Matthew 2
2
The Visit of the Wise Men
1#Lk 2:4–7; Mic 5:2Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, wise men came from the east to Jerusalem, 2#Nu 24:17; Jer 23:5; Zec 9:9saying, “Where is He who was born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east and have come to worship Him.”
3When Herod the king heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where Christ should be born. 5#Ge 35:19They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for this is what the prophet wrote:
6#Mic 5:2; Jn 7:42 ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are no longer least among the princes of Judah;
for out of you shall come a Governor,
who will shepherd My people Israel.’#Ps 91:11–12.”
7Then Herod, when he had privately called the wise men, carefully inquired of them what time the star appeared. 8And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search diligently for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring me word again, so that I may come and worship Him also.”
9When they heard the king, they departed. And the star which they saw in the east went before them until it came and stood over where the young Child was. 10When they saw the star, they rejoiced with great excitement. 11#Ps 72:10; Mt 14:33And when they came 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 gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12#Mt 2:22; 27:19But being warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they returned to their own country by another route.
The Escape to Egypt
13#Ac 5:19; Mt 1:20Now when they departed, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and escape to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word. For Herod will seek the young Child to kill Him.”
14When he rose, he took the young Child and His mother by night, and departed into Egypt, 15#Hos 11:1; Ex 4:22and remained there until the death of Herod, to fulfill what the Lord had spoken through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called My Son.”#A talent was worth several hundred pounds.
The Killing of the Infants
16#Isa 59:7Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, was utterly furious and sent forth and killed all the male children who were in Bethlehem and the surrounding region, from two years old and under, based on the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men. 17Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet:
18#Jer 31:15; Ge 42:36 “In Ramah a voice was heard,
grieving and weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children,
and she would not be comforted,
because they are no more.”#–21 Isa 42:1–4.
The Return From Egypt
19#Mt 1:20But when Herod was dead, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, 20#Ex 4:19saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go into the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child’s life are dead.”
21And he rose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel. 22#Lk 2:39But when he heard that Archelaus reigned in Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Nevertheless, being warned by God in a dream, he withdrew to the region of Galilee. 23#Jn 1:45–46; Jdg 13:5And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth, that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”
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Military Bible Association
Matthew 2
2
The wise men
1When Jesus was born in the village of Bethlehem in Judea, Herod was king. During this time some wise men#2.1 wise men: People famous for studying the stars. from the east came to Jerusalem 2and said, “Where is the child born to be king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east#2.2 his star in the east: Or “his star rise.” and have come to worship him.”
3When King Herod heard about this, he was worried, and so was everyone else in Jerusalem. 4Herod brought together the chief priests and the teachers of the Law of Moses and asked them, “Where will the Messiah be born?”
5They told him, “He will be born in Bethlehem, just as the prophet wrote,
6‘Bethlehem in the land#Mic 5.2.
of Judea,
you are very important
among the towns of Judea.
From your town
will come a leader,
who will be like a shepherd
for my people Israel.’ ”
7Herod secretly called in the wise men and asked them when they had first seen the star. 8He told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, let me know. I want to go and worship him too.”
9The wise men listened to what the king said and then left. And the star they had seen in the east went on ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10They were thrilled and excited to see the star.
11When the men went into the house and saw the child with Mary, his mother, they knelt down and worshipped him. They took out their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh#2.11 frankincense, and myrrh: Frankincense was a valuable powder that was burnt to make a sweet smell. Myrrh was a valuable sweet-smelling powder often used in perfume. and gave them to him. 12Later they were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, and they went back home by another road.
The escape to Egypt
13After the wise men had gone, an angel from the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Hurry and take the child and his mother to Egypt! Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is looking for the child and wants to kill him.”
14That night, Joseph got up and took his wife and the child to Egypt, 15where they stayed until Herod died. So the Lord's promise came true, just as the prophet had said, “I called my son out of Egypt.”#Ho 11.1.
The killing of the children
16When Herod found out that the wise men from the east had tricked him, he was very angry. He gave orders for his men to kill all the boys who lived in or near Bethlehem and were two years old and younger. This was based on what he had learnt from the wise men.
17So the Lord's promise came true, just as the prophet Jeremiah had said,
18“In Ramah a voice was heard#Jr 31.15.
crying and weeping loudly.
Rachel was mourning
for her children,
and she refused
to be comforted,
because they were dead.”
The return from Egypt
19After King Herod died, an angel from the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph while he was still in Egypt. 20The angel said, “Get up and take the child and his mother back to Israel. The people who wanted to kill him are now dead.”
21Joseph got up and left with them for Israel. 22But when he heard that Herod's son Archelaus was now ruler of Judea, he was afraid to go there. Then in a dream he was told to go to Galilee, 23and they went to live there in the town of Nazareth. So the Lord's promise came true, just as the prophet had said, “He will be called a Nazarene.”#2.23 He will be called a Nazarene: The prophet who said this is not known.#Mk 1.24; Lk 2.39; Jn 1.45.
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© British and Foreign Bible Society 2012