"And it came to pass in those days
that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all
the world should be taxed. And all went to be taxed, every one
into his own city."
Caesar sat in his imperial palace in Rome. He was proud of
his vast empire, which included Palestine. He was
god. What he said must be carried out. It
didn't matter to him that it was a hardship on many of the
poor people of his empire to have to travel to their place of
birth to be registered. But that is the decree he put out.
Everyone in his kingdom must go to his place of birth to be
taxed. Death was the penalty for disobeying.
But what Augustus Caesar didn't know was, it had already
been decreed that a census should be taken at this time.
Caesar didn't know that he was fulfilling a prophecy made
seven hundred years earlier by Micah, the prophet of God. He
would have resented it had he known that he was being used by
a higher Ruler.
And so it was that Joseph and Mary set out on their journey
from Nazareth, in Galilee to Bethlehem, in Judea, the place of
their birth. It would be a long weary ninety-mile, three-day
trip for them, as well as for many others from their town and
nearby places.
Joseph cast worried glances at Mary as
she sat on the back of the donkey. He knew it was getting
dangerously near to the time for the baby to be born. He could
see her discomfort; yet he never once heard her complain. How
very alone Joseph and Mary must have felt as they trudged
along that dusty road from Nazareth to Bethlehem. He could
feel the furtive glances of their fellow travelers. Many of
them knew that the couple had only recently married; yet they
could see that the young woman was about to give birth. What a
scandal! But Joseph knew it wasn't a scandal. He had been told
in a dream that Mary was the mother of the Lord.
Although it is supposed that Mary was just in her later
teens, Joseph would possibly have been in his late twenties,
or early thirties (according to the customs of those days, I
understand). He was very protective of his young wife, and did
his best to guard her against the cruel criticism of the
public. So as not to have further stress put on Mary, who was
growing more uncomfortable by the minute, Joseph kept a safe
distance from the sneering group of people.
As they neared the town of Bethlehem dusk was already
settling in. Relief surged through Joseph's weary mind. They
were almost there. Soon he could get his young wife into a
comfortable inn so that she could have a night's sleep before
the baby came.
Mary glanced around at the countryside of the town of her
birth. As they trudged up the long hill into Bethlehem, she
looked absently down on the thread of low, flat-roofed houses.
The glow from the setting sun cast a silvery hue on the
foliage, making everything look peaceful. Her eyes wandered
upward to the hills. There was Herod's castle. The sun's rays
hitting the tower made it look like ivory.
She was not to know at this time what wicked scheme the
puppet king inside that 'ivory tower' would soon dream up: to
seek and destroy the Child she was about to bear. She cast her
eyes downward again, to a brook. Beams from the sun, falling
on the bubbling water, made it look like a river of gold.
Almost as if in a dream her mind registered a tranquil picture
of a few shepherds that were leading their small flock to a
quiet pool of water upstream from the golden waterfall she had
just seen. She was willing her mind to notice these peaceful
pictures of God's wonderful handiwork, in order to keep from
thinking about the increasing, screaming pain that was surging
through her body.
They were almost into town. Soon she would be settled in a
comfortable bed. She slumped forward, leaning on the head of
the patient donkey. Soon it would be over. Soon she would bear
the Christ Child. Soon. Soon.