The Grands Letter (Luke/GLJ)
Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D. on December 25, 2025 5:51 am (CST)
Dear Grands,
Luke 2:1-7, “And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
3 And all went to be taxed, everyone into his own city.
4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)
5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.
6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.
7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.”
Many are the mysteries surrounding the birth of our LORD Jesus Christ. Yet, the Scriptures reveal them to those who are His and to those who earnestly seek them.
Swaddling clothes were simply strips of cloth that served as physical protection for the Child from insects like flies, gnats, and all sorts of pestilent diseases that could have impaired the Child’s necessary sleep. Whether either of His human parents gave thought to the cloth’s cleanliness, we are not told.
“The oriental swaddling clothes consisted of a square of cloth and two or more bandages. The Child was laid on the cloth diagonally, and the corners were folded over the feet and body and under the head. The bandages were then tied, so as to hold the cloth in position. This served as the clothing of the Child until He was about a year old. Any omission would then signal that the child had been abandoned.”
The projection of the cords that bound Him as a child was a sign of those cords that would ultimately bind Him to the cross!
What an exciting picture this depicts of our LORD Jesus Christ!
Heartily in Christ,
Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
United States of America
“We will never know that Christ is all we need,
Until He becomes all that we have.” –Corrie ten Boom
