Question - Why Did It Take King Herod Two Years?

Trey Smith

So, we're up to the point in which the wise men have met with King Herod before continuing on the find the baby Jesus. Once they find him, the worship him and bestow gifts upon him. Herod wants them to report back because he feels threatened by a newborn. However, God intervenes and tells the wise men not to report back to Herod and to return to their homeland by a different route.

That's where this story sort of goes off the rails. According to the first portion of Matthew 2:16,

Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.

Why on earth would it have taken Herod TWO YEARS to figure out the wise men had not reported back to him? I realize that transportation was slow in olden times, but it wasn't THAT slow!

We are led to believe that the birth of this child was a major concern for Herod, yet it obviously wasn't that big of a deal if he waited two whole years before taking action.

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