Skip to main content

Person

Quirinius

Roman governor of Syria

Roman governor of Syria whose census, recorded in Luke 2, brought Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus.

1 appearances1 Bible books2 known aliases

Who or what is this?

Quirinius ( Sulpicius Quirinius), known in the KJV as Cyrenius, is named in 2 as the governor of at the time of the census that brought Mary and Joseph from to for the birth of . Luke records that "this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria," anchoring the nativity in Roman administrative history. Quirinius is also noted in Acts 5:37, where the refers to Judas of who arose "in the days of the taxing" as a historical comparison. His role in Luke's birth narrative makes him the only Roman provincial official named in connection with the circumstances of Jesus' birth.

People, places, and events in this story

These connections are explicitly linked in this entity's source description.

Places in this story

Places explicitly linked from this entity's description. Select a marker to open its page.

Where this appears in Scripture

Start with the key scenes, then open the complete evidence by book or reference type.

Key passages

All appearances1