The Romans measured the time ad urbe condita (since the founding of Rome): year AUC. So, for example, the year 710 AUC is the year Julius Caesar was assassinated in the Senate. We date that year as 44 BC. The first year of the Christian Era corresponds to 753 AUC.
Thus, Jesus must have been born in 753 after the founding of Rome. At least that’s how Dionisio El Meager, a monk to whom we owe the accounting of time, thought. Pope John I asked Dionysus, at the beginning of the 6th century, to date the time from Christ, so that year 1 would be the year of the Redeemer’s birth. And so he did. Since then we date the time assuming that the first year of this Age was the year in which Christ was born. But this is a mistake, because Jesus was born at least six and even eight or ten years before Christ!
If we give credit to the Gospel of Matthew, we know that Jesus was born in the time of Herod I, called the Great One, who ruled over Judea, Samaria, Galilee and Idumea. Moreover, we know that, warned of the birth of the Messiah by some “magi” (who were not three, nor were they kings, nor were they magi) who arrived in Jerusalem asking for the “king of the Jews” who had just been born, Herod entered in a panic thinking that he would lose his kingdom. The magi told Herod that they would go to worship the Messiah and the king asked them to find out where he was, so that they would also go worship him. So the magicians left and the king waited in vain for their return.
The Gospel of Matthew says that the magi were warned by revelations of the horrible intention of Herod, who planned to kill the Messiah, so they did not return. As they did not arrive, Herod’s panic was translated into action and he ordered the killing of all children born in Bethlehem who were less than two years old. Yes, the children of Bethlehem, since the Hebrew prophets had said that the Messiah would be born from the house of Judah, and David, his most illustrious personage, was from Bethlehem; moreover, the magicians themselves told him. Now, and here is the detail, the Gospel of Matthew tells us that Joseph and Mary fled with the child to Egypt, and they were there until Herod died.
How much time will have elapsed between the time Jesus was born, the magi came to worship him, they met with Herod, they left for Bethlehem, Herod waited for them, ordered the slaughter of the innocents, the holy family fled to Egypt and waited for the king to die to return? At least two years, if not, it would not be understood why Herod ordered to kill all those under two years of age. Matthew 2:16 says: “When he was deceived by the magi, Herod was enraged and ordered to kill, in Bethlehem and its surroundings, all the children under two years of age, according to the date that the magi had indicated.” Mary and Joseph learned of the massacre and remained in hiding in Egypt, so the king must have lived for some time after ordering and consummating the massacre.
The impressive thing about the case is that this Herod died in 4 BC! We know this because the Emperor Augustus ordered the division of Herod’s kingdom between his three sons, and this happened in the year 750 AUC, which is equivalent to our year 4 BC (hence we say that the foundation of Rome was in 753 BC; a year because Dionisio went directly from year -1 to year 1, without considering zero). Thus, Jesus must have been born at least six years BC: these four years of lag, and at least the two of the episode of the magi and the slaughter. And if we add to this that Herod lived a longer time before the holy family returned from Egypt, we would have to add one, perhaps two or even four years, with which we would have that Jesus would have been born between 6 and 8 BC and even in 10 BC Jesus would have died, not thirty-three years old, but at least forty, or more. But let’s save the age of Christ for another time. Happy New Year everyone, not 2022, but Anno Domini, at least 2028, and may the Magi bring you many gifts.
Reference-www.eleconomista.com.mx