which the young Child with his Mother were | and are come 7? iy
ap: ] I £ (hip htm which | that Re Js variol ind wr fre; ented be upol iccordi nothin 2 | troublkk Hzrad lem by | was 4 ne acquaint piectes 112 that pur be1n; {15 ſhoul troubled Tews, of nary ME.
in their 1 the Govel werc alſo 4 An Scribe
\V here In this which wa: {tion whi Chrift ſhou vention 0! bett skille orderly M tem was he Profhe tie Queſti: Chriſt ſho the Wile ; ved, that | Propheciec of them th and Senſe expetted ( 5 Ant for thus 6 Ant
, the leaſt 1, thee ſha
people I Ic was ( of Micah $ ticn, tellin: tliey cons confirming IHeftih tro! Micah Yom But thu B of Judah, » Ruler of hra We muſt Quora:1ons U them as. 10 Which tÞ Sente. 2, fo the wor Anirer to Anſwer. Place 14s 1 They Anſr ne Teftimc 't Bethlehon 5 1n Senſe o Fudh, trmerly ir Town with; Wite, whoſ It were not 1 ter 2th} Whether jr tom Cale!” t te Tribe (21:13 mea POitbly in One, there Litth It was :- 22 Contr WTI ( if it ipetts ir v1 ne Fugpoy te Birch - tie lea t:o call it ne / Wiich were Criſt. whr FeIpect ro
i. II, St MATTHEW.
ſhip kim] whether Worſhipping him here ſignifieth only a Civil Honour, which hole Eaſtern Nations ordinarily gave unto great Princes, Of that Religious Homage and Adoration, which was due unto the Meſſias, © yarioully opined by Interpreters. Ir is ſaid, v. 11, they fell down " 7 worſhipped him ; and when they had opened their Treaſures, they ". ented unto him Gifts, Gold, Frankincenſe, and Myrrh. This might ben On a Civit, or upIn a Religious Account ; and doubtleſs was ccording tO £NE Revelation wiuch they had z concerning which, nothing can VE certainly derermined. > When Herod the King heard zhe/e things, hewas roubled, and all Jeruſalem with him. rd was hardly warm in his Kingdom, and had taken 7eruſa- 1m by Force, and was therefore much concerned to hear that there was 4 new King born, and ſuppoſing him to have been all his Life acquainted with the Jewiſh Writings and Records, where were Pro- vecies of rhe Meſſtzs, under the Notion of a King, and not know- 1 that the Kingdom of the Meſſtas was not to be of this World ;,
but being patieiſed cf the ordinary Notion of the Jews, that the 3leſ- {x ſhould reſtore a Temporal Kingdom to Tſrael, he could nor bur be "roubled at the News of one born who was to be the King of the Jews, cſpecially having a Confirmation of it by ſuch an exrraordi- iry m£ans, 4s Perfons coming trom a far Country, and being di- -ot+cd to their Journey by ſome extraordinary impulſe upon the (ioke of a new Star, which pointed ro uae, as the place to which ir related. Aer:d upon this might juſtly chink that his newly ac- cuired Kingdom would nor latt long: Aud tho' moſt People zre ouickiy weary of Conguerors, yer their former miſeries being freſh in rhcir minds, and the renewing of them likely upon a Change in the Government, it 1s no: wonder 1t the generality of the People were alſo troubled.
+ And when he had gathered all the chief Prieſts and Scribes of the people together, he demanded of them, \V here Chriſt ſhould be born,
In this Perplexity, the King Herod callech a Synod or Convocation, which was made up of the Chief Prieſts and Scribes. The fingle Que- {tion which he propounderh to them, was to reſolve him, Where Chriſt ſhould be born 2 It1s moſt likely this was an extraordinary Con- vention of ſuch of cheſe Perſons as the King rhought fir, who were beſt skilled 1n che Law, and other Revelations of Holy writ, not any orderly Meeting of che ,Sunhedrim, for the Queſtion propcunded ro tem was of meer Eccleſiaſtical Concern ;, and to be reſolved trom
the Prophecies and Writings of the Old Teſtament. The ſtating of
tie Queſtion ro them, nor Where the King of the Fews, but where Chriſt ſhou[d be born, makes ir manifeſt, chart alcho* ( rhar we read of ) the Wiſe Men ſaid nothing of Chriſt, yer Herod preſently concei- ved, that this King of _— that was born, muſt be che Meſſt.zh Prophecied of Pſal. 2. and in Dan. 9g, He therefore defired ro know of them the place in which, according to their received Tradition, and Senſe ot che Prophecies of Holy writ, the Meſſtuh whom they expetted ( that is, Chriſt _) ſhould be born.
5 And they {aid unto him. In Bethlehem of Judea ; for thus it 1s written by the Prophet,
6 And thou Bethlehem 77 the land of Judah, art not . theleaſt * amongſt the Princes of Judah : for our of . thee ſhall come a Governour, that ihall || rule my people Tirael.