The Manger: The Nativity Explained | Bible & Archaeology

The Nativity is a classic Christmas image, but have you ever stopped to ask exactly how we came to have that classical Nativity scene most of us are so used to seeing? We all know the scene: Mary and Joseph are huddled in a barn over the baby Jesus who has been placed in a manger because there was no room in the inn while some visiting shepherds and Magi look on, all beautifully lit by a star. Is this Nativity the image of the Nativity that comes from Matthew or Luke, or is it something different altogether? Don’t worry, we aren’t here to spoil your childhood Christmas memories, we simply want to take a tour around that old Nativity set to expand our appreciation for how and why this image has come to be expected as the norm.

Part 2 of a series of videos exploring various aspects of the Nativity and the birth of Jesus as depicted in the Bible's gospel accounts.

Written by Jordan Jones and presented by Dr. Bob Cargill.

[nathantyson]

My only concern about this theory was that in regard to the shepherds. Clearly finding a baby lying in a manger was the way to find baby Jesus. If they were inside a home that wouldn't be an easy way to find him. As you said you described a common home... it appears that there would be outdoor mangers for visibility for the shepherds to find Jesus

[jodigreiner]

Micha 4:8 says that the promised Messiah would be born in the Tower of the Flock(Migdal Eder). The angel told the shepherds they would “find the babe, wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.” The Tower of the Flock was located just north of Bethlehem on the road to Jerusalem…a few short miles. The shepherds were not ordinary shepherds. They were temple shepherds and their duty was to take all the new born lambs to the tower, which had become a sort of nursery. There they would inspect the lambs for imperfections and wrap up those in strips of cloth who were found to be perfect, then lay them in mangers until it was time to take them to the temple to be sacrificed. So the shepherds “ran with haste” because they knew exactly where to find the baby. How fitting that God’s little lamb be born there, wrapped in swaddling cloths, and laid in a manger because Mary/Joseph couldn’t find any other place.

[johnmeadow]

Does this still offer the possibility of a cave, like the catholic tradition?

[jasonmccullough]

The KJV never mentioned that the donkey even made it to the end of its journey. To be precise there were no animals at gathered there in all of the gospels. This event happened during lambing season, So it did not happen in December. The Shepards called by the angel to go to the newborn. WWWwell, Scripture does not describe an about 30 some Shepards piling upon top of each other to worship Jessus. And to add one to your phd, Jesus was not a baby light bulb, that's catholic. Look it up. Prove the Bible wrong.

[C-ipsq]

The uploaders are incredibly biased and have pressuposed the non-existence of God, the supernatural, and miracles. Be very careful of this channel, fellow Christians.