“After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem ² and asked, ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.’” (Matthew 2:1-2 NIV)

In a new documentary, God of Heaven and Earth, Edify Films’ producer Elliott Wallach makes the case that the Star of Bethlehem that guided the Magi to visit Jesus was a conjunction of two planets, Venus and Jupiter, Christian Headlines reports.

According to Wallach, it would have produced the brightest light that anyone living in Judea would have ever seen when it stopped over Bethlehem.

Further, if this is true, then that event would have likely occurred on Dec. 25, 2 BC. This means Jesus was probably born a few years earlier.

The documentary also looked at the earthquake mentioned in Matthew 27: 51, 54 associated with Christ’s crucifixion. The filmmaker noted that this would put the date of the crucifixion at 32 AD.

“The only other earthquake prior to that, it’s like 32 B.C. and another one like 320 A.D,” Wallach told Christian Headlines. “If you’re going to take the Bible at its word, you have one earthquake to choose from.”

READ: ‘God of Heaven and Earth’ Examines Scientific Evidence for Bethlehem Star: ‘God’s Word Is True’

A second opinion on why Dec. 25 ended up as Christ’s birthday: