#12 Jewish Boyhood

Note: This topic has already been addressed in my previous post #12 Childhood and Youth. However, latter-day prophets have provided us modern day revelation on the topic.

                  

#12 Jewish Boyhood

In the scriptures we find very little about our Savior's early years on earth. We get a few words in Luke 2: Matthew 3: and the Inspired Version of Matthew 3, where we learn: Jesus grew strong in spirit, wisdom, stature and grace, and in favor with God and man. He grew up with his brethren. He served under his father. He was found in the temple with the learned doctors and Rabbis, hearing and asking, and amazing them with his understanding and answers.

We are very fortunate in that we know historically a great deal about the society, culture, life and ways of the Jewish nation into which our Savior was born and reared. We know what would go on in a typical family, neighborhood, and community such as his would be. Given this knowledge we can with some assurance get a feeling and picture of what Jesus' early life was probably like.

I believe this greatly enhances our understanding of the factors and forces faced by our Lord during his earthly ministry. It helps us to more clearly see the why, the how, the what, and the way of things that he did and taught.

Apostle Bruce R. McConkie:

“Jewish Family Life in Jesus’ Day” offers a good look at what we could expect the Lord's life to have been during those years.

Note: As with us today, on a scale of one to ten, there were all grades of homes and families. The following standards/events would be what an orthodox Jewish family would try to achieve … at the upper end of the scale. We may assume that Mary and Joseph would be at the upper end.   

In Jesus’ day the Jews had their temple, their synagogues, and their homes, and around them their whole life revolved. Three times each year faithful men appeared before the Lord in his sanctuary, and would not Jesus, who kept his Father's law, have been among them there; to

sacrifice, to recommit themselves to Jehovah and to receive a new remission of their sins?

Many people frequented the sacred courts to teach and be taught and to partake of the spirit of worship that centered in the Holy of Holies.

Every Sabbath and on certain feast days the faithful came to the synagogue to pray, to hear the word of the Lord and to receive the exhortations so important even to the most spiritual of men. But the home was something else ... the home was the place where true worship was taught and practiced. Every Jewish home was to be a house of worship, a house of prayer and a house of God.

And Jesus our Lord was nursed and suckled in a Jewish home; he played within its walls as a child; he was guided by a Jewish mother and a Jewish foster father as he learned the customs and discipline and the way of life of the race of which he was a part. In the real and practical sense it was his first and chief house of worship.

It is true that he worshipped as a youth and in his maturing years in Jewish synagogues; we know that during his ministry he used them as teaching centers, as the sites for miracles, and as the reverent and sacred houses of worship that they in fact were.

But we cannot see our Lord in proper perspective unless we see him in the home of Joseph and Mary; unless we know what he was taught within those private walls. Jesus was the Son of God and dwelt among men with native endowments without equal, but he was also a product, as we all are, of his environment; and his Father chose to place him in the care and custody, during his formative years, of Jewish Joseph and Jewish Mary and their Jewish home with all its Jewish teachings, practices, and ways of worship.

Joseph and Mary lived in modest circumstances. Their home in Nazareth would have been small, without running water and other amenities common in even the poorer homes today ... and as to their food, the principal fare would have been the meat and vegetables and fruits grown and raised so abundantly in the hills of Galilee.

They lived in close and intimate quarters, with limited amounts of this world's goods. The Father of the Son placed his Eternal Offspring in modest circumstances. But it is the spirit and teachings, the love and harmony, not the wood and mortar and chairs that make a true home.   And in those things that are important, the home provided by the just and faithful husband of Mary excelled. Surely the Father of us all, who also was the Father of the One only in mortality, would have chosen that family circle which was preeminent above all others as the environment for his Only Begotten Son.

Men married at sixteen or seventeen years of age, almost never later than twenty; and women at a somewhat younger age, often not older than fourteen. These ages applied to all, Joseph and Mary included. Children were esteemed to be a heritage from the Lord and were devoutly desired.

Mothers taught their children almost from the moment of birth; at least tutorial processes began by the time infant lips began to utter their first words and phrases. The Psalms and prayers were used as lullabies. At the age of two years children were weaned, with the occasion being celebrated by a feast. When the children reached about three years of age fathers began to assume their imposed obligation to teach them the Law; not nursery rhymes, but verses of scripture, benedictions, and wise sayings. Formal schooling began at five or six, with the Bible as the text.

The educational system imposed upon Jewish children was more, far more, than formal schooling arrangements. It was part and portion of their way of life. They learned from what was done as well as from what was said. A spirit of religion and devotion pervaded the home. Every pious home had either portions or all the Old Testament. There were even little parchment rolls for children that contained such scriptures as the Shema, the Hallel, the history of the creation and of the flood, and the first eight chapters of Leviticus. Jewish homes, Jewish family life, the rearing of Jewish children, indeed, the whole Jewish way of life was founded upon Jewish theology.

Alfred Edersheim:

“The pious Jew had no other knowledge, neither sought nor cared for any other … in fact denounced it … than that of the law of God.”

Glenn R. McGettigan

December 2011; Revised December 2014

#11 Jesus' Childhood and Youth

#11 Jesus’ Childhood and Youth

Please first read: Luke 2; JST Matthew 3:24-26

Apostle John Taylor:

“It is necessary, then, that we pass through the school of suffering, trial, affliction, and privation, to know ourselves, to know others, and to know God. Therefore, it was necessary, when the Savior was upon the earth, that he should be tempted in all points, like unto us, and “be touched with the feeling of our infirmities,” to comprehend the weaknesses and strength, the perfections and imperfections of poor fallen human nature. And having accomplished the thing he came into the world to do; having had to grapple with the hypocrisy, corruption, weakness, and imbecility of man; having met with temptation and trial in all its various forms, and overcome, he has become a “faithful High Priest” to intercede for us in the everlasting kingdom of His Father. He knows how to estimate and put a proper value upon human nature, for he having been placed in the same position as we are, knows how to bear with our weaknesses and infirmities, and can fully comprehend the depth, power, and strength of the afflictions and trials that men have to cope with in this world, and thus understandingly and by experience, he can bear with them as a father and an elder brother.

“It is necessary also, inasmuch as we profess that we are aiming at the same glory, exaltation, power, and blessings in the eternal world, that we should pass through these same afflictions, endure the same privations, conquer as he conquered, and overcome as he did, and thus by integrity, truth, virtue, purity, and a high-minded and honorable course before God, angels, and men, secure for ourselves an eternal exaltation in the eternal world, as he did.”

Prophet Joseph Smith:

“Our lives have already become jeopardized by revealing the wicked and bloodthirsty purposes of our enemies; and for the future we must cease to do so. All we have said about them is truth, but it is not always wise to relate all the truth. Even Jesus, the Son of God had to refrain from doing so, and had to restrain His feelings many times for the safety of Himself and His followers, and He had to conceal the righteous purposes of His heart in relation to many things pertaining to His Father's kingdom. When still a boy He had all the intelligence necessary to enable Him to rule and govern the kingdom of the Jews, and could reason with the wisest and most profound doctors of law and divinity, and make their theories and practice to appear like folly compared with the wisdom He possessed; but He was a boy only, and lacked physical strength even to defend His own person; and was subject to cold, to hunger and to death.” (“Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith” page 392)                         

President Spencer W. Kimball:

“Paul indicated that we all could attain this abundant life by perfecting ourselves. The fact that most of us are far from perfection is not to say we cannot, but we don't. Christ became perfect.

He overcame.   He suffered hunger, thirst, cold, heat, pain, sorrow, and all that life has to offer in suffering. Each time he overcame, he became more nearly perfect. Paul said, “And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him.”  (Hebrews 5:9) “For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.” (Hebrews 2:10)

President Joseph Fielding Smith:

           

“Christ Began Mortality As Men Do. Our Savior was a God before he was born into this world, and he brought with him that same status when he came here. He was as much a God when he was born into the world as he was before. But as far as this life is concerned it appears that he had to start just as all other children do and gain his knowledge line upon line. Luke says he "increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.” John records that “he received not of the fullness at the first,” but had to progress “from grace to grace, until he received a fullness.” Paul wrote, “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by all the things which he suffered.”

“How He Gained Light and Truth. Evidently, before he was twelve years old – for then he astonished the doctors and wise men in the temple – he had learned a great deal about his Father's business. This knowledge could come to him by revelation, by the visitation of angels, or in some other way. But his knowledge, so far as this life was concerned, had to come line upon line and precept by precept. Without question he was in communication, from time to time, with his Heavenly Father.

“The Joseph Smith translation of the Bible tells us that “Jesus grew up with his brethren, and waxed strong, and waited upon the Lord for the time of his ministry to come. And he served under his father, and he spake not as other men, neither could he be taught; for he needed not that any man should teach him. And after many years, the hour of his ministry drew nigh.”

                                

“How He Did What He Had Seen The Father Do. The statement of our Lord that he could do nothing but what he had seen the Father do, means simply that it had been revealed to him what his Father had done. Without doubt, Jesus came into the world subject to the same condition as was required of each of us – he forgot everything, and had to grow from grace to grace. His forgetting, or having his former knowledge taken away, would be requisite just as it is in the case of each of us, to complete the present temporal existence.

                                 

“Christ Gained Fullness After Resurrection. The Savior did not have a fullness at first, but after he received his body and the resurrection all power was given unto him both in heaven and in earth. Although he was a God, even the Son of God, with power and authority to create this earth and other earths, yet there were some things lacking which he did not receive until after his resurrection. In other words, he had not received the fullness until he got a resurrected body, and the same is true with those who through faithfulness become sons (and daughters) of God. Our bodies are essential to the fullness and the continuation of the seeds forever." (Section titled “Christ Worked Out His Own Salvation.”)

Apostle Bruce R. McConkie:

“We believe that Jesus was involved in the normal earthly activities of others of his time. His talents and spirituality far exceeded those of any other person ever. Although he was obedient and sinless in all things, yet in all points was he tempted as other men are.”

President J. Rueben Clark:

“Regarding the event at the temple when Jesus was twelve years of age and his parents leaving for home, and having to return to Jerusalem to find him...his mother asks him ‘why?’ In the language of that day, his reply to her was not discourteous. He said ‘Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?’ This is the first expression we have from Jesus regarding his Messiah-ship.”

Glenn R. McGettigan

January 2012; Revised August 2014

                         

                        

#9 The Wise Men Visit

#9 The Wise Men Visit

Please Read: Matthew 2:1-12

The family now remains in Bethlehem to fulfill the responsibilities of the law. Mary’s days of purification are accomplished (40 days for a male child, 80 days for a female) and Jesus as the first-born male must be redeemed from a life of Levite priestly service to the Lord by payment of five shekels. This they do. While in the Temple the Holy Ghost reveals to Simeon and Anna, a Priest and Priestess, that Jesus is the Messiah and they testify to this truth. We now turn to the visit of the Wise Men (Magi).

Apostle James E. Talmage:

“Some time after the presentation of Jesus in the temple, though how long we are not told, possibly but a few days, possibly weeks or even months, Herod, king of Judea, was greatly troubled, as were the people of Jerusalem in general, over the report that a Child of Prophecy ... one destined to become King of the Jews ... had been born.” There came to Jerusalem certain men from afar, wise men they were called, and they asked, ‘Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.’ Herod summoned ‘all the chief priests and scribes of the people,’ and demanded of them where, according to the prophets, Christ should be born. They answered him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for thus it is written by the prophet.’

“Herod sent secretly for the wise men, and inquired of them as to the source of their information …  Then he directed them to Bethlehem, saying: ‘Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.’ As the men set out from Jerusalem on the last stage of their journey, the new star they had seen in the east was again visible. They found the house were-in Mary was living with her husband and the Babe, and as they recognized the royal Child they fell down and worshiped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts ... Preparing to return home, they would have stopped at Jerusalem to report to the king as he had requested, but “being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.”

“...the appearance of a new star was a predicted sign recognized and acknowledged among the people of the western world as witness of Messiah's birth.”

The following excerpt is from an article entitled “The Christmas Star” that appeared in The Church News in December 25, 1983:

“The Wise Men saw the Christmas star in the east. It led them to Bethlehem. Somehow they had been taught about the Messiah. In some way they knew that the star was His and that it would guide them to His presence, so they followed it. They went first to Herod's palace, for evidently God wanted him to know of the Savior's birth, and chose this way to tell him.

“When the wise men left the palace to continue their journey, God warned them against further contact with Herod, and again provided the star to lead them to the place where the young Child and His mother lived. The scriptures say, “And lo, the star which they saw in the east went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.” (Matthew 2:9-10)

“Obviously, the star was not a part of some constellation millions of miles away in the heavens, nor was its light from any unusual alignment of planets in the skies. It was down to earth with them. It led the way and “stood over where the young child was.” A star in a galaxy millions of miles away could not stand over a particular house. It would not move like a beacon along the road to Bethlehem. This was a special light provided to guide these devoted wise men who brought their gifts to the young King.

“A star was seen in America, too. This was a sign to the faithful Nephites who had waited for this affirmation of the birth of the Lord, for whom they had suffered severe persecution. It was a joy to them as it was to the wise men of the east. How far above the earth this star was no one knows, but it was so different from all other heavenly bodies that the Nephites recognized it as the divine sign that Christ was born. Yes, the Christmas star was a reality in both hemispheres.”

Reynolds and Sjodahl:

“Other nations in the mid-east areas had religious leaders and wise men who were highly regarded and honored by their people as was the tribe of Levi in Israel. These were individuals “who had charge of religion, arts, and the higher culture generally.” The wise men who thus came to pay homage to Jesus could very well have been from among these personages.”

Frederick Farrar:

“Religious leaders and wise men, learned men, were well known in the east in antiquity. Their visits to western nations would not be an unfamiliar occurrence. Throughout the entire east at this time there was an intense conviction, derived from ancient prophecies, that ere long a powerful monarch would arise in Judea, and gain dominion over the world.

“The appearance of a new star in the heavens would fit right into the event of Jesus' birth. The Greeks and Romans of this time believed that heavenly signs signaled the birth and/or death of great men.”

In “The Life and Teachings of Jesus and his Apostles” from the CES Seminaries and Institutes of Religion:

“The wise men were familiar with the prophecies that foretold of the birth of Christ and recognizing the signs that had been given journeyed to Jerusalem to pay homage to the “King of the Jews.” They would merit an audience with king Herod.  Also, they received revelation warning them not to return and tell Herod where to find the Child.”

Apostle Bruce R. McConkie:

“In contrast to shepherds, and temple workers Simeon and Anna, we now learn of witnesses who could command an audience with kings. It would appear they were true prophets, righteous persons ... to whom deity revealed that the promised Messiah had been born among men.

“They were aware of ancient prophecies telling of the rise of a new star at his birth and were led by that star in their journey to where Jesus was. They found and worshiped the Christ child and received revelation to not disclose the Child's location.

“The probability is they were themselves Jews who lived, as millions of Jews then did, in one of the nations to the East. It was the Jews, not the gentiles, who were acquainted with the scriptures and who were waiting with anxious expectation for the coming of a King. And that King was to come to them first; he was to deliver his message to them before it went to the gentile world, and his first witnesses were to come from his own kinsmen, from the house of Israel, not from the gentile nations.”

The LDS Bible Dictionary provides the following information about the Wise Men:

"Magi. Called ‘wise men.’ Their identification is not made known in the scriptures, but it is certain that they were righteous men sent on an errand to witness the presence of the Son of God on the earth. Their spiritual capacity is evident: They were able to see the star when others could not; they knew its meaning, and brought gifts to the young child; and they were warned of God in a dream to return to their home by a safe route. Their knowledge was precise and accurate. It seems likely that they were representatives of a branch of the Lord's people somewhere from east of Palestine, who had come, led by the spirit, to behold the Son of God, and who returned to their people to bear witness that the King Immanuel had indeed been born in the flesh ... If they were serving in the capacity of witnesses, there would of necessity have been two or three.

“Wise Men of the East. Matthew 2:1-12 states that wise men (how many is not recorded), guided by a new star, came to Bethlehem to worship Jesus sometime after his birth. Who these men were we are not told, but it is certain they were not ordinary men. That they were privileged to search out the Son of God and give him gifts, and that they were spiritually sensitive and knowledgeable, suggests that they were actually prophets on a divine errand. The customary identification of them as astrologers is a gross misrepresentation. They evidently were holy men from a land east of Palestine. 

“The Jews were not the only people who had expectations of a deliverer. Even the emperor Augustus was viewed by some as a hero-ruler who would bring peace to the land. Such beliefs were not just throughout the middle east, but also in lands around the Mediterranean.   Astrology also had its influence here. Many peoples: Stoics, Babylonians, Romans, Seleucids, Greeks, Arabs, were much involved in this quasi-science.”

Albright and Mann:

“Astrology and the prevalence of magi as a professional class are both very well attested in the contemporary literature. In spite of the frequent condemnation of astrology in the O.T., in the inter-Testamental literature, and in the rabbinic writings, Judaism was deeply affected by the phenomenon. Josephus writes that the veil of the temple was adorned with stars and many excavated synagogues in Rome and Palestine have been found to have the zodiac depicted in them.

“Historically, there is nothing in the least improbable about magi traveling from Babylon west, or anywhere else in the Mediterranean world. They would find welcome audiences anywhere, from royal courts to market places. Consultation of magi by kings and prominent persons is well attested. “Messianism” of one kind or another was in the air almost everywhere. The news of magi coming to seek a king would guarantee Herod’s calling for them … Herod was constantly concerned with real or imagined usurpers after his throne.”

Glenn R. McGettigan

January 2012; Revised September 2018