Matthew 2:1-23

2:1 | The wise men from the East apparently were members of a respected group of scholars – what many might call astrologers – from the Persian Empire who studied the stars and other sources for knowledge about the future. Daniel refers to this group (Dan. 1:20; 2:2; 4:7; 5:7). Quite possibly, these men had read Daniel’s account of the coming Messiah or other Jewish writings about the prophesied Son of David.

2:2 | Various scientific explanations have been offered to account for the star, but this was not simply a natural phenomenon. It was His star, supernaturally placed in the heavens for the purpose of guiding the wise men. We see throughout biblical history that God always guides His people.

2:3-8 | Herod the Great was named King of Judea by the Roman Senate in 37 BC and likely died in 4 BC. He was Idumean (descended from the tribe of Esau) and did not welcome the news that “the king of the Jews” was born in Bethlehem. By the time of his death, he had murdered his wife and at least two of his sons to protect his throne. When Herod felt troubled, the entire city was troubled.

2:5-6 | In the prophecy about Jesus in Micah 5:2, two names are given for the small village in northern Israel where the Messiah would be born: Bethlehem and Ephrathah. Bethlehem means “the house of bread.” Jesus will later be called the Bread of Life (John 6:22-40). Ephrathah is a much older name that means “to be fruitful.” Into a hungry and thirsty world came the Bread of Life, who teaches human beings to have a fruitful life.

2:6 | Matthew joins words from 2 Samuel 5:2 (shepherd My people Israel) with the prophecy of Micah 5:2, anticipating that Jesus will be the Good Shepherd (John 10:11) as well as King of the Jews. Indeed, He is the King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19:16).

2:9-11 | The star led the wise men from Jerusalem to Bethlehem and stops over the house where Jesus was. When the magi entered the house, they did not find a baby lying in a manger (Luke 2:16), as people imagine. Jesus was a young Child; more than a year had passed since His birth.

2:11 | As with all other accounts about Mary and Joseph together, Mary is mentioned first here; she takes prominence over Joseph. But when it comes to the narratives with Mary and Jesus together, Jesus is always mentioned first. Normally, the name of the mother would be listed before the child’s, but the emphasis is on Jesus Christ.

2:13-15 | For the second time, God spoke to Joseph in a dream through an angelic messenger (1:20) demonstrating God’s sovereign protection of His Son (Hos. 11:1). As instructed, Joseph fled with his family to Egypt, whose border is about 75 miles to the south. They settled outside of Herod’s control in a Roman province there, where Philo says about a million Jews lived.

2:16-18 | The quoted prophecy is from Jeremiah 31:15. Rachel, who was buried in Bethlehem, is pictured as weeping from her grave as Herod’s edict to kill the male children is carried out. In the same symbolic manner, Rachel wept for her own children who were carried into captivity by the Babylonians 13 centuries after her death.

2:19-22 | The new ruler of Judea (Archelaus, one of Herod’s sons) was reputed to be extremely wicked. In two different dreams, God first told Joseph to return to Israel and then warned Joseph to move the family north, to the safety of the region of Galilee.

2:23 | While no OT prophet states that He shall be called a Nazarene (a citizen of Nazareth), the prophets do say that Jesus would be “despised and rejected by men” (Isa. 53:3). Nazareth, where Jesus would grow up, was a place “despised and rejected” (John 1:46). The hatred of Nazareth mirrored the scorn that was leveled against Jesus, fulfilling this aspect of OT prophecy.