Today in 63 bc Augustus Caesar was born.

Caesar Augustus, or Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus as he was known earlier in his life, was the very first Roman emperor. Generally considered the greatest of all the Roman emperors, Caesar Augustus ruled for more than 40 years and ushered in an era of peace, prosperity, and greatness. During his reign, Augustus ended a century of civil wars.

Augustus, a title he was given in 27 bc that means “revered one,” created Rome’s first permanent army and navy. He rebuilt Rome from brick into marble, building the Senate a home and constructing numerous temples to Roman gods. But despite all these accomplishments that are credited to Augustus, his greatest contribution to all human history came as a result of his effort to reform Rome’s finance and tax system.

For as Luke records it, “About that time Caesar Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Empire.” What Augustus had intended as a means to tax the people to support his military operations, God used for a much different purpose. Augustus’s decree set in motion the events that were prophesied hundreds of years earlier concerning the birth of God’s own Son, Jesus Christ. Mary and Joseph had to travel to Bethlehem. There Mary gave birth to her firstborn Son, Jesus, just as the prophet Micah had written in Micah 5:2.

Augustus’s decree went out according to God’s perfect timing and according to God’s perfect plan for bringing his Son into the world. Augustus, who was considered to be god-like by the Roman citizens, was really just a role player in the real drama of God coming to earth.

About that time Caesar Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Empire (Luke 2:1, The Message).

To Do

Read Micah 5:2, which was written hundreds of years before Caesar Augustus even thought about issuing his decree.

Also on this day

1838—Victoria Chaflin Woodhull was born. She became the first female candidate for the U.S. President.

1846—The planet Neptune was discovered by German astronomer Johann Gottfired Golle.

From Betsy Schmitt and Dave Veerman, 365 Trivia Twist Devotions: An Almanac of Fun Facts and Spiritual Truth for Every Day of the Year (Cincinnati: Standard, 2005). Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation unless otherwise noted.