Christmas Myths SERIES: 3: Matthew and Luke

"It is not difficult to find skeptics and critics who claim that the birth narratives in Matthew and Luke are hopelessly contradictory. A superficial reading of Matthew 1–2 and Luke 1–3 might lead one to agree with these critics since these two Gospels include many different details, but different is not the same as contradictory. These two books are actually complementary rather than contradictory.

Matthew opens with a genealogy that traces Jesus’ lineage from Abraham through David’s son Solomon. Then Matthew focuses more on Joseph than Mary in relation to Jesus’ birth. After Jesus’ birth, Matthew includes details about the wise men, the flight to Egypt, and
Herod’s slaughter of the innocent baby boys in Bethlehem.

Luke’s Gospel is quite different. After his prologue, he begins with the events leading up to the birth of John the Baptist. Then he focuses on Mary in relation to Jesus’ birth, which he records in Luke 2:1–7. Then Luke goes on to tell of the angelic announcement to the shepherds, the shepherds seeing the newborn Savior, Jesus’ circumcision, and a visit to the temple where Simeon and Anna meet Joseph, Mary, and Jesus. Finally, in his third chapter, Luke provides a genealogy beginning with Jesus and moving back in time all the way to Adam, but the names between Jesus and David are very different than those in Matthew.

Order of Events

Let’s quickly address the notion that Matthew’s events contradict Luke’s events. 

In the previous section, 

*we noticed that there was a gap of time between Matthew 1 and Matthew 2, which opens with, “Now after Jesus was born . . .” Luke 2:8–38 describes multiple events that fill in that time gap. 

First, the angels appear to the shepherds on the night Jesus was born, and then the shepherds enter Bethlehem and see the newborn Savior (Luke 2:8–20). 

Second, eight days later, Jesus was circumcised (Luke 2:21). 

Third, 40 days after His birth, Joseph and Mary took Jesus to Jerusalem to offer the sacrifice required by the law. It was during this visit to the temple that they met Simeon and Anna (Luke 2:22–38).

Similarly, following Luke 2:38, we need to insert the events from Matthew 2 before proceeding to Luke 2:39. Matthew 2:1–12 tells us about the visit of the magi. 

The next three verses describe Joseph and Mary taking Jesus to Egypt after an angel warned Joseph in a dream about Herod’s evil plot (Matthew 2:13–15). This could not have happened prior to their visit to the temple after Jesus’ 40th day. 

Matthew 2:16–18 describes Herod’s slaughter of the innocent baby boys in Bethlehem. We are told in Matthew 2:19–23 that Joseph, Mary, and Jesus remained in Egypt until Herod’s death. At the end of this passage, the events sync up with Luke 2:39, as both mention the move back to Nazareth.

Perhaps it would help to see these details in a list:

Jesus is born in Bethlehem (Matthew 1:25; Luke 2:1–7).

Angels announce Jesus’ birth to shepherds (Luke 2:8–14).
Shepherds visit Bethlehem and see Jesus (Luke 2:15–20).
Jesus is circumcised on the 8th day (Luke 2:21).
Jesus is taken to the temple where Simeon and Anna see him (Luke 2:22–38).
Magi arrive in Jerusalem, meet with Herod, and then see Jesus in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:1–12).
Joseph takes Mary and Jesus to Egypt (Matthew 2:13–15).
Herod slaughters Bethlehem’s baby boys (Matthew 2:16–18).
Joseph, Mary, and Jesus move to Nazareth (Matthew 2:19–23; Luke 2:39)." 

AIG