📖 Passage Breakdown — Matthew 2:1–2

 

“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.’” 

 

📜 Background, Setting & Purpose

 

✍️ Author

 

Matthew, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

 

👥 Written To

 

Primarily Israel, presenting Jesus as their promised Messiah and King. 

 

⏲️ When (historically)

 

The events occur at the birth of Jesus, during the reign of Herod the Great (before 4 B.C.).

 

🌍 Setting & Purpose of Matthew (book-level)

 

Matthew’s Gospel is written to demonstrate that:

 

• Jesus is the promised Messiah
• Jesus fulfills Israel’s Scriptures
• Jesus has the legal right to David’s throne
• The kingdom is being presented to Israel

 

Matthew is not written from a Church-Age vantage point. It is written within Israel’s prophetic program, under the Law, before the cross.

 

📖 Critical Hermeneutical Reminder — Read This Passage In-Time

 

At the time of Matthew 2, none of the following have happened or been revealed:

 

• Jesus’ earthly ministry
• The crucifixion
• The resurrection
• Pentecost (Acts 2)
• Saul persecuting Jewish believers
• The stoning of Stephen (Acts 7)
• Saul’s conversion on the road to Damascus
• The ascended, glorified Lord revealing new truth
• Paul being designated apostle to the Gentiles
• The gospel of grace
• The revelation of the mystery
• The Body of Christ

 

None of this exists yet.
None of this is known.
None of this can be read back into Matthew 2.

 

Everyone in Matthew 2 knows only what God has revealed up to that moment in biblical history.

 

Failing to read this passage in-time radically changes its meaning—and this is exactly where much of Christendom goes wrong.

 

📖 Immediate Context (Matthew 1–2)

 

• Matthew 1 establishes Jesus’ legal lineage through David
• Matthew 2 establishes Jesus’ royal identity
• The focus is kingship, not the cross
• Prophecy, not grace doctrine
• Israel, not the Church

 

This is kingdom ground, not Church-Age ground.

 

✨ Phrase-by-Phrase Breakdown

 

“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea…”

 

This immediately connects to Micah 5:2.

 

Bethlehem is not symbolic.
It is literal fulfillment of prophecy concerning Israel’s Messiah.

 

“…in the days of Herod the king…”

 

Herod was:

 

• An Idumean (not a rightful Davidic king)
• Installed by Rome
• A counterfeit ruler

 

This sets up a conflict of kingship:

 

Herod vs. the true King.

 

“Behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem…”

 

The Magi were:

 

• Gentiles
• Likely connected to Daniel’s influence centuries earlier
• Students of prophecy and signs

 

Their arrival does not mean the Church has begun.
It means Gentiles recognize Israel’s King.

 

They come to Jerusalem, the city of the great King (Ps 48:2).

 

“Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?”

 

This is the key phrase.

 

They do not ask:

 

• “Where is the Savior of the world?”
• “Where is the Head of the Body?”
• “Where is the Lamb who will die for sin?”

 

They ask about the King of the Jews.

 

This is purely Messianic, kingdom language, grounded in Old Testament prophecy.

 

“For we have seen His star in the East…”

 

This aligns with Numbers 24:17:

 

“A Star shall come out of Jacob…”

 

This is Israel’s prophetic sign, not Church doctrine.

 

“…and have come to worship Him.”

 

Worship here acknowledges:

 

• Royal dignity
• Divine appointment
• Messianic authority

 

This is not a response to the gospel of grace—because that gospel has not yet been revealed.

 

❌ What This Passage Does Not Mean

 

• Not that the Church is present in Matthew 2
• Not that Gentiles are being saved into the Body of Christ
• Not that the mystery has begun
• Not that Paul’s gospel is in view
• Not that Matthew is written to Gentiles

 

Reading Matthew 2 through Paul’s later revelation distorts the text.

 

✅ What It Does Mean

 

• Jesus is born as Israel’s promised King
• God is fulfilling prophecy exactly as written
• Gentiles acknowledge Israel’s Messiah—not replacing Israel
• The kingdom program is still in view
• God’s revelation is progressive, not simultaneous

 

Matthew 2 must be understood where it sits in redemptive history, not where we live today.

 

🔗 Cross-References for Going Deeper

 

Micah 5:2 — Messiah born in Bethlehem
Num 24:17 — The star out of Jacob
Ps 2 — God’s King installed in Zion
Matt 15:24 — Jesus sent to Israel
Rom 15:8 — Christ confirmed the promises to the fathers
Gal 1:11–12 — Paul’s gospel came later by revelation

 

🙏 Devotional Summary

 

Matthew 2:1–2 reminds us that God reveals truth progressively, not all at once. The people in this passage are responding faithfully to the light God has given them—and no more. When we read Scripture in-time, confusion fades and clarity emerges. When we read Scripture out of time, forcing later revelation into earlier passages, we change God’s meaning and lose His design. Rightly dividing the Word begins with reading every passage exactly where God placed it in history.