Late to Bethlehem

"She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." (Luke 2:7)

Is there more to this story? Why wasn't there any room for them in the inn? Did they arrive late to Bethlehem or not arrive early enough to find a place to stay? And if they arrived late, or not early enough, why?

Did Joseph not plan ahead? Did he not consider the fact that his ancestral home would be overflowing with people looking for a place to lay their head? Or did they leave early, but Mary's morning sickness delayed their travels and made the trip take much longer than expected? Did they meet unexpected delays in their journey? Were these delays both the devil's attempts to stop them from arriving in Bethlehem and God's perfect plan for having His son born in a manger? Or were they still struggling with family conflict, Joseph's brothers giving him a hard time about including Mary and her child as his own in the census and Mary's mother questioning her decision to make such a long trip when she was expecting to give birth any day?

What were the reasons for their inability to find a room in an inn? Was the night really as peaceful as we imagine?

Comments

ks said…
Mary and Joseph were poor. Maybe they couldn't afford a better inn to stay at and the one that they could afford had filled up with other poor people.
8:32 PM
Faith_Trust_Hope said…
Yeah, I considered that too!
12:56 AM
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