| Detail | Mark | Matthew | Luke | John | Thomas |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birth story | None. The gospel begins with John the Baptist 1:1-4 | 1:18-2:23 | 1:5-2:40 | None. The Word became flesh 1:14 | No account |
| Announcement | None | An angel speaks to Joseph in a dream 1:20-21 | The angel Gabriel speaks to Mary 1:26-38 | None | No account |
| Home before the birth | None | Not stated; the family is in a house in Bethlehem 2:11 | Nazareth 1:26; 2:4 | Jesus is said by some to come from Galilee, not Bethlehem 7:41-42 | No account |
| Why Bethlehem | None | Not explained; Jesus is “born in Bethlehem of Judea” 2:1 | A census under Quirinius 2:1-5 | None | No account |
| Place of birth | None | Not described; the visit is to a house 2:11 | A manger, because there was no room at the inn 2:7 | None | No account |
| Star | None | A star in the east, then over the child 2:2,9 | None; an angel and the glory of the Lord to shepherds 2:9 | None | No account |
| Visitors | None | Magi from the east 2:1-12 | Shepherds 2:8-20 | None | No account |
| Herod | None | Seeks to kill the child; the infants of Bethlehem are killed 2:16 | Named as king only in the time of John’s birth 1:5; no massacre | None | No account |
| Egypt | None | The family flees to Egypt and returns 2:13-21 | No flight; the child is presented at the temple 2:22-39 | None | No account |
| Where they settle | None | Nazareth, after hearing of Archelaus 2:22-23 | Nazareth, after the temple 2:39 | Jesus is “of Nazareth” 1:45 | No account |
Matthew and Luke each tell a birth story, and neither mentions the main events of the other. Mark and John have none, and Thomas, a collection of sayings, has none either.