslambano – to take in and receive into your fellowship – imperative mood, a command), but not to doubtful (dialogismos – the method of own reasoning – we get the word dialogue) disputations (diakrisis – the method dia of krino, judging).
2 – For one (a believing Gentile) believeth that he may eat all things (Acts 10:9-15, 28, 11:1-9, I Tim 4:1-5, Col 2:14-22, Gen 9:3): another, who is weak (astheneo – the believing Jews that are weak in the faith), eateth herbs (vegetables).
3 – Let not him that eateth (all things) despise (or reject) him that eateth not (all things); and let not him which eateth not (all things) judge (krino) him that eateth (all things): for God hath received (proslambano) him.
4 – Who art thou that judgest (krino – to decide guilty or innocent, right or wrong, just or unjust, good or bad) another man’s servant (oiketes – one who lives in the same house with another and thus under the authority of the same householder – it comes from oikos, meaning house)? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.
5 – One man (the believing Jews) esteemeth (krino) one day above another (speaking of the Jewish Feast days and the Sabbaths): another esteemeth (krino) every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
6 – He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth (all things), eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not (all things), to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks.
The days that one esteems in this chapter are the Jewish holy days (Day of atonement, Pentecost, Passover, Day of Ingathering, etc…). Christ-mass (or Christmas), Easter, birthdays, mother’s day, etc…are not Jewish holy days, they are heathen sacred unholy days in honor of their pagan gods. Christmas is not Bible. Easter is not Bible. Birthdays is not Bible, etc… It’s not a matter if it’s right or wrong to you, it’s a matter of you putting God into question, when he says, “Therefore shall ye keep mine ordinance, that ye commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God” (Lev 18:30). When God says this, we say, “God doesn’t mean what he says”. That is putting God into question, which is wickedness. How did Santa Clause get into the picture? Santa Clause or Saint Nicholas (St. Nick or St. Nicklaus) is a dead Roman Catholic Bishop from Asia Minor, 4th century. McClintock and Strong’s Cyclopedia says, “According to legends St. Nicholas was born of illustrious “Christian” parents, when they had been many years married without having children; and it was thought that this son was given by God as a reward for the alms, which they had bestowed upon the Church and the poor, as well as for the prayers they had offered up. Their home was in Panthera, a city of Lycia, in Asia Minor. The very day of his birth this wonderful child arose in his bath, and, joining hands, praised God that he had brought him into the world. And from the same day he would only take the breast on Wednesday and Friday, thus knowing how to fast from the time he knew hunger. On a voyage a sailor fell overboard and was drowned, but St. Nicholas recovered him and restored his life (Jn 11:25); and when a storm arose, and they were about to perish, the sailors fell at his feet and implored him to save them, and as he prayed the storm went down (Mk 4:39)”. He was said to have been born without a sinful nature (like Jesus). When men would pray to Jesus, it was said that St. Nicholas answered their prayers thus possessing all the powers of the living God: omnipotent (unlimited power or authority), omnipresent (in all places at the same time), and omniscient (knowing all things). That’s why: He knows when you are sleeping, He knows when you’re awake, He knows when you’ve been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake. When we teach our children to contact Santa by writing to him, we are telling them that it is ok to talk to the dead, which is necromancy.
Dt 18:10 – There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch,
11 – Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer (one who enquires of the dead).
Lev 20:27 – A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them.
This study is not completed. More info will be added.