Christmas Bible games: 14 ready-to-run nativity games for church, youth group and family night

The best Christmas Bible games are short games built on the nativity passages themselves: Luke 1–2, Matthew 1–2, the prophecies in Isaiah 7, Isaiah 9 and Micah 5, and John 1. Below are 14 ready-to-run games, each with group size, time, supplies, rules, the passage it teaches, and example questions with answers checked against the King James Version.

Plenty of Christmas game lists ask "How many wise men were there?" and expect "three". These games run on the text, and several are built to catch the details tradition added, so your group goes home knowing what Luke and Matthew actually wrote.

The 14 Christmas Bible games at a glance

"Prep" means what you need beyond Bibles and this page.

New to running games? Start with 1, 4 or 8. Ready-made plans for a party, youth group, family night and small group are near the end. Need the teaching too? Our Christmas youth group lesson builds a game into a full 45-minute plan.

How to turn a Christmas game into a Bible lesson

A game teaches when its rules echo the story. In "Follow the star", teams return to base by a new route because the wise men "departed into their own country another way" (Matthew 2:12). By the time you read the passage, everyone knows the plot.

So after each game, have someone read the listed passage aloud (2 minutes), then ask two questions: what surprised you in the game, and where does the same thing happen in the text?

A note on tone. Nativity sets and carols fill in details the Bible leaves open, and that's fine. The myth games simply sort out which details come from the page, so "the text doesn't say" is a better answer than "that's wrong".

To keep playing after the party, the app has a quiz path at each player's level, and every answer is explained with its verse.

Myth-vs-text Christmas Bible games

These are the best Christmas Bible games for adults and older teens, since many grown-ups learned the story from carols.

1. Myth or text?

Players: 6–100 · Time: 10 minutes · You need: this list

How to play: Everyone stands. Read a statement. Players raise one hand for "in the text" or both hands for "tradition". Wrong answers sit down. Mix in true statements so the answer isn't always "tradition".

Passage: Luke 2:1-20 and Matthew 2:1-12.

Example statements:

• "Matthew says three wise men visited Jesus." Tradition. Matthew 2:1 says "wise men from the east" with no number. The three gifts in Matthew 2:11 are the likely source of "three".
• "An innkeeper told Mary and Joseph there was no room." Tradition. Luke 2:7 says only "there was no room for them in the inn". No innkeeper appears.
• "The star stood over a stable." Tradition. The star "came and stood over where the young child was" (Matthew 2:9), and the wise men came "into the house" (Matthew 2:11). Neither Gospel mentions a stable.
• "The shepherds found the baby lying in a manger." Text (Luke 2:16).
• "The angels sang 'Glory to God in the highest.'" Strictly, tradition. Luke 2:13 says the heavenly host were "praising God, and saying".

2. Matthew or Luke?

Players: 8–60 · Time: 10–15 minutes · You need: four wall signs: Matthew, Luke, Both, Neither

How to play: Call out a detail of the Christmas story. Players run to the wall for the Gospel that mentions it. Wrong wall loses a point. It's one of the best nativity games for youth group because it gets people moving and teaches the shape of both accounts.

Passage: Luke 1–2 and Matthew 1–2. Our guide to where the Christmas story is in the Bible lays them side by side if you want more calls.

Example calls:

• The shepherds. Luke only (Luke 2:8).
• Joseph's dreams. Matthew only, four of them (Matthew 1:20; 2:13, 19, 22).
• Herod the king. Both: "in the days of Herod, the king of Judea" (Luke 1:5) and "in the days of Herod the king" (Matthew 2:1).
• The angel Gabriel, by name. Luke only (Luke 1:19, 26). Matthew says "the angel of the Lord" (Matthew 1:20).
• The innkeeper. Neither. Only the inn is mentioned (Luke 2:7).

3. Fix the nativity set

Players: 2–30, in teams of 3 to 5 · Time: 15 minutes · You need: a nativity set (or paper cutouts)

How to play: Set up the nativity the usual way: stable, ox and donkey, shepherds, three wise men, an angel on the roof, a star on top. Give each team one moment to match, "the night of the birth" (Luke 2:7-16) or "the wise men's visit" (Matthew 2:9-11). Teams move, remove or add figures so the scene shows only what the text says, with a verse for every change. Kids move the figures; adults find the verses.

When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.

Example answers:

• Who is at the manger on the night of the birth? Mary, Joseph, the baby and the shepherds (Luke 2:16).
• Where do the wise men go? To a separate scene. They came "into the house" and saw "the young child with Mary his mother" (Matthew 2:11).
• Can the ox and donkey stay? The text doesn't mention them. A manger is a feeding trough, so animals may have been nearby, but the point goes to "not stated".
• Where does the star go? With the wise men's scene, over "where the young child was" (Matthew 2:9). Luke doesn't mention a star.
• Where does the angel go? Out in the field with the shepherds (Luke 2:8-9), not over the manger.

Afterward, read the birth of Jesus and the visit of the wise men to see both scenes in order.

Who-said-it and character games

4. Who said it?

Players: 4–60 · Time: 10 minutes · You need: paper for each team

How to play: Read a quote. Teams write who said it. One point for the speaker, a bonus for the right Gospel.

Passage: Luke 1–2 and Matthew 2.

Example quotes:

• "How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?" Mary, to Gabriel (Luke 1:34).
• "Whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" Elisabeth (Luke 1:43).
• "Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass." The shepherds (Luke 2:15).
• "Bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also." Herod, to the wise men (Matthew 2:8). Matthew 2:13 shows what he really intended.
• "Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word." Simeon, holding the child (Luke 2:28-29). Read Simeon and Anna recognize the child next.

5. Christmas who am I?

Players: 4–40 · Time: 10–15 minutes · You need: this list

How to play: Read three clues, hardest first. A team that guesses after clue one scores 3 points, after clue two 2, after clue three 1. Or tape names to players' backs and let them ask yes-or-no questions.

Passage: Luke 1–2 and Matthew 1–2.

Example clue ladders:

• Tribe of Aser; daughter of Phanuel; a widow of about 84 who never left the temple. Anna (Luke 2:36-37).
• Of the course of Abia; chosen by lot to burn incense; unable to speak until his son was named. Zacharias (Luke 1:5, 9, 20, 63-64).
• A governor; of Syria; mentioned with the first taxing. Cyrenius, called Quirinius in most modern translations (Luke 2:2).
• Son of a king; reigned in Judea; the reason Joseph turned aside into Galilee. Archelaus, son of Herod (Matthew 2:22).
• "A just man"; planned to put his fiancée away privily; obeyed an angel in a dream. Joseph (Matthew 1:19-20, 24).

Their full stories are on the pages for Zechariah and Elizabeth, Joseph of Nazareth and the Herods.

6. Speechless Zacharias

Players: 6–40 · Time: 15 minutes · You need: scene cards, a whiteboard or large paper

How to play: A player draws a scene card and gets their team to guess it without speaking, 60 seconds per card. Round one is gestures only, because Zacharias "beckoned unto them, and remained speechless" (Luke 1:22). Round two allows drawing on the "writing table", like the one Zacharias asked for to write his son's name (Luke 1:63).

Passage: Luke 1:5-25 and 57-64, summarized in the angel announces John's birth to Zechariah.

Example scene cards:

• Shepherds keeping watch over their flock by night (Luke 2:8).
• The baby leaping in Elisabeth's womb at Mary's greeting (Luke 1:41).
• Wise men opening their treasures (Matthew 2:11).
• Joseph taking the child and his mother to Egypt by night (Matthew 2:14).
• Zacharias writing "His name is John", after which "his mouth was opened immediately" (Luke 1:63-64).

Scripture games: verses, names and prophecies

These put Bibles in people's hands, which makes them good Christmas Bible games for church classes and small groups.

7. Christmas sword drill

Players: 4–40 · Time: 10 minutes · You need: printed Bibles (phone search turns it into a typing race)

How to play: Everyone holds a closed Bible. Call a reference and say "Draw swords." The first person to find it stands and reads it, then answers a follow-up for a bonus point. Micah is hard to find fast, which keeps it competitive.

Passage: the references below.

Example calls and follow-ups:

• Micah 5:2. Which town is "little among the thousands of Judah"? Bethlehem Ephratah.
• Isaiah 7:14. What will the son be called? Immanuel.
• John 1:14. What did the Word become? Flesh, and he "dwelt among us".
• Luke 2:11. What does the angel call the baby? "A Saviour, which is Christ the Lord".
• Matthew 2:11. Name the three gifts. Gold, frankincense and myrrh.

8. Finish the Christmas verse

Players: 4–40 · Time: 10 minutes · You need: this list

How to play: Read the first half of a verse; teams finish it. Two points for exact KJV wording, one for the right meaning. Our finish the verse game has 40 more verses for later in the year.

Passage: Isaiah 9, Luke 1–2 and Matthew 1.

Example verses:

• "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given..." "...and the government shall be upon his shoulder" (Isaiah 9:6).
• "Glory to God in the highest..." "...and on earth peace, good will toward men" (Luke 2:14).
• "For with God nothing..." "...shall be impossible" (Luke 1:37).
• "Thou shalt call his name JESUS..." "...for he shall save his people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21).
• "The people that walked in darkness..." "...have seen a great light" (Isaiah 9:2).

9. Names of the child

Players: 4–30, in teams · Time: 10 minutes · You need: paper and pens

How to play: Teams get five minutes to list every name or title given to Jesus in the Christmas passages (Isaiah 7 and 9, Micah 5, Matthew 1–2, Luke 1–2, John 1). A name scores only with a correct reference. Names another team also found score half.

Passage: Isaiah 9:6-7.

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

Example answers:

• Emmanuel, "which being interpreted is, God with us" (Matthew 1:23).
• Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace: five names in one verse (Isaiah 9:6).
• A Saviour, which is Christ the Lord (Luke 2:11).
• The dayspring from on high, from Zacharias's prophecy (Luke 1:78).
• The Word (John 1:1).

More for the leader's list: the Son of the Highest (Luke 1:32), King of the Jews (Matthew 2:2), the true Light (John 1:9).

10. Prophecy match

Players: 4–30 · Time: 15 minutes · You need: Old Testament verses on one color of card, New Testament verses on another

How to play: Spread the cards face up. Teams race to pair each prophecy with the Christmas passage that quotes or echoes it, then read both aloud.

Passage: Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah 9:7, Micah 5:2 and Matthew 1–2.

But thou, Beth–lehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.

Example pairs:

• Isaiah 7:14 (a virgin shall conceive, Immanuel) with Matthew 1:22-23.
• Micah 5:2 (Beth-lehem Ephratah) with Matthew 2:5-6, where the chief priests and scribes quote it to Herod.
• Hosea 11:1 ("called my son out of Egypt") with Matthew 2:15.
• Jeremiah 31:15 (Rachel weeping in Ramah) with Matthew 2:17-18.
• Isaiah 9:7 ("upon the throne of David... no end") with Luke 1:32-33. Luke doesn't quote Isaiah, but Gabriel's words echo it: "the throne of his father David... of his kingdom there shall be no end".

Hard bonus: which prophet says "He shall be called a Nazarene" (Matthew 2:23)? Matthew says "the prophets", and no Old Testament verse has those exact words (many link it to the "Branch" of Isaiah 11:1). The book summaries for Micah and Isaiah give each prophecy's background.

Active nativity games for youth group

Two games for students who need to move.

11. Story line relay

Players: 8–40, in two teams · Time: 15 minutes · You need: two decks of event cards, painter's tape for a floor timeline

How to play: One team gets the Luke deck, the other the Matthew deck. Players run one card at a time to the timeline; teammates can rearrange only by running up again. First team in correct order wins, then swap decks. Keep each deck inside one Gospel, because merging the two accounts into one order involves guesses the text doesn't settle.

Passage: Luke 1–2 and Matthew 1–2.

Luke deck, in order:

1. Gabriel appears to Zacharias in the temple (Luke 1:11, 19).
2. Gabriel is sent to Mary in Nazareth (Luke 1:26-27).
3. Mary visits Elisabeth (Luke 1:39-40).
4. Caesar Augustus orders the taxing (Luke 2:1).
5. Simeon takes the child in his arms (Luke 2:27-28).

Matthew deck, in order:

1. An angel speaks to Joseph in a dream (Matthew 1:20).
2. Wise men from the east arrive in Jerusalem (Matthew 2:1).
3. The star stands over where the young child was (Matthew 2:9).
4. Joseph takes the family to Egypt by night (Matthew 2:14).
5. The family settles in Nazareth (Matthew 2:23).

12. Follow the star

Players: 8–60, in teams of 4 to 6 · Time: 20 minutes · You need: five envelopes, five spots labeled The East, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, The House and Home, and a box with three "treasures" (gold candy coins, a scented candle, a small bottle of oil)

How to play: Teams start at The East. Each envelope holds a question; the answer tells them where to go next. Stagger start times so nobody just follows the crowd. Of all these Christmas party Bible games, this one scales best for a big church event.

Passage: Matthew 2:1-12.

Example clues and answers:

• The East: "Read Matthew 2:2. What did the wise men see?" "His star in the east". Go to Jerusalem.
• Jerusalem: "The scribes quoted a prophet. Read Micah 5:2. Which town?" Bethlehem. Go to Bethlehem.
• Bethlehem: "Read Matthew 2:11. What kind of building did the wise men enter?" "The house". Go to The House.
• The House: "Open the box. What did the wise men present?" Gold, frankincense and myrrh (Matthew 2:11).
• Final clue: "Read Matthew 2:12." They were "warned of God in a dream" and went home "another way". Teams must return Home by a route they haven't used yet. First team back wins.

For the rest of the year, our Bible games for youth group has 15 more story-based games.

Quiet Christmas Bible games for adults

These two work at a dinner table and make a good end to an evening.

13. The upside-down song

Players: 2–20 · Time: 10–15 minutes · You need: ten cards, five "who" cards and five "what God did" cards

How to play: Shuffle. Players or pairs match each group of people with what Mary says God did to them, then read Luke 1:46-55 aloud to check. For round two, compare Hannah's prayer in 1 Samuel 2:7-8, which many readers hear behind Mary's words (see Hannah).

Passage: Luke 1:46-55.

Example matches:

• The proud: "scattered... in the imagination of their hearts" (Luke 1:51).
• The mighty: "put down... from their seats" (Luke 1:52).
• Them of low degree: "exalted" (Luke 1:52).
• The hungry: "filled with good things" (Luke 1:53).
• The rich: "sent empty away" (Luke 1:53).

14. Light in the darkness

Players: 4–40 · Time: 10 minutes · You need: one battery tea light per team or person, a room you can dim

How to play: Dim the lights. Each correct answer lets a team switch on one tea light, so the room fills with light as the game goes.

Passage: John 1:1-14 and Isaiah 9:2.

Example questions:

• What was "in the beginning"? The Word (John 1:1).
• In the KJV, what did the darkness do with the light? "The darkness comprehended it not" (John 1:5).
• Who was sent "to bear witness of the Light"? A man named John, John the Baptist (John 1:6-7).
• What did the people that walked in darkness see? "A great light" (Isaiah 9:2). Matthew 4:16 applies it to Jesus in Galilee.
• Simeon called the child "a light to lighten" whom? The Gentiles (Luke 2:32).

End by reading this with every light on:

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Sample plans for church, youth group and family night

Here's how to combine these Christmas Bible game ideas into one evening, readings included.

To prepare as a leader, our Advent Bible reading plan walks through these passages in daily portions before Christmas. And if your group likes the stories behind the games, the app explains 200+ Bible stories, including each part of the nativity, with a short quiz on each.

Want a game everyone plays on their phone? Our free Kahoot, Christmas Bible Trivia: The Nativity (KJV), has 20 nativity questions ready to put on a screen.

Free printable Christmas Bible trivia

If you'd rather hand out paper, the free Christmas Bible trivia PDF on our printables page has 50 questions on the nativity, from Luke 1 to Matthew 2, with an answer key at the end.

The same questions, with the verse under each answer, are in our Christmas Bible trivia article. For tougher sets, try Bible trivia for adults or the true or false Bible quiz.

To put a quiz on the big screen, the free Matthew quiz and Luke quiz show the verse behind every answer. Here are three Matthew questions to try now:

Quick quiz: Matthew

What does the name “Emmanuel,” given to Jesus, mean?

“The LORD saves”“Prince of Peace”“God with us”“Son of David”

What gifts do the magi offer the young child?

Gold, frankincense and myrrhSilver, wine and oilGold, silver and pearlsFrankincense, spikenard and aloes

How is Matthew described in the list of the twelve apostles in his own Gospel?

The fishermanThe CanaaniteThe carpenterThe publican

Continue the quiz

There are many more questions like these in Bible Academy, each with its explanation and verse. Start free, no card needed.

For background on Luke's Gospel, see BibleProject's free guide to the book of Luke.

Frequently asked questions

What are good Christmas Bible games for adults?

Adults enjoy games that test what they think they know. Myth or text, prophecy match and names of the child work well, because they separate the Bible's wording from tradition and connect Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah 9:6 and Micah 5:2 to Matthew 1–2. The upside-down song, built on Mary's song in Luke 1:51-53, suits a quieter small group.

What Christmas Bible games work for church with no prep?

Myth or text, who said it, and finish the Christmas verse need only a leader with the lists on this page. Each takes about 10 minutes and works for groups from 6 to 100. Follow each with a two-minute reading of Luke 2:1-20 or Matthew 2:1-12 so the game ends in the passage it's built on.

What are good nativity games for youth group?

Matthew or Luke (a four-corners game), speechless Zacharias (charades and drawing based on Luke 1:22 and 1:63), the story line relay and the follow-the-star scavenger hunt all get students moving. Each copies a detail of the story, such as the wise men going home "another way" in Matthew 2:12, so the debrief is easy.

How many wise men does the Bible say there were?

The Bible doesn't give a number. Matthew 2:1 says "wise men from the east", and Matthew 2:11 lists three gifts: gold, frankincense and myrrh. The tradition of three wise men most likely comes from the three gifts. Matthew doesn't call them kings or name them, and he says they found Jesus in "the house", where the star had stopped over "where the young child was" (Matthew 2:9).

Was there an innkeeper in the Christmas story?

No innkeeper appears in the Bible. Luke 2:7 says Mary laid Jesus "in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn", and that's the only mention of the inn. The innkeeper who turns the couple away comes from later retellings and Christmas plays, not from Luke or Matthew.