the least among the princes of Judah, for out of thee shall come a babe who shall rule my people Israel." Then Herod haying privily called the wise men, enquired of them carefully the time of the star which had appeared to them. And sending them to Bethlehem, he said, " Go ye and enquire diligently about the young child, and when ye have found him bring me word, that I may go and worship him also." But he said this treacherously, wishing to kill him, because he was to be the king of the seed of David, who might be able to get possession of bis kingdom. Then the wise men, coming to the cradle of Christ, found him with Mary his mother, and falling down they worshipped him, and opening their treasures they offered him gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And when the duty of their devotion had been wisely discharged, they omitted to return to Herod ; on which account the king was alarmed with more suspicion, and adopting a wicked counsel, he sent and slew all the children who were in Bethlehem, from two years old and under, hoping that among the boys of the same age, he should slay the child Jesus. For he had learnt that the star had arisen on the day in which the Lord was born, and according to the rising of the star, he knew that Jesus was a year old, and a few days over ; and therefore he let loose his fury upon the children of two years old and under, down to the infant who was only one night old. But Joseph, having been warned b y the voice of an angel, took the child and his mother and fled into Egypt on the second of February, and remained there till the death of Herod. In reference to which it is said that as when the children of Israel departed from Egypt, there was not one house in Egypt in which, by the contrivance of God, there was not some one lying dead, so now there was not a temple in Egypt in which an idol had not fallen down. Some say that it was on the thirteenth day after his birth, that the Lord was adored by the Magi, and that the star had appeared to them a considerable time before Christ was born, and that so they were able to come from a distance, or perhaps they travelled over a wide extent of country, sitting on dromedaries. But the account given by Josephus, appears to contradict this opinion. For he says that Herod was summoned b y letter by Cassar Augustus, to go to Rome to answer the accusations of his sons, whom I have spoken of above ; and