Meaning house of bread.

Luke's record concerning the youth of Jesus proves that He is a proper man (Luke 2:15-52), whereas Matthew's record, very different from Luke's, testifies that Christ is the proper King, the Christ prophesied in the Scriptures.

The Jews had the Scriptures concerning Christ. The magi from the east saw Christ's star (Num. 24:17). The Jews had mental knowledge in dead letters concerning Christ, whereas the magi received a living vision concerning Him. After receiving the living vision, the magi were misled by their human concept and went to Jerusalem, the capital of the Jewish nation, where its king was presumed to be. Their being misled caused many young boys to be killed (v. 16). After the magi were corrected by the Scriptures (vv. 4-6), they went to Bethlehem (vv. 8-9), and the star appeared to them again and led them to the place where Christ was (vv. 9-10).

The priests were those who taught people the law (Mal. 2:7), and the scribes were those who knew the Scriptures (Ezra 7:6). Both the priests and the scribes had knowledge concerning the birth of Christ (vv. 5-6), but, unlike the magi from the east, they did not see the vision, nor did they have the heart to seek after Christ.

Signifying cities.

When the magi were corrected by the Scriptures and restored to the right track, the star appeared to them again. Living vision always accompanies the Scriptures.

The shepherds found the baby Jesus still in a manger (Luke 2:16); after this, the magi from the east saw the child in the house.

They worshipped Him as they would worship God (Matt. 4:10).

The gifts offered to Christ by the magi were gold, frankincense, and myrrh. In figure, gold signifies the divine nature; frankincense, the fragrance of resurrection; and myrrh, the fragrance of death. The offering of these gifts by the magi was undoubtedly under the inspiration of God's Spirit, to indicate the worth of Christ's divine nature and the preciousness of His resurrection and death. In the four Gospels, which are the biographies of Jesus, the things signified by these treasures are seen throughout Jesus' life. Moreover, these precious treasures offered by the magi might have provided for the Lord's journeys from Judea to Egypt and from Egypt to Nazareth.

Lit., turn back.

Once we have seen Christ, we never take the same way but always take another way.

This fulfillment of the prophecy concerning Christ in Hosea 11:1 was carried out by God through the magi's mistake in going to Jerusalem. God is sovereign, even over our mistakes.

This prophecy joins Christ to Israel.

This was the first martyrdom in the New Testament related to Christ.

Rachel was buried on the way to Bethlehem (Gen. 35:19; 48:7). Ramah, located in the territory of Benjamin (Josh. 18:21-28), the son of Rachel (Gen. 35:15-18), was not far from the site of Rachel's tomb. The young boys killed by Herod are considered the children of Rachel in this poetic prophecy.

Lit., soul.

Galilee was of the Gentiles (Matt. 4:15) and was despised by the people (John 7:41, 52). Christ was born in honored Judea but was raised in despised Galilee.

Under God's sovereign arrangement Caesar Augustus ordered the first census of the Roman Empire (Luke 2:1-3). It was through that census that Christ was born in Bethlehem (Luke 2:4-7) to fulfill the prophecy concerning His birth (Micah 5:2). He stayed there a short time. Then, because of Herod's persecution He was taken to Egypt (vv. 13-15), and subsequently He was brought back to the land of Israel (vv. 19-21). Because of Archelaus's reigning over Judea in the place of his father, Herod, Christ was brought to Nazareth, a despised city of Galilee (vv. 22-23; John 1:45-46), and was raised there. He was born in the esteemed town of Bethlehem but grew up in the despised city of Nazareth. Hence, He was called a Nazarene. To follow Christ requires that we heed not only the Scriptures concerning Him but also the instant leadings, such as those Joseph had in his dreams. Caring only for the Scriptures while neglecting the instant leadings may cause us to miss Christ, as did the Jewish priests and scribes. Heeding the instant leadings requires a seeking heart.

See note Matt. 1:22¹.

The word prophets, in plural, indicates that this is not a particular prophecy but a summary of the significance of several prophecies, such as the one in Psa. 22:6-7. The title Nazarene may refer to the Branch in Isa. 11:1, which in Hebrew is netzer. The Branch there, signifying Christ, is a twig out of the stem of Jesse, the father of David. By the time Jesus was born, the throne of David had been overthrown. This means that the royal stem of David had been cut off. Now a new twig sprouted from the stump of Jesse and grew out of his roots. The sprouting and growing of this twig were in a situation of humiliation. Jesus was not born in a recognized and honored royal home, nor did He grow up in a renowned city such as Jerusalem. Rather, He was born in a poor home and grew up in a despised town. All this made Him a Nazarene, a Branch — not a lofty branch of a stately tree, but a seemingly insignificant twig from the stump of Jesse.