The Bible in Basic English BBE
Orthodox Jewish Bible OJB
1 Now when the birth of Jesus took place in Beth-lehem of Judaea, in the days of Herod the king, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,
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Now after Yehoshua was born in Beit-Lechem Yehudah, in the days of Herod [the Great, the Roman client] king?hinei!?chachamim from eretz Mizrach (the land of the East) arrived in Yerushalayim,
2 Saying, Where is the King of the Jews whose birth has now taken place? We have seen his star in the east and have come to give him worship.
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saying, Where is he that is born Melech HaYehudim? For we have seen his KOCHAV (star, Num 24:17) in the Mizrach and come to fall down before him.
3 And when it came to the ears of Herod the king, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
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Because Herod the king heard this, he was terribly shaken, and all Yerushalayim with him.
4 And he got together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, questioning them as to where the birth-place of the Christ would be.
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And assembling all the Rashei Hakohanim and Sofrim of the people, he inquired of them the place where Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach was to be born.
5 And they said to him, In Beth-lehem of Judaea; for so it is said in the writings of the prophet,
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They told him, In Beit-Lechem Yehudah; because so it stands written by the Navi:
6 You Beth-lehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the chiefs of Judah: out of you will come a ruler, who will be the keeper of my people Israel.
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And YOU, BEIT-LECHEM, (Bethlehem, Mic 5:1[2]) in eretz Yehudah are by no means least among the shtetlach (towns) or ruling [alafim] of Yehudah; because out of you will come a Moshel (Ruler) who will be the Ro’eh Ami Yisroel.
7 Then Herod sent for the wise men privately, and put questions to them about what time the star had been seen.
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Then Herod secretly summoned the chachamim and ascertained from them the exact date of the manifestation of the KOCHAV.
8 And he sent them to Beth-lehem and said, Go and make certain where the young child is; and when you have seen him, let me have news of it, so that I may come and give him worship.
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Then he sent them to Beth-Lechem, saying, Go and make a thorough search for the yeled (child); as soon as you have found him, report to me, so that I, as you, may come and fall down before him.
9 And after hearing the king, they went on their way; and the star which they saw in the east went before them, till it came to rest over the place where the young child was.
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After they heard the king, they departed, and hinei! The KOCHAV they had seen in the Mizrach (East) was going ahead of them until it came and stood above the place where the yeled was.
10 And when they saw the star they were full of joy.
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When they saw the KOCHAV, they rejoiced with exceedingly great nachas (joy).
11 And they came into the house, and saw the young child with Mary, his mother; and falling down on their faces they gave him worship; and from their store they gave him offerings of gold, perfume, and spices.
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And, entering the bais (house), they beheld the yeled with Miryam, his Em, and prostrated themselves before him. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12 And it was made clear to them by God in a dream that they were not to go back to Herod; so they went into their country by another way.
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And having been warned in a chalom (dream) not to return to Herod, they took refuge in their own country by another way.
13 And when they had gone, an angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream, saying, Get up and take the young child and his mother, and go into Egypt, and do not go from there till I give you word; for Herod will be searching for the young child to put him to death.
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And when they’d gone—hinei! –a malach Hashem appeared to Yosef [Ben Dovid] in a chalom (dream), saying, Arise, and take the yeled and his Em, and flee to Eretz Mitzrayim (Egypt), and stay there until I tell you, for Herod is about to seek the yeled to destroy him.
14 So he took the young child and his mother by night, and went into Egypt;
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So, having got up, Yosef [ben Dovid] took the yeled, and his Em by night and departed for Eretz Mitzrayim.
15 And was there till the death of Herod; so that the word of the Lord through the prophet might come true, Out of Egypt have I sent for my son.
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And Yosef [ben Dovid] was there until the mot Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by Hashem through the Navi, UMIMITZRAYIM KARATI LIVNI (Out of Egypt have I called my Son, HOSHEA 11:1).
16 Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, was very angry; and he sent out, and put to death all the male children in Beth-lehem and in all the parts round about it, from two years old and under, acting on the knowledge which he had got with care from the wise men.
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When Herod saw that he had been outwitted by the chachamim, he was greatly enraged, and he ordered the slaughter of all the yeladim in Beit-Lechem and its vicinity who were two years old or under, in accordance with the time that he had learned from the chachamim.
17 Then the word of Jeremiah the prophet came true,
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Then came the fulfillment of what was spoken through Yirmeyah HaNavi:
18 In Ramah there was a sound of weeping and great sorrow, Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be comforted for their loss.
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KOL BRAMAH NISHMAH (A voice was heard in Ramah, Jer 31:14[15]), a voice of bitter weeping and mourning. Rachel is crying for her yeladim; she refuses to be comforted, because they are no more.
19 But when Herod was dead, an angel of the Lord came in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,
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When Herod died, hinei, in Eretz Mitzrayim a malach Hashem appeared to Yosef [ben Dovid] in a chalom (dream),
20 Saying, Get up and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: because they who were attempting to take the young child's life are dead.
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saying, Arise, and take the yeled and his Em and go to Eretz Yisroel, for those seeking the life of the yeled are dead.
21 And he got up, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.
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And Yosef [ben Dovid] arose and took the yeled and his Em, and entered Eretz Yisroel.
22 But when it came to his ears that Archelaus was ruling over Judaea in the place of his father Herod, he was in fear of going there; and God having given him news of the danger in a dream, he went out of the way into the country parts of Galilee.
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And when Yosef [ben Dovid] heard that Archelaus had succeeded his father Herod as king of Yehudah, Yosef [ben Dovid] was afraid to go there. And, having been warned in a chalom, he departed into the districts of the Galil.
23 And he came and was living in a town named Nazareth: so that the word of the prophets might come true, He will be named a Nazarene.
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And Yosef [ben Dovid] made his home in the shtetl (Jewish village) called Natzeret, so that which was spoken by the Neviim might be fulfilled: He will be called a Natzri [i.e., Moshiach the Netzer,Tzemach, Isa 11:1; Jer 23:5; Zech 3:8; Isa 53:2; Zech 6:11-12].
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The Orthodox Jewish Bible fourth edition, OJB. Copyright 2002,2003,2008,2010, 2011 by Artists for Israel International. All rights reserved.