King James Version · Under Rome
Matthew 2
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Now when was born in of in the days of the king, behold, there came men from the east to , Saying, Where is he that is born King of the ? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to him. When the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all with him. And when he had gathered all the and of the people together, he demanded of them where should be born. And they said unto him, In of : for thus by the , And thou , in the land of , art not the least among the princes of : for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel. Then , when he had privily called men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to , and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and him also. When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with his mother, and fell down, and him: and when they had opened their , they presented unto him gifts; gold, and , and myrrh. And being warned of in a that they should not return to , they departed into their own country another way. And when they were departed, behold, appeareth to in a , saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into , and be thou there until I bring thee word: for will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into : And was there until the of : that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of by the , saying, Out of have I called my son. Then , when he saw that he was mocked of men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in , and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of men. 17Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by the , saying, In Rama was there a voice heard, , and weeping, and great , weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not. But when was , behold, of appeareth in a to in , Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are which sought the young child’s life. And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in in the room of his , he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of in a , he turned aside into the parts of : And he came and dwelt in a city called : that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by , He shall be called a Nazarene.
The 1611 translation, public domain. Its original printing included the Apocrypha, which is why the deuterocanonical books can be read here. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
The world at this moment · Under Rome, 63 BC to AD 100 ›
Judea as a client kingdom and then a province. Roads, garrisons, taxes, crucifixion, and a common Greek language that let a message travel the empire faster than any before it.
- Rome
- The republic tears itself apart in civil war and comes out as an empire under Augustus. What follows is two centuries of relative peace across the whole Mediterranean, enforced by legions and paid for by taxes, with safe roads and safe sea lanes. Every one of Paul's journeys depends on that.
- Judea
- Governed first through Herod the Great, a client king of enormous ability and enormous brutality who rebuilds the temple into one of the wonders of the ancient world, then directly by Roman prefects. Crucifixion is the standard penalty for sedition and is used often and publicly.
- The wider world
- Greek is spoken from Spain to Syria, which means a letter written in Corinth can be read in Rome without translation. Jewish communities already exist in most major cities, which is where the first Christian preaching lands. Mystery religions, imperial cult, and philosophy all compete in the same marketplace.
- Further afield
- The Han dynasty rules China and trades silk westward along routes that touch the Roman world at second hand. In Britain the Roman conquest begins within a decade of the crucifixion.