"Jesus the Messiah Returns"
ISBN 1-59196-730-9 at Barnes and Noble .com

It was the Feast of Tabernacles in October and the Temple Shepherds were watching their flocks of Passover Lambs born to be offered as a sacrifice for sin. It was at this time and in this very place that Jesus the Messiah was born.

Jesus is dedicated to the Lord in the Temple

Forty days after His birth Mary was purified in a ritual bath. Mary made the offering of two pigeons (squab), the offering of a poor person ( Emeril Lagasse prepared squab recently on the Food Network.) And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord; As it is written in the Law of the Lord, Every male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord. And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the Law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons. And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Messiah. And he came by the Spirit into the Temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the Law, Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said:

"Lord, now let your servant depart in peace, according to your Word: For my eyes have seen your salvation, Which you have prepared before the face of all people; A Light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel. And Joseph and Mary marveled at those things which were spoken of him. And Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against; Yes, a sword shall pierce through your own soul also, that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed." ..At first Joseph did not want to return to Nazareth because of the gossip surrounding the virgin birth, but safety concerns changed his mind . When they arrived in Nazareth Joseph opened a carpenter shop. As a typical Jewish business man does to this very day, Joseph could go to the Synagogue, present his business plan and the other business men would lend him what he needed for up to seven years at no interest. Charging interest to a brother is forbidden by God's Law. This is still true today among Orthodox Jewish business men..

  In spite of our traditions.....The visit of the Wise Men and Joseph's dream happened at their home in Nazareth (Luke 2:39). Jesus was a young child, a "pais" (a young Child) not a "brephos"(a baby). Jesus was more than 1 year old when Herod decreed that all the children two years old and under in or near Bethlehem should be slain (Matthew 2:16) ....

The Wise Men probably scorned Herod's directions and followed the star to the house of Mary and Joseph in Nazareth..... Joseph, Mary and the young child, Jesus, went to Egypt about 4 B.C. to flee the wrath of Herod. and were there for less than a year The Wise men gave the family wealth in compact form which would sustain them in Egypt. They returned to Nazareth after Herod died on March 13, 4 B.C .

Map of the route of the Wisemen along the Fertile Crescent to Mesopotamia

.....Mesopotamia in Aramaic, Mesa means "middle" (as in our word mezzanine) and potamus means "river" or this was the land between the two rivers. The Tigris and Euphrates are mentioned as the location of Eden. Genesis 2:14-15. Mesopotamia has always been a center of Astronomy and Astrology. The term "Wise Men" in the Bible refers to Astrologers. Daniel 5:7b,8a. Our present constellations were named here. The Jewish calendar was divided into 12 sections or months patterned after the agricultural cycle.

Nissan (March - April) Early barley harvest	Av (July-August) Grapes, fig, olive	Kislev (November-Dec) Rainy winter Months
Iyar (April-May) Barley harvest	Elul (August-Sept) Vintage begins	Tevet (December-Jan) New Year for trees
Sivan (May-June) Wheat harvest	Tishri (Sept-October) Early rains; Plowing	Shevat (January-February
Tammuz (June-July)	Cheshvan (October-Nov) Wheat, Barley sowing	Adar (February-March) Almonds blooming

 
 

Where Jesus Lived

The course of World Empires had moved from Egypt to Assyria, to Babylon, to Medo-Persia, to Greece. Greece had developed the city-state during the period between the Old and New Testaments. Socrates the Greek Philosopher was a contemporary of Malachi. In 27 B.C. the Roman Republic under its first Emperor, Caesar Augustus, became the Roman Empire.... Thus Jesus and the Roman Empire grew up at the same time. Thirty three years later the Early Church and the Roman Empire also continued to grow at the same time. .... The Romans called the Mediterranean Sea "Mare Nostra", Our sea. They controlled its entire perimeter.....Except for a short time in Egypt, Jesus spent his entire life in a small area southeast of the Mediterranean Sea.

In Northern Israel midway between the Mediterranean Sea and the Sea of Galilee with a view of Mt Carmel to the East and Mt Hermon to the North was Nazareth, the home of Mary, a descendant of the Priestly line and Joseph the carpenter, a descendant of the line of King David. Mt. Carmel was the place where Elijah had defeated Ahab and his powerful wife Jezebel...... Mt. Hermon's 11,000 feet snow covered peaks supply water to the Sea of Galilee, the Jordan River and the Dead Sea. Mt Hermon also supplies water to the oldest continuously inhabited city on the face of the earth, Damascus Syria.

Mary's Well in Nazereth

Mary's well is one of the most authentic sites in the Holy Land. It was and still is the city's only water supply. Jesus, with his mother, came here to draw water as the women of Nazareth have always done...Food was a major concern.. Goats milk and sweet grape juice were also served. Baking consisted of wheat and barley bread, cakes and pancakes mixed with figs, almonds, fruit and honey. Leaven or yeast was used except at Passover. Fish was the main staple. On special occasions, meat was baked or roasted. The fat was removed from clean animals and the blood completely drained. This is the reason we have Rabbis approve kosher meat at slaughter houses. Olive oil was used for cooking and baking. ... Meat and fish were seasoned with onions, garlic, dill, cucumbers and mint. Dried figs, dates, apples, lentils, beans, artichoke, lettuce, celery, pears, pomegranates and other fruit and vegetables were eaten in season. Honeycomb and sesame were used as dessert The word "corn" refers to wheat in the Bible. Corn was first introduced to us by the Indians.

At the edge of the village was an open marketplace, an Olive press and a Dovecote where pigeons were raised for food and beyond that the Tanner. There was a village Miller who ground the wheat and barley into flour, a village Baker who prepared bread and pastries, a Butcher shop, a Potter who made the clay stoves, bowls, lamps and plates, a Weaver who spun cloth on a loom and a Fuller who cleaned and bleached the clothes. Metal workers called" nappah" produced jewelry, ornaments and tools.

Woolen clothing was typically a tunic which can still be seen in the dress of modern Arab sheiks. The mantle was a large cloak similar to our overcoat which was worn over the back of the neck or over one shoulder and doubled as a sleeping blanket. Sandals were made of wood or leather soles bound with leather thongs. Modesty was a virtue among women and only pagan women wore skintight, skimpy or see-through clothing. Women wore head dress and veils in public. Prostitutes wore no head covering. )

NEXT