Matthew / Question
Magi from the east come to Jerusalem asking where the "king of the Jews" has been born Matthew 2:1–2. They say they saw his star and have come to worship him Matthew 2:2.
Matthew 2:1–6 introduces outsiders who arrive in Jerusalem after Jesus’ birth, asking for the newborn “King of the Jews” because they have seen a star and want to honor him. Their question alarms King Herod and spreads anxiety through Jerusalem. Herod responds by consulting the leading religious experts about where the Messiah is to be born. This scene follows Matthew’s birth narrative and continues his focus on names, places, and public identification. The passage moves from an announcement-like question (“Where is he…?”) to a political reaction (Herod’s distress) and then to an official search for an answer in Israel’s sacred writings.
Matthew presents Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem as a settled fact and immediately connects it to public, political attention (Herod) and religious expertise (chief priests and scribes).
A common mistake is to treat this as trivia. Names, places, numbers, and sequence details often carry memory, covenant identity, or narrative movement in the biblical story.
Start with Matthew 2:1-2, then read the surrounding section so the answer stays connected to the passage's flow.
1Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod, the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying,
2"Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him."