| 2:1 | JESUS was born in Bethlehem, in Judaea, in the days when Herod was king of the province. After his birth there came from the east a party of astrologers making for Jerusalem |
| 2:2 | and enquiring as they went, "Where is the child born to be king of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east and we have come to pay homage to him." |
| 2:3 | When King Herod heard about this he was deeply perturbed, as indeed were all she other people living in Jerusalem. |
| 2:4 | So he summoned all the Jewish chief priests and scribes together and asked them where "Christ" should be born. |
| 2:5 | Their reply was: "In Bethlehem, in Judaea, for this is what the prophet wrote about the matter |
| 2:6 | And thou Bethlehem, land of Judah, Art in no wise least among the princes of Judah: For out of thee shall come forth a governor, Which shall be shepherd of my people Israel." |
| 2:7 | Then Herod invited the wise men to meet him privately and found out from them the exact time when the star appeared. |
| 2:8 | Then he sent them off to Bethlehem saying, "When you get there, search for this little child with the utmost care. And when you have found him report back to meso that I may go and worship him too." |
| 2:9 | The wise men listened to the king and then went on their way, to Bethlehem. And now the star, which they had seen in the cast, went in front of them until at last it shone immediately above the place where the little child lay. |
| 2:10 | The sight of the star filled them with indescribable joy. |
| 2:11 | So they went into the house and saw the little child with his mother Mary...And they fell on their knees and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with giftsgold, incense and myrrh. |
| 2:12 | Then, since they were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they went back to their own country by a different route. |
| 2:13 | But after they had gone the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Get up now, take the little child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you. For Herod means to seek out the child and kill him." |
| 2:14 | So Joseph got up, and taking the child and his mother with him set off for Egypt that same night, |
| 2:15 | where he remained until Herod's death. This again is a fulfilment of the Lord's word spoken through the prophetOut of Egypt did I call my son. |
| 2:16 | When Herod saw that he had been fooled by the wise men he was furiously angry. He issued orders for the execution of all male children of two years and under in Bethlehem and the surrounding districtbasing his calculation on his careful questioning of the wise men. |
| 2:17 | Then Jeremiah's prophecy was fulfilled: |
| 2:18 | A voice was heard in Ramah, Weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children; and she would not he comforted, because they are not. |
| 2:19 | But after Herod's death an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt |
| 2:20 | and said, "Now getup and take the infant and his mother with you and go into the land of Israel For those who sought the child's life are dead." |
| 2:21 | So Joseph got up and took the little child and his mother with him and journeyed towards the land of Israel. |
| 2:22 | But when he heard that Archelaus was now reigning as king of Judaea in the place of his father Herod, he was afraid to enter the country. Then he received warning in a dream to turn aside into the district of Galilee |
| 2:23 | and came to live in a small town called Nazareththus fulfilling the old prophecy, that he should be called a Nazarene. |
Matthew 2 - Philips NT in Modern English
