Christmas Questions: Who Was Caesar Augustus?

“In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world…” (Luke 2:1). Most of us memorized those words for our children’s Christmas programs. The first person mentioned in the Christmas story isn’t Jesus. It isn’t even Mary or Joseph. It’s Caesar Augustus.

Who was Caesar Augustus? He was the most powerful man in the world. Unlike a legend or a myth, the Bible is a real history book that records real events in real places. Caesar Augustus is one of the most important people in world history. You can look him up in any history book. Augustus became the Roman emperor in 27 B.C. and ruled with almost total power over most of the known world until his death in 14 A.D. In Jesus’ day, Israel was just a small part of the big Roman empire.

But don’t miss this detail about Caesar Augustus: In reality, he was just one little piece in God’s grand plan to save us. Augustus issued a decree to take a census. What greater way to show how great he was than to count how many people he ruled? But God used Caesar’s census to get Mary to Bethlehem so that Jesus could be born right where God promised. As great as Augustus thought he was, there was someone way greater—Jesus! As powerful as Augustus was, he wasn’t controlling the world. God was!

And God still is. We have our share of rulers and leaders today who boast about their power. Don’t worry: God can and will use anybody to carry out his plans to save us. Want proof? Just remember those words you memorized so long ago: “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree…”