4. The Angelic Announcement.—The birth of Christ was announced to a few shepherds watching their flock by night—about a mile distant from the village of Bethlehem—by an angel, surrounded about by the glory of God, who said:
Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.[4]
A visit to the village confirmed the strange proclamation of the angel—they found the mother and child.
5. The Inquiry of the Magi.—Not alone by voice of angels was the birth of Messiah announced, but "wise men from the east" who had seen his star in the firmament came to Jerusalem about the time of his birth, inquiring—"Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him."[5]
6. Nor were signs of Messiah's birth seen alone on the eastern hemisphere; to the people of the western hemisphere signs were also given; "a new star did appear," according to the words of the Nephite prophets, at Zarahemla; the Nephites saw it and to them, as well as to the wise men of the east, a star announced the birth of him who was to be King of the Jews[6] and the Savior of the world. Another sign was given to the Nephites, which had also been predicted by their prophets; the night before[7] Jesus was born remained beautifully light on the western hemisphere. This event is thus recorded in the Book of Mormon:
And it came to pass that the words which came unto Nephi were fulfilled, according as they had been spoken; for behold at the going down of the sun, there was no darkness; and the people began to be astonished, because there was no darkness when the time of night came. * * * There was no darkness in all that night, but it was light as though it was midday. And it came to pass that the sun did rise in the morning again, according to its proper order; and they [the Nephites] knew that it was the day that the Lord should be born, because of the sign which had been given.[8]
7. The Alarm of King Herod.—The inquiry made by the "wise men" from the east concerning the one who was "born King of the Jews," alarmed the jealousy of Herod, and learning from the chief priests and scribes that Bethlehem was the place where the deliverer of Israel was to be born, he sent the wise men there, strictly charging them to search diligently, and when they had found the child to bring him word that he too might worship him. On the way to Bethlehem the star they had seen in the east went before them until it stood over where the child was. They found the babe with Mary his mother and they worshipped him, giving him presents of gold and frankincense and myrrh. They were commanded of God in a dream, however, not to return to Herod, so they departed into their own country another way.
8. Joseph, too, after the departure of the wise men, was warned in a dream to flee out of the land, for Herod would seek the young child to destroy him. He was commanded to go into Egypt and remain there until the Lord should call him to return. In obedience to these divine commandments, Joseph took the mother and child and fled in the night into Egypt.
9. Herod's wrath knew no bounds when he found that the wise men had not obeyed him; and in order that he might not be baffled in his determination to destroy the one he feared would supplant himself or his posterity in the throne of Israel, he sent out an edict commanding that all the children in Bethlehem two years old and under should be slain. Then was fulfilled the prophecy of Jeremiah:
In Rama [Ra-ma] was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted because they were not.[9] (See note 3, end of section.)
10. Death of Herod.—(note 4 end of section). After Herod's death, Joseph was again visited, in a dream, by an angel, who commanded him to return with the child and his mother into the land of Israel; for they who had sought the young child's life were dead. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by the prophet of the Lord, (Hosea), "Out of Egypt have I called my son." Joseph obeyed the commandment, but as he approached Judea and learned that Archelaus [Ar-ke-la-us] the son of Herod reigned in his father's stead, he was fearful and instead of remaining in Judea, he went into Galilee [Gal-i-lee] and dwelt in the little town of Nazareth—his former home—"that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene"[10] [Naz-a-reen].
NOTES.
1. The Year of Messiah's Birth.—"The Birth of Christ was first made an era, from which to reckon dates," says the learned translator of Dr. Mosheim's Institutes—Murdock—"by Dionysius Exiguus, [Di-o-nish-i-us Exs-ig-u-us] about AD 532. He supposed Christ to have been born on the 25th of December, in the year of Rome 753, and this computation has been followed in practice to this day; notwithstanding the learned are well agreed that it must be incorrect." It will be seen, however, from what follows, from the same author, that all is uncertainty with the learned in respect to this subject:
"To ascertain the true time of Christ's birth, there are two principal data afforded by the Evangelists: I. It is clear, from Matt. ii: 1, etc., that Christ was born before the death of Herod the Great, who died about Easter, in the year of Rome 749 or 750. Now, if Christ was born in the December next before Herod's death, it must have been in the year of Rome 748 or 749; and, of course, four, if not five years anterior to the Dionysian or Vulgar era: II. It is probable, from Luke iii: 1, 2, 23, that Jesus was 'about' thirty years of age in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar. Now, the reign of Tiberius may be considered as commencing at the time he became sole emperor, in August of the year of Rome 767; or (as there is some reason to suppose that Augustus made him partner in the government two years before he died), we may begin his reign in the year of Rome 765. The fifteenth year of Tiberius will therefore be either the year of Rome 781 or 779. From which deduct 30, and we have the year of Rome 751 or 749 for the year of Christ's birth; the former two and the latter four years earlier than the Dionysian computation. Comparing these results with those obtained from the death of Herod, it is generally supposed the true time of Christ's birth was the year of Rome 749, or four years before the Vulgar era. But the conclusion is not certain, because there is uncertainty in the data. (1.) It is not certain that we ought to reckon Tiberius' reign as beginning two years before the death of Augustus. (2.) Luke says 'about thirty years of age.' This is indefinite and may be understood of twenty-nine, thirty, or thirty-one years. (3.) It is not certain in which of the two years mentioned Herod died; nor how long before that event the Savior was born. Respecting the month and day of Christ's birth, we are left almost wholly to conjecture."
It will be demanded on what authority I have gone counter to the conclusions of the learned on this subject by keeping to the Dionysian date—so far, at least, as the year is concerned. My answer is that in the revelation on Church government in the Doctrine and Covenants (sec. xx), the following in respect to the rise of the Church is given: "The rise of the Church of Christ in these last days, being one thousand eight hundred and thirty years since the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the flesh, it being regularly organized and established agreeable to the laws of our country, by the will and commandments of God, in the fourth month, and on the sixth day of the month, which is called April."
I believe that this—better than any other authority, fixes the time of the birth, or the "coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the flesh;" and that, as to the year at least, agrees with the Dionysian computation. It must be remembered that this revelation in section twenty of the Doctrine and Covenants was given before the Church was organized—at sundry times between the first and the sixth of April—and that the prophet was instructed to organize the Church on the sixth day of April, 1830, hence it was not mere chance that determined the day on which that organization took place, (History Joseph Smith, "Millennial Star Supplement" to vol. xiv, p.