Matthew 2:16

Matthew 2:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.
• New International Version (NIV)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.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.

Context of Matthew 2:16

14So Joseph got up and he took the child and his mother with him. They started on the journey to Egypt that night. 15They all remained in Egypt until Herod died. This happened so that the words of the prophet would become true. The Lord God had said by his prophet, ‘I have called my son to come out of Egypt.’ When the wise men did not return to Herod, he was very angry. He knew that they had deceived him. So he sent his men to Bethlehem. He said to them, ‘Kill all the baby boys in Bethlehem. Kill the boys who live near there too. Kill all the boys who are two years old or younger than that.’ The wise men had told Herod how long ago they had first seen the special star. So he decided to kill the baby boys of that age. 17In this way, these words that God's prophet Jeremiah spoke long ago became true: 18‘People heard a sad noise in Ramah. Someone is weeping with a loud voice. It is Rachel and she is weeping for her children. Nobody can help her to stop weeping, because her children are dead.’

Matthew 2:16 word by word

Τότε Ἡρῴδης ἰδὼν ὅτι ἐνεπαίχθη ὑπὸ τῶν μάγων ἐθυμώθη λίαν, καὶ ἀποστείλας ἀνεῖλεν πάντας τοὺς παῖδας τοὺς ἐν Βηθλέεμ καὶ ἐν πᾶσιν τοῖς ὁρίοις αὐτῆς ἀπὸ διετοῦς καὶ κατωτέρω κατὰ τὸν χρόνον ὃν ἠκρίβωσεν παρὰ τῶν μάγων.¶Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Thenτότεtote · thenG5119
• HerodἩρώδηςHērōdēs · HerodG2264
• when he sawὁράωhoraō · to see: seeG3708
• thatὅτιhoti · that/since: thatG3754
• he was mockedἐμπαίζωempaizō · to mockG1702
• ofὑπόhupo · by/under: byG5259
• the wise menὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• the wise menμάγοςmagos · sageG3097
• wasθυμόωthumoō · to angerG2373
• exceedingλίανlian · greatlyG3029
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• sent forthἀποστέλλωapostellō · to sendG649
• and slewἀναιρέωanaireō · to killG337
• allπᾶςpas · allG3956
• the childrenπαῖςpais · childG3816
• inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• BethlehemΒηθλεέμBēthleem · BethlehemG965
• the coastsὅριονhorion · regionG3725
• thereofαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• fromἀπόapo · away fromG575
• two years oldδιετήςdietēs · two years oldG1332
• underκάτωkatō katōterō · underG2736
• according toκατάkata · according toG2596
• the timeχρόνοςchronos · timeG5550
• whichὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
• he had diligently enquiredἀκριβόωakriboō · be exactlyG198
• ofπαράpara · from/with/besideG3844

Cross-references for Matthew 2:16

• Genesis 39:14So she called her servants to come. She said to them, ‘Look at this! The Hebrew man that Potiphar brought to work here does not respect us! He came in here and he tried to have sex with me. But I screamed loudly.
• Numbers 22:29Balaam said to the donkey, ‘You have made me look silly. If I had a sword in my hand now, I would kill you.’
• Numbers 24:10When Balaam said that, Balak became very angry with him. He hit his hands together and he said to Balaam, ‘I asked you to come here and to curse my enemies, the Israelites. But you have blessed them three times!
• Judges 16:10Delilah said to Samson, ‘You have deceived me as if I was a fool! Tell me the truth! How can someone really make you weak?’
• Job 12:4I am a person who prayed to God and he answered me. But my friends now laugh at me. I have always lived completely in the right way. But still my friends laugh at me.
• Proverbs 27:3A stone is heavy to carry and sand also weighs a lot. But the silly acts of a fool give more pain than both of those.
• Daniel 3:13When King Nebuchadnezzar heard this, he was very angry. He told his servants to bring Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to him. So they brought those men to stand in front of the king.
• Genesis 49:7Their anger is so strong that God will curse them. Their anger makes them do cruel things. So God will curse them. I will make your descendants separate from one another. They will live all over the country of Israel.
• 2 Kings 8:12So Hazael asked him, ‘Why are you weeping, my master?’ Elisha replied, ‘Because I know that you will cause great trouble for Israel's people. You will destroy their strong cities with fire. You will fight their young men and you will kill them. You will knock down their children to kill them. You will cut open their pregnant women.’
• Proverbs 28:15A wicked ruler brings danger to poor people. He is as dangerous as an angry lion or a hungry bear.
• Isaiah 26:21Look! Now the Lord is coming from the place where he lives. He is coming to punish the people who live on the earth for their sins. The earth will clearly show the blood that murderers poured out on it. Murderers will no longer be able to hide the people that they have killed.
• Isaiah 59:7They rush to do evil things. They hurry to kill people who have not done anything wrong. They think only about sin. They only want to be cruel and to hurt people.
• Hosea 10:14So you will soon hear the noise of war. Enemies will destroy all your strong buildings. It will be like the time that King Shalman's army destroyed Beth Arbel. In that battle, cruel soldiers killed mothers together with their children.
• Revelation 17:6I saw that the woman was like a drunk. She was like someone who had drunk the blood of God's people. She had killed them because they had told other people about Jesus. When I saw her, I was very surprised.
• Matthew 2:7Then Herod secretly told the wise men to come to meet with him. They told him the time that the star had appeared.

Commentaries on Matthew 2:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Slew all the children - This cruelty of Herod seems alluded to in very decisive terms by Macrobius, who flourished toward the conclusion of the fourth Century. In his chapter De jocis Augusti in alios, et aliorum rursus in ipsum, he says, Cum audisset inter pueros, quos in Syria Herodes, rex Judeorum, intra bimatum jussit interfici, filium quoque ejus occisum, ait, Melius est Herodis Porcum esse, quam Filium. "When he heard that among those male infants…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men - When he saw that he had been deceived by them; that is, that they did not return as he had expected. It does not mean that they did it for the purpose of mocking or deriding him, but that he was disappointed in their not returning, or that he had been trifled with. Exceeding wroth - Very angry. He had been disappointed and deceived. He expected to send an executioner and kill Jesus alone. But…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-18Verses 16-18 Herod killed all the male children, not only in Bethlehem, but in all the villages of that city. Unbridled wrath, armed with an unlawful power, often carries men to absurd cruelties. It was no unrighteous thing with God to permit this; every life is forfeited to his justice as soon as it begins. The diseases and deaths of little children are proofs of original sin. But the murder of these infants was their martyrdom. How early did persecution…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16Put to death all the boys: Herod was famous for his cruelty. He even killed his own son to protect his throne. This led to the saying, “It is safer to be Herod’s pig [Greek hus] than his son [Greek huios].” This is because Herod followed Jewish kosher laws. two years old and under: Herod estimated the child's age based on the wise men’s report.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. Then Herod, &c.--As Deborah sang of the mother of Sisera: "She looked out at a window, and cried through the lattice, Why is his chariot so long in coming? why tarry the wheels of his chariots? Have they not sped?" so Herod wonders that his messengers, with pious zeal, are not hastening with the news that all is ready to receive him as a worshipper. What can be keeping them? Have they missed their way? Has any disaster befallen them? At length his…Read the comment

Topics related to Matthew 2:16

• Anger
• Bethlehem
• Children
• Egypt
• Homicide
• Infanticide
• Jesus, the Christ
• Miracles
• Rulers

In the dictionaries

• Bethlehem
• Herod
• Bethlehem, Ephrathah
• Herod, Herod Antipas
• Herod, Herod the Great
• Wise men
• Dream
• Flee
• Herod the Great
• Jesus

Commentaries on Matthew 2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings