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MATTHEW 2:12 — KING JAMES VERSION 0
Matt 2:11Matt 2:13
“And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.”
And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way. The dream-warning that redirects the Magi is the same divine protection that had worked throughout: the God who guided them to the child now guides them away from the one who would use their information for violence. The another way is not only geographical — there is something of the converted person in the Magi's departure by a different route, having found what they sought and having worshipped, they cannot return to the world as it was. Romans 12:2 calls believers to be transformed, no longer conforming to the patterns of this age. The Magi who came in search of a king depart as worshippers who have encountered one.

Church Fathers on Matthew 2:12

The wicked Herod, now made cruel by fear, will needs do a deed of horror. But how could he ensnare him who had come to cut off all fraud? His fraud is escaped as it follows, 'And being warned.'

Augustine · 4th century

They had offered gifts to the Lord, and receive a warning corresponding to it. This warning (in the Greek 'having received a response') is given not by an Angel, but by the Lord Himself, to shew the high privilege granted to the merit of Joseph.

Jerome · 4th century

This warning is given by the Lord Himself; it is none other that now teaches these Magi the way they should return, but He who said, 'I am the way.' [John 14:6] Not that the Infant actually speaks to them, that His divinity may not be revealed before the time, and His human nature may be thought real. But he says, 'having received an answer,' for as Moses prayed silently, so they with pious spirit had asked what the Divine will bade. 'By another way,' for they were not to be…

Gloss (Glossa Ordinaria) · medieval compilation · ord.
Read all 7 entries in the readerCatena Aurea · St. Thomas Aquinas, tr. J. H. Newman · public domain
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Matthew 2:12 — Community Reflections | HolyStudy