Matthew Two
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of
Judah, in the days of Herod the king,
there came Magi from the East to Jerusalem. And they were saying, Where is the King
of the Jews, who has been born? For we have
seen his star in the East, so we have come to
worship him. But when Herod the king heard it, he
trembled, and all Jerusalem with him. So he gathered together all the high priests
and the scribes of the people, and he kept
asking them, where the Christ would be
born? They said, In Bethlehem of Judah, for thus
it is written in the book of the prophet: Even you, Bethlehem of Judah, you are
not insignificant in the eyes of the kings of
Judah, for from you shall come out a king,
who will shepherd my people Israel. Then Herod called the Magi secretly, and
he learned from them at what time the star
appeared to them. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said
to them, Go and enquire very carefully concerning
the boy, and when you have found
him, come back and let me know, so that I
also may go and worship him. When they had heard from the king, they
went away; and behold, the same star that
they had seen in the east was going before
them, until it came and stood just above the
place where the infant boy was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced
exceedingly. And they entered the house, and they saw
the infant boy with Mary, his mother; and
they threw themselves down and worshipped
him; and they opened their treasures and offered
to him gifts - gold and frankincense,
and myrrh. And they saw in a dream not to return to
Herod, so they departed to their own country
by another way. When they had gone, the angel of the
Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, and said
to him, Arise, take the infant boy and his
mother, and escape to Egypt, and stay there
until I tell you, for Herod is ready to demand
the child so as to destroy him. Then Joseph rose up, took the infant boy
and his mother in the night, and escaped to
Egypt. And he remained there until the death of
Herod, so that what was said from the Lord
by the prophet, might be fulfilled, I have
called my son from Egypt.
¶ When Herod saw that he was insulted
by the Magi, he was greatly enraged, so he
sent forth and had all the infant boys in
Bethlehem and in its suburbs killed, from two
years old and down, according to the time
that he had enquired from the Magi. Then was fulfilled what was said by the
prophet Jeremiah who said, A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping
and wailing exceedingly, Rachel weeping for
her sons, and she would not be comforted,
because they could not be brought back.
¶ When King Herod died, the angel of
the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in
Egypt. And he said to him, Arise, take the boy
and his mother, and go to the land of Israel,
for those who were seeking the boy’s life are
dead. So Joseph rose up, took the boy and his
mother, and he came to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus had
become king over Judaea, in the place of his
father Herod, he was afraid to go there; and
it was revealed to him in a dream to go to the
land of Galilee. And he came and dwelt in a city called
Nazareth, so that what was said by the
prophet, might be fulfilled, He shall be called
a Nazarene.
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