Articles
The Quirinius Issue
Luke 2:1-2 has been debated for centuries. To skeptics, it’s the clearest example of historical error in Scripture. Luke writes, “Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth. This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria.” 3 main issues arise. 1) Skeptics say we have no record of an empire-wide census under Augustus. 2) No Roman census would require Joseph to return home to Bethlehem. He could have just been enrolled from Nazareth where he was living. They say Luke made this up so the prophecy about Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2) could be fulfilled. 3) Josephus, a first century Jewish historian, says the census under Quirinius took place in 6 A.D. when he first became governor of Syria. But Luke and Matthew place Jesus’ birth in the days of Herod, who died in 4 B.C.! Since Jesus was born before the death of Herod in 4 B.C., how can Luke say He was born during a census that took place in 6 AD under Quirinius?
Let’s take these one at a time. 1) Skeptics are right; there was no one-time event where the entire empire was enrolled at once. But Luke 2:1 could mean Augustus decreed that the whole empire be enrolled, with the expectation that it would take place in different provinces over time. He decreed to start a process of enrollment, not to declare a single event, and that’s exactly what history shows us. 2) We’ve now found evidence from a Roman governor of Egypt named Gaius Vibius Maximus from 104 AD who described the need for any person outside their district to return to their home town for the regular enrollment. Luke’s right again!
3) First, the census described by Josephus in 6 AD involved a revolt from a Jew named Judas. Luke mentions that census in Acts 5:37, so it’s not like he didn’t know about that event. In Luke 2:2, he writes about the “first” census under governor Quirinius. Acts 5:37 and Josephus’ account must have been a second census under Quirinius (6 AD). Secondly, while it’s true Quirinius didn’t become official governor until 6 AD, the Greek word Luke uses for “governor” can simply mean “ruler or administrator.” There’s evidence to suggest before Quirinius became governor in 6 AD, he ruled in some capacity as a military leader or high official over Syria in the days of Herod, and Luke is referring to this earlier rulership. Unfortunately, we don’t know enough about Quirinius’ life to present a perfect solution, but our lack of knowledge goes both ways. Skeptics don’t know enough to prove Luke’s wrong either. Luke has proven to be a first rate historian on hundreds of other details, and while we have gaps in our knowledge about Quirinius, I trust the man who lived back then and “investigated everything carefully” so that we may know the “exact truth.” (Luke 1:3-4)
Main Sources: “A Brief Comment on the Census in Luke 2.” by Stephan Caesar and “Once More: Quirinius’s Census” by Jared Compton. biblearchaeology.org. “Was there Really a Census During the Time of Caesar Augustus?” by Ted Wright. crossexamined.org. “Excurses 2: The Census of Quirinius” by Darrell Bock. Luke 1:1-9:50. p. 903-909.
