Note.—The texts enclosed in marks of parentheses, while not essential to the lesson study, will be found to throw much light upon the lesson, and are suggested for those who wish to study further.
1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came 2 to Jerusalem, saying, Where is He that is born King of the Jews? for we saw His star in the east, and are come to 3 worship Him. And when Herod the king heard it, he was 4 troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he 5 inquired of them where the Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judea; for thus it is written by the prophet,
6 And thou Bethlehem, land of Judah,
Art in nowise least among the princes of Judah;
For out of thee shall come forth a governor,
Which shall be shepherd of My people Israel.
7 Then Herod privily called the wise men, and learned of them 8 carefully what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search out carefully concerning the young Child; and when ye have found Him, bring 9 me word, that I also may come and worship Him. And they, having heard the king, went their way; and lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood 10 over where the young Child was. And when they saw the 11 star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And they came into the house and saw the young Child with Mary His mother; and they fell down and worshiped Him; and opening 12 their treasures they offered unto Him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
13 Now when they were departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise and take the young Child and His mother, and flee into Egypt, and be 14 thou there until I tell thee; for Herod will seek the young 15 Child to destroy Him. And he arose and took the young Child and His mother by night, and departed into Egypt; and 16 was there until the death of Herod; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying,
17 Out of Egypt did I call My Son. Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the male children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the borders thereof, from two years old 18 and under, according to the time which he had carefully learned of the wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying,
3. What effect did their inquiry have upon the king and people? Verse 3.
4. In their trouble, what step was taken by the king? Verse 4. (Mal. 2:7; Hosea 4:6.)
5. What did the king learn from the priests and scribes? Verse 5. (John 7:42.)
6. What reason did the priests give for this statement? Verses 5, 6. See note 2. (Micah 5:2.)
7. Having learned so much from the Jewish priests, what did the king learn from the wise men? Verse 7. See note 3. (Matt. 2:16.)
8. What instruction did he then give these men? Verse 8.
9. As they departed to find Jesus, what friendly assistance was given them? Verse 9.
10. How did they feel when the guiding star reappeared? Verse 10.
11. Having found the Saviour, what did these men do? V. 11. (Ps. 72:10; Isa. 60:6.)
12. Did the wise men follow the instruction of Herod? If not, why not? Verse 12.
13. Upon the departure of these eastern visitors, what instruction did God give Joseph? Verse 13. See note 4.
14. How long were they to remain in Egypt? (2 Peter 1:19.)
15. Of what did Joseph take advantage to cover his flight from Bethlehem? Verse 14. (1 Kings 17:3.)
16. How long was the Saviour kept in Egypt? Verse 15.
17. Why was the Lord sent to Egypt, in preference to some other place? See note 5. (Hosea 11:1; Ex. 4:22.)
18. When Herod saw that he had been "played with as a child" (sense of original word) by the wise men, how did he feel and act? Verse 16.
19. In carrying out this decree, what scripture was fulfilled? Verses 17, 18.
Side Lights.—"Desire of Ages," pp. 59-65; "Spirit of Prophecy," vol. 2, pp. 20-29.
NOTES.
1. Wise men.—"The epithet by which Matthew describes to us these eastern strangers is not so vague and indefinite as it seems in our translation. He calls them Magi from the East. The birthplace and natural home of the magian worship was in Persia. And there the Magi had a place and power such as the Chaldeans had in Babylon, the Hierophants in Egypt, the Druids in Gaul, and the Brahmans still have in India. They formed a tribe or caste, priestly in office, princely in rank. They were the depositaries of nearly all the knowledge or science existing in the country where they lived. . . . The education of royalty was in their hands; they filled all the chief offices of state; they constituted the supreme counsel of the realm. As originally applied to this Median priest-caste, the term Magi was one of dignity and honor."—Hanna's Life of Christ, p. 41. Suetonius, Tacitus, and Josephus each tell of a strong belief among the people of the East that one born in Judea was to arise and rule the world. This may have been propagated by stranger Jews, from their prophecies, and taken strong hold of those who desired a spiritual leader. See "Desire of Ages," p. 59.
2. By the prophet.—Although the priests had become so absorbed in worldly matters as to lose sight of the time of the Messiah's advent, they quickly turned to their neglected prophecies, and established the birthplace of their long-heralded King.
3. What time.—Herod sought from the wise men information as to how long since the star was first seen by them, evidently with the purpose in view which he soon carried out. His edict to slay the children of Bethlehem covered all under two years of age, "according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men." Matt. 2:16. It had probably been quite a long time since they first observed the strange star, and had studied its significance.
4. Flee into Egypt.—God could, by a miracle, have preserved Christ from Herod's malice without His having been removed from Judea. But in all His dealings in behalf of men, their co-operation is sought, that they may have responsibility, and consequent interest in what is being done for them. The parents of Jesus were therefore commissioned to have a care for the infant Saviour. The journey taken was about sixty miles southward from Bethlehem.
5. Might be fulfilled.—The prophecy had said, "When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called My Son out of Egypt." Hosea 11:1. "Israel" means a prince of God. As the Son of God, Christ was, and is, the "Prince of God" in the fullest sense. As the "Seed" of Abraham, he was a child; and as the great Antitype of Israel, must go into Egypt, and be again called forth to live temporarily in the promised land, as did Abraham and his children in the flesh. Nothing was omitted from the life of Christ which would tend to associate Him with the house of Abraham, and prove Him to be the promised "Seed" through whom the promises were to come to Israel.
