21 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.
21 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
21 In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.
21 About that time Caesar Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Empire.
21 And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.
21 At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire.
10 The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him;
10 The scepter shall not leave Judah; he'll keep a firm grip on the command staff Until the ultimate ruler comes and the nations obey him.
10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.
10 The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from his descendants, until the coming of the one to whom it belongs, the one whom all nations will honor.
(Read Genesis 49:8-12)
Judah's name signifies praise. God was praised for him, Isaiah 55:1.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Luke 2:1
Commentary on Luke 2:1-7
(Read Luke 2:1-7)
The fulness of time was now come, when God would send forth his Son, made of a woman, and made under the law. The circumstances of his birth were very mean. Christ was born at an inn; he came into the world to sojourn here for awhile, as at an inn, and to teach us to do likewise. We are become by sin like an outcast infant, helpless and forlorn; and such a one was Christ. He well knew how unwilling we are to be meanly lodged, clothed, or fed; how we desire to have our children decorated and indulged; how apt the poor are to envy the rich, and how prone the rich to disdain the poor. But when we by faith view the Son of God being made man and lying in a manger, our vanity, ambition, and envy are checked. We cannot, with this object rightly before us, seek great things for ourselves or our children.