Matthew 2:1 - 12

1 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 have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”

3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.

5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:

6 ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ ”

7 Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.”

9 When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11 And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

Bethlehem was a small town not far from Jerusalem, Judea was one of the three territories the area of Palestine was divided into by the Romans who controlled the empire at that time.

Judea was home to Jerusalem which was the capital and the home of the temple of the Jews.

According to historians, Herod who was king of Judea at the time of Jesus birth was half Idumaean and half Arab, his father was Antipas, and his mother Cyprus of an illustrious family of the Arabians.Judea was home to Jerusalem which was the capital and the home of the temple of the Jews.

God had his purpose, he led them to the king who would play a great part in the early life of Christ.

The wise men or magi as we know them came to give personal worship or honor to the young king. God had led them to the general area so they asked the King of the Jews where to find this important child.

Herod called together the Jewish priests and scribes, the ones who would know through the prophecies where the Christ was to be born.

Herod and many in Jerusalem were troubled because they feared Christ would replace them in the position of ruler-ship. Herod was ½ Jew and appointed by the Romans and was afraid to lose his position, the others were dependent on Herod for their positions of authority.

Herod was an Idumaean by birth but a Jew in Religion, he knew the scriptures had the answer as to where the Christ would be born, but he did not know enough to give an answer so he had to ask the ones who had the knowledge, the priests and scribes. (Leviticus 10:11; Deuteronomy 17:9; Malachi 2:7)

Since their job was to copy the scriptures the scribes were easily able to give the answer to Herod.

As proof to their answer they quoted Micah 5:2. It designates where the birth would happen and what the Christ would do. It points out that the Christ would rule or govern the people not be a political ruler in the physical world.

By determining when the star was first seen, Herod hoped to determine when the child was born so he would know the age of the child. His entire motive was furtive so he did it secretly.

Herod believed the scribes so he sent the wise men to Bethlehem, and because of his wicked motive he asked them to report back to him when they found the child.

When they left they followed the instructions of the king to go to Bethlehem, but now the star reappeared to guide them to the very house Jesus was in, He was no longer in the manger, but now in a rented house.

Their confidence in the star, made them happy and they rejoiced in having it to guide them to the child.

They worshipped Christ by showing honor to him, they offered gifts of which a child could not yet appreciate or understand. The gifts were customary to show the importance of the child's rank.

To protect Jesus from the hands of the evil king God told the wisemen in a dream to bypass Jerusalem on their way back to their homes. In this regard they would not tell Herod where to find the Christ and would give Joseph and Mary the opportunity to leave the area before Herod could harm the child.