Herod Has Innocent Children Murdered

16 Then Herod, when he[a] saw that he had been deceived by the wise men, became very angry, and he sent soldiers[b] and[c] 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[d].”[e]

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 2:16 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“saw”) which is understood as temporal
  2. Matthew 2:16 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  3. Matthew 2:16 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“sent”) has been translated as a finite verb
  4. Matthew 2:18 Literally “they are not”
  5. Matthew 2:18 A quotation from Jer 31:15

The Massacre of the Infants

16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the magi,[a] he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the magi.[b] 17 Then what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:

18 “A voice was heard in Ramah,
    wailing and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
    she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.”(A)

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Footnotes

  1. 2.16 Or astrologers
  2. 2.16 Or astrologers