2:2a

asking: The word asking introduces the question that the wise men asked. The Greek text does not state whom the wise men asked. They probably asked people whom they met after they entered the city.

In some languages, it may be more natural to state who was asked. If that is true in your language, you should do so in a general way. For example:

asked ⌊the people⌋ ⌊of the city⌋
-or-
asked ⌊people whom they met in town⌋

Where is the One who has been born King of the Jews?: There are two ways to interpret this question:

(1) It refers to the baby who was King of the Jews when he was born. For example:

Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? (New International Version)

(Berean Standard Bible, Revised Standard Version, New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New Living Translation (2004), New American Standard Bible, NET Bible, Revised English Bible, King James Version, English Standard Version)

(2) It refers to the baby who will become King of the Jews sometime after his birth. For example:

Where is the one who was born to be the king of the Jews? (God’s Word)

(Good News Translation, God’s Word, Contemporary English Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English, New Century Version)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1).

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

the baby who has been born, and who is the ruler of the Jews
-or-
the newborn king of the Jews (New Living Translation (2004))

the Jews: The word Jews here refers to the people of one particular ethnic group. They are also called the people/children of Israel. The word Jew comes from the name of their ancestor Judah, the great-grandson of Abraham.

If you do not have a word in your language for Jews, you could form a word based on the Hebrew name “Yehuda” (Judah). You could also borrow the term from a major language translation used in your area. Use the form or phrase your language naturally uses for names of tribes called after a common ancestor. For example:

Yahudi (Arabic)

2:2b

The Greek of 2:2b begins with a word that is often translated as “for.” It indicates that 2:2b–c is the reason for the question in 2:2a. Some English versions such as the Berean Standard Bible do not translate this Greek word.

Here are some other ways to translate this word:

⌊We
(excl.) ask this⌋ because
-or-
Our(excl.) reason ⌊for asking this is⌋

His star: In the way that the wise men studied the stars, one particular star somehow indicated the birth of the king of the Jews. In that way, this star was His star.

If it is not natural in your language to use the possessive pronoun His with the word star, you may want to include some implied information. For example:

the star of his ⌊birth⌋
-or-
the star ⌊that announces⌋ him

in the east: There are two ways to interpret the Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as in the east:

(1) It refers to the star rising in the sky. For example:

his star when it rose (NET Bible)

(New International Version (2011), New Revised Standard Version, English Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New Living Translation (2004), God’s Word, NET Bible, Revised English Bible)

(2) It refers to the location of the star or the location of the wise men being in the east. For example:

his star in the East (Revised Standard Version)

(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, Revised Standard Version, New American Standard Bible, Contemporary English Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English, King James Version, New Century Version)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1).

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

his star rising (God’s Word)
-or-
as it rose (New Jerusalem Bible)

2:2c

worship Him: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as worship literally means “prostrate before.” It involves kneeling and putting one’s face to the ground. This is done before God and kings to show great honor and submission.

Here are some other ways to translate this verb:

kneel before him ⌊to honor him⌋

-or-

bow down to honor/adore him ⌊as king⌋

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