Jesus' Birth: The Light of the World

As we explore the Scriptures surrounding the birth of our Messiah, it can be very easy for us to gloss over many important facts and tidbits laid forth in the text. It can be easy to allow ourselves to be lead astray by common errors which, when Scripture is examined closely, are a misconception of the verses. In this study, I hope to shed some light on some of the events which surrounded the birth of our LORD and Savior.

Mary's Prayer
Perhaps one of the most magnificent prayers in all the Bible, the prayer Mary, the mother of Jesus, utters in the Gospel of Luke chapter one verses 46-55 is one treasured by many. Unknown to many readers, Mary's prayer is actually a proclamation of her faith and knowledge of Scripture. Mary's song of praise closely mirrors another woman's exultation to God...a faithful servant of the LORD called Hannah.

Barren for many years, Hannah is married to her husband, Elkanah (1 Samuel 1). Unfortunately, Elkanah also has another wife named Penninah. Penninah had many children. And let's recall to mind that children in ancient times were an insurance that the family would continue to live on in future generations. Inheritance was passed down through sons. A woman who did not have children was destined for poverty. Upon her husband's death, no one would care for the wife. Without a welfare system, the wife would be forced to live as a beggar.

Hannah prayed to God for a son and promised to give the child back to the LORD. Upon giving birth and raising the child until he was weaned, Hannah dedicates her son, Samuel, to the LORD. Hannah makes the journey to the Tabernacle and places her son in the custody of the high priest, Eli. Hannah then gives a tremendous song of thanksgiving to the LORD.

1 Samuel 2:1-10:
"Then Hannah prayed and said,
'My heart exults in the LORD;
My horn is exulted in the LORD,
My mouth speaks boldly against my enemies,
Because I rejoice in Your salvation.
There is no one holy like the LORD,
Indeed, there is no one besides You.
Nor is there any rock like our God.
Boast no more so very proudly,
Do not let arrogance come out of your mouth;
For the LORD is a God of knowledge,
And with Him, actions are weighed.
The bows of the mighty are shattered,
But the feeble gird on strength.
Those who were full hire themselves out for bread,
But those who were hungry cease to hunger.
Even the barren gives birth to seven,
But she who has many children languishes.
The LORD kills and makes alive;
He brings down to Sheol and raises up.
The LORD makes poor and rich;
He brings low, He also exalts.
He raises the poor from the dust,
He lifts the needy from the ash heap
To make them sit with nobles,
And inherit a seat of honor;
For the pillars of the earth are the LORD'S,
And He sets the world on them.
He keeps the feet of His godly ones,
But the wicked ones are silenced in darkness;
For not by might shall a man prevail.
Those who contend with the LORD will be shattered;
Against them He will thunder in the heavens,
The LORD will judge the ends of the earth;
And He will give strength to His king.
And He will exalt the horn of His anointed.'"

I wish I had the technological skill to do a side-by-side comparison of Hannah's song of praise and Mary's prayer of thanksgiving, but I do not seem to possess this talent. Instead, I urge you to do your own comparison of these two passages of Scripture. It is amazing to see all the parallels between the two prayers.

Many often attribute Mary as a woman of great faith. However, we can truly see this in the words Mary utters to our LORD. She knows Scripture and uses Hannah's prayer as a foundation for her own words of praise. Mary is an excellent example for us. We should know and use Scripture in our own prayers. The Bible is full of numerous songs of praise and prayer. In fact, there is an entire Book called Psalms which has verse after verse of prayers and supplications. We should be like Mary and know the text so well that when we send prayers up to God, we can quote Him His own words in our prayers.


Joseph Putting Away Mary
As we continue exploring the texts surrounding Jesus' birth, we come to the following passage:
"Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly" (Matthew 1:18-19).

At first glance, one may assume that Joseph, when he found our Mary was pregnant, did not want to be burdened with having a harlot for a wife. One can assume that Joseph was trying to divorce Mary in a way in which her family's reputation would be tarnished as little as possible. However, Joseph wanting to send Mary away privately (and thus divorcing her) was indeed a very righteous act.

In Torah, there are strict guidelines in which a husband could follow in the event he questioned the virginity of his bride.

"If any man takes a wife and goes in to her and then turns against her, and charges her with shameful deeds and publicly defames her, and says, 'I took this woman, but when I came near her, I did not find her a virgin,' then the girl's father and her mother shall take and bring out the evidence of the girl's virginity to the elders of the city at the gate. The girl's father shall say to the elders, 'I gave my daughter to this man for a wife, but he turned against her; and behold, he has charged her with shameful deeds, saying, "I did not find your daughter a virgin." But this is the evidence of my daughter's virginity.' And they shall spread the garment before the elders of the city. So the elders of that city shall take the man and chastise him, and they shall fine him a hundred shekels of silver and give it to the girl's father, because he publicly defamed a virgin of Israel. And she shall remain his wife; he cannot divorce her all his days.

But if this charge is true, that the girl was not found a virgin, then they shall bring out the girl to the doorway of her father's house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death because she has committed an act of folly in Israel by playing the harlot in her father's house; thus you shall purge the evil from among you" (Deuteronomy 22:13-21).

As one reads the Torah, the punishment for a bride being found to not have been a virgin was to be stoned to death. Moreover, her father's house was defamed when the stoning took place on the doorstep of her father's home. Joseph did not want to bring this disgrace upon Mary or her family. We see what a noble and honorable man Joseph was when he discovered Mary's pregnancy, for which the punishment for the non-virgin bride was to be stoned to death.

Moreover, Joseph was a man of great faith because he believed the words an angel spoke to him. "But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the LORD appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins...And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus" (Matthew 1:20-21, 24-25).

Joseph could have simply dismissed the angel and the words uttered. However, Joseph believed the angel. Furthermore, Joseph was probably well versed in Scripture and knew the prophecy proclaimed in Isaiah 7:4: "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel." Perhaps when the angel spoke to Joseph, Joseph made the connection that his wife, Mary, was the chosen one to bring forth the Messiah. Perhaps, this, in addition to the words of the angel, persuaded Joseph to remain with Mary and proceed with the marriage. Either way, Joseph believed God, and he was rewarded with his actions by being Jesus' earthly father.