Things you may not know about Jesus

Sure, this looks like the Nativity scene you're used to, but did you know the birth of Jesus probably didn't look anything like this?

Actually, much of what you think you know about Jesus may not be historically accurate. See what scholars say about many possible misconceptions surrounding the life of Jesus.

Jesus may have had short hair

Many modern depictions of Jesus show him with long, flowing hair, but Jewish men in Jesus' time did not wear their hair long. In fact, a passage in the Bible calls it a "shame" for a man to have long hair.

Jesus probably had olive skin

Jesus is often depicted with ivory skin, but like most Jewish people of his time, he probably had darker skin, a theologian explained in a column for The Atlantic in 2013.

But we may never know

The Bible, however, says little about Jesus' physical appearance, and nothing about his skin color.

Jesus may not have been born in a stable

Many current-day Nativity scenes feature baby Jesus in a stable, which may be due to the mention of a manger in the Bible. However ...

But maybe a cave

... it's possible that Jesus' manger actually was in a cave being used as a house, or inside some other kind of dwelling; at the time of his birth, people usually brought their animals inside at night, theologians believe.

Or maybe there were no animals

Some scholars believe Mary gave birth in a house because they'd traveled to the place of Joseph's birth and likely had family there. But if Jesus was born in any kind of home during the day, the baby likely wouldn't have been surrounded by animals; it would have been unheard of for the residents to have had their animals inside during daylight hours.

No mention of animals at Jesus' birth in the Bible

Furthermore, the Bible makes no mention of animals at the scene during the birth of Jesus. Pope Benedict XVI wrote about the possible absence of animals at the Nativity scene in his book, "Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives."

Three wise men? Maybe more, maybe less

One reason why people assume three wise men visited Jesus is that the Bible makes mention of three gifts.

Any number of wise men

Historians say any number of wise men could have visited the child, and the timing of their arrival is hazy too. 

People of Jesus' time may have been expecting him

In 2008, archaeologists discovered a stone tablet believed to date decades before Jesus' birth. Some of the text is missing, but it appears to discuss a Messiah who would suffer a brutal death and possibly rise again in three days. 

What his contemporary followers thought

Some think it was only after his death that Jesus came to be seen as a divine being.

But a growing number of biblical scholars now believe Jesus' contemporary followers also recognized him as the "son of God."

Jesus quoted the Hebrew Bible on the cross

A well-known part of the story of Jesus' crucifixion is when he said, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?"

As author Glenn Stanton noted on Good Friday 2017, Jesus is quoting Psalm 22:1.

Jesus possibly sang on the cross

In the first century, Jewish people commonly recited the Psalms in song, according to "Jesus: A Theography," written by historians Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola.

But Jesus may not have died on a cross at all

Some theologians and historians argue that ancient texts refer to "suspension devices" used for executions at the time of Jesus' death, but make no specific references to T-shaped devices.

Jesus could have possibly been executed on a large pole or tree trunk. 

His tomb may be older than we thought

Originally, researchers believed that the tomb in Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built around the spot where Jesus is thought to have been buried, dated back 1,000 years.

But tests carried out on the remains of limestone in a cave at the site date back to around 345 A.D., according to National Geographic. That means a tomb was likely constructed there during Constantine's rule about 1,700 years ago. 

Jesus was likely trilingual

As a Jewish man of his time, Jesus' first language was likely Aramaic. Because he would have studied the Torah, he also probably knew Hebrew. And because he lived in an area where many non-Jews lived, he probably also spoke Greek, experts told the BBC in 2014.

And he was likely well-versed in Jewish teachings

Scholars say that the debates documented in the New Testament indicate that Jesus was well-versed in the Torah.

Jesus wasn't born on December 25

The Bible doesn't specify what season Jesus was born in. 

Astrologers have looked into when the Star of David, as described in the Bible, would have been visible in the sky and concluded that Jesus was probably born closer to June, The Telegraph reported in 2008.

Most of Jesus' disciples were likely teenagers

Often, Jesus' disciples are depicted as being around the same age as him. But as the Bible says, he was teaching them, and education in Jesus' time ended before people turned 20.

Further evidence: Tax bills

Further evidence from the Bible comes from a passage where only Jesus and Peter are asked to pay a tax. The tax was for men over 20, and none of the other disciples were asked to pay the tax.

Jesus likely wasn't born in 1 A.D.

Many historians believe Jesus was born between 7 B.C. and 2 B.C. Pope Benedict XVI said in 2012 that the mistake in estimating the year of Jesus' birth was first made by a sixth-century monk.

Jesus grew up in a very, VERY small town

In 2009, Israeli archaeologists uncovered a home dating back to the time of Jesus in Nazareth, where he is said to have lived.

Many historians agree that Nazareth was a tiny town of only 100 to 200 people, PBS has reported. 

But he was in the shadow of a metropolis

Nazareth was located, during Jesus' time, about four miles from Sepphoris, a city with an estimated population of 30,000 that served as a transportation hub and a center for political activity and cultural events and venues, according to historians who spoke with PBS.

He may have been average height

Some Christians celebrate the Shroud of Turin, shown here, as the burial shroud of Jesus.

The 6-foot-long image of a man depicted on the shroud is longer than the common height in Jesus' time. He may have stood at just about 5 feet tall, which was average for a Jewish man then.