St Matthew 2
2
1WHEN Jesus therefore was born in Bethlehem of Juda, in the days of king Herod, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem.
2Saying, Where is he that is born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to adore him.
3And king Herod hearing this, was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
4And assembling together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, he inquired of them where Christ should be born.
5But they said to him: In Bethlehem of Juda. For so it is written by the prophet:
6And thou Bethlehem the land of Juda art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come forth the captain that shall rule my people Israel.
7Then Herod, privately calling the wise men, learned diligently of them the time of the star which appeared to them;
8And sending them into Bethlehem, said: Go and diligently inquire after the child, and when you have found him, bring me word again, that I also may come to adore him.
9Who having heard the king, went their way; and behold the star which they had seen in the east, went before them, until it came and stood over where the child was.
10And seeing the star they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.
11And entering into the house, they found the child with Mary his mother, and falling down they adored him; and opening their treasures, they offered him gifts; gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12And having received an answer in sleep that they should not return to Herod, they went back another way into their country.
13And after they were departed, behold an angel of the Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph, saying: Arise, and take the child and his mother, and fly into Egypt: and be there until I shall tell thee. For it will come to pass that Herod will seek the child to destroy him.
14Who arose, and took the child and his mother by night, and retired into Egypt: and he was there until the death of Herod:
15That it might be fulfilled which the Lord spoke by the prophet, saying: Out of Egypt have I called my son.
16Then Herod perceiving that he was deluded by the wise men, was exceeding angry; and sending killed all the men children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the borders thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.
17Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremias the prophet, saying:
18A voice in Rama was heard, lamentation and great mourning; Rachel bewailing her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.
19But when Herod was dead, behold an angel of the Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph in Egypt,
20Saying: Arise, and take the child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel. For they are dead that sought the life of the child.
21Who arose, and took the child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.
22But hearing that Archelaus reigned in Judea in the room of Herod his father, he was afraid to go thither: and being warned in sleep retired into the quarters of Galilee.
23And coming he dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was said by prophets: That he shall be called a Nazarene.
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St Matthew 2: DRC1752
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An historical text maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
Matthew 2
2
Visitors from the East
1Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem in Judea, during the time when Herod was king. Soon afterwards, some men who studied the stars came from the east to Jerusalem 2and asked, “Where is the baby born to be the king of the Jews? We saw his star when it came up in the east, and we have come to worship him.”
3When King Herod heard about this, he was very upset, and so was everyone else in Jerusalem. 4He called together all the chief priests and the teachers of the Law and asked them, “Where will the Messiah be born?”
5“In the town of Bethlehem in Judea,” they answered. “For this is what the prophet wrote:
6 #
Mic 5.2
‘Bethlehem in the land of Judah,
you are by no means the least of the leading cities of Judah;
for from you will come a leader
who will guide my people Israel.’ ”
7So Herod called the visitors from the east to a secret meeting and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8Then he sent them to Bethlehem with these instructions: “Go and make a careful search for the child, and when you find him, let me know, so that I too may go and worship him.”
9-10And so they left, and on their way they saw the same star they had seen in the east. When they saw it, how happy they were, what joy was theirs! It went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 11They went into the house, and when they saw the child with his mother Mary, they knelt down and worshipped him. They brought out their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and presented them to him.
12Then they returned to their country by another road, since God had warned them in a dream not to go back to Herod.
The Escape to Egypt
13After they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph and said, “Herod will be looking for the child in order to kill him. So get up, take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you to leave.”
14Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and left during the night for Egypt, 15#Hos 11.1where he stayed until Herod died. This was done to make what the Lord had said through the prophet come true, “I called my Son out of Egypt.”
The Killing of the Children
16When Herod realized that the visitors from the east had tricked him, he was furious. He gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its neighbourhood who were two years old and younger — this was done in accordance with what he had learned from the visitors about the time when the star had appeared.
17In this way what the prophet Jeremiah had said came true:
18 #
Jer 31.15
“A sound is heard in Ramah,
the sound of bitter weeping.
Rachel is crying for her children;
she refuses to be comforted,
for they are dead.”
The Return from Egypt
19After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt 20and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go back to the land of Israel, because those who tried to kill the child are dead.” 21So Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went back to Israel.
22But when Joseph heard that Archelaus had succeeded his father Herod as king of Judea, he was afraid to go there. He was given more instructions in a dream, so he went to the province of Galilee 23#Mk 1.24; Lk 2.39; Jn 1.45and made his home in a town named Nazareth. And so what the prophets had said came true: “He will be called a Nazarene.”
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.