Now
when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.” He arose and took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
Matthew 2:13-15
Matthew 2 [9.] They, having heard the king, went their way; and behold, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, until it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. They came into the house and saw the young child with Mary, his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Opening their treasures, they offered to him gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Being warned in a dream that they shouldn’t return to Herod, they went back to their own country another way.
Matthew 2 [13.] Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.”
Matthew 2 [14.] He arose and took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
Matthew 2 [16.] Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by the wise men, was exceedingly angry, and sent out, and killed all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all the surrounding countryside, from two years old and under, according to the exact time which he had learned from the wise men. Then that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled, saying,
Meaning:
The wise men had worshipped the young child in Bethlehem and, warned in a dream, had gone home without reporting to Herod (Matthew 2:7-12). Herod would not give up so easily. Before his anger broke out, God acted to protect his Son. These verses tell of the flight of Jesus’ family into Egypt and show how even this danger fulfilled Scripture.
- “an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream”
For the second time an angel speaks to Joseph in a dream (Matthew 1:20). The message is urgent: “Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt.” The angel names the danger plainly: “Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.” The angel does not say how long they must stay, only “until I tell you”. Joseph had to trust God one step at a time.
- “He arose and took the young child and his mother by night”
Joseph did not wait until morning. He left at once, in the dark, with his young family. Once again his obedience is immediate and complete (Matthew 1:24). Egypt lay outside Herod’s rule and was home to large Jewish communities, so it was a natural place of refuge. The journey of several days across desert roads would have been hard and frightening. The Son of God began his life as a refugee in a foreign land.
- “and was there until the death of Herod”
The family stayed in Egypt until Herod died. God’s protection did not remove every hardship, but it kept the child safe until the danger had passed. The Psalms promise, “Yahweh’s angel encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them” (Psalm 34:7).
- “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
Matthew quotes the prophet Hosea: “When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt” (Hosea 11:1). In Hosea these words look back to the exodus, when God brought Israel out of slavery. God had told Pharaoh, “Israel is my son, my firstborn” (Exodus 4:22). Matthew sees a pattern in history. What happened to Israel as God’s son happens again, in a fuller way, to Jesus, the true Son of God. Like Israel, Jesus goes down into Egypt and is brought out again. Where Israel often failed, Jesus will be perfectly faithful. Soon the voice from heaven will declare, “This is my beloved Son” (Matthew 3:17).
The Significance of Matthew 2:13-15
- God protects his purposes
Herod had soldiers and power; Joseph had only a dream and a willingness to obey. Yet God’s plan could not be stopped. When we feel small before powerful forces, we can remember that “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1).
- Jesus shares our hardships
Jesus knew what it was to be uprooted, to live as a foreigner and to be hunted by the powerful. Hebrews says he was “made like his brothers, that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest” (Hebrews 2:17). Refugees and the displaced have a Saviour who understands them.
- Welcoming the stranger
Egypt sheltered the holy family. God’s law told Israel to love the foreigner, “for you lived as foreigners in the land of Egypt” (Leviticus 19:34). Followers of Jesus are called to show the same welcome.
Cross-References:
Hosea 11:1: "When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt." The prophecy Matthew quotes.
Exodus 4:22: "Israel is my son, my firstborn," God’s word to Pharaoh at the exodus.
Psalm 34:7: "Yahweh’s angel encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them." God’s protection of his people.
Hebrews 2:17: Jesus made like his brothers in all things.
Conclusion: Matthew 2:13-15 tells how an angel warned Joseph to flee with Mary and the young child to Egypt because Herod sought to kill him. Joseph obeyed at once, leaving by night, and the family stayed in Egypt until Herod’s death. Matthew sees in this the fulfilment of Hosea’s words, “Out of Egypt I called my son”: Jesus relives Israel’s story as God’s faithful Son.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible