Matthew 2:16–23

The Massacre of the Innocents

¹⁶Then Herod, when he saw that he had been outwitted by the wise men, flew into a rage. He gave orders to massacre all the male children in and around Bethlehem who were two years ^zold and under, in keeping with the time he had learned from the wise men. ^a17Then what was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:

¹⁸A voice was heard in Ramah,

weeping, ^band great mourning,

Rachel weeping for her children;

and she refused to be consoled,

because they were no more. ^cd

The Holy Family in Nazareth

¹⁹After Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, ^e20saying, “Get up! Take the child and His mother and go to the land of Israel, because those who sought the child’s life are dead.” ²¹So he got up, took the child and His mother, and entered the land of Israel. ²²But when he heard that Archelaus ^fwas ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned in a dream, he withdrew to the region of Galilee. ^g23Then he went and settled in a town called Nazareth to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets, that He will be called a Nazarene. ^h