"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." — Luke 2:11 (KJV)
The short answer
The word "Christmas" never appears in the Bible, yet the event it celebrates fills its pages: God sent His Son into the world. Scripture tells of a Saviour born in Bethlehem, laid in a manger, announced by angels, and given to us out of love — anchored in Luke 2:10-11 and John 3:16.
Many people are surprised to learn that the Bible never uses the word "Christmas," names no December date, and prescribes no tree, feast, or gift exchange. What the Bible gives us instead is far greater than a holiday: the true account of God stepping into human history as a newborn child. The customs came later and vary from place to place, but the event beneath them is fixed and precious. Below are eight passages, quoted exactly from the King James Version, that keep our eyes not on the trappings of the season but on the child in the manger and the reason He came.
Is "Christmas" actually in the Bible?
The short answer is no — the word itself is absent, and Scripture never turns Jesus' birth into a rulebook of customs. But it does record the moment with tender care. The story opens not with decoration but with a young mother and a borrowed place among the animals.
"And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn." — Luke 2:7 (KJV)
The King of heaven entered the world in humility — no palace, no crowd, only a manger and a mother's arms. Before Christmas was ever a tradition, it was a lowly birth in Bethlehem, exactly as God had planned it.
"But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." — Micah 5:2 (KJV)
Seven centuries before that night, the prophet named the town. The one born there was "little" by the world's reckoning, yet His "goings forth" were "from everlasting" — the eternal Son entering time in the smallest of places.
What did the angels announce at Jesus' birth?
On the hills outside Bethlehem, shepherds were the first to hear. Heaven did not announce a holiday; it announced a Saviour, and it did so with joy that overflowed into song.
"And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." — Luke 2:10-11 (KJV)
Notice the reach of it: "good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people." This birth was not for a nation only but for the world — for you. He is named at once as "a Saviour," "Christ," and "the Lord."
"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." — Luke 2:14 (KJV)
The heavenly host answered the announcement with worship. The true note of the season is not tinsel but this: glory lifted up to God, and peace brought down to earth in the person of His Son.
Who is this child in the manger?
Scripture never lets us treat the baby as merely sweet. It piles up names that reveal His majesty. The infant of Bethlehem is the mighty God, come near.
"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." — Isaiah 9:6 (KJV)
A "child" and yet "The mighty God"; a "son" and yet "The everlasting Father" over His people. These are not titles the world hands out; they belong to God alone, and they rest on the child in the manger.
"Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us." — Matthew 1:23 (KJV)
"Emmanuel" gathers up the whole meaning of the birth: God with us. The distance is closed. The Almighty is not watching from afar but has come to dwell among His people.
Why did God send His Son at Christmas?
The manger is not the end of the story; it is the beginning of a rescue. Scripture tells us both the timing of His coming and the love behind it.
"But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law," — Galatians 4:4 (KJV)
His birth was not an accident of history but the appointed hour of God. "The fulness of the time" had come, and the Son was "sent forth" — truly human, "made of a woman," to redeem those under the law.
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." — John 3:16 (KJV)
Here is the reason for the manger, plainly told: love. The Son was given so that believing in Him you would "not perish, but have everlasting life." That is the gift Christmas was always pointing to.
Frequently asked questions
Is the word Christmas in the Bible?
No. The word Christmas does not appear anywhere in Scripture, and the Bible never commands a date or a set of customs for marking Jesus' birth. What the Bible does give us is the event itself, told in rich detail: a Saviour born in Bethlehem, wrapped in swaddling clothes, laid in a manger, and announced by angels (Luke 2:7-11, KJV). Christmas is a human tradition built around a divine reality. The reality is what matters, and Scripture keeps our eyes on the child rather than on the customs.
Why was Jesus born, according to the Bible?
The Bible says Jesus was born to save. Matthew 1:21 explains his very name: thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins (KJV). Galatians 4:4 places his birth in God's perfect timing, and John 3:16 gives the reason behind it all: God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son. Jesus was not born merely to be admired in a manger, but to give his life so that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." — John 1:14 (KJV)
Take it deeper
These verses are a beginning, not the whole of what God says about the coming of His Son. FlickerFaith is a Scripture-first study companion — open it to read the Christmas story in full context, follow the birth of Jesus from prophecy to fulfillment, pray through what the manger means for you, and ask honest questions about the child who is Christ the Lord. It keeps you close to the Word, not away from it.
Keep reading
Go deeper into the nativity with what the Bible says about the birth of Jesus, and meet the child himself in who is Jesus Christ? The birth points forward to Easter, Palm Sunday, and the resurrection. You can also browse all Bible topics or return home.