Chapter 2

The “monstership” of Herod is based upon the last fifteen years of his life and some of the ruthless methods he used to keep down Jewish nationalism. You have to remember something about Jewish nationalism: it was the most detrimental thing to the Jewish state. The Jewish nationalists, the Hasmonaeans, were rats all the way through. They were underhanded, they were cruel, they were vicious, and they stooped to all sorts of tactics. But you have to remember that Josephus, the primary historian of the Jewish state, was related to the Hasmonaeans but he still had to give Herod his dues in his Antiquities and in the Wars of the Jews.

Herod developed a system of ten forts and he figured the highest hills all of the way through Palestine, all of the way to Damascus. So from Damascus in the north to the Negev in the south he found all of the highest mountains and he put a system of fortifications in a semicircle around Jerusalem. And these ten forts he built had a system of signalling so that they were in communication with each other all of the time, so that he was the only man in the ancient world who developed a signal corp that worked, and he knew what everyone was doing. This is the interesting thing in connection with Matthew chapter two. There were four forts which were in constant contact with Jerusalem and they made it possible for Herod to know everything that was going on around Jerusalem, including Bethlehem. And it is very interesting that in our passage we are going to see the Magi coming to Jerusalem and then they will go down to Bethlehem. And the most interesting thing of all is that for once Herod’s communication system broke down with the result that Herod lost the Magi when they left Jerusalem.

Herod’s policy was to be faithful to Rome, to promote the honour and welfare of the Jews. The Jews didn’t appreciate him, by the way. They hated him because he was an Arab, because he was an Idumaean, because he was a son of Esau; and though Herod gave outer credence to Judaism they couldn’t stand his Hellenism and, furthermore, they were suspicious of him, even though for two years there was a a terrible economic collapse during which time Herod fed the people at his own personal expense. And every time they had a chance they would rise against him. So it should be remembered that over a period of twenty-five years Herod learned to hate the Jews, because Herod himself was faithful to Rome and he couldn’t stand an unfaithful type, and the unregenerate Jews of that day were just dirty, low-down, faithless rats. They were always plotting, they were absolutely no good, they were stuffy self-righteous Pharisees, they were power-mad, power-hungry Sadducees, and there was only one party of Jews who had any sense — the Herodians, who later on tried to get the family of Herod back in power when the country lost its kingship and finally became a Roman province.

When a nation turns religious it becomes unstable and vicious and faithless, and the people have no loyalty to anything. The Jews of Herod’s day must be seen for what they really were and while Herod is often pictured as a monster the real monster was Judaism, a religion. These same Pharisees who rejected Herod are the same system, and some of them the same people, which later on rejected Christ. The worst thing that can happen to a nation is religion.

Note: You cannot stop religion by being nice to religion; you cannot stop religion by violence. There is only one way to stop religion: by getting back to Christianity. Only Bible doctrine breaks the back of religion, nothing else will do it.

The Bible portrays Herod as doing a terrible thing here in chapter two. He is generally regarded as being a monster. He wasn’t a monster until late in his life when he became mentally ill. Herod carried a load for 30 years that very few people could carry. He should be viewed in the context of his own times, and it should be noted that the Pharisees were killing people a lot faster than he was, and that religion had its torture chambers. Religion always has its torture chambers and is always guilty of violence. Saul of Tarsus himself was guilty of violence, and who hasn’t heard of the Inquisition? The trouble is that we often only see one side of the picture and the only impression we get of Herod in the Bible is from the second chapter of Matthew, and it isn’t a very good impression. So Herod killed a few thousand babies. In Herod’s day that was nothing.

Outline of the chapter

Verse 1-11, the reception of the King.

Verses 12-23, the protection of the King.

Verse 1 — the Magi come into the scene. They are called “wise men.” Magi — a Gentile system of astrology, a fraternity of scholars that existed before the days of Daniel. It was one of the oldest fraternities in the world that came up through the Medes and the Persians, and it also had a relationship to the Babylonians. It was born somewhere in the Tigris-Euphrates valley in Mesopotamia and it involved three races of people, the Medes, the Persians, and the Chaldeans.

“Now when Jesus was born,” aorist passive participle, “in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king.” There is a great controversy as to when Jesus was born because there is a great controversy as to when Herod died. Herod died about 4 BC, and this means that Jesus was born probably about 5 BC. This is the best that scholarship can do. He was probably born somewhere about March or April, not December.

“behold, there came wise men from the east” — the coming of the Magi was at a time that Herod was losing his mind and it almost shocked him to death. He was 68 years old at this time. There were not three wise men but possibly as many as fifty to one hundred. A great portion of this ancient fraternity came and invaded Jerusalem, and when this fraternity moved out of its usual orbit of action everyone sat up and took notice. This was the most dramatic of all the invasions that ever took place in Palestine up to this time. Wherever the Magi went no one ever bothered them. Bandits wouldn’t rob them, no one would do them violence, and this was the one invasion that Herod couldn’t handle. Everyone was afraid of the Magi.

Who and what are the Magi? Daniel 2:48 tells us that Daniel was a member of the Magi and a high potentate in the fraternity. They were all Gentiles. They are remembered for being astrologers but they were chemists, physicians, and mathematicians. As far as we know Daniel was the only Jew who was ever permitted to enter the fraternity. The names of the three leaders of the Magi who came to Jerusalem: Casper, Belthasar, Melkior.

Verse 2 — “Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews?” The word “born” is what threw Herod. Remember that at this time Herod is mentally ill. Herod was not “born” king of the Jews so what the Magi said suggested that Herod was “out” and, of course, he was looking for anyone who was “born” King of the Jews. He has just eliminated the entire Hasmonaean line, except his own blood — he married the Hasmonaean, Mariamne — and his own line will not die until 79 AD at the eruption of Mount Vesuvius — Agrippa II and his mother Bernice, who were half Herod and half Hasmonaean. He is looking for anyone who is born King of the Jews and this goes back to the Davidic line. He has been concerned about the Hasmonaeans for 37 years now and all of a sudden up comes the Davidic line, and this is too much.

“we have seen his star” — the word “we have seen” actually means “we have calculated his star.” They have seen the star, they have done some mathematical calculations, and having put it all together they are looking for Messiah who is somewhere now in the world. What made this fraternity leave the orbit of its activity? Very rarely did the Magi ever go anywhere in the ancient world. This in itself is a fantastic statement. The whole fraternity picked up and moved. Why? They are looking for Messiah. They are all Gentiles, they do not follow the Old Testament canon at all, but they have calculated this thing through astronomy; “we are come to worship him,” they would come and pay their respects to Herod. Herod was a client king supported and sustained by the Roman empire but Jesus Christ born into the world is the true King of the Jews and, as a matter of fact, the future ruler of the entire world.

Verse 3 — this called for a convocation of the Jews. Herod became a very interested Bible student, especially in genealogy. He was interested in David and David’s line and anyone who might still be alive in the line of David: “he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.” He was troubled because he was mentally ill. The description of Herod in the last few years of his life from an ancient historian: “Rapid mood changes, delusions of persecution, uncontrolled outbursts of hypersensitive cerebral attacks, attempted suicide, heart and kidney function deteriorated, poisons accumulated in the blood stream, his mouth became ulcerated, his breath foul, constant pains in the stomach for the last three years of his life, constant diarrhoea, his scrotum became gangrenous and filled with maggots.” It was during this time that he slew three of his sons, one four days before he died, and he killed forty Pharisees and developed the “monster” complex for which he is most famous in history. This was why he was troubled. He was suffering intensively and he wanted to leave behind him the Herodian line to march along with the Julian Caesar line.

It is interesting that Herod and Octavius (Caesar Augustus), the Roman emperor, had many talks together. Both of them had progeny and both of them wanted to leave behind a family to rule the world forever. The last of the Octavian line was a madman by the name of Nero and the last of the Herodian line was Agrippa who died in the ashes of Mount Vesuvius. And it was Herod who sought to destroy the one King whom he felt was dangerous at this time, but the King whom he sought to kill in this chapter was the King who will rule forever. And the line of Herod deteriorated into tetrarchies and ethnarchies until it finally dissipated and the greatest of all client kingdoms was destroyed.

Verse 4 — “And when he gathered all the chief priests and the scribes and the people together, and he demanded of them where Christ should be born” [The Greek says “the Christ,” i.e. the Messiah]. Herod knew they knew; he wasn’t a Bible student himself but they were. And they came up with the right answer.

Verse 5 — “In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet [Micah]”

Verse 6 — the quotation from Micah 5:2: “in the land of Judah.” There were four different Bethlehems, they had to get the right one; “out of these shall come a Governor [sovereign ruler], that shall rule [shepherd] my people Israel.” The “shepherd” is apt because today, under the fifth cycle of discipline, the sheep are scattered. All of his lifetime Herod had tried to shepherd the Jews but they never did respond to his shepherdship. Now he himself heard the message of the Shepherd and it was probably the clearest presentation of the gospel he would hear. Later on Jesus Christ Himself would say: “I am the good Shepherd” and “the Shepherd giveth his life for his sheep” .And so He explained that those who would be regathered at the second advent would be regathered to the death of the Shepherd. The Shepherd has to die for His sheep, first advent, before He can regather them, second advent. The words “shall rule” was very meaningful to Herod. He understood that there was one who now came to challenge his right to rule the Jews.

And who accepted Christ in this great court? The Jewish theologians? No. Herod and the Hellenistic culture which he sponsored? No. The Tribunal and his court? No. All of these people were present in that court when this was said — Romans, Greeks, Jews — but they had rejected Christ. Who was it who accepted Christ? Gentiles from the east, the Magi. They were the ones who were coming to worship Him; they were the ones who had fabulous wealth to bestow upon Him. And this was the greatest insult to the Jews and portrayed things to come, the fifth cycle of discipline when it would finally descend upon the Jews. In the very land where Jesus was born He was rejected by the people who could quote the scriptures. They could quote the Bible but they rejected Him; Herod could hear the Bible but he sought His life. They didn’t want to worship. When the gates of Jerusalem opened one morning it was only the fraternity that walked to Bethlehem, near Jerusalem, and sought Him out. And it was that fraternity that disappeared, and Herod with his cavalry patrols and with his signals from the four fortifications which surrounded Jerusalem, did not know where they went. No one ever saw them again.

Herod felt fairly secure in his throne until he discovered that there was a true heir to the Jewish throne, one who had the birthright to the throne. So he enquires, verse 7, of the Jewish theologians — unbelievers and religious, but not saved and not interested — who didn’t bother to go down to Bethlehem to check this point out.

Verse 7 — Herod is going to commission the Magi to do the leg work and locate the Messiah. He will take it from there and eliminate his competition. The word “privily” means secret. It should be remembered that we are now dealing with the last two years of Herod’s life and he is mentally ill at this time.

“enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.” Herod is putting two and two together. First of all he listens to the Jewish theologians who probably gave him an extensive reviewing of the subject. Only one part of their conversation is recorded and that is the part where they quoted Micah 5:2. Notice that Herod keeps the Jewish theologians and the fraternity of the Magi separate.

Verse 8 — “And he sent them to Bethlehem,” a very smart move on his part. There would be cavalry patrols all around that area and in addition there were four forts all in signal distance of Jerusalem so that he could keep track of this fraternity at all times. So he was assured that when he sent them to Bethlehem he would be able to locate the Messiah, for once they found Him he would simply move in; “go and search diligently for the young child,” perhaps eighteen months old, “that I may come and worship him” — he really means assassinate.

Verse 9 — “which they saw in the east” is literally, (the star) which they had previously seen in the east. Obviously this didn’t happen at Christmas. When the Magi finally arrive they come, not to a stable, but a house.

In verses 10,11 we have the reaction of the Magi. “And when they saw the star” — it must be understood that they had lost the star. They had seen the star in the east but then they didn’t see it any more and they only travelled in the general direction they knew the star had to go. The worked it out mathematically. They understood something of the course of this star in relation to other stars and apparently it had been handed down from Daniel the fact that when this star was in a certain juxtaposition with other stars then Messiah would be here — and then, “Follow the star.” When the time came they noted that the star was in a certain position. They could not keep up with the star, they simply followed in the general direction and they came to Jerusalem to enquire about the Messiah since they knew that He would be a Jew. They were saved Gentiles seeking the Lord, and when they got there they received this information from Herod which was relayed to him by the Jewish theologians — which includes Micah 5:2 and undoubtedly other passages. Then they went to Bethlehem and they saw the star again for the first time since they had travelled from the east — “they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.” The reason they rejoiced is because they located the star again and they knew they were in the right spot, and because these were believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and as believers finding the Messiah, the God-Man, the unique person of the universe, they had a right to rejoice. The principle is: all rejoicing, which is inner mental happiness, has its start and its centre in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Joy is the monopoly of the regenerate. All of this involved theology and mathematics and a great deal of inquiry along the way.

Verse 11 — “And when they were come into the house” — notice it was a house, not a manger — “they saw the young child,” anywhere from a year to eighteen months old, “with Mary his mother, and fell down and worshipped him.” They were worshipping God, and this was the first overt indication on the part of anyone that this baby was the unique person of the universe, the God-Man.

When these Magi, who were wealthy people, came to see Jesus Christ it says they brought Him gold. That gold could be in many forms, artefacts, coinage etc., but it amounted to a tremendous treasure. This indicates things which could very easily be used for travel and for being sustained, for example in a foreign country like Egypt. In addition to that we have two other things mentioned — frankincense and myrrh, two extremely valuable perfumes. You have to remember that the shower had not been discovered, except in places like Egypt, and so, of course, perfume was a very valuable thing. It eliminated many of the odour problems and the people of the ancient world were much more sensitive to odour than we are today. Frankincense was used only for people of nobility and it is interesting that the only incense that they brought Him was an incense for nobility only — frankincense. Jesus Christ was truly a King; they knew that He was the King; they knew His lineage; they understood the genealogy of chapter one, and therefore they recognised Him for what He was in His person. So the frankincense speaks of the person of Jesus Christ. Myrrh was used for the burial of kings and so they brought Him myrrh, emphasising the death of Christ, for the death of Christ was the most unique of all deaths.

Verse 12 — the warning to the Magi. “And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way” .How they got out of the trap is not known to us but it is one of the most unusual events in history. Obviously they were led of the Lord; obviously God protected and provided.

Verse 13 — Joseph was warned to get out and now gets his marching orders. Notice that immediately he complies. He has the ability to leave and go to Egypt, he is now a wealthy man through the gold which has been given to his Son.

Verse 14 — “ … he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed in Egypt” — this indicates the dream came by night and before dawn he was out and gone entirely.

Verse 15 — “And he was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled by the prophet saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son [quotation from Hosea 11:1].”

Verse 16 — “Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked” — the word “mocked” is the Greek word for deluded; “by the wise men, was exceeding wroth [he threw a tantrum],” — this, by the way, is one of the indications of his mental illness problems; “and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof” — the word “coasts” simply means area thereof; “from two years old and under …”

Verse 17 — “Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy [Jeremiah was Hebrew, this is Greek. There is no such thing as an “iah” suffix in the Greek]” the prophet, saying,”

Verse 18 — “In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping,’ — this was a prophecy of Jeremiah given over 500 years before it was fulfilled. “Rama” refers to a little town on a hill near Jerusalem, between Jerusalem and Bethlehem, so it was quite an extensive operation. Rama was the hill below Jerusalem where they finally collected all of the captives in the days of Nebuchadnezzar, chained them up and put them in yokes, and marched them off to Babylon. And so just as Jeremiah described the weeping and the Lamentation of the carrying off of the captives at the beginning of the fifth cycle of discipline, so we have a repetition of the same thing: the screaming and the lamentation of mothers, the great mourning; “Rachel” — often used as an idiom for Jewish mothers, and that is the use here. Rachel was one of Jacob’s wives and, therefore, used for Jewish mothers; “weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not [they no longer existed].” This, again, is one of the horrible things that Herod did but, remember again, Herod even murdered his own children. Why he murdered his own children is brought out in this particular passage.

Verse 19 — the death of Herod. Just before he died (he was 69 years old), because of the terrible pain of his physical condition, one of his physicians told him to go to some springs over by the Dead Sea and there they thought they could cure him. So Herod went over there and it is said that a whole college of physicians went along to see this. They lowered him down into some hot boiling springs. The pain was excruciating and so from there they filled up a big tub of anointing oil and when it was bubbling well they dropped him in that! They say that you could hear Herod scream all the way across the Dead Sea. But he recovered to feel his old pains again and by this time he was so miserable that he went to his castle in Jericho and there he tried to commit suicide. He asked his cousin to bring him an apple and a knife. As soon as this cousin left (although he hid behind a door to watch) he started to stab himself, so the cousin ran in a grabbed him and took the knife out of his hand and kept him from committing suicide. But the word got around that Herod was dead and his eldest son, Antipater, was in the jail awaiting sentence. Two other sons, Alexander and Aristobulus, were now dead — the two original heirs. Antipater was now the heir so he said to the jailer: “Let me out, I am the king” .So the jailer let him out and he ran in and proclaimed himself king. Herod had fainted in this struggle over the knife and he revived about the time his son, Antipater, said: “I am the king.” Herod just reared up and said: “Kill him.” So the guards killed him. He had four more days to live and in those four days he dictated a new will in which he made Archelaus ( verse 22 ) his heir. Archelaus was one of two sons by a Samaritan woman who was one of the younger wives. (Herod had nine wives in all) Then he lived four days and he had a tremendous funeral, the greatest funeral that anyone on the ancient world had seen, until a few years later that of his dear friend Augustus. At the funeral they gathered all of his crown jewels, put them on top of a golden casket. They didn’t close the casket, they put him in his robes of state, they wrapped his hand around the sceptre and jammed the sceptre into something that would stick and stand upright, and they marched him out to a hill about ten miles away. The funeral procession took all day and everyone walked. Behind the bier came the family, the royal guard, the Thracian regiment, the German regiment, the Galatian regiment, the full army, and the Idumaean cavalry, all in that order. And they say that they were strung out for about eight or ten miles all along the road. It is said that there were about 10,000 slaves carrying wine, spices, and fruit which was distributed to all in the procession along the road. Some, it is said, ate two or three meals on the trip. He was buried at the top of the hill in the castle called Herodian.

Well, he died and the word came to Egypt and Joseph returned. In verse 20 — “they (plural) are dead which sought the young child’s life.” There were four people who wanted Jesus Christ killed. Herod was one, Alexander his oldest son wanted Him killed, Aristobulus wanted Him killed because they were going to divide up the kingdom. Once they died Antipater wanted Him killed. So “they” includes four people, and it is interesting that before Herod died every one who wanted to get rid of Jesus Christ because of who He was, born King of the Jews, died before Herod. Herod was the last. They all died within six months, and Herod killed three of them, and when He died he had killed off all of his oldest sons who knew about Jesus and wanted Him killed.

Verse 22 — “But.” Now here is a very interesting application of doctrine to experience. Joseph is a very smart man: “when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the place of his father Herod” — Archelaus received Idumaea, Judaea, and Samaria in his father’s will. He did not seek the young child’s life but he was cruel and Joseph knew it. He knew that sooner or later Archelaus would start killing people. In fact Archelaus was so cruel that during the nine years of his ruling he killed literally hundreds of thousands of people, and finally Augustus got sick of it and banished him to a place which was said to be one of the most horrible places and when you sent people there they were sure to die. We call it Vienna today but in those days it was a dump on the edge of the empire. So Joseph decided to move out of Bethlehem and go north where Archelaus had a young brother by the name of Herod Philip, to Galilee and settle down there. He could settle there for two reasons: Herod Philip was a benevolent despot who was going to carry on the building started by his father in the Galilean area. Remember that Joseph was a contractor, not a carpenter. The Bible says a carpenter but the Greek word for carpenter is a builder, a contractor.

Joseph used his head. Principle: It is never a crime for a Christian to think! We see a Joseph who is noble in chapter one, now we see him as one who can apply doctrine. He was simply told to go back to the land, not where to go in the land. But knowing doctrine and having a lot of good common sense he cleared out of his own area, Bethlehem, and moved north into Galilee.

“he was afraid” — this particular word means he understood the situation. Understanding the situation and knowing exactly what would happen he cleared out. In Galilee Philip, sometimes known as Antipas, was the ruler and he was a benevolent despot.

Verse 23 — he lived in Galilee. Why did he dwell in Nazareth? It just so happened that Herod had commissioned a lot of buildings to be built in this area. Nazareth was a city in the process of construction. So he moved into Nazareth, “that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, [Isaiah 11:1] He shall be called a Nazarene.” In Isaiah there is the word “stump,” a word which means a root or a branch. It was sometimes used as a word for contempt, as in John 1:46; 7:52. It should be translated here: “He shall be called a branch.” Jesus Christ is the Branch. Israel would come under the fifth cycle of discipline and in the fifth cycle of discipline Israel is described as a stump, but the stump of Israel would grow again and Christ the Branch would rule it; reference to the second advent and Millennium.

The way in which the word “Nazarene” was used was based upon His geographical location for childhood and young manhood, but actually it became a prophecy — a prophecy by paronomasia — and it indicated that Christ would return to rule and to reign.