EARLY HUMAN LIFE OF JESUS

THE Bible’s record of Jesus’ early life is brief but specific. It is not a fanciful story but is historical fact. It involves places that can be visited even now​—Bethlehem, Egypt, Nazareth, and Jerusalem. The Bible’s dating and explanation of events involves such prominent persons as Caesar Augustus, Governor Quirinius, King Herod the Great, and Archelaus​—all of whom are known from secular history.

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Above: A view of Bethlehem, where Jesus was born. Below: A drawing depicting the circumstances under which he was born

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A model of the palace of Herod the Great, now on display in Jerusalem. It was King Herod who tried to have young Jesus killed

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Bronze coin minted by Herod the Great and bearing his name

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A bronze coin of Archelaus. When Joseph heard that Archelaus was ruling in Judea, he settled his family outside Archelaus’ jurisdiction, up in Nazareth

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A reconstruction of the temple area as it may have appeared in first-century Jerusalem

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At 12 years of age, Jesus was in the temple in Jerusalem, sitting in the midst of the teachers and listening to them and questioning them

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En Nasira (Nazerat) in Galilee, the likely site of ancient Nazareth, where Jesus grew up

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As a young man in Nazareth, Jesus worked at carpentry under the supervision of his adoptive father