Then Herod, having seen that he was deceived by the mages, was very wroth, and having sent forth, he slew all the male children in Beth-Lehem, and in all its borders, from two years and under, according to the time that he inquired exactly from the mages.

He is the one about whom it was written [Mal. 3:1], 'Look, I [will] send my messenger on ahead of you. He will prepare the pathway in front of you.'

And if you are willing to accept [this truth], this person [i.e., John] fulfills [the prophecy of] the coming of Elijah. [See Mal. 4:5-6]

And he answered [and] said, "Have you not read that the one who created [them] from the beginning made them male and female

They do all their deeds to be seen by men; for they make their phylacteries (tefillin) wide [to make them more conspicuous] and make their tassels long.