Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that a census should be taken of the whole empire.
Parallel translations
- WEB Now in those days, a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be enrolled.
- KJV And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
- NKJV And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.
- NASB Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth.
- NLT At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
A census decree from Caesar Augustus sets the stage for Jesus' birth in Bethlehem. It matters because God uses even imperial politics to fulfill His prophetic plan.
Overview
Luke roots the nativity in real history under the Roman emperor Augustus. The empire-wide registration would bring Joseph to Bethlehem, fulfilling Micah 5:2. The sovereign God orchestrates the decisions of the world's most powerful ruler to accomplish the promised birthplace of the Messiah.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Luke 3:1In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, while Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene,
- Matt 24:14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
- Acts 25:21But when Paul appealed to be held over for the decision of the Emperor, I ordered that he be held until I could send him to Caesar.”
- Rom 1:8First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being proclaimed all over the world.
- Phil 4:22All the saints send you greetings, especially those from the household of Caesar.
- Acts 11:28One of them named Agabus stood up and predicted through the Spirit that a great famine would sweep across the whole world. (This happened under Claudius.)
- Matt 22:17So tell us what You think: Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
- Mark 14:9And truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached in all the world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”
- Acts 25:11If, however, I am guilty of anything worthy of death, I do not refuse to die. But if there is no truth to their accusations against me, no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar!”
- Mark 16:15And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 2:1 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.