And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they withdrew to their country by another route.
Parallel translations
- WEB Being warned in a dream that they shouldn’t return to Herod, they went back to their own country another way.
- KJV And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
- NKJV Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.
- NASB And after being warned by God in a dream not to return to Herod, the magi left for their own country by another way.
- NLT When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Warned in a dream, the wise men return home by another route, avoiding Herod. God protects the child through their obedience.
Overview
A divine dream redirects the magi, frustrating Herod's plot to use them. Their obedience to God's warning shields the infant Jesus from immediate danger. The verse shows God sovereignly guarding his Son until his appointed hour.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Matt 2:22But when he learned that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee,
- Matt 2:19After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.
- Matt 2:13When the Magi had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the Child to kill Him.”
- Matt 27:19While Pilate was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him this message: “Have nothing to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered terribly in a dream today because of Him.”
- Gen 20:6–7Then God said to Abimelech in the dream, “Yes, I know that you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against Me. That is why I did not let you touch her.
- Gen 31:24But that night God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream and warned him, “Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.”
- Matt 1:20But after he had pondered these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to embrace Mary as your wife, for the One conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
- Acts 5:29But Peter and the other apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than men.
- Dan 2:19During the night, the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision, and he blessed the God of heaven
- Exod 1:17The midwives, however, feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt had instructed; they let the boys live.
- Acts 4:19But Peter and John replied, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to listen to you rather than God.
- Heb 11:7By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in godly fear built an ark to save his family. By faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.
- Job 33:15–17In a dream, in a vision in the night, when deep sleep falls upon men as they slumber on their beds,
- 1 Cor 3:19For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Pastoral
On the genealogy and the name Immanuel.
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Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 2:12 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.