When was the census taken in Bethlehem when Christ was born?

Answer 1

A:Luke's Gospel says that Jesus was born during the reign of King Herod, and also at the time of a census by Quirinius, governor of Syria. Matthew's Gospel simply says he was born during the reign of King Herod and seems to have been unaware of the census.

The only time Quirinius is known to have held any high position in Syria was from 6 CE, when he was appointed and given instructions to undertake a census of Judea, which was placed under his control because Judea's ruler, Herod Archelaus, was deposed by the Romans in 6 CE. The census was in 6 or 7 CE, which would therefore place the birth of Jesus at that time. King Herod the Great died ten years earlier, in April 4 BCE, so if there was an earlier census it must have been some time before this. Many pious Christians have sought to prove that Quirinius could have also been governor of Syria sometime before 4 BCE, but this does not accord with what we do know of his career before his appointment to Syria. Raymond E. Brown (An Introduction to the New Testament) believes the best explanation is that, although Luke likes to set his Christian drama in the context of well-known events from antiquity, sometimes he does so inaccurately.