The Gospel of Matthew presented the infancy story of Jesus from the perspective of Joseph, unlike the Gospel of Luke that presented the same story from the perspective of Mary. What do they have in common and what is unique. Mary and the child Jesus play a secondary role in this narration, since it was all about Joseph, the son of Jacob, the father of the child. There were certain things in common with the Luke story. Both Joseph and Mary were troubled by this pregnancy. Both had an angel come and explain that the child was from the Holy Spirit. Both were told that the name of the child would be Jesus. In both stories, the child is born in Bethlehem. Beyond that, there were some unique things to the story of Joseph in Matthew. He almost divorced Mary. He had a number of angelic dreams. He was told to go to Egypt, which he did. He then returned to Israel and settled in Nazareth in Galilee. In between, there was the strange story of King Herod and the magi. Matthew used 5 different Old Testament Hebrew prophecies to show that Jesus was truly within the Jewish prophetic tradition. Clearly, in these two opening chapters, Matthew was a Jewish scripture scholar with his use of 1 Chronicles in the genealogy and the various prophecies of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Micah, and Judges. Whatever sources he used for this unique perspective on the birth of Jesus, they were clearly Jewish based. Joseph was a righteous Jewish man. After this presentation, Joseph seemed to drift off the center stage in the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth.
the Magi
Herod kills all the two-year old boys (Mt 2:16-2:16)
“When Herod saw
That he had been tricked
By the magi,
He was infuriated.
He sent men
To kill
All the male children
In and around Bethlehem
Who were two years old
Or under.
This was based
According to the time frame
That he had ascertained
From the magi.”
Τότε Ἡρῴδης ἰδὼν ὅτι ἐνεπαίχθη ὑπὸ τῶν μάγων ἐθυμώθη λίαν, καὶ ἀποστείλας ἀνεῖλεν πάντας τοὺς παῖδας τοὺς ἐν Βηθλέεμ καὶ ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς ὁρίοις αὐτῆς ἀπὸ διετοῦς καὶ κατωτέρω, κατὰ τὸν χρόνον ὃν ἠκρίβωσεν παρὰ τῶν μάγων.
Meanwhile, back in Jerusalem, Herod realized that he had been tricked or outwitted by the magi (Τότε Ἡρῴδης ἰδὼν ὅτι ἐνεπαίχθη ὑπὸ τῶν μάγων), those tricky magicians. He was very angry (ἐθυμώθη λίαν), so he sent out people (ἀποστείλας). He ordered them to kill all the little infant boys (ἀνεῖλεν πάντας τοὺς παῖδας) under the age of 2 in the Bethlehem area and vicinity (τοὺς ἐν Βηθλέεμ καὶ ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς ὁρίοις αὐτῆς). He picked the age of 2 and under (ἀπὸ διετοῦς καὶ κατωτέρω) based on the information about the time frame (κατὰ τὸν χρόνον ὃν ἠκρίβωσεν) about the birth of this child that he had understood from the magi (παρὰ τῶν μάγων). However, since the Bethlehem area was sparsely populated, this might have meant that he only killed about 20 children at most. Thus, there would not have been wide spread panic, except in Bethlehem itself. This story of the killing of the infant male children is like that of the Israelite male children in Exodus, chapter 1:15-22, where Moses was saved, just like Jesus here. There, the Egyptian king told the midwives to kill every male Israelite baby. Finally, he had all the Israelite male babies thrown into the Nile River.
Another dream for Joseph (Mt 2:13-2:13)
“Now after the Magi
Had left,
An angel of the Lord
Appeared to Joseph
In a dream.
He said.
‘Get up!
Take the child
With his mother!
Flee to Egypt!
Remain there
Until I tell you!
Herod is about
To search for the child.
He wants to destroy him.’”
Ἀναχωρησάντων δὲ αὐτῶν, ἰδοὺ ἄγγελος κυρίου φαίνεται κατ’ ὄναρ τῷ Ἰωσὴφ λέγων Ἐγερθεὶς παράλαβε τὸ παιδίον καὶ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ καὶ φεῦγε εἰς Αἴγυπτον, καὶ ἴσθι ἐκεῖ ἕως ἂν εἴπω σοι· μέλλει γὰρ Ἡρῴδης ζητεῖν τὸ παιδίον τοῦ ἀπολέσαι αὐτό.
After the magi had departed (Ἀναχωρησάντων δὲ αὐτῶν), once again, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream (ἰδοὺ ἄγγελος κυρίου φαίνεται κατ’ ὄναρ τῷ Ἰωσὴφ), just like he had before when Joseph accepted Mary as his wife in chapter 1:20-24. This time, the angel told Joseph to get up (λέγων Ἐγερθεὶς). He was to take his child with the child’s mother (παράλαβε τὸ παιδίον καὶ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ) in order to flee to Egypt (φεῦγε εἰς Αἴγυπτον), the typical place in the Old Testament, where people fled to avoid problems. They were supposed to stay there in Egypt (ἐκεῖ ἕως ἂν εἴπω σοι), until this angel of the Lord told them it was okay to return. The main reason for this trip to Egypt, without saying a specific place, was to avoid King Herod who was trying to find and destroy Joseph’s child (μέλλει γὰρ Ἡρῴδης ζητεῖν τὸ παιδίον τοῦ ἀπολέσαι αὐτό). Just like the infant Moses, in Exodus, chapters 1:15-2-10, Jesus would be saved from death as an infant also.
The Epiphany (Mt 2:11-2:11)
“The Magi
Knelt down.
They paid homage
To the child.
They worshiped him.
Then,
Opening their treasures,
They offered him gifts
Of gold,
Of frankincense,
Of myrrh.”
καὶ πεσόντες προσεκύνησαν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἀνοίξαντες τοὺς θησαυροὺς αὐτῶν προσήνεγκαν αὐτῷ δῶρα, χρυσὸν καὶ λίβανον καὶ σμύρναν
This is the classic scene of the Epiphany of Jesus, with the magi, the 3 kings, the wise men adoring and worshiping the new born infant Jesus. The magi entered the house. They knelt down and worshipped the new child (πεσόντες προσεκύνησαν αὐτῷ). Then they opened their treasures (ἀνοίξαντες τοὺς θησαυροὺς αὐτῶν). They offered him gifts (προσήνεγκαν αὐτῷ δῶρα) of gold (χρυσὸν), frankincense (λίβανον), and myrrh (σμύρναν). These were the same traditional gifts mentioned in Isaiah, chapter 60:6, gold and frankincense, an expensive spice. Myrrh was a perfume. So too, Epiphany, ἐπιφάνεια, means manifestation or appearance. In classical Greek, it was a manifestation of a deity to a worshiper. Thus, Jesus manifests himself to these worshipping magi. The earliest references to the Christian feast of Epiphany come from the 4th century CE. In the Latin-speaking Western Christianity, this holiday emphasized the visit of the magi, who represented the non-Jewish people of the world. Thus, this child Jesus was considered a revelation to the gentiles. In the middle ages, these biblical magi or magicians became the 3 kings, as a whole story developed around them. Balthasar was the youngest one, bearing frankincense that symbolized the divinity of Jesus, representing Africa. Caspar was middle-aged one bearing gold that symbolized the royalty of Jesus, representing Asia. Melchior the oldest one, bearing myrrh symbolized the passion of Jesus, representing Europe. For many years, and still in some non-English speaking countries today, Epiphany was and is a bigger feast day than Christmas, celebrating the birth of Jesus and his revelation to the world.
Herod was annoyed and frightened (Mt 2:3-2:4)
“When King Herod heard this,
He was frightened.
All of Jerusalem
Was troubled
With him.
King Herod called together
All the chief priests,
As well as the scribes
Of the people.
He inquired of them
Where the Christ
Was to be born.”
ἀκούσας δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς Ἡρῴδης ἐταράχθη, καὶ πᾶσα Ἱεροσόλυμα μετ’ αὐτοῦ, καὶ συναγαγὼν πάντας τοὺς ἀρχιερεῖς καὶ γραμματεῖς τοῦ λαοῦ ἐπυνθάνετο παρ’ αὐτῶν ποῦ ὁ Χριστὸς γεννᾶται.
When the old King Herod heard this (ἀκούσας δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς Ἡρῴδης) from the magi, he was frightened, troubled, and annoyed (ἐταράχθη), since he did not have a new born son. He might have worried about his own sons, since his oldest son Archelaus would become the ethnarch of the tetrarchy of Judea, while Herod Antipas would become tetrarch of Galilee and Peraea, when he died. In fact, the whole town of Jerusalem (πᾶσα Ἱεροσόλυμα μετ’ αὐτοῦ) was troubled also, because they had not heard anything about a new king. Thus, King Herod assembled all the chief priests and the scribes (συναγαγὼν πάντας τοὺς ἀρχιερεῖς καὶ γραμματεῖς τοῦ λαοῦ) in Jerusalem to find out (ἐπυνθάνετο) where this new anointed king might have been born (αὐτῶν ποῦ ὁ Χριστὸς γεννᾶται). Interesting enough, Matthew has the new child called Χριστὸς, the anointed one. King Herod probably gathered the great Jewish Sanhedrin to discuss this matter. Herod himself was from Edom and not really a traditional Jew, but had converted to Judaism, so that his knowledge of Jewish traditions was weak.
The situation (Song 4:6-4:7)
Male lover
“Until the day breathes,
Until the shadows flee,
I will hasten to the mountain of myrrh.
I will hasten to the hill of frankincense.
You are altogether beautiful.
My love!
There is no flaw in you.”
This male lover cannot wait until the morning breath or the evening shadow. He is going to the mountain or hill full of myrrh and frankincense. These are the two most important fragrances what will later appear with the Magi in the New Testament. Here the allusion may be to the Temple in Jerusalem. Then this lover proclaims the general beauty of his female lover. She is totally beautiful without a flaw. Christians will later apply this phrase to the Christian Church and the Virgin Mother Mary.
Eugene Finnegan Bible Project 