1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in
Judea, during the time of King Herod,
Magi from the east came to Jerusalem

2 and asked, "Where is the one who has
been born king of the Jews? We saw his
star in the east and have come to
worship him."

3 When King Herod heard this he was
disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.

4 When he had called together all the
people's chief priests and teachers of
the law, he asked them where the Christ
was to be born.

5 "In Bethlehem in Judea," they replied,
"for this is what the prophet has written:

6 " 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of
Judah, are by no means least among
the rulers of Judah; for out of you will
come a ruler who will be the shepherd of
my people Israel.' "

7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly
and found out from them the exact time
the star had appeared.

8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said,
"Go and make a careful search for the
child. As soon as you find him, report to
me, so that I too may go and worship
him."

9 After they had heard the king, they
went on their way, and the star they had
seen in the east went ahead of them
until it stopped over the place where the
child was.

10 When they saw the star, they were
overjoyed.

11 On coming to the house, they saw the
child with his mother Mary, and they
bowed down and worshiped him. Then
they opened their treasures and
presented him with gifts of gold and of
incense and of myrrh.

12 And having been warned in a dream
not to go back to Herod, they returned to
their country by another route.

13 When they had gone, an angel of the
Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream.
"Get up," he said, "take the child and his
mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there
until I tell you, for Herod is going to
search for the child to kill him."

14 So he got up, took the child and his
mother during the night and left for
Egypt,

15 where he stayed until the death of
Herod. And so was fulfilled what the
Lord had said through the prophet: "Out
of Egypt I called my son."

16 When Herod realized that he had been
outwitted by the Magi, he was furious,
and he gave orders to kill all the boys in
Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two
years old and under, in accordance with
the time he had learned from the Magi.

17 Then what was said through the
prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:

18 "A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping
and great mourning, Rachel weeping for
her children and refusing to be
comforted, because they are no more."

19 After Herod died, an angel of the Lord
appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt

20 and said, "Get up, take the child and
his mother and go to the land of Israel,
for those who were trying to take the
child's life are dead."

21 So he got up, took the child and his
mother and went to the land of Israel.

22 But when he heard that Archelaus was
reigning in Judea in place of his father
Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having
been warned in a dream, he withdrew to
the district of Galilee,

23 and he went and lived in a town called
Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said
through the prophets: "He will be called
a Nazarene."