Luk 2:1-2 | TNotes | STEP | Summary for Luke 2:1-7: 2:1-7 Having described John’s birth, Luke gives a parallel account of Jesus’ birth, with emphasis on its lowliness. Although he was the glorious Messiah, Jesus entered the world in humble circumstances. 2:1 Caesar Augustus , whose given name was Octavian, ruled the Roman Empire from 27 BC to AD 14. Prior to his time, Rome was a republic ruled by a senate. The Roman senate gave Augustus supreme authority as emperor , and the republic became an empire. Augustus secured the empire’s borders and established the Pax Romana (“Roman Peace”), a period of unprecedented stability and prosperity in the Mediterranean world. • A census registered the people for tax purposes.

dMatt 2:1-19►

‏ Luke 2:1-2

Summary for Luke 2:1-7: 2:1-7 ^a Having described John’s birth, Luke gives a parallel account of Jesus’ birth, with emphasis on its lowliness. Although he was the glorious Messiah, Jesus entered the world in humble circumstances. 2:1 ^b Caesar Augustus, whose given name was Octavian, ruled the Roman Empire from 27 BC to AD 14. Prior to his time, Rome was a republic ruled by a senate. The Roman senate gave Augustus supreme authority as emperor, and the republic became an empire. Augustus secured the empire’s borders and established the Pax Romana (“Roman Peace”), a period of unprecedented stability and prosperity in the Mediterranean world.

• A census registered the people for tax purposes.
2:2 ^c Quirinius was governor of Syria: Quirinius held this post AD 6–9. In 6–4 BC, Quirinius also had authority over Judea, possibly through some kind of joint rule. He may have begun the census. Historical accounts mention three other censuses at that time (in Syria, Gaul, and Spain), and there was no reason not to have one in Judea, though it is not mentioned in secular records. Jesus was born around 6–4 BC, before Herod the Great died in 4 BC (see Matt 2:1-19 ^d).