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Matthew 2:2–4. For we saw His star in the east and came to worship Him. Hearing this, King Herod became alarmed, and all Jerusalem with him. And having gathered all the high priests and scribes of the people, he asked them: where should Christ be born? So that the Jews, for their shame, would receive the news of the birth of Christ from the pagans, a star rises in the east, the appearance of which they [the pagan Magi] as the descendants of Balaam learned from his prediction. Read the book of Numbers, chapter 24. And at the direction of the star, the wise men go to Judea, so that the priests, asked by the wise men: “Where should Christ be born,” are unanswered [out of ignorance 37] regarding His coming. Matthew 2:5–6. They said to Him: In Bethlehem of Judea. For thus it is written through the prophet: And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the leaders of Judah; For from you will come a ruler who will rule over my people Israel." 38 This is a copyist error. For we are of the opinion that it was originally written by the evangelist as we read in the Jewish text itself, i.e. “Jude”, and not “Judean”. Indeed, what kind of Bethlehem is there among other peoples, so that the word “Jewish” can be used here to distinguish it?” And it is written Bethlehem “Judas” because there is another Bethlehem in Galilee. Read the book of Joshua son of Nun (Joshua 19:15). Finally, in the testimony taken from the prophet Micah, it reads like this: “And you, Bethlehem, the land of Judah” (Micah 5:2). 39 Matthew 2:11. [end]: And having opened their treasures, they brought Him gifts: gold, frankincense and myrrh. Presbyter Juvencus very beautifully depicted in one verse the mysterious meaning of these gifts: “They bring frankincense, gold and myrrh as gifts to [Him] as a King and Man and God.” Matthew 2:12. And having received a revelation in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by a different route. Those who brought gifts to the Lord immediately then receive an answer. The answer, which is expressed in Greek by the word χρηματισθέντες, was given not through an angel, but from the Lord himself [or ": in a dream - perinsomnium, instead of which the scribes could mistakenly appear "per" ipsum" "Dominum" ] to show the advantage of Joseph's merits. They return in a different way because they should not have to rush among the unbelieving Jews. Matthew 2:13–14. [and beginning 15]: Behold, the Angel of the Lord appears to Joseph in a dream and says: Arise, take the Child and His Mother, and flee to Egypt, and be there until I tell you; for Herod wants to look for the Child in order to destroy Him. He arose, took the Child and His Mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. When he took "[or": took] the Child and His Mother to cross 40 into Egypt, he took them in the darkness of the night, but when he returns to Judea, the Gospel does not show either night or darkness at that time. Matthew 2:15. [end], 16: That what the Lord had spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying, “Out of Egypt I called my Son.” Then Herod, seeing himself ridiculed by the Magi, became very angry, and sent to kill all the babies in Bethlehem and throughout its borders, from two years old and below, according to the time that he found out from the Magi. Those who deny the truth of the Jewish books, let them answer the question: where is the above passage read among the Seventy? And if they do not find it, then we will tell them that the prophet Hosea wrote it (Hosea 11:1), as can be shown by those lists (exemplaria) that we recently published. But we can interpret this place 41 in another way, (meaning) restless disputants 42, whose habits, according to the word of the Apostle Paul (1 Cor. 2:4), neither he nor the Church of Christ have, therefore we give evidence from the book of Numbers, according to the words of Balaam: “God called Him out of Egypt; His glory is like a unicorn” (Num. 23:22). 43 Matthew 2:17–20. [beginning]: Then was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet Jeremiah, who said: A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and mourning and great crying; Rachel cries for her children and does not want to be consoled, for they are not (Jer. 31:15). After the death of Herod, behold, the Angel of the Lord appears to Joseph in Egypt in a dream and says: Arise, take the Child and His Mother and go to the land of Israel. From Rachel was born Benjamin, in whose tribe there is no Bethlehem (Gen. 35:18–20). Therefore, the question is: how does Rachel mourn the sons of Judah, that is, Bethlehem, as if she were her own? To this we will answer briefly: this is because she was buried near Bethlehem on Euphrates, and the latter, as the resting place of her mother’s body, received her name; or perhaps because Judah and Benjamin were tribes united together, and Herod ordered the beating of infants not only in Bethlehem, but throughout all its borders (surroundings). We believe that by accident [or": through beating] many children from the tribe of Benjamin also died. And she mourns her sons and cannot be comforted, which can be understood in a double meaning: either because she considers them dead forever, or does not want to be comforted about them as those who, as she knew, should have lived 44. As for the expression “in Rama,” let us not think that this is the name of a place near Hawaii, but this rama (ךמה) means “high,” so the meaning of this place is: “The voice is heard in the heights,” that is, it was heard in a very vast space. Matthew 2:20. [end]: For those who sought the soul of the Child died. From this place we see that not only Herod, but also the priests and scribes at the same time were plotting the murder of the Lord. Matthew 2:21. He got up, took the Child and His Mother and came to the land of Israel 46 He did not say: “he took his son and his wife,” but “his child and his mother,” that is, as a teacher, and not a father and husband (maritus). Matthew 2:22. Having heard that Archelaus reigned in Judea instead of Herod, his father, he was afraid to go there; but, having received a revelation in a dream, he went into the region of Galilee. Many people make the mistake of not knowing history when they think that Herod, who was present during the suffering of the Lord and mocked Him, is the same one who, as they say here, has now died. Indeed, that Herod who was on friendly terms with Pilate is the son of Herod, now deceased, and the brother of Archelaus. Caesar Tiberius exiled this latter to Lugdunum (Lyon), a city in Gaul, and made his brother Herod his successor to the kingdom. Read the narratives of Josephus [Flavius]. Matthew 2:23. And he came and began to live in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken through the prophets was fulfilled, that He would be called a Nazarene (Nazarenus) 47 . If the evangelist used a certain passage from the Scriptures, he would never say: “said through the prophets,” but would simply say: “said through the prophet”; now, speaking in the plural, he shows that he did not use the exact words from the Scriptures, but their meaning. "Nazarene" means "holy". And that the Lord will be holy, all the saints speak about this. Scripture. We can also say something else, namely: what is written even in the same words in the Hebrew text by the prophet Isaiah. “A branch will come out of the root of Eshite, and Nazareth will rise up from his root” (Is. 11:1). In the translation: The Gospel of Matthew - ed. In the lane: about ignorance - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “They said to him: in Bethlehem of Judah, for it is written through the prophet: “And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are in no way less than the provinces of Judah; For out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel” – ed. Mich 5, 2. – According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “And you, Bethlehem-Ephratha, are you small among the thousands of Judah?” – ed. At the lane: move - ed. In the lane: objectors - ed. Numbers 23, 22; (24, 8). According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “God brought them out of Egypt, with the speed of a unicorn” - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “He arose, took the Child and His Mother and came to the land of Israel” - ed. According to the new Synodal Russian translation: “And he came and settled in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, that He would be called a Nazarene” - ed. You might be interested in: