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11 As they came into the house and saw the child with Mary his mother, they bowed down[a] and worshiped him. They opened their treasure boxes and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense,[b] and myrrh.[c]

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 2:11 tn Grk “they fell down.” BDAG 815 s.v. πίπτω 1.b.α.ב has “fall down, throw oneself to the ground as a sign of devotion, before high-ranking persons or divine beings.”
  2. Matthew 2:11 sn Frankincense refers to the aromatic resin of certain trees, used as a sweet-smelling incense (L&N 6.212).
  3. Matthew 2:11 sn Myrrh consisted of the aromatic resin of certain shrubs (L&N 6.208). It was widely used in the ancient Near East by the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans as perfume, as incense, and for medicinal purposes (W. Michaelis, TDNT 7:457). It was also used in preparing a corpse for burial (cf. John 19:39).