Just Where, Exactly, Was Jesus Born?
While Mary and Joseph could have been in a stable or cave (certainly not an inn!), Luke’s word choice is very telling. In 2:7, inn is the Greek word kataluma. But in Lk. 10:34, Luke uses another word for inn: pandoxeion. This was the usual word used for what we conceive of as a motel. While kataluma can mean inn, it also means upper room or a guest room located on the roof, accessible by a flight of stairs. In Lk. 22:11, kataluma is used for the place where Jesus and his disciples ate their last meal. The commercial word for inn was available to Luke, even used by him in his Gospel. So why use kataluma here? Perhaps as a detailed-conscious historian, it mattered to Luke to get it right. It is commonly accepted that Mary herself was a primary source for Luke on the early life of Jesus and she certainly remembered where Jesus was born. Consider 1st century architecture for a moment. Many houses had a lowered area where animals were brought inside on cold nights. Then, raised about 3 feet was the living, eating, and sleeping area. This raised area would keep the animals from wandering up to the common area. It was very common for homes to put a guest room on the roof, to be used by visitors or themselves if it was a hot, summer night. It would be accesible by a flight of stairs, usually located on the outside of the home. Now, consider this scenerio:
It is very likely that 140 years before Jesus was born, during a Jewish resettlement campaign, Bethlehemites went north and settled the town of Nazareth. We know Joseph had to register in Bethlehem, so he had family connections to Bethlehem. It is very likely that the couple came to the home of a distant relative, counting on the tradition of hospitality for lodging. Being late in her pregnancy, the relatives made room in their home for the young couple, certainly not turnig them away. The kataluma (upper guest room) was already occupied by others who arrived first. But it was not a suitable place for a very pregnant girl anyway since it would mean climbing a steep, narrow staircase without a railing on the outside of the home to reach the guest room. Instead, a place was made in the warmth of the home, on the raised living area. They cleaned out the feeding trough, or manger, and prepared a place for the delivery and stay of the Joseph, Mary and the baby. On the divinely appointed night, sometime near Dec. 25, 6 B.C., Jesus the King was welcomed into the humble, but safe and warm, home in the city of the Great King David.