Study of Matthew

Matthew Chapter 2

Matthew 2:1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

Here is where Matthew and Luke's accounts are a little different. That does not make them untrue, it just shows that different writers emphasize different events. In fact since they are not carbon copies of each other, it helps verify that it is truth. Two people can witness an accident and one notice something that the other one didn't notice. I can pass by a house and notice the nice manicured lawns, the flowers and shrubs while someone else may notice the gabled roof, the large window and house number. My son and I both can read the same bible passages. He would take note of details and I would be more likely to see the over all picture and not notice details.

Luke tells of the visit by the shepherds at the actual birth of Jesus. Matthew tells of the wise men who arrived after the birth of Jesus when they had left the stable and went into a house. Yet in modern times we usually see manger scenes depicting the shepherds and wise men around the stable looking as if it all happened at once.

Matthew 2:2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

It doesn't say how many wise men, many assume there were three. Whether or not these men were seers or astronomers, we do not know. Since we now have the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth, we no longer have to look to the stars and we can be deceived if we try. I doubt if these wise men were fortune tellers in a way we know them today, but even if they were, the bible isn't condoning everything they may or may not do, the bible is just related the facts of the story.

Some people read the account of Jacob and how he had two wives and two concubines and make that a justification to do likewise. That was not the way God originally wanted Jacob to do things. He was actually tricked into getting more than one wife similar to the way he himself tricked his own father into thinking he was Esau. We reap what we sow. As Jacob deceived his own father, he was deceived by Laban thinking that the wife he just married was Rachel but it turned out to be Leah.

These wise men were men from the east and they saw an unusual star and followed it to Jerusalem. They wanted to see if this was the star that heralded the birth of the king of the Jews. They might have known and heard of the prophecy of Balaam. Remember that Balaam lost favor with God for his actions later but previous to his greed and desire to see God curse Israel, he gave a prophecy:

Numbers 24:15 And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are open hath said:
16 He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the most High, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
17 I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.

It would seem God gave them a literal sign of a star to herald the birth of His Son into the world. The wise men also could have met Jewish people who were desendents of those scattered to other nations after the Babylonian or Assyrian captivity. Some might have met Daniel the prophet or other prophets.

Matthew 2:3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

Herod was appointed by Augustus the ruler of Rome and by Antonius. Any threat to his being king would naturally trouble him. He seems to have seen this event as a threat to his own future as king rather than rejoice and see it as a good thing like the wise men did.

In the book of Genesis the prophecy of this coming king is written. Jacob gave this prophecy just before his death. Remember at the death of Jesus many were shouting, "We have no king but Caesar." They haven't had a king in Judah since that time and probably will not until the king of kings and lord of lords returns.

Genesis 49:10 The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.

Jacob was foretelling of the time when Judah would have kings and through king David this indeed came to pass. The prophecy about Shiloh coming refers to Christ. They lost the sceptre but will regain it at the 2nd coming of Shiloh or Christ.

Matthew 2:4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.

Herod was so scared of being replaced by another that he summoned the scribes. Jealousy has been the cause of many murders throughout history. Now we are seeing the result of Herod's jealousy and fear; many little innocent babies were about to be killed. This was just one of many of Satan's attempts to destroy the Jewish people because they are necessary to fulfill prophecy and bring about his own defeat. Herod being guided by Satan makes an attempt to destroy the Christ child. I will add here that Herod might have been afraid of answering to Rome if he let a potential king replace Caesar.

Matthew 2:5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet,
6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.

This fulfills the prophecy in Micah:

Micah 5:2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.

Like I mentioned in my comments on the previous chapter, this passage shows the eternity of Jesus Christ. He always existed and always will exist as does His Father. He was only born as a babe when He became human through a virgin God chose for that purpose. This supernatural birth was only when He became flesh and blood human. He always existed before that birth.

Herod was something else wasn't he? Yet many have existed in the past and even now who know what God says and still will try to fight God. He went to those that knew scripture and inquired of them where the Christ should be born. He knew that the king that was to be born would be the Christ yet he fought against it.

How stupid we are to think we can fight against God's will or fight against bible prophecy coming to pass. All the plotting and schemes of the cleverest people on the earth cannot stop bible prophecy from being fulfilled. God is God.

Matthew 2:7 Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.
8 And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.

Herod pretended to want to worship this king but we all know what he intended to do instead. The wise men would have been willing to show the king where the child was thinking he meant what he said, but God had other plans for them.

Matthew 2:9 When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.

God is so good to these men who were seeking Christ. He had the star lead them to the place where Jesus lay.

Matthew 2:10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

Verse 10 has been the subject of many songs. I remember singing one myself in a choir I use to sing with. Notice how they rejoiced with great joy. Every time we think of how God sent His Son into the world to die for our sins, we should rejoice. I admit their rejoicing was more in line with how the king or Messiah was to save the world from cruel oppressors like the Roman Emperors and such. That time is yet to come. Jesus will return and deliver Israel from all her enemies. He will take over the world and rule from Jerusalem. A fake king will try to rule first but the real wise men will know who he is and not be deceived. Usually only those that really desire to be deceived, will be deceived. Those that deep down desire to know the truth are the ones most likely to find it.

Our rejoicing now though should be that our sins can be cleansed and forgiven, we can receive the Holy Spirit within us and we will inherit eternal life. Faith in Jesus makes our souls live in the hope of the resurrection where the body and soul meet again but with a new body that can never die.

The souls that are lost rise again also but to be judged and sent into eternity without a new body but be in torment forever.

Matthew 2:11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.

Notice closely that never once did anyone ever worship Mary. They worshipped Him, not the mother. Mary is to be respected and counted as blessed to have been chosen of God to bring forth His Son into the world but we are reminded in the writings of Luke that Mary called Jesus her own savior.

Words of Mary:

Luke 1:46 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,
47 And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
48 For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
49 For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.

Joseph also was told by the angel that the son she would carry would save his people from their sins:

Matthew 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

A savior is one who saves someone from something. Mary also needed a savior. She was with the apostles on the day of Pentecost when they gathered to received the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
Concerning Mary and the natural brothers of Jesus that Mary and Joseph had after the birth of Jesus, Jesus said this:

Matthew 12:48 But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren?
49 And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren!
50 For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.

Mary is to be respected but never worshipped. The real Mary would never accept our worship. Whoever is being worshipped today is not Mary.

Returning to the Matthew chapter 2, it was a custom to give gifts to a great king. The scripture did not say that they gave any gifts to Herod. They saved their gifts for the real king of kings.

Gold is a fitting gift for a great king. Frankincense was incense for use in worshipping by offering it up to God. Myrrh was used to anoint someone for burial. I don't know if Mary saved the myrrh but in Matthew there is a story of a woman who poured an expensive ointment upon Jesus and Jesus said that it was for His burial. Wouldn't it be strange indeed if it was the very same ointment.That is just speculation and I never before even thought of it so I'm not teaching a new doctrine, just speculating.

Matthew 2:12 And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

We cannot fight against God. His will is done no matter what we do to try to stop it. Herod no doubt was anxiously awaiting their return. If he would have been smart he would have sent his own men to follow them. Even if he did though God could have converted the men or send them another way. We can't fight against God.

Mathew 2:13 And when they were departed, behold, the 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 thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.

God speaks to men in dreams especially in the days before the written word. I believe He still speaks to many in that way but we can use the word for discernment because not all dreams are from the Lord. Anything from God will never contradict what He has provided for us in this written account we call the bible. The Holy Spirit will never contradict the written word or take glory away from Jesus as the foundation and pillar of truth. The Holy Spirit will always point to Jesus Christ as the way of salvation. No other man will be exalted as Christ Himself. If they are we can be assured that it is probably not from God.

We are all equal in Christ. There is no hierarchy. He will set godly leadership over us to keep out the wolves and to teach the word but it is not just to have titles and recognition but to keep watch over the flock. It is a ministry, not a high position to lord over or control any group of people. We do not follow men now, we follow Christ.

Matthew 2:14 When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:

Here we see Joseph obeying the warning by the Lord. I wonder how much can be done for the Lord if all of us would act quickly and obey Him. Of course we need to make sure that it is the Lord that speaks to our spirit and not our own imagination. This is why it is so great to have the written word to confirm whatever we hear. It would seem that Joseph had no doubt as to who the dream was from. I believe when God really speaks to us it will be in a way that we are sure. If we are uncertain, we must wait until the spirit bears witness and we are sure it's His word.

Matthew 2:15 And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.

Referring to Jesus and also Israel when they were in bondage in Egypt.

Hosea 11:1 When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.

Many prophecies have a double meaning or more than one fulfillment until the final fulfillment. This passage refers both to the Son of God we know as Jesus or Yeshua and also Israel as a nation. As Israel was called out of Egypt and led to the Promised land so Christ was called out of Egypt after His family took Him there to await the death of Herod.

Matthew 2:16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.

We do not know why this sad act had to happen but although God does intervene at times like in the case of Christ, Moses, and other cases where an enemy kills and destroys, He sometimes allows mankind to do what they desire. Those that kill will face God's wrath and judgment one day. God does save remnants of people in bad times but not everyone escapes the wrath of man. There has been martyrs throughout history that die for the cause of Christ. The faithful in Christ are promised that they will never suffer the wrath of God but they may suffer man's wrath. In the end though it is the enemies of God that will face final judgment and those that were faithful to the Lord will receive great rewards and eternal life.

When we see bad things happen to innocent people especially children; it is hard to understand but that is where we have to place our trust in God. When Adam gave the authority given to him by God over to Satan, it did give Satan certain power over the earth and death especially before Jesus came and died on the cross making the way to eventually take that authority back at His second coming.

Hebrews 2:14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

Once we come to Christ, Satan's power as far as we are concerned is limited. We do have this promise though:

1Corinthians 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Sometime we take ourselves out of the will of God and go against God's will. Things may happen when we are where we should not be. So we see some things happen because we are not obedient to the Lord and in one sense it removes us out of His first will for us. Some things happen to nations because they turn their backs on God and His hand of protection is removed. I believe the 9/11 attack was not prevented because this nation has turned its back on God. Yet even in that we seen the mercy of God in preventing it from being far worse. That plane that went down in Pennsylvania was I believe the mercy of God when brave men stopped the enemy from plowing that plane into another building. The men and others on the plane perished but they saved probably 1000's of others.

Until the coming reign of Jesus Christ we will see the evil of politics and the love of money cause people to lie, cheat and even arrange the death of anyone that stands in their way. I will add that the United States is not immune to this. With the help of the news media there have been many events and innocent deaths that have been covered up over the years. Some in the media still stand by the narritive of the Warren report on the assassination of President Kennedy. At least in that case many among those that were alive at that time do not believe Oswald was a lone wolf. In fact it would have been impossible for him to have acted alone. They are finding that out now that some information is released and people are braver to speak out. It is sad that in the world of politics and elections there is so much evil.

Since I wrote the above paragraph about the Kennedy assassination, some are now discovering that Oswald couldn't have killed Kennedy but was a patsy just as Oswald himself claimed before he was shot and killed by Jack Ruby. In the years of that assassination, some witnesses were purposely ignored and some even threatened if they didn't keep their mouth shut. Strange indeed.

Some things happen just to try our faith and see if we are worth our salt so to speak. But if we trust in God, it will work out in the long run. This is not always easy for me either but it is truth whether or not I accept it.

Matthew 2:17 Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying,
18 In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.

Rachel was the younger wife of Jacob who was buried in Bethlehem.. Here is that prophecy:

Jeremiah 31:15 Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not.

Imagine being so fearful of losing one's power that they would put so many children to death. This happened in Egypt also when a Pharaoh arose to power that didn't know of Joseph. Things haven't changed much. All will face the judgment of God for all these things but it really makes me long for the Millennial reign of Jesus Christ.

Matthew 2:19 But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,
20 Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life.
21 And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.

Now we see that Joseph is returning but another prophecy is going to be fulfilled by something he hears.

Matthew 2:22 But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee:

Instead of going back to the area of Christ's birth, they go to Nazareth. That fulfills another prophecy although Joseph and Mary probably had no idea they were helping prophecy to be fulfilled.

Matthew 2:23 And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene.

This is a prophecy spoken by the prophets and not necessarily written down at least not in the books that make up our bible. It may be among those that we have not yet found.

What I would like to see would be the letters people wrote to Paul that caused him to respond back. Some of his messages may be more clear if we knew what the churches had written to him about. Yet God is faithful and gave us what is necessary perhaps so that we learn to seek and trust the Holy Spirit to what the written word means.

I think that the Holy Spirit does a tremendous job of letting us know the meaning of the words. All we have to do to understand is to seek God for wisdom not doubting and be willing to except what is revealed to us. I think many people are deceived because they may search the scriptures to find the answers they have already conceived in their minds to be truth. Then some are to lazy to seek and just take the word of someone else who they think understands it a little better.

Our motive counts a lot when we seek understanding. We usually will understand what we want to understand.

We see now why Jesus was called many time, Jesus of Nazareth. I do not think he was a Nazarene that took the vow like Samson but was called a Nazarene because he was from Nazareth.
Some say that Nazarenes were despised and rejected and that would indeed identify with Jesus Christ.

I want to conclude this chapter by including Isaiah 53. This is a description of Jesus in relation to His first coming. Most of Old Testament scriptures relate to the 2nd coming that is yet in the future.

Isaiah 53:1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?
2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

There is no other man in history that fits the description of this prophecy in the 53rd chapter of Isaiah more than Jesus Christ. No other Old Testament scripture better describes the suffering and passion of Christ. The lord laid on Jesus our iniquity. He paid the price for our sins if we only will believe and receive Him. DC

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