In almost every nation and culture on the face of the earth, birthdays are celebrated with gifts, food (have you read our article about eating pork and bible?) and events. It is a moment of happiness where families come together to mark these important milestones in the lives of their loved ones. Have you ever sat and thought whether birthday keeping is biblical? Is there evidence that God agrees with birthday celebrations? Read on to learn more about what the Bible says about birthdays.
What You'll Learn Today
Celebration Of Life Abundantly
In the book of John 10:10, the Bible advocates for an abundant life. The question of whether this abundance includes birthday celebration is still a subject to debate. In the Bible, birthday celebrations are mentioned on a handful of occasions. Unfortunately, all of them are linked to something terrible.
Pharaoh’s Birthday Celebration
In Genesis 40:1-23, the Bible tells us of Pharaoh who celebrated His birthday, an event that was marked by the execution of the chief baker.
“Now the third day was Pharaoh’s birthday, and he gave a feast for all his officials. He lifted up the heads of the chief cupbearer and the chief baker in the presence of his officials:” (verse 20, NIV).
God had revealed Pharaoh’s plan to execute the chief baker through Joseph in a dream. Whatever the event and how it turned out, the bottom line is that birthdays were celebrated even in the Old Testament non-Israelites communities.
Herod’s Birthday
In the New Testament, Mathew records in Mathew 14:6 that Herod’s birthday was kept. It was full of dancing and merry making. Even to the point of Herod making an unthinkable promise that resulted in the beheading of John the Baptist, it clearly shows how of a great feast and a cherished event it was.
“On Herod’s birthday the daughter of Herodias danced for the guests and pleased Herod so much.” (NIV)
Job’s Children Birthdays
Job, a servant of God and a righteous man, celebrated the birthdays of his children as recorded in Job 1:4.
“His sons used to hold feasts in their homes on their birthdays, and they would invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them.” (NIV)
From the text above, it shows there was a habit of birthday celebrations among Job’s children and possibly the society in which Job lived. It also seems that the celebrations were not necessarily centered on God because Job would be concerned that his children may have sinned in the course of the celebrations.
Unfortunately, it was in this specific birthday celebration that the Bible allowed us to see that God allowed Satan to kill all Job’s children.
Out of reasons that are not apparent, Job curses the day of his birth according to Job 3:1.
“May the day of my birth perish, and the night that said, ‘A boy is conceived!’ ” (NIV)
Well Known Bible Figures
Abraham, Moses, David, and other notable figures such as Jacob, Elijah, and Isiah don’t have their dates recorded. Biblical scholars gather that these dates are not as important as the events that happened in the lifetimes of these men.
While there is no express statement disapproving the celebration of birthdays in the Bible, there is no statement either that approves them.
The issue of Christmas being the birthday of Jesus is not expressly stated in the Bible. Even the gifts brought by the wisemen from the East have been interpreted not as birthday presents but presents given before a king. It is said that it was the ancient custom of the East to present such gifts whenever one appeared before a king. None of Jesus disciples is recorded to have either said or taken part in a celebration to mark the birth of Jesus.
In Ecclesiastes 7:1, the Bible records:
“A good name is better than fine perfume, and the day of death better than the day of birth.” (NIV)
The conclusion therefore is that birthday celebrations are not anchored in the Bible, but rather in the traditions of the people who lived in the biblical times.
If you are looking for some birthday prayers, check out this article.
Where God is concerned, be it anciently or modern times today, Jesus was NOT BORN Dec. 25th! It was winter in Israel/Judah in Nov. Dec. Sheep would NOT be outside in the cold, rainy season. We are NOT to celebrate Christ’s birthday, nor pagan holidays such as Xmas, Easter. Constantine also brought in these pagan days and also changed the true Sabbath from Sat. to Sun, which is wrong! The true Holy Days of God are those the Jewish people honor today. If you read Romans 2 near the end of the chapter, Paul states to the Gentiles that you are NOT circumcised outwardly and a Jew, but those who are circumcised ‘inwardly’ with a ‘circumcision of the heart’. In other words, Paul is stating a FACT. WE ALL NEED TO HAVE A CIRCUMCISION OF THE HEART to become ‘SPIRITUAL JEWS’! Priest, ministers, and all the many denominations that came out of the vatican catholic church are have been WRONG for centuries in understand these issues in the world. Christ was not resurrected on a Sunday but on the Sabbath day, late in the day before sundown. Good Friday and Easter are via the catholic church and all her daughters that came OUT of her. Only the wise men came to give gifts to baby Jesus and that was weeks after His brith. Christ was born on one of the Father’s Holy Days, either in spring or in early autumn. As far as birthdays goes, evil things occurred AFTER these birthdays: Job was seen as self-righteous, putting himself above God the Creator. This is why is wished he was never born. God had to teach him a lesson; Herold’s birthday culminated on the murder of John the Baptist, Christ’s cousin because of evil Salome asking for his head on a platter; the same is true of the Egyptian Pharoh who was going to kill a man and Joseph was given a dream from God about this evil. We are really NOT to celebrate any person’s birthday even Christ’s, which is NOT Biblical. We are to remember His death for all mankind’s sins and not at Easter but on Passover. There is only one church in the U.S. who understands these things. Jesus himself said there would be ‘false Christs’ especially in these ‘latter days’ we are living in now. If you want to really understand God’s Truth, you need to search for this church in Edmond, OK who knows Revelations and the prophesies to come upon American, Britain, who are the descendants of Israel, not Judah. If you read Kings verses in the Bible, you will see that Israel split from Judah and was taken into captivity by the Assyrians and NEVER RETURNED! Only Judah was left! People need to understand these things because Great Tribulation is coming to our country if people do not repent of their sins on their knees to God Almighty! God is NOT a trinity. He is a ‘family’. God is recreating Himself in man because the angels failed. One-third of the Bible is prophecy mainly for today. Joseph was given the ‘birthright blessings’ on his sons: Ephraim and Manasseh. Go to your Bible and read this that Jacob/Israel blessed and adopted those 2 boys and said Ephraim will be a ‘commonwealth of nations’ and Manasseh a ‘single great nation’, but it didn’t happen UNTIL 3,000 years later. The U.S. and Britain are THOSE BIRTHRIGHT NATIONS TODAY! We received all those blessings because Joseph was our FOREFATHER! That’s right! People don’t really understand their Bibles. We are in the last era of the church, Laodicia. It’s ‘lukewarm’. You need to search for this church. You need to learn the Truth that I have learned. You need to get the books: America Under Attack and the United States and Britain in Bible Prophecy. Our countries are being destroyed and no one understand Revelations as this church does. May God lead you to His Truth and His True Church Christ is working through today!
May God have mercy on us all! God bless…..