Matthew 2:1 - Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

Bethlehem of Judea—wise men, &c.— Bethlehem was a small town in the tribe of Judah, which lay on the southof Jerusalem; there was a city of the same name in Galilee, which belonged to the tribe of Zebulun, Judges 19:15 andthis is the reason why the former is here called Bethlehem of Judea. In the days of Herod the king, is an Hebraism for the time of king Herod the Great; who was at first tetrarch or governor of Judaea, and afterwards declared king of the same country. See Joseph. Hist. Jude 1:1. xiv. c. 3. and 1. xvii. c. 10.. The evangelical and apostolical history begins with Herod the Great, and ends with Agrippa, the last king of the Jews. Concerning these wise men, four things are pretty generally agreed; that they were Persians, or Parthians; that they were priests, or ministers of religion; that they frequently travelled into different countries; and that they applied themselves very much to the contemplation of the stars. As to the title here given them, it is certain that the word Μαγοι, Magi, was not appropriated in ancient times to such as practised wicked arts, but frequently was used to express philosophers or men of learning; and those particularly who were curious in examining the works of nature, and in observing the motions of the heavenly bodies. Compare Daniel 2:2; Daniel 2:27 and Daniel 5:11 and the Septuagint; and see Wetstein and Doddridge.