Why doesn't the Bible say much about Jesus' childhood?

TL;DR:

The Bible highlights key moments from Jesus’ childhood but focuses mainly on His mission as the Messiah. God revealed what we need to know for faith and obedience—what’s not included serves His greater purpose.

what does the bible say?

The Bible, especially the gospels of Matthew and Luke, includes several important details about Jesus’ birth and childhood. For example, Matthew and Luke record Jesus’ birth. The book of Luke presents information about Jesus’ circumcision, purification, and the reactions of Simeon and Anna to seeing the infant Jesus (Luke 2:21-38). Luke also records an incident in which Mary and Joseph frantically looked for the twelve-year-old Jesus, only to find Him discussing the Law with Jewish religious leaders in the temple (Luke 2:41-50). Some Old Testament prophecies include details of Jesus’ birth, such as Him being born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14) and being born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). Besides those few details, Scripture does not provide a full biography or continuous narrative of His early years. Rather than recording every stage of Jesus’ life, the Gospels focus primarily on His identity as the Messiah and His public ministry, which started when He was approximately thirty years old (Luke 3:23). What is revealed serves God’s purpose in helping us know and follow Christ. What is not revealed, God did not find important to communicate. Rather than speculating on what isn’t written, we are called to treasure and live out the truth that God has clearly given.

from the old testament

Some Old Testament prophecies point to events in Jesus’ life. For example, Micah 5:2 prophesies Christ’s birth in Bethlehem.
Isaiah 7:14 prophesies the Messiah’s birth to a virgin.

from the new testament

The Bible provides us with accounts before Jesus’ birth, including an angel predicting His virgin birth to Mary (Luke 1:26–38) and to Joseph (Matthew 1:18–25) on separate occasions.
Jesus was circumcised on the eighth day following Jewish custom (Luke 2:21).
About forty days after His birth, Jesus’ parents traveled to Jerusalem for rites related to purification (Luke 2:22–24) and had special visits with Simeon and Anna (Luke 2:25–38).
Wise men visited some time after His birth at a time when Jesus was in a "house" in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:1–11). It is unclear if this occurred before or after the Jerusalem visit.
At age twelve, Jesus traveled with His family to the temple and stayed behind for three days discussing the Law with the religious teachers (Luke 2:41–50).
Luke 2:52 summarizes Jesus’ early life by stating, "Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man." The Bible is then silent on the life of Jesus after the age of twelve in Nazareth to about the age of thirty when He began His public ministry (Luke 3:23).

implications for today

The four Gospels emphasize Jesus as the Messiah. The only material shared from the early life of Jesus was what was needed to help fulfill this purpose. The Gospels were not strict biographies but rather summaries of the earliest teachings about Jesus from His followers and those associated with them.

Later legendary accounts about the "lost years" of Jesus should be dismissed as unhistorical accounts. Jesus and His family likely returned to Nazareth when He was still a toddler, meaning the accounts from the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas and similar writings are at odds with the known historical details.

God's Word is not intended to reveal every detail, including those concerning Jesus’ early life. Deuteronomy 29:29 teaches, "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law." The Lord has chosen to reveal just some information about Christ's life for us today.

We are blessed to have four Gospels complete with some key parts of Christ's early life, as well as the crucial teaching from Jesus and the information concerning His death and resurrection.

understand

The Bible highlights some key events from Jesus’ childhood.
The Bible focuses mainly on Jesus’ mission, not a full biography of His life.
The four Gospels provide all essential truths about Jesus’ early life and mission.

reflect

How does knowing that God chose to reveal only certain parts of Jesus’ childhood affect your trust in how He communicates with us?
Why should you focus more on Jesus’ mission and teachings rather than seeking details that God has not revealed?
How might you live differently if you embraced the idea that God’s purpose is more important than having all the answers about Jesus’ early life?

engage

What reasons might God have for revealing only specific details about Jesus’ childhood while leaving much unsaid?
How do the selective accounts of Jesus’ early life shape our understanding of His identity and mission?
How can the focus on Jesus’ mission and public ministry influence how we view our own priorities and purpose?