16 When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. 17 Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:
18 “A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.” (Matthew 2:16-18 NIV)
I. Herod’s anger at the wise men’s departure
Herod waited a long time for the Magi’s return, hoping that even though they were slow, they would eventually come back, and he could crush this rival at His first appearance. But when he found out, after asking around, that they had gone another way (Matthew 2:12), it made him even more suspicious and jealous. He suspected they were loyal to this new King, which made him extremely angry and even more reckless and outrageous because of his disappointment. Take note that deep-seated corruption becomes even more intense when it is obstructed in its sinful pursuits.
II. Herod kills the babies
Since Herod couldn’t directly target Jesus, he figured a broader attack would take care of the problem—killing indiscriminately, like a sword in a war that cuts down everyone in its path. This approach felt like a sure way to succeed.
Herod, an Edomite by descent, was naturally hostile to Israel. Just like Doeg the Edomite, who killed all the priests of the Lord during David’s time (1 Samuel 22:18-19), Herod carried out inhumane and barbaric acts with ease. Shockingly, Herod could find people cruel enough to help him with such bloody work, but wicked people never lack the tools to carry out their plans.
Both human laws and natural compassion generally protect children, yet these innocent lives were sacrificed to satisfy the rage of this tyrant. Herod, much like Nero, treated innocence as no defense at all. Throughout his reign, Herod was a violent man. Not long before this, he had killed the entire Sanhedrin, or council of judges. But for someone as bloodthirsty as Herod, violence was like water to someone dying of thirst—the more they drink, the thirstier they become.
Herod was about seventy years old at the time, so an infant under two years old was unlikely to ever pose a real threat to him. Moreover, Herod wasn’t even particularly fond of his own children, having previously killed two of his sons, Alexander and Aristobulus, and later, his son Antipater just five days before his own death. Clearly, this act wasn’t about self-preservation but was purely to satisfy his pride and cruelty. For Herod, everything was fair game for his brutality. Observe Herod’s excessive measures:
- Regarding time, Herod killed all the children two years old and under (Matthew 2:16). Jesus, at this time, was probably less than a year old, but Herod included all infants under two just to ensure he didn’t miss his target. He didn’t care how many innocent lives were lost as long as he eliminated the one he deemed guilty.
- Regarding location, Herod didn’t stop with Bethlehem; he extended the massacre to all the surrounding areas (Matthew 2:16). This was extreme wickedness. Take note that unchecked anger, when paired with unlawful power, often drives people to shocking acts of cruelty.
It wasn’t unfair for God to allow this to happen because every life ultimately belongs to Him and is subject to His justice from the moment it begins (Job 1:21). Sin brought death into the world through one man’s disobedience (Romans 5:12), and every death reminds us of that original sin. These children weren’t greater sinners than others in Israel—they simply suffered under the general effects of human sinfulness.
However, this murder of the infants has another significance: their martyrdom. Persecution against Christ and His kingdom began early. Just as Jesus was witnessed by an unborn child leaping in the womb (Luke 1:41), He now had peers who became His witnesses by shedding their blood for Him—just as He would later shed His blood for them.
These children were the youngest members of the noble army of martyrs. If they were baptized into heaven through their own blood, they were more than compensated for what they lost on earth. Out of the mouths of these babes and infants, God perfected His praise (Psalm 8:2). Interestingly, a Roman writer, Macrobius, recorded that when Augustus Caesar heard Herod had killed his own son along with the infants of Bethlehem, he joked that it was better to be Herod’s pig than his son.
III. The prophecy fulfilled
Matthew 2:17-18 points out that the massacre of the infants fulfilled Jeremiah’s prophecy: “A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted because they are no more” (Jeremiah 31:15).
This prophecy originally referred to the captives of Jerusalem weeping in Ramah during the Babylonian exile (Jeremiah 40:1). But now, it applied again to the sorrow over the murdered children of Bethlehem. The mothers of Bethlehem, descendants of Rachel, mourned deeply, and their cries echoed her sorrow.
The depth of mourning was immense—lamentation, weeping, and inconsolable grief. This world is a valley of tears, filled with suffering and loss. However, even in sorrow, we must find comfort in knowing that those lost in Christ are not gone forever (1 Thessalonians 4:13).
How could the Messiah, who was supposed to bring peace, come with such suffering? The answer lies in the scriptures. They had to be fulfilled, and the suffering was only the beginning of the joy to come. Just as Jeremiah’s prophecy ends with hope and reward, so too, the birth of Jesus offers redemption to those who trust in Him.