Yesaya 43:23

43:23 You did not bring me lambs for your burnt offerings;

you did not honor me with your sacrifices.

I did not burden you with offerings;

I did not make you weary by demanding ¹  incense.

Yeremia 6:20

6:20 I take no delight ²  when they offer up to me ³ 

frankincense that comes from Sheba

or sweet-smelling cane imported from a faraway land.

I cannot accept the burnt offerings they bring me.

I get no pleasure from the sacrifices they offer to me.’ ⁴ 

Matius 2:11

2:11 As they came into the house and saw the child with Mary his mother, they bowed down ⁵  and worshiped him. They opened their treasure boxes and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, ⁶  and myrrh. ⁷ 

[43:23]  ¹ tn Heb “with.” The words “by demanding” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[6:20]  ² tn Heb “To what purpose is it to me?” The question is rhetorical and expects a negative answer.

[6:20]  ³ tn The words “when they offer up to me” are not in the text but are implicit from the following context. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[6:20]  ⁴ tn Heb “Your burnt offerings are not acceptable and your sacrifices are not pleasing to me.” “The shift from “your” to “their” is an example of the figure of speech (apostrophe) where the speaker turns from talking about someone to addressing him/her directly. Though common in Hebrew style, it is not common in English. The shift to the third person in the translation is an accommodation to English style.

[2:11]  ⁵ tn Grk “they fell down.” BDAG 815 s.v. πίπτω 1.b.α.ב has “fall down, throw oneself to the ground as a sign of devotion, before high-ranking persons or divine beings.”

[2:11]  ⁶ sn Frankincense refers to the aromatic resin of certain trees, used as a sweet-smelling incense (L&N 6.212).

[2:11]  ⁷ sn Myrrh consisted of the aromatic resin of certain shrubs (L&N 6.208). It was used in preparing a corpse for burial.