Census

“The purpose of a census is to compile information about the population and resources of the country which the government wishes to know for administrative purposes.

In the Book of Numbers, in the Old Testament, a count of males of twenty and over was made by the Israelites to assess their fighting strength. The modern meaning of “census” dates back to Rome. The purpose of the Roman census, supposed to be conducted every five years, was to enumerate the population and assess the prosperity of each family, including land, animals, slaves and servants. Under Augustus the census was extended to the whole empire. It was this that resulted in Jesus being born in Bethlehem , where Joseph, a descendant of king David, had to register”. (Tracing Your Ancestors, by DM Field, page 16).

This meant  Joseph and his espoused wife Mary had to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem; from the north to the south of Israel.  It must have been a very  uncomfortable  journey for Mary as she was pregnant.  She was soon to give birth to Jesus whose name means “Jehovah the Saviour”. “Jehovah” is a name of God. So Jesus is God as well as human. Prior to His birth, Joseph was told by the angel Gabriel , “You shall call His name Jesus for He shall save His people from their sins”. (Matthew 1.21).He did this by dying for the sinners on the Cross of Calvary. You must repent of your sins to become one of “His people”. Otherwise you will perish eternally.