The Pilgrimage of the Magi

1Now Jesus having been born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, Magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, 2saying, “Where is the One having been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.”

3And King Herod having heard this, was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4And having assembled all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he was inquiring of them where the Christ was to be born.

5And they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus has it been written through the prophet:

6‘And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah,

are by no means least among the rulers of Judah,

for out of you will come forth One leading,

who will shepherd My people Israel.’a”

7Then Herod, having called the Magi secretly, inquired of them the exact time of the star appearing. 8And having sent them to Bethlehem, he said, “Having gone, search carefully for the Child; and when You shall have found Him, bring word back to me, so that I also having come, may worship Him.”

9And having heard the king, they departed. And behold, the star they had seen in the east went before them until, having arrived, it stood over the place where the Child was. 10And having seen the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11And having come into the house, they found the Child with His mother Mary, and having fallen down, they worshiped Him. And having opened their treasures, they offered to Him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.

12And having been divinely warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they withdrew into their own country by another route.

The Flight to Egypt
(Hosea 11:1-7)

13And of them having withdrawn, behold, an angel of the Lord appears to Joseph in a dream saying, “Having arisen, take the Child and His mother, and flee into Egypt, and remain there until I should tell you, for Herod is about to seek the Child to destroy Him.”

14And having arisen, he took the Child and His mother by night and withdrew into Egypt, 15and there he remained until the death of Herod, so that it might be fulfilled what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I have called my Son.”b

The Slaughter of Infants
(Jeremiah 31:1-30)

16Then Herod, having seen that he had been outwitted by the Magi, was intensely enraged. And having sent forth, he put to death all the boys in Bethlehem and in all its vicinity from two years old and under, according to the time he had ascertained from the Magi. 17Then was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet Jeremiah, saying:

18“A voice was heard in Ramah,

weeping and great mourning,

Rachel weeping for her children;

and she would not be comforted,

because they are not.”c

The Return to Nazareth
(Isaiah 61:1-11; Matthew 13:53-58; Mark 6:1-6; Luke 2:39-40; Luke 4:16-30)

19But of Herod having died, behold, an angel of the Lord appears in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, 20saying, “Having arisen, take the Child and His mother and go into the land of Israel; for those seeking the life of the Child have died.”

21And having arisen, he took the Child and His mother and came into the land of Israel. 22And having heard that Archelaus reigns over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And having been divinely warned in a dream, he withdrew into the district of Galilee. 23And having come, he dwelt in a city being called Nazareth, so that it should be fulfilled that having been spoken through the prophets, that “He will be called a Nazarene.”