2:5: In Bethlehem of Judea.
Bethlehem as the birthplace of the Messiah.
Targum Micah 5:1: “You Bethlehem Ephrathah—how humble you were to be
counted among the thousands of the house of Judah—from you the Messiah shall
come forth before me to rule over Israel, whose name has been mentioned since
the beginning, since the days of the world.” ‖ Pirqe Rabbi Eliezer 3 (2B): The
name of the Messiah. From where (can it be proven that he was created before
the world)? Psalm 72:17: “Before the sun, his name appeared (or: Yinnon was his
name).” And another Scripture says, “And you Bethlehem Ephrathah, small to be
among the thousands of Judah …, and his goings forth are from long ago, that
is, before the world was created” (Mic 5:1). ‖ Jerusalem Talmud Berakot 2.4
(5A.12): R. Judah (350) has said in the name (to be read like this) of R. Aibo
(ca. 320), “Menahem will be his (the Messiah’s) name.… The following supports
this: Once it happened with a Jew, who stood and plowed, that his cow grunted.
An Arab passed by and heard its voice. He cried out to him, “Jew, Jew, untie
your ox and tie up your ploughshare, for behold, the temple is destroyed.” Then
it grunted a second time. He cried out, “Jew, Jew, bind your oxen and bind your
plowshares, for behold, the king, the Messiah, is born.” And the Jew said unto
him, “What is his name?” “Menahem.” “And what is the name of his father?” “Hezekiah.”
The Jew, “Where is he from?” He answered, “From the royal palace in Bethlehem
of Judea.” The Jew went and sold his oxen and his plowshares and became a
seller of linen for children. He went in and out of the city until he came to
that city (Bethlehem). All the women bought [from him], but the mother of
Menahem bought nothing. He heard the voice of the women saying, “Mother of
Menahem, mother of Menahem, come and buy for your son.” And she answered, “I
will slay him, the enemy of Israel. For the day he was born the temple was
destroyed.” He said to her, “We are confident that it has been destroyed
because of him, but that it will also be built because of him.” She replied, “I
have no money.” He said to her, “Why are you concerned about this? Come, buy for
him; if you have nothing today, I will come and receive it after a few days.”
After a few days he came to that city and said to her, “What is the child
doing?” She answered, “After you had seen me, winds and storms came and took
him away from my hands.”—R. Bun (= Abin II [ca. 370]) said, “Why should we
learn from this Arab (namely, that the Messiah was born during the time of the
destruction of the temple)? Is it not clearly written, ‘And Lebanon (= temple,
a common expression) falls because of a mighty one’ (Isa 10:34)? What follows?
Isa 11:1: ‘Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse.’ ” (The
succession of these two passages in Scripture teaches the succession of their
contents in history.)—The same is repeated with many variations in Midr. Lam.
1:16 (58B).—The narration is a confirmation of the frequently found view that
the Messiah is already born, but must remain hidden in the present because of
the sins of Israel (possibly in paradise, in Rome, or in the North) until the
hour of his revelation in glorious power dawns; see § John 1:1 A. (Hermann
L. Strack and Paul Billerbeck, A Commentary on the New Testament from the
Talmud and Midrash, ed. Jacob N. Cerone, 4 vols. [trans. Andrew Bowden and
Joseph Longarino; Bellingham, Wash.: Lexham Press, 2022], 1:92)
