For this king Herod also, when he had learned from the elders of your people — at the time that the Wise Men from Arabia came to him and said that they knew by a star that had appeared in heaven that a king had been born in your land, and ‘we have come to worship him,’ and when the elders said in Bethlehem, for thus it is written in the prophet; And. thou, Bethlehem, the land of Judah, art by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of thee shall go forth a ruler, who shall shepherd my people —
When therefore the Wise Men from Arabia had come to Bethlehem, and had worshipped the Child, and had offered to Him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh, they were then, after they had worshiped the Boy in Bethlehem, commanded by revelation not to return to Herod.
And Joseph too, who was espoused to Mary, though he thought first to cast out Mary who was espoused to him, supposing that she was with child of human intercourse, namely of fornication, was commanded in a vision not to cast his wife out, the angel that appeared to him saying: that which she has conceived is of the Holy Ghost.Matthew 1:18-20
Moved therefore by fear he did not cast her out, but, as the first enrolment under Cyrenius was then taking place in Judaea, he came back from Nazareth where he was living, to Bethlehem, to which he belonged, to enrol himself. For he was by descent of the tribe of Judah that inhabited that land. Then he is commanded, together with Mary, to go out into Egypt, and to be there, together with the Child, until it should be again revealed to them that they should return into Judaea.Matthew 2:13
Now with regard to the Child having been born at that time, since Joseph had not where to lodge in that village, he lodged in a certain cave nigh the village, and then, while they were there, Mary brought forth the Christ and laid Him in a manger, where the Wise Men from Arabia came and found Him.
Now I have already narrated to you, I said, that Isaiah proclaimed beforehand concerning this sign also with regard to the cave. Yet, I added, because of those who have come with you to-day I will mention the chapter again. So I narrated the chapter which I had already written out from Isaiah, saying that on account of those words they who teach the mysteries of Mithra were moved by the devil to say that men are initiated by them in a place to which they give the designation of a cave.
Then Herod, when the Wise Men from Arabia had not returned to him, as he required them to do, but had departed to their country by another way in accordance with the commands given them, and when Joseph, together with Mary and the Child, had already gone off to Egypt, as had been revealed to them, (Herod, I say) not knowing the Boy whom the Wise Men had come to worship, commanded that every single one of the boys that were in Bethlehem should be slain.
Now this had been prophesied by Jeremiah as about to come to pass, the Holy Spirit saying thus by him: A sound was heard in Ramah, weeping and great lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.Jeremiah 31:15 Matthew 2:18 Because therefore of the sound which was to be heard from Ramah, namely, from Arabia — for until even the present time there is a place called Ramah in Arabia — weeping was to overtake the place where Rachel, the wife of Jacob who was surnamed Israel, the holy patriarch, lies buried, namely Bethlehem, for the women were weeping for their own children that were slain, and had no consolation for that which had happened to them.
For that saying also of Isaiah, He shall take the power of Damascus and, the spoils of Samaria, meant that the power of the devil, who dwelt in Damascus, should be overcome by Christ at His very birth. And this is proved to have taken place. For the Wise Men, who had been carried off as spoil for all kinds of evil actions, which were wrought in them by that demon, by coming and worshipping Christ are shown to have departed from that power which had taken them as spoil, which (power) the word signified to us in a mystery as dwelling in Damascus.
And that selfsame power, as being sinful and wicked, he rightly calls Samaria in parable. Now that Damascus did and does belong to the land of Arabia, even though it is now allotted to that which is called Syrophoenicia, not even any of you can deny. So that it would be well, Gentlemen, if you were to learn the things that you do not understand from them who have received grace from God, even us Christians, and not to be always striving to prop up your own doctrines, and do despite to those of God.
Therefore was it that unto us this grace was transferred, as Isaiah speaks, saying as follows: This people draweth nigh to Me; with their lips they honour Me; but their heart is far off from Me; but in vain do they worship Me, teaching the precepts and doctrines of men. Therefore, behold, I will again transfer this people, and will transfer them, and will take away the wisdom of their wise men, and the understanding of their prudent men will I annul.