There are several arduous journeys at the heart of the Christmas story. Mary and Joseph travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem. The magi travel to Nazareth from the East. Mary and Joseph take Jesus to Egypt to avoid the wrath of Herod. Because these journeys only take up a few sentences in the Bible, there is much left to our imagination.
Flight into Egypt. Matthaeus Merian.
The Journeys of Mary and Joseph
Nazareth is the hometown of Mary and Joseph. In 5 B.C., just before the birth of Christ, the Romans require them to travel to their ancestral home (they were both of the lineage of King David) of Bethlehem. The couple travels the roughly 80 miles (about 129 kilometers) to the city, where Christ will be ultimately born in a stable and laid in a manger (Luke 2:1 - 20). Joseph, on the eighth day after Mary gives birth, takes the family to Jerusalem so that the Lord can be circumcised according to the law of God (Luke 2:21).
Forty days after Jesus is born, fulfilling the purification requirement of Leviticus 12, Mary and Joseph travel to Jerusalem's temple to present him before God. The trip is only 6 miles (9.6 kilometers) long. His parents make an offering to the temple of two young birds. The family then makes the short trip back to Bethlehem.
Back to Bethlehem
In Bethlehem, Jesus' family is living in a home and not a stable (Matthew 2:11). The wise men (Magi) from the East, guided by a star (an angel), arrive to worship the King of Kings with Mary in attendance.
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After the wise men leave, Joseph is told (in a dream) to flee to Egypt (verse 13). He is informed of this because Herod the Great will soon issue a command that all male children two years old and younger, in and around Bethlehem, are to be put to death (Matthew 2:16). Herod's cruel actions fulfill a prophecy regarding the slaughter of innocent children (Jeremiah 31:15).
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The Flight to Egypt
Their journey from Bethlehem to what is Egyptian-controlled territory (which was outside the jurisdiction of Herod) was at least 65 kilometers (40 miles). The normal mileage from Bethlehem down to the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, through Gaza across the Sinai Desert and into Egypt to the Pyramids along the Nile would be about 350 miles (563 km).
The Flight into Egypt. Adam Elsheimer.
Return to Israel
After Herod dies in early 4 B.C., Joseph has a dream where an angel tells him it is safe to return to Israel. Mary and the family's trip to and from Egypt is a fulfillment of Bible prophecy (Hosea 11:1). They soon begin their travel back to Judea and Bethlehem.
Return to Nazareth
However, as Mary and Joseph approach Judea, it is discovered that Herod Archelaus, the eldest surviving son of Herod the Great, is the new ruler of the area. Joseph's fears about living within Judea are confirmed when God sends him a warning in a dream. The family, instead of going back to Bethlehem, continue their journey and go northward to their hometown of Nazareth (Matthew 2:22 - 23).
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The travels of Mary and Joseph from Egyptian territory all the way north to Nazareth is a journey of more than 140 miles (225 kilometers, see Luke 2:39 - 40)! Mary, Joseph and child Jesus at about the age of 4 or 5 walked (traveled) from Egypt across the desert past Gaza and Joppa along the Mediterranean Sea to Nazareth.
Living in Nazareth Mary would have gone at least once a year to the Temple in Jerusalem and back. Let us say they came back to Nazareth when Jesus was 5. For 25 years, Mary would have made round trips to and from Jerusalem once a year.
During the public ministry we find Mary in Cana with Jesus. Mary was with Jesus in His ministry. She was present as Jesus was crucified. The disciple John was asked by Jesus to take care of Mary. Mary stayed to live with the early believers in Jerusalem.
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