Matthew 2
English Standard Version
The Visit of the Wise Men
2 Now (A)after Jesus was born in (B)Bethlehem of Judea (C)in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men[a] from (D)the east came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is he who has been born (E)king of the Jews? For we saw (F)his star when it rose[b] and have come to (G)worship him.” 3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where (H)the Christ was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:
6 (I)“‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who will (J)shepherd my people Israel.’”
7 Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.” 9 After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. 11 And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, (K)they offered him gifts, (L)gold and (M)frankincense and (N)myrrh. 12 And (O)being warned (P)in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.
The Flight to Egypt
13 Now when they had departed, behold, (Q)an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” 14 And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt 15 and remained there until the death of Herod. (R)This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, (S)“Out of Egypt I called my son.”
Herod Kills the Children
16 Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. 17 (T)Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah:
18 (U)“A voice was heard in Ramah,
weeping and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
she refused to be comforted, because they (V)are no more.”
The Return to Nazareth
19 But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, 20 saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for (W)those who sought the child's life are dead.” 21 And he rose and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and (X)being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee. 23 And he went and lived in a city called (Y)Nazareth, (Z)so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene.
Footnotes
- Matthew 2:1 Greek magi; also verses 7, 16
- Matthew 2:2 Or in the east; also verse 9
Matthew 2
International Standard Version
The Visit of the Wise Men
2 After Jesus had been born in Bethlehem of Judea during the reign[a] of King Herod, wise men[b] arrived in Jerusalem from the east 2 and asked, “Where is the one who was born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east[c] and have come to worship him.”
3 When King Herod heard this, he was disturbed, as was all of Jerusalem. 4 He called together all the high priests and scribes of the people and asked them where the Messiah[d] was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, because that is what was written by the prophet:
6 ‘O Bethlehem in the land of Judah,
you are by no means least among the rulers of Judah,
because from you will come a ruler
who will shepherd[e] my people Israel.’”[f]
7 Then Herod secretly called together the wise men, found out from them the time the star had appeared, 8 and sent them to Bethlehem. He told them,[g] “As you go, search carefully for the child. When you find him, tell me so that I, too, may go and worship him.”
9 After listening to the king, they set out, and the star they had seen in the east[h] went ahead of them until it came and stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were ecstatic with joy. 11 After they went into the house and saw the child with his mother Mary, they fell down and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasure sacks and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 Having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they left for their own country by a different road.
The Escape to Egypt
13 After they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt,” he said. “Stay there until I tell you, because Herod intends to search for the child and kill him.” 14 So Joseph[i] got up, took the child and his mother, and left at night for Egypt. 15 He stayed there until Herod’s death in order to fulfill what was declared by the Lord[j] through the prophet when he said, “Out of Egypt I called my Son.”[k]
The Massacre of the Infants
16 Herod flew into a rage when he learned that he had been tricked by the wise men, so he ordered the execution of all the male children in Bethlehem and all its neighboring regions, who were two years old and younger, according to the time that he had determined from the wise men. 17 Then what was declared by the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled when he said,
18 “A voice was heard in Ramah:
wailing and great mourning.
Rachel was crying for her children.
She refused to be comforted,
because they no longer existed.”[l]
The Return to Nazareth
19 But after Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt. 20 “Get up,” he said. “Take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill[m] the child are dead.”
21 So Joseph[n] got up, took the child and his mother, and went into the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, after having been warned in a dream. So he left for the region of Galilee 23 and settled in a town called Nazareth in order to fulfill what was said by the prophets: “He will be called a Nazarene.”[o]
Footnotes
- Matthew 2:1 Lit. days
- Matthew 2:1 Lit. magoi (Magi); i.e. Aramaic speaking wise men from Mesopotamia; or magi-astrologers; and so throughout the chapter; cf. Dan 1:4
- Matthew 2:2 Or at its rising
- Matthew 2:4 Or Christ
- Matthew 2:6 Or govern
- Matthew 2:6 Cf. Mic 5:2; 2 Sam 5:2
- Matthew 2:8 The Gk. lacks them
- Matthew 2:9 Or at its rising
- Matthew 2:14 Lit. he
- Matthew 2:15 MT source citation reads Lord
- Matthew 2:15 Cf. Hos 11:1
- Matthew 2:18 Cf. Jer 31:15
- Matthew 2:20 Lit. were seeking the life of
- Matthew 2:21 Lit. he
- Matthew 2:23 The Gk. Nazoraios may be a word play between Heb. netser, meaning branch (cf. Isa 11:1), and the name Nazareth.
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