Seminar 2 - The Birth of Jesus Christ

What was it like to grow up in the small town of Nazareth? What was Jesus like when he was growing up? Did he do any miracles? Was he different than other children?

The idea of a perfect childhood, sinless and holy, yet truly human and natural, had never entered the mind of poet or historian before; and when the legendary fancy of the Apocryphal Gospels attempted to fill out the chaste silence of the Evangelists, it painted an unnatural prodigy of a child to whom wild animals, trees, and dumb idols bowed, and who changed balls of clay into flying birds for the amusement of his playmates.

The youth of Jesus is veiled in mystery. We know only one, but a very significant fact. When a boy of twelve years he astonished the doctors in the temple by his questions and answers, without repelling them by immodesty and premature wisdom, and filled his parents with reverence and awe by his absorption in the things of his heavenly Father, and yet was subject and obedient to them in all things. Here, too, there is a clear line of distinction between the supernatural miracle of history and the unnatural prodigy of apocryphal fiction, which represents Jesus as returning most learned answers to perplexing questions of the doctors about astronomy, medicine, physics, metaphysics, and hyperphysics.98

The external condition and surroundings of his youth are in sharp contrast with the amazing result of his public life. He grew up quietly and unnoticed in a retired Galilean mountain village of proverbial insignificance, and in a lowly carpenter-shop, far away from the city of Jerusalem, from schools and libraries, with no means of instruction save those which were open to the humblest Jew -- the care of godly parents, the beauties of nature, the services of the synagogue, the secret communion of the soul with God, and the Scriptures of the Old Testament, which recorded in type and prophecy his own character and mission. All attempts to derive his doctrine from any of the existing schools and sects have utterly failed. He never referred to the traditions of the elders except to oppose them. From the Pharisees and Sadducees he differed alike, and provoked their deadly hostility. With the Essenes he never came in contact. He was independent of human learning and literature, of schools and parties. He taught the world as one who owed nothing to the world. He came down from heaven and spoke, out of the fulness of his personal intercourse with the great Jehovah. He was no scholar, no artist, no orator; yet was he wiser than all sages, he spake as never man spake, and made an impression on his age and all ages after him such as no man ever made or can make. Hence the natural surprise of his countrymen as expressed in the question: "From whence hath this men these things?" "How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?"

Philip Schaff - History of the Christian Church, Book1, chapter 2

"And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.... And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus". (Luke, 1st 26-30)

Jesus was born in Bethlehem in the province of Judea, that is, southern Palestine. After his family fled to Egypt to avoid the wrath of Herod the Great they returned to Joseph’s home town of Nazareth in northern Palestine, about 15 miles southwest of the Sea of Galilee. (see map - seminar3/map.htm) Today it is called the city of En-Nasira. There is a natural spring there where Mary would have gone to fetch water for the family. The town is on a hill overlooking the ancient battleground of the plain of Esdraelon. Mount Hermon can be see to the north and to the west the Mediterranean Sea. Nazareth is also 60 miles north of Jerusalem

Nazareth is so insignificant that it was not mentioned in the Old Testament. The name means "Separated Branch." We are not sure why Luke calls Jesus the Nazarene, perhaps it was a reference to his being the "branch." It is certain that it did not mean he was a Nazarite.

Nazareth was too small to be noted in the list of settlements of the tribe of Zebulon (Joshua 19:10-16) which mentions twelve towns and six villages. Neither is its name included in the 45 cities of the Galilee that mentioned by Josephus the historian and itts name is also missing from the 63 towns of Galilee mentioned in the Talmud. It was not expected to have a prophet, a king, or priest to ever come out of Nazareth. We suspect that in Biblical times Nazareth was a small agricultural town settled by not more than a few dozen families.

And from this we understand the reason that Pontius Pilate decorates the cross with the sign "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews" (John 19:19) - meaning that the "King of the Jews" is from "nowhere." The early name "Nazarenes" given to the Christians might have been a derogatory nickname that the people of Judea gave to the followers of Jesus (Matthew 26:71, Acts 6:38). Jesus was known throughout the Galilee as "Jesus of Nazareth" (Matthew 21:11, Mark 14:67) - but for those not from the Galilee, this name had no meaning for them. In order to explain where Nazareth was located, the Galileans had to explain that the village was near Gat-Hyefer (Jonah's hometown,Kings II 14:25), which could be seen from Nazareth.
* http://www.inisrael.com/tour/nazareth/history.htm

This prompted Nathaniel to ask the question in John 1:46, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Nazareth was isolated in ancient times because no trade routes ran through the city therefore had no economical value.

Agricultural Nazareth:

The farm land around Nazareth was of shallow soil which was terraced for agriculture. This would suggest that vines were the primary crop intended for cultivation on such terraces. However certain terraces were deep enough to raise olive trees and many still survive on these terraced slopes today. Typical crops of the dry farm would have been olives, grapes, figs, almonds, wheat and barley. Observable structures on the site: wine-press, base of watchtower, pools with channels, agricultural terraces and stone quarry; one column drum type crushing stone.

Sepphoris:

Nazareth was overshadowed by the much larger town of Sepphoris located 4 miles north west. All trade routes were to the north of Nazareth intersecting in the town of Sepphoris. Known as Zippori in Hebrew.

Sepphoris was the nearest large metropolitan area to Nazareth. It is an interesting study. It is not mentioned in Scripture therefore has not historically be associated with the life of Christ. Yet it stood just 5 miles from Jesus’ hometown and was on the busy thoroughfare of intersecting trade routes. (The two major ancient roads are, the north/south Via Maris and the east/west Acre-Tiberias road) *

It was the capital city of Galilee throughout many periods. For a time, Herod Antipas made it his capital after inheriting the territory at his father's (Herod the Great) death in 4 B.C.* Herod's son Herod Antipas, the city expanded and its acropolis was rebuilt. Josephus describes this city as the "ornament of all Galilee."*4

From ancient literary notices we know that Sepphoris had a theater (4,000-seat theater), ten synagogues, several churches, a Council Chamber, an Archive, two market places, temples, a city wall, a mint (Sepphoris minted its own coins), an extensive aqueduct system, and a cemetery, a bathing establishment, and an enormous market building or basilica with beautiful mosaics.*

Sepphoris was a center of talmudic study. Many academies were located there. Also its location on or near major trade routes in the lower Galilee, made it a prime market for traders of all commodities.*3

The rabbinical scholars who helped compile the Talmud and Mishna frequently earned their living by working in what seems to be most humble occupations - carpenters, shoemakers, potters and smiths among them.*

Assigned Readings:(These are required for this lesson)
Edersheim, Sketches of Jewish Social Life, chapter 6 "Jewish Homes"
Edersheim, Sketches of Jewish Social Life, chapter 7 "Raising Children"
Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, Book II, Chapter 6 - Child's Life in Nazareth.