Matthew 2
The
Visit of the Wise Men
“Now after
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 HE WHO has been born KING OF THE JEWS? For
we saw HIS star when it rose
and have come to 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 THE CHRIST was to be born.
5 They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the
prophet:
6 ‘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 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, they
offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.
12 And being warned 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, 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. This was to fulfill what THE LORD had spoken by the
prophet, ‘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 Then was fulfilled what was spoken
by the prophet Jeremiah:
18 ‘A voice was heard in Ramah,
weeping and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
she refused to be comforted,
because they 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 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 being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee.
23 And he went and lived in a city
called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be
fulfilled, that HE would be called A NAZARENE.”
