Protoevangelium of James 21

1(1) Look! Joseph was preparing to go into Judea when a great commotion arose in Bethlehem of Judea. Magi arrived, asking, “Where is the king of the Jews? We saw his star in the East and have come to worship him.” (2) When Herod heard this, he was disturbed. He sent officers to the magi, summoned the chief priests, and questioned them in his palace. He asked them, “What has been written about the Christ? Where will he be born?” They answered him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for that is what is written.” Then he released them—the chief priests. He questioned the magi, asking them, “What sign did you see concerning the one who has been born king?” The magi answered, “We saw an immense star shining among the other stars and dimming them so greatly that they were no longer visible. So we knew that a king had been born for Israel, and we came to worship him.” Herod told them, “Go and search. If you find him, report back to me so that I too may come and worship him.” (3) The magi went, and look! The star they had seen in the East led them until they came to the cave, and it stood over the head of the cave. When they saw him with his mother Mary, the magi took gifts from their bags: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. After an angel warned them not to go into Judea, they returned to their own country by another way.