Matthew 2
Amplified Bible
The Visit of the Magi
2 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of [a]Herod the king (Herod the Great), [b]magi (wise men) from the east came to Jerusalem, asking, 2 “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star [c]in the east and have come to worship Him.”(A) 3 When Herod the king heard this, he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 So he called together all the chief priests and [d]scribes of the people and [anxiously] asked them where the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed) was to be born. 5 They replied to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for this is what has been written by the prophet [Micah]:
6
‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are not in any way least among the leaders of Judah;
For from you shall come a Ruler
Who will shepherd My people Israel.’”(B)
7 Then Herod secretly sent for the magi and learned from them [e]the [exact] time the star [had first] appeared. 8 Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.” 9 After hearing the king, they went their way; and behold, the star, which they had seen in the east, went on before them [continually leading the way] until it came and stood over the place where the young Child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. 11 And after entering the house, they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then, after opening their treasure chests, they presented to Him gifts [fit for a king, gifts] of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned [by God] in a dream not to go back to Herod, the magi left for their own country by another way.
The Flight to Egypt
13 Now when they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod intends to search for the Child in order to destroy Him.”
14 So Joseph got up and took the Child and His mother while it was still night, and left for Egypt. 15 He remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet [Hosea]: “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”(C)
Herod Slaughters the Babies
16 Then Herod, when he realized that he had been tricked by the magi, was extremely angry, and he sent [soldiers] and put to death all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that area who were two years old and under, according to the date which he had learned from the magi. 17 Then what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:
18
“A voice was heard in [f]Ramah,
Weeping and great mourning,
[g]Rachel weeping for her children;
She refused to be comforted,
Because they were no more.”(D)
19 But when [h]Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and said, 20 “Get up! Take the Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel; for those who sought the Child’s life are dead.” 21 Then Joseph got up, and took the Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea [i]in place of his father Herod [the Great], he was afraid to go there. Then being warned by God in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee, 23 and went and settled in a city called Nazareth. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets: “He shall be called a [j]Nazarene.”
Footnotes
- Matthew 2:1 Herod the Great was born into a prominent, wealthy family in Idumea (the area formerly known as Edom, the land of Esau’s descendants) and some archeological evidence indicates he considered himself Jewish.
- Matthew 2:1 Gr magoi; these were educated men who specialized in astronomy, astrology, and the natural sciences. The magi were witnesses to the miraculous events surrounding the birth of Jesus.
- Matthew 2:2 Or at its rising.
- Matthew 2:4 Teachers and professional scholars specializing in the Law (Hebrew Bible, the Old Testament) and writings of the prophets.
- Matthew 2:7 Lit the time of the appearing star.
- Matthew 2:18 Ramah was located five miles north of Jerusalem, this city was a staging point for the deportation of Jews to Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar in 586 b.c.
- Matthew 2:18 A reference to Jacob’s (Israel’s) wife Rachel as the mother of the children of Israel. Here, her grief over the slaughter of babies by Herod parallels the grief of Israel when they were conquered and deported by the Babylonians. The image is that of Rachel weeping for the children of Israel from her grave. Matthew takes Jeremiah’s words, which originally referred to grief over Babylonian captivity, and applies them to Herod’s slaughter of the babies.
- Matthew 2:19 Herod the Great died sometime between March 29 and April 11, 4 b.c.
- Matthew 2:22 Following Herod’s death Israel was partitioned between three of his sons: Archelaus, Antipas, and Philip II.
- Matthew 2:23 The Nazarenes may have been looked on with disfavor by other Jews because Roman soldiers, whose presence was greatly resented, were housed near Nazareth, perhaps causing the Nazarenes to be identified with them.
Matthew 2
Lexham English Bible
Wise Men Visit Jesus
2 Now after[a] Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star at its rising[b] and have come to worship him.” 3 And when[c] King Herod heard it,[d] he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him, 4 and after[e] calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired from them where the Christ was to be born. 5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet,
6 ‘And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah,
for from you will go out a ruler
who will shepherd my people Israel.’”[f]
7 Then Herod secretly summoned the wise men and[g] determined precisely from them the time when[h] the star appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and[i] said, “Go, inquire carefully concerning the child, and when you have found him, report to me so that I also may come and[j] worship him.” 9 After[k] they listened to the king, they went out, and behold, the star which they had seen at its rising[l] led them until it came and[m] stood above the place where the child was. 10 Now when they[n] saw the star, they rejoiced with very great joy. 11 And when they[o] came into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and[p] worshiped him. And opening their treasure boxes, they offered him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. 12 And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they went back to their own country by another route.
Joseph, Mary, and Jesus Escape to Egypt
13 Now after they had gone away, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph, saying, “Get up, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. For Herod is about to seek the child to destroy him.” 14 So he got up and[q] took the child and his mother during the night and went away to Egypt. 15 And he was there until the death of Herod, in order that what was said by the Lord through the prophet would be fulfilled, saying,
“Out of Egypt I called my son.”
Herod Has Innocent Children Murdered
16 Then Herod, when he[r] saw that he had been deceived by the wise men, became very angry, and he sent soldiers[s] and[t] executed all the children in Bethlehem and in all the region around it from the age of two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined precisely from the wise men. 17 Then what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled, saying,
18 “A voice was heard in Ramah,
weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children,
and she did not want to be comforted,
because they exist no longer[u].”[v]
Joseph, Mary, and Jesus Return to Nazareth
19 Now after[w] Herod had died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, 20 saying, “Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the life of the child are dead.” 21 So he got up and[x] took the child and his mother and entered[y] the land of Israel. 22 But when he[z] heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream, he took refuge in the regions of Galilee. 23 And he came and[aa] lived in a town called Nazareth, in order that what was said by the prophets would be fulfilled:[ab] “He will be called a Nazarene.”
Footnotes
- Matthew 2:1 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“was born”)
- Matthew 2:2 Or, “when it rose”; traditionally rendered “in the east” by many English versions
- Matthew 2:3 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“heard”) which is understood as temporal
- Matthew 2:3 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Matthew 2:4 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the participle (“calling together”) which is understood as temporal
- Matthew 2:6 A quotation from Mic 5:2
- Matthew 2:7 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“summoned”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Matthew 2:7 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“appeared”)
- Matthew 2:8 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“sent”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Matthew 2:8 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“may come”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Matthew 2:9 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the participle (“listened to”) which is understood as temporal
- Matthew 2:9 Or, “when it rose”; traditionally rendered “in the east” by many English versions
- Matthew 2:9 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“came”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Matthew 2:10 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“saw”) which is understood as temporal
- Matthew 2:11 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“came”) which is understood as temporal
- Matthew 2:11 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“fell down”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Matthew 2:14 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“got up”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Matthew 2:16 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“saw”) which is understood as temporal
- Matthew 2:16 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Matthew 2:16 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“sent”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Matthew 2:18 Literally “they are not”
- Matthew 2:18 A quotation from Jer 31:15
- Matthew 2:19 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“had died”)
- Matthew 2:21 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“got up”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Matthew 2:21 Literally “entered into”
- Matthew 2:22 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“heard”) which is understood as temporal
- Matthew 2:23 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“came”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Matthew 2:23 Literally “that”; the conjunction could be understood (1) to introduce a direct quotation, serving a function similar to modern English quotation marks, and thus not translated; or (2) to introduce an indirect quotation, in which case it could be translated “that he would be called a Nazarene”
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