Shroro

The Syriac Orthodox Christian Digest - January, 2005

Bible Study - Matthew Chapter 2
Commentary: Verses 16-23

V 16-18 – is Killing of the infants by Herod.

“Then Herod, when he saw that he had been deluded by the Magi, was very angry. And he sent and slew all the children in Bethlehem, and in all its confines, from a child of two years and under, according to the time that he had carefully learned from the Magi.
17 Then was that fulfilled, which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:
18 A voice was heard in Rama, weeping and great lamentation; Rachel bemoaning her children , and unwilling to be comforted, because they are no more”

It is not known how many male children were killed. The number varies from 144,000 to less than 100. These infants . The Church venerates these children as martyrs. They died not only for Christ, but also in his stead. Their martyrdom is remembered by church on the third day after Christmas (December 27). St. Mathew takes this as fulfillment of Jeremiah 31:15. Where Rachel who is regarded as the mother of Israel is weeping for the innocent kids of Israel. Ramah is six miles north of Jerusalem. Rachel was buried between Ramah and Bethlehem.

V 19-23 – The return of the Holy Family.

“But when king Herod was dead, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,
20 and said to him: Arise, take the child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel; for they are dead who sought the life of the child.
21 And Joseph arose, and took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel.
22 But when he heard that Archelaus was king in Judaea, instead of his father Herod, he feared to go thither. And it was revealed to him in a dream, that he should go into the land of Galilee.
23 And he came and dwelt in a city that is called Nazareth : that so might be fulfilled that which was said by the prophet, that he should be called a Nazarene”

One who wanted to kill the child died. But the child survived. So many tried to kill the church established by that child. All those perished. But the church established by the child survived for 20 centuries. Many things are said be happened on their return to Palestine is narrated in the “Gospel of Infant Jesus”. I will quote only one here.

“In their journey from hence they came into a desert country, and were told it was infested with robbers; so St. Joseph and St. Mary prepared to pass through it in the night. 2 And as they were going along, behold they saw two robbers asleep in the road, and with them a great number of robbers, who were their confederates, also asleep. 3 The names of these two were Titus and Dumachus; and Titus said to Dumachus, I beseech thee let those persons go along quietly, that our company may not perceive anything of them: 4 But Dumachus refusing, Titus again said, I will give thee forty groats, and as a pledge take my girdle, which he gave him before he had done speaking, that he might not open his mouth, or make a noise. 5 When the Lady St. Mary saw the kindness which this robber did shew them, she said to him, The Lord God will receive thee to his right hand, and grant thee pardon of thy sins. 6 Then the Lord Jesus answered, and said to his mother, When thirty years are expired, O mother, the Jews will crucify me at Jerusalem; 7 And these two thieves shall be with me at the same time upon the cross, Titus on my right hand, and Dumachus on my left, and from that time Titus shall go before me into paradise “ [ first Gospel of Infancy of Jesus Christ – chapter 8]

The End of Herod:

Herod had a Miserable end. Experts believe that he had ‘Fournier's gangrene’ to the "privy parts." An infection in Herod's abdomen could have spread to his groin and rectal areas (Herod is said to have complained of abdominal pain). Records also indicate the swelling at the leader's groin was further wracked by an infestation of worms. And there was have been maggots feeding on the tissue.

Nazareth

A small hill city south of Galilee. It is 14 miles from Sea of Galilee. There is no reference of it in Old Testament or not even Josephesus has mentioned about it. St. Joseph and St. Mary after their marriage engagement resided here. So did after their return from Egypt. When our Lord spoke in the synagogue here the people ignored him. (Luke 4:29). Nazareth was a home for the priests who went by turns to Jerusalem, for service in the Temple. It was also a rest area for the traders in their journey.