What was Jesus like as a child?

[LoveYeshua]

Have you ever wondered what Jesus was like as a child? I have.

There are books and gospels that didn't make it into the bible. One of them is called the "infancy gospel of Thomas" which tells stories of Jesus from the ages of 5 to 12.

The child Jesus brings clay birds to life, heals people, brings people back from the dead and speaks wise words well beyond his years.

It also shows a naughty Jesus who disobeys his parents and teachers, curses people, blinds people and strikes down people.

This is probably why the book didn't make it into the bible as they didn't want Jesus to be put in a bad light.

The final chapter is in Luke's gospel, it is of 12yo Jesus teaching the elders in the Jerusalem church.

The book also mentions Joesph a lot which is great because he barley gets mentioned in the biblical gospels

The book is short and has 19 chapters.
Here is a reading of it which lasts 23 minutes. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did

Jesus at a young age was teaching in the temple and had great wisdom and knowledge ( Luke 2:41-52) his parents looked for him for days, Jesus Had the Full measure of the Holy spirit even as a child, there is no way he causes any problems.

 

[Pavel Mosko]

I did plug my inputs into Grok and see what it would say and it gave me this. "
From the canonical Gospels (the Bible), we know very little about Jesus' childhood.
The New Testament gives us only a handful of details:

• Birth and early infancy: Born in Bethlehem (Matthew 2, Luke 2), visited by shepherds and Magi, flight to Egypt to escape Herod, then settlement in Nazareth.
• Age 12 in the Temple (Luke 2:41-52): This is the only detailed story of his boyhood. His family goes to Jerusalem for Passover. On the return trip, they realize he's missing. They find him in the Temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and answers. When Mary and Joseph rebuke him, he replies:
  

  “Why were you searching for me? Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” (or “about my Father’s business”).

  Luke then says he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them, and that he “grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.”

That’s essentially it for the Bible. The Gospels focus overwhelmingly on his public ministry from age ~30 onward (Luke 3:23).

Apocryphal Infancy Gospels​

The stories you referenced (like the Infancy Gospel of Thomas and others) are not in the Bible. They come from 2nd-century (and later) apocryphal writings. These texts were popular in some early Christian communities, especially in the East, and some traditions (including parts of Coptic Orthodoxy) have preserved and valued certain elements of them.
Common stories include:

• Toddler Jesus making clay birds and bringing them to life.
• Causing a boy who bumps into him to wither or die, then sometimes healing or reviving people.
• The famous story of the Egyptian idols toppling when the Holy Family entered a temple in Egypt.
• Helping his father Joseph with carpentry miracles (shortening or lengthening wood).

These portray a child with divine power who is still learning to use it wisely — sometimes acting in ways that seem impulsive or harsh by modern standards. Traditional Christian theology (across most denominations) holds that Jesus was fully sinless (Hebrews 4:15, 2 Corinthians 5:21, etc.). So any “naughty” or destructive acts in these stories create theological tension. Some defenders interpret them symbolically or say they show his growing humanity + divinity.
Your point about John 21:25 is a fair one many people make — the Bible itself says it doesn’t record everything Jesus did. However, the early Church ultimately did not include these infancy gospels in the canon. They were known but judged either unreliable, late, or theologically problematic by most of the Church Fathers who set the canon.

Different Christian Traditions​

• Protestant/Evangelical view: Usually very skeptical of the infancy gospels. They are seen as pious legends or folklore, not history.
• Catholic & Eastern Orthodox: Generally treat them as non-inspired but sometimes spiritually edifying or culturally important. Some icons and feasts draw lightly on them.
• Coptic Orthodox: Has a stronger traditional acceptance of certain infancy stories (especially the Egypt sojourn and idols falling), which fits Egyptian Christian identity. Your experience in the Coptic Church for 8+ years gives you a valid perspective from within that ancient tradition, which has indeed endured heavy persecution.

My take as Grok​

The biblical portrait is of a remarkably wise and devout Jewish boy who was conscious of a unique relationship with God the Father from a young age, yet lived in normal obedience to his parents. The apocryphal stories add color and wonder — some people find them inspiring as they show the Incarnation touching every stage of life (even childhood). Others find them inconsistent with the sinless, self-controlled Jesus of the canonical Gospels.
Ultimately, Christianity’s core claim is about who Jesus became and what he accomplished as an adult — the Cross and Resurrection — rather than detailed childhood psychology. The scarcity of information in Scripture itself may be intentional: we are meant to focus on his teachings and saving work.
If you want to discuss specific infancy stories, Coptic traditions, or how to reconcile them with sinlessness, feel free to share more. What aspect interests you most?

 

[Jay Ross]

Jesus was probably nothing like any of us.​

 

[Armour of God]

The famous story of the Egyptian idols toppling when the Holy Family entered a temple in Egypt

I don't recall this story in the infancy gospel of Thomas. Maybe it's from another book

 

[David Lamb]

I don't recall this story in the infancy gospel of Thomas. Maybe it's from another book

A Google search brought up this from an AI Overview:

"1. The Holy Family's Flight into Egypt (Christian Tradition)
According to early Christian apocrypha and medieval texts (such as the Golden Legend), the Holy Family’s arrival in Egypt caused the idols in pagan temples to fall and shatter."

The obvious question is why would Mary, Joseph and Jesus be in a pagan temple in Egypt anyway?

To believe these apocryphal writings, particularly the Infancy Gospel, we have to end up disbelieving biblical truth. Just one example, the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ was tempted in all points as we are, yet without sin. The Infancy Gospel has Jesus taking revenge on a boy who had struck Him on the shoulder, by causing him to die:

"After that He was again passing through the village; and a boy ran up against Him, and struck His shoulder. And Jesus was angry, and said to him: You shall not go back the way you came. And immediately he fell down dead. And some who saw what had taken place, said: Whence was this child begotten, that every word of his is certainly accomplished? And the parents of the dead boy went away to Joseph, and blamed him, saying: Since you have such a child, it is impossible for you to live with us in the village; or else teach him to bless, and not to curse: for he is killing our children."

 

[Pavel Mosko]

I don't recall this story in the infancy gospel of Thomas. Maybe it's from another book

Going to ask Grok.


The story of the idols toppling comes from the apocryphal Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew (also called the Infancy Gospel of Matthew), chapters 22–24 (numbering can vary slightly by edition).
This 7th–9th century Latin text expands on the canonical Flight into Egypt (Matthew 2:13–23) with legendary details. It is not part of the canonical New Testament and is considered apocryphal/pseudepigraphal.

Direct Citation (Key Excerpt)​

Here is the core passage (from a standard English translation, e.g., as found on sites like New Advent or Wesley Center):

"And it came to pass, when the most blessed Mary went into the temple with the little child, that all the idols prostrated themselves on the ground, so that all of them were lying on their faces shattered and broken to pieces; and thus they plainly showed that they were nothing. Then was fulfilled that which was said by the prophet Isaiah: Behold, the Lord will come upon a swift cloud, and will enter Egypt, and all the handiwork of the Egyptians shall be moved at His presence." (Isaiah 19:1)

Context: The Holy Family arrives in a city in Egypt (called Sotinen/Sohennen near Hermopolis in the text, sometimes linked by tradition to places like Tel Basta). The temple (called the "Capitol of Egypt") had 355/365 idols. When Mary enters carrying the infant Jesus, the idols fall and break. The governor Affrodosius then worships Jesus and declares the superiority of the Christian God, leading the people to believe.
This matches the Beliefnet article ("Toddler Jesus Topples Egyptian Idols!") you referenced, which discusses Coptic traditions and explicitly quotes Pseudo-Matthew.

Quick Notes​

• The story fulfills the prophecy in Isaiah 19:1 about idols trembling in Egypt.
• Similar but not identical versions appear in other infancy traditions (e.g., Arabic Infancy Gospel or Coptic sources), but the specific "idols prostrating and shattering" detail with the temple visit is most directly from Pseudo-Matthew.
• Full text is available online (e.g., NewAdvent.org or Wesley.nnu.edu).

This is the direct source "Armor of God" likely missed—it's a well-known episode in medieval Christian art and apocryphal literature depicting the Flight into Egypt. Let me know if you need the full chapter or more context!

 

[Pavel Mosko]

I was very happy with the Grok write up and told Grok except for finding fault with one detail. "
"Great write up the only thing to quibble with is the mention of the governor and the Christian God if this is taking place during Jesus being an infant, decades before Christianity" To Which Grok replied
You're right — that's a fair quibble. The Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew is an apocryphal Christian text (likely 7th–9th century), so it naturally uses later Christian language and theology even when describing events set during Jesus' infancy, decades before the term "Christianity" or organized Christian communities existed.

Exact Wording from the Source​

Here's the direct continuation from Chapter 24 (standard numbering):

"Then Affrodosius, that governor of the city, when news of this was brought to him, went to the temple with all his army. ... But when he came into the temple, and saw all the gods lying prostrate on their faces, he went up to the blessed Mary, who was carrying the Lord in her bosom, and adored Him, and said to all his army and all his friends: 'Unless this were the God of our gods, our gods would not have fallen on their faces before Him...' ... Then all the people of that same city believed in the Lord God through Jesus Christ."

The governor doesn't explicitly say "Christian God" in the oldest versions — he refers to the true God / Lord whom their own idols are acknowledging. The text then concludes with the people believing "in the Lord God through Jesus Christ," which is clearly the author's Christian framing of the event.
This is common in apocryphal infancy gospels: they expand on the brief canonical Flight into Egypt (Matthew 2) with miraculous legends while retroactively applying post-resurrection Christian confession.
The core miracle (idols falling when Mary enters with the infant Jesus) remains the same, fulfilling Isaiah 19:1. The governor's reaction and the mass "conversion" are part of the legendary embellishment.
If you're discussing this with "Armor of God," you can point to the full text on New Advent or similar sites for the exact chapters 23–24. Let me know if you'd like a longer excerpt or comparisons to other infancy traditions!

 

[Pavel Mosko]

(I ask if this came up in the Coptic Lectionary readings, because I remembered it coming up in church at least once a year. Hagiographies are read to compliment material from the book of Acts because the actual founding of the Church is a serious matter of Faith in Christian Orthodoxy).


Yes, the story (or a version of it) is integrated into Coptic tradition and referenced in connection with the Synaxarion, but not as a verbatim full retelling of the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew episode.

Key Details​

• The Coptic Synaxarion (the main hagiographical/lectionary collection of saints' lives and commemorations) marks 24 Bashans (Pachons) — corresponding to June 1 in the Gregorian calendar — as the feast of the Entry of the Lord Christ into Egypt.
• The entry explicitly references the canonical Flight into Egypt (Matthew 2:13–15) and fulfills prophecies like Hosea 11:1 (“Out of Egypt I called My Son”) and especially Isaiah 19:1 (“Behold, the Lord rides on a swift cloud... the idols of Egypt will totter at His presence”).

The Synaxarion reading itself focuses more on the reasons for the journey, the blessings brought to Egypt, and the broad tradition that idols trembled or fell wherever the Holy Family went. It does not always quote the full dramatic temple scene with 365 idols, the governor Affrodosius, etc., from Pseudo-Matthew. However:

• Coptic accounts of the Holy Family’s route (widely shared in sermons, pilgrimage literature, and sites like Tel Basta / Bubastis) routinely include the idols toppling when Mary enters a temple with the infant Jesus. This is presented as historical tradition tied to the feast.
• Specific sites (e.g., Tel Basta) are linked to a well created by Jesus and idols shattering in the temple, causing fear among priests. These details echo Pseudo-Matthew but are adapted into local Coptic lore.

Summary​

The idols toppling is part of the living Coptic liturgical and devotional memory of the Flight into Egypt, celebrated on the Synaxarion date of 24 Bashans. It complements readings from Acts or saints’ lives by highlighting Christ’s early ministry in Egypt. The full legendary version comes from apocryphal sources like Pseudo-Matthew, but the core miracle (fulfilling Isaiah) is affirmed in Coptic sources.
This explains why many Copts know the story well even if the exact Pseudo-Matthew text isn’t read verbatim in the liturgy. If you’d like the full English text of the Synaxarion entry for that day or details on a specific site, let me know!

 

[Seeding Loving]

it is true that the New Testament does make mention of any specific personal information left out or unmentioned due to a personal fear of the Jewish people, it is purely speculative, just a possibility to claim that this fear is why that most of the early childhood of Jesus, Aunts, Uncles and Cousins are not a part of the Bible.

a couple things to consider is that immediately after the Crucifixion of Jesus, Peter himself, felt best to distance himself completely from any association with Jesus - Saying " I know not this man of whom ye speak :

also Peter denied having any agreement with the sayings and the very words of Jesus and his message-- even swearing an oath to this.

this would be somewhat of an example of either someone whom withholding a public association and even pubicly / openly hiding their own agreement and association with Jesus out of fear for their family - or just even hiding their identity and intentions in order to achieve some other greater future objective in standing against the Roman authority ...

or both

..... perhaps many Jews lived secret, discrete and hidden lives for both fear and also a hope of victory, meaning = a secrecy, unshared personal life and a lack of shared information that was not mentioned as common public knowledge in order to someday overthrow the Romans ...

we remember - Peter openly expressed that he was very ready to fight to protect Jesus before Jesus was arrested, declared that he was ready to go to prison and even die for Jesus, Peter even drew a sword and began fighting the guards to defend Jesus, slicing off a guards ear. Did Peter feel he could get away with it and the problem would simply go away at first by putting up a defense and after he sees Jesus being tortured to death he completely goes into shock ?

this is what i am trying to say, the shock fear, panic, anxiety and terror -all of the reasons why the world today loves the Jews - just as long as they remain victims - they are loved. Rome loved the crowd of Jews at the trial of Jesus, seeing their fear and panic and turmoil. - this is what Rome wanted.

one other thing i remember is that in Joh 19:19 - 21

:19 And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS.
:21 Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write not, The King of the Jews; but write that he said, I am King of the Jews.


here the Chief Priests themselves were making an attempt to stop and hide the written words of Pilate denoting Jesus as " THE KING OF THE JEWS " this was only increasing their problem and danger .....

Rome did not seem to care

as the leaders of Israel requested that the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate, secure the tomb in order to keep the problem that Jesus Created for them from happening again - and endangering them ....... but Governor, Pontius Pilate was not seemingly worried about it at all but he granted their request: - -simply saying ----- "You have a guard," - Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how "

please also remember - the wise men came publicly asking Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? - When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.


this is the game that is played - Rome hunts down and randomly butchers a whole town of little male children just to make sure Jesus himself was dead – Rome hunts down and imprisons and beheads his Cousin John .

there were prominent Jewish individuals serving as witnesses in the trial of Jesus strongly testifying against Jesus, some Jewish leaders gave open testimony against Jesus in the trial explaining that Jesus was the very one who was claiming to be the King of the Jews,

witness testified that Jesus is subverting our nation and stiring up the people all over Judea by his teaching
witness testified that Jesus opposes payment of taxes to Caesar
witness testified that Jesus claims to be a king

but for Pontius Pilate their statements did not meet the legal requirements to secure a conviction until they began to press the issue.


Rome did not seem to care

at the moment – when Jesus himself is brought before the Roman Government Rome suddenly declares that Rome has found no fault with Jesus but yet, Rome felt necessary to slaughter a whole town of little innocent babies just to prevent the possibility of rebellion

but when the so - called villain Rome is looking is brought to trial and actual witnesses put forth a show of attempting to resolve the problem - Rome suddenly has found no fault with Jesus.

Rome even says - " You have a guard - Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how "

does it seem that Rome did not seem to really have a desire to truly find the rebellion and eliminate the problem but rather to create confusion, terror, fear and to crush the society as a whole ? ?

 

[David Lamb]

it is true that the New Testament does make mention of any specific personal information left out or unmentioned due to a personal fear of the Jewish people, it is purely speculative, just a possibility to claim that this fear is why that most of the early childhood of Jesus, Aunts, Uncles and Cousins are not a part of the Bible.

Can it really have been due to a personal fear of the Jewish people that the New Testament writers left anything out? After all, none of the New Testament was written until well after Peter had boldly preached what is recorded i Acts 2, including these words:

(Act 2:22) "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know—
(Act 2:23) Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death;
(Act 2:24) whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it.

If Peter wasn't prevented by fear from speaking those words, and Luke wasn't prevented by fear from writing them down, why should the NT writers have been prevented by fear from writing about the childhood of Jesus? Surely the reason such details are not in Scripture is because the human writers were inspired by God Himself. Had God wanted them to have included more details about the childhood of Jesus, those details would be there.

 

[Seeding Loving]

If Peter wasn't prevented by fear from speaking those words, and Luke wasn't prevented by fear from writing them down, why should the NT writers have been prevented by fear from writing about the childhood of Jesus? Surely the reason such details are not in Scripture is because the human writers were inspired by God Himself. Had God wanted them to have included more details about the childhood of Jesus, those details would be there.

I agree completely, and after a little more thinking about this - I come to the same conclusion that you do but with one more thing i would like to add in truth and fact.

The Scriptures were inspired by the Spirit Of Holy and although fear alone would never prevent God from putting to scripture sensitive and dangerous information concerning personal information about where people went, who they met with, what they were doing and other personal information that could identify them.

but........ one thing to keep in mind is that the very way in how the story of Jesus and his family and his Disciples are told is centered around an orbit of secrecy as a layer within the story, as it highlights the dangers and persecution that Mary and Joseph faced in how God literally sent an angel to instruct Joseph in a dream to flee to Egypt with Mary and the baby Jesus to escape King Herod, who was searching to kill the child.


The story also highlights the extreme method of complete secrecy, concealment and stealth that Joseph was planning in his thoughts of breaking off the marriage, the story highlights that Joseph took his family and secretly slipped away - Joseph immediately got up, took Mary and Jesus, and departed " by night " to ensure their escape remained completely secret and hidden - as if telling anyone in Bethlehem or the surrounding area would have risked exposing the attempt to save the life Jesus .

another thing is that as Jesus grew older he began to make attempts to secretly slip away from his family, even for days at a time - - to seek his fathers business, his family, mother and father and brothers and sisters were very different from him and he was not learning nor performing the deeper elements of the mission he came to accomplish in his mothers home and under his mothers guidance - this would eventually come to be a revelation between him and God

also........... Mar 1:45 " there came a leper to Jesus and he was healed ...... But the leper went out, and began to publish it ...............insomuch that Jesus could no more openly enter into the city. - he made the decision at times to be secretive, discrete and hidden - not openly sharing information and making his personal life even his miracles and plans a public knowledge. Jesus at times stayed hidden, secluded, secretive and would spend months at a time completely alone and hidden from all others.


in conclusion................................





Biblical and Historical data that show that by the time when Jesus was born there was a growing problem that Israel faced with Rome

as Israel had placed its very head into the jaws of the mouth of Rome


THIS IS JUST A BREIF SUMMARY OF ROUGHLY WHAT FACTUALLY HAPPENED AND WHAT ISRAEL ITSELF WAS GOING THROUGH - AND WHAT GAVE ROME DIRECT ACCESSS TO ISRAEL IN A VERY PRECISE GRIP


JUST TO START WITH A BASIC STARTING POINT - - ....


700 + years before Jesus was born, Israel was attacked by the powerful Assyrian Kingdom - The Assyrians are descendants of - ( Ashur) the second son of Shem


Around 700 AD King Sargon II of Assyria attacked Israel, forcing tens of thousands of Israelites (the "Ten Lost Tribes") out of their homeland and scattered them across the Assyrian Empire to prevent rebellion.

The Assyrians were already a smaller existing kingdom when Israel came out of Egypt and not yet the global superpower - but by 700 BC the Assyrians had grown into a superpower and began waging war to control all of trade routes

This warfare was waged by extreme brutality and violence - by performing mass Executions, Flaying (Skinning) prisoners alive, Impalement and Crucifixion

the Assyrians attacked Israel and carried out systematic mass deportations upon the Jews specifically because Israel had stopped paying the TAXES / tribute

King Hezekiah was forced to pay 300 talents of silver and 30 talents of gold (roughly equivalent to 9 to 10 tons of silver). Depleting Reserves: Israelite and Judean kings repeatedly emptied the royal and temple treasuries, even stripping the gold from the doors of the temple in Jerusalem. This demand heavily burdened Jewish landowners and farmers.

This was a devastating annual tribute demanded by Assyria............ so..................Israel then made a secret alliance with Egypt and Israel then took part in specifically engaging in war against the Assyrian Empire - uniting with Egypt.


THIS IS A BASIC ROUGH FOUNDATION OF WHERE THE PROBLEM FOR ISRAEL BEGAN - POLITICALY SPEAKING


The Bible explicitly explains that King Hoshea conspired with Egypt around 725 BC against the Assyrian Kingdom.

EVENTUALLY ........... ---------- the Babylonian and Median empires conquered the Assyrian Empire in the late 7th century BC.....

AGAIN......... Israel sought to align with Egypt against the Babylonians and the Medes but again this alliance with Egypt failed and Babylon and the Medes destroyed Jerusalem and burned the First Temple in 586 BC



THEN THE GREEKS ATTACKED ISRAEL - Israel allied with the Roman Republic against the Greek Empire in 161 BC. ............ placing the head of Israel directly into the mouth of Rome.

this is just a basic summary of how and why Israel was a subject of Rome by the time Jesus was born, there are many other details and much more information that can be explained but this is what was happening to Israel as it was faced by the surrounding nations ...

the Biblical narrative explains that the reason for these downfalls and invasions upon Israel is due to Idolatry and other moral failures that became a part of Israeli culture but i always remember that Gods judgment is upon us all and no nation and no people are always perfect .

I would not attempt to lay judgment upon Israel - but would say that judgment is for the Lord, for someday I myself will face his judgment in this life and in my death at the Great Day Of Judgment