Anchor My Faith

Another Dream, Angel, and Instruction

Scripture: Matthew 2:13-15

We spent four lessons, four days of travel, with the wise men and now in this section of journey we will be traveling to Egypt to protect Jesus from being killed by Herod. “Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.”” (Matthew 2:13 ESV). The wise men had been instructed by Herod to go and search for Jesus and when they found him they were to return to him and report where Jesus was staying, but in a dream they were warned not to return to Herod. Shortly after the wise men had departed, Joseph also had a dream and was instructed to take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt and remain there until instructed to return because Herod was about to search for Jesus, to destroy him.

The Egyptian border was about 90 miles from Bethlehem. At the time Egypt was a Roman Province where many Jews had gathered and established a temple and synagogues. There Joseph would be among his own countrymen and beyond the reach of Herod since it was outside of his jurisdiction.

Given the instruction to leave Bethlehem and go to Egypt: “[Joseph] rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt” (Matthew 2:14 ESV). Joseph woke up from the dream with a sense of urgency to leave then. They quickly gather up their things and left during the night on a journey that would take them a number of days of travel. The gifts brought by the wise men would be used to pay the cost of this journey. They departed at night for the purpose of secrecy. If later people in Bethlehem were asked by someone sent by Herod where Jesus was, they wouldn’t know that they had gone to Egypt.

Joseph was obedient and went to Egypt “and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”” (Matthew 2:15 ESV). There is an interesting parallel here we should look at. It was out of Egypt that God used Moses to bring the Jews to the promise land and it will be from Egypt that, at God’s instruction, Jesus would come. Hosea speaks of this: “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son” (Hosea 11:1 ESV). It is believed that Hosea had both in view: the exodus of Israel and the exodus of Jesus. In future lessons we will learn of another great exodus, which will be those rescued by Jesus from their sin and safely taken to heaven with him.

Prayer

Father, it is becoming clear that you communicate your will to listening obedient people. Everyone you have spoken to that we have met so far, have responded in obedience. Maybe if we were more willing to obey and desired to listen, we would hear from God and be directed to do some interesting and maybe exciting things. God instructed me to go to China and my obedience opened up an adventure over many years there that I still cherish.