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Matthew 2

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Part of The Genealogy and Birth of Jesus📖 Matthew introduction

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1Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, ✦ 2“Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.” ✦ 3King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. ✦ 4He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?” ✦ 5“In Bethlehem in Judea,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote: ✦ 6‘And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah, are not least among the ruling cities of Judah, for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’” ✦ 7Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared. ✦ 8Then he told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!” ✦ 9After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. ✦ 10When they saw the star, they were filled with joy! ✦ 11They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. ✦ 12When 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. ✦ 13After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” ✦ 14That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother, ✦ 15and they stayed there until Herod’s death. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “I called my Son out of Egypt.” ✦ 16Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him. He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, based on the wise men’s report of the star’s first appearance. ✦ 17Herod’s brutal action fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: 18“A cry was heard in Ramah— weeping and great mourning. Rachel weeps for her children, refusing to be comforted, for they are dead.” ✦ 19When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt. ✦ 20“Get up!” the angel said. “Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead.” ✦ 21So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel with Jesus and his mother. ✦ 22But when he learned that the new ruler of Judea was Herod’s son Archelaus, he was afraid to go there. Then, after being warned in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee. ✦ 23So the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth. This fulfilled what the prophets had said: “He will be called a Nazarene.” ✦

Tap any verse for its study page. Underlined terms mark a concept, person, or place; ✦ marks verses with cross-references.

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.

Where this chapter connects

Matt 2 ·23Luke 2 ·11Matt 1 ·8Matt 26 ·7John 7 ·6John 19 ·5Rev 12 ·5Matt 21 ·4

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 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.

Resources, by level

Lay

  • ★ Start hereDocumentaryFollowing the MessiahAppian Media · Free · evangelical

    A free, beautifully shot 10-part series walking the lands of Jesus' life — Bethlehem, Galilee, Jerusalem, and more.

  • ★ Start hereVideoBibleProject — video overviews & word studiesBibleProject · 5–10 min · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overviews of every book of the Bible, plus themes and Hebrew/Greek word studies — the best visual on-ramp to any book. (Biblical-theology, broadly evangelical, not distinctly Reformed.)

  • ★ Start hereAudioThrough the WordThrough the Word · ~10 min/chapter · Free · evangelical

    A clear ~10-minute audio teaching for every one of the Bible's 1,189 chapters — the most systematic free way to study chapter by chapter.

  • DocumentaryHolyLandSiteHolyLandSite · Free · evangelical

    Free on-location videos tying biblical events to the actual sites in Israel — the Temple Mount, Galilee, Capernaum, and more.

  • ApologeticsCold-Case Christianity (J. Warner Wallace)J. Warner Wallace · Free · evangelical

    A cold-case homicide detective examines the Gospels' reliability — forensic faith for skeptics and seekers.

Pastoral

  • SermonGrace to You — John MacArthurJohn MacArthur · Free · reformed

    Decades of careful verse-by-verse expository sermons, especially through the New Testament. (MacArthur, d. 2025; archive remains free.)

  • DocumentaryThat the World May KnowRay Vander Laan · Paid · evangelical

    Ray Vander Laan's on-location series immersing you in the Bible's historical and cultural world. (Mostly paid via Focus on the Family; some free clips.)

  • SermonChuck Smith — C2000 SeriesChuck Smith · Free · evangelical

    Free verse-by-verse audio through the entire Bible from the founder of Calvary Chapel.

  • CommentaryCommentary on Matthew 1Matthew Henry · Free

    On the genealogy and the name Immanuel.

Commentaries & study tools

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