Matthew 2:5

2:5 “In Bethlehem of Judea,” they said, “for it is written this way by the prophet:

Micah 5:2

A King Will Come and a Remnant Will Prosper

5:2 (5:1) As for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, ¹ 

seemingly insignificant ²  among the clans of Judah –

from you a king will emerge who will rule over Israel on my behalf, ³ 

one whose origins ⁴  are in the distant past. ⁵ 

Luke 2:11

2:11 Today ⁶  your Savior is born in the city ⁷  of David. ⁸  He is Christ ⁹  the Lord.

Luke 2:15

2:15 When ¹⁰  the angels left them and went back to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem ¹¹  and see this thing that has taken place, that the Lord ¹²  has made known to us.”

John 7:42

7:42 Don’t the scriptures say that the Christ is a descendant ¹³  of David ¹⁴  and comes from Bethlehem, ¹⁵  the village where David lived?” ¹⁶ 

[5:2]  ¹ sn Ephrathah is either an alternate name for Bethlehem or the name of the district in which Bethlehem was located. See Ruth 4:11.

[5:2]  ² tn Heb “being small.” Some omit לִהְיוֹת (lihyot, “being”) because it fits awkwardly and appears again in the next line.

[5:2]  ³ tn Heb “from you for me one will go out to be a ruler over Israel.”

[5:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “his goings out.” The term may refer to the ruler’s origins (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) or to his activities.

[5:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “from the past, from the days of antiquity.” Elsewhere both phrases refer to the early periods in the history of the world or of the nation of Israel. For מִקֶּדֶם (miqqedem, “from the past”) see Neh 12:46; Pss 74:12; 77:11; Isa 45:21; 46:10. For מִימֵי עוֹלָם (mimey ’olam, “from the days of antiquity”) see Isa 63:9, 11; Amos 9:11; Mic 7:14; Mal 3:4. In Neh 12:46 and Amos 9:11 the Davidic era is in view.

[2:11]  ⁶ sn The Greek word for today (σήμερον, shmeron) occurs eleven times in the Gospel of Luke (2:11; 4:21; 5:26; 12:28; 13:32-33; 19:5, 9; 22:34, 61; 23:43) and nine times in Acts. Its use, especially in passages such as 2:11, 4:21, 5:26; 19:5, 9, signifies the dawning of the era of messianic salvation and the fulfillment of the plan of God. Not only does it underscore the idea of present fulfillment in Jesus’ ministry, but it also indicates salvific fulfillment present in the church (cf. Acts 1:6; 3:18; D. L. Bock, Luke [BECNT], 1:412; I. H. Marshall, Luke, [NIGTC], 873).

[2:11]  ⁷ tn Or “town.” See the note on “city” in v. 4.

[2:11]  ⁸ tn This is another indication of a royal, messianic connection.

[2:11]  ⁹ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[2:15]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “And it happened that when.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated. Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[2:15]  ¹¹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map7 E2; Map8 E2; Map10 B4.

[2:15]  ¹² sn Note how although angels delivered the message, it was the Lord whose message is made known, coming through them.

[7:42]  ¹³ tn Grk “is from the seed” (an idiom for human descent).

[7:42]  ¹⁴ sn An allusion to Ps 89:4.

[7:42]  ¹⁵ sn An allusion to Mic 5:2.

[7:42]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “the village where David was.”