Ἀρχέλαος G0745
Archelaus, son of Herod the Great, who ruled Judea, Samaria, and Idumea after his father's death
Archelaus inherited the most significant portion of his father Herod the Great's kingdom but proved so brutal and incompetent that Rome deposed him after only nine years. Matthew mentions him precisely because Joseph and Mary, returning from Egypt with the child Jesus, feared to settle in Judea under his rule and went instead to Galilee. This single reference captures a crucial moment when political brutality shaped the holy family's geography.
Senses
1. sense 1 — In Matthew 2:22, Joseph's fear of Archelaus redirects the family to Nazareth in Galilee rather than Bethlehem in Judea. The historical Archelaus was notorious for violence, eventually banished by Rome in AD 6. This brief mention, transliterated identically across languages, explains why Jesus grew up in Nazareth rather than his birthplace—a detail that would later puzzle his opponents ('Can anything good come from Nazareth?'). 1×
AR["أَرْخِيلَاوُسَ"]·ben["আর্খেলাউস"]·DE["Ἀρχέλαος"]·EN["Archelaos"]·FR["Archélaüs"]·heb["אַרְכֶלְאוֹס"]·HI["अरखेलाउस"]·ID["Arkhelaus"]·IT["archelaos"]·jav["Arkhélaos"]·KO["아켈라오-가"]·PT["Arquelau"]·RU["Архелай"]·ES["Archélaos"]·SW["Archeláos"]·TR["Arkelaos"]·urd["ارخلاؤس"]
Related Senses
G3588 1. definite article (18298×)H0853 1. definite direct object marker (10915×)G2532 1. (8312×)H3068 1. YHWH (the divine name) (6522×)H0834a 1. relative pronoun (who/which/that) (4839×)H3588a 1. causal: because, for (3498×)G1161 1. and (2806×)H3478 1. Israel (proper name and nation) (2507×)G4771 1. you (plural address) (1853×)H1931 1. personal pronoun he/she/it (1431×)G3739 1. relative pronoun who/which/that (1149×)H1732 1. David (proper name) (1075×)H2088 1. this, this one (demonstrative) (1059×)G1063 1. (1047×)G3778 1. this thing, these things (1003×)H???? 2. (1002×)G2424 1. (924×)G3754 1. that (content clause) (881×)H2009 1. presentative particle: behold, look (881×)H0589 1. I (first person singular pronoun) (874×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
Ἀρχέλαος, -ου, ὁ Archelaus, son of Herod the Great, King of Judma, Samaria and Idumæa: Mat.2:22.† (From Abbott-Smith. LSJ has no entry)