Category:Taxing

---excerpt from the Illustrated Bible Dictionary

Taxing - (Luke 2:2; R.V., "enrollment"), "when Cyrenius was governor of Syria," is simply a census of the people, or an enrollment of them with a view to their taxation. The decree for the enrollment was the occasion of Joseph and Mary's going up to Bethlehem. It has been argued by some that Cyrenius (q.v.) was governor of Cilicia and Syria both at the time of our Lord's birth and some years afterwards. This decree for the taxing referred to the whole Roman world, and not to Judea alone. (See CENSUS.)