Chapter 13 – Egypt, Bethlehem, and Nazareth

Chapter 13

Egypt, Bethlehem, and Nazareth

(Matthew 2:13-23, Luke 2:39)

After the magi left, an angel told Joseph in a dream to flee with his family to Egypt because Herod was going to try to kill Jesus. Egypt at that time had a large Jewish population and was outside of Herod’s domain, so Jesus’s family would have been safe and warmly welcomed there. The gifts from the magi—especially the gold—would have been useful to provide for their needs during their stay.

In obedience to the angel’s message, Joseph left quickly. Indeed, Matthew implies that he left the same night as the dream. The family had to travel about seventy-five miles across the Sinai desert to reach the Egyptian border, and remained in Egypt until Herod’s death.

Meanwhile, when Herod learned that the magi had left the country secretly instead of returning to Jerusalem as he had directed them, he was enraged and ordered his men to kill all male children in the vicinity of Bethlehem up to two years old. Matthew’s Gospel is the only account we have of this massacre,[1] but that is not really surprising since the population of Bethlehem at the time was relatively small and the number of infants murdered could have been less than a dozen—hardly a matter of great historical importance. We must also consider the possibility that whatever historical records might have existed are now lost to history.[2]

In any event, such an order is consistent with what we know about Herod’s character. By this time in his life—he was about seventy years old—he had already ordered the execution of one of his wives, three of his sons,[3] and many others. Herod was jealous of his power, had no qualms about killing, and was not the kind to tolerate a rival “king,” however young and humble.

When Herod died in 4 B.C., his will divided his kingdom among three of his sons—Archelaus, Antipas, and Philip—subject to Roman approval, of course. Archelaus ruled Judea, Samaria, and Idumea (an area south of the Dead Sea) from 4 B.C. until 6 A.D. when he was deposed by Rome and exiled to Gaul (modern France). Herod Antipas ruled Galilee and Perea (a territory east of the Jordan River) from 4 B.C. to 39 A.D. Philip ruled Ituraea (a region northeast of Galilee) and Trachonitis (which was south of Damascus) from 4 B.C. until about 33 or 34 A.D.

Sometime after Herod died, Joseph received another angelic visit in a dream, telling him to return to Israel. But when he learned that Archelaus was ruling Judea, Joseph was afraid to go there, for Archelaus was as ruthless as his father. Another dream prompted Joseph to go to Galilee and settle in Nazareth.

Matthew saw these events as fulfilling three prophecies. First, he quotes Hosea 11:1, which says: “When Israel was a youth I loved him, And out of Egypt I called My son.” This is a reference to the Exodus from Egypt in the time of Moses, but Matthew also sees it as a prophecy about Jesus fleeing to Egypt and then returning.

The second prophecy Matthew quotes is Jeremiah 31:15, which says:

This is what the Lord says:
“A voice is heard in Ramah,
Lamenting and bitter weeping.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
She refuses to be comforted for her children,
Because they are no more.”

Ramah was a city about five miles north of Jerusalem. Rachel was one of Jacob’s wives and the mother of two of Jacob’s sons, Joseph and Benjamin. Jeremiah 31:15 is believed to be a reference to the Babylonian Exile. When the Babylonians captured Jerusalem in about 586 B.C., they initially held the captives in Ramah.[4] Jeremiah, who was a prophet at the time, envisions Rachel crying out from the grave for her descendants, many of whom were dead and the remainder of whom were being carried away into exile. Matthew sees this as also being a prophecy fulfilled by the murder of the infants in Bethlehem.

The third prophecy Matthew cites is that Jesus “will be called a Nazarene” (Matthew 2:23)—that is, a person from Nazareth. The source for this is somewhat obscure. Since people from Nazareth had a bad reputation—see John 1:46, “Can anything good be from Nazareth?”—many see this simply as a reference to scriptures such as Isaiah 53:3 and Psalm 22:6 that predict the Messiah would be despised.

However, another possibility is that Matthew is referring to the Messianic prophecy of Isaiah 11:1: “Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.” The Hebrew word for “shoot” or “sprout” is netzer. Since ancient Hebrew had no vowels, Matthew may have seen the word as resembling “Nazareth.”

Questions to Ponder or Discuss: Some believe Matthew saw Jesus as the new Moses. What parallels do you see between the lives of Moses and Jesus?

Why do you think God delivered messages to Joseph through dreams rather than personal angelic visits? Have you ever received what you believe was a message from God in a dream? Explain your answer.

Endnotes for Chapter 13:

[1]. The massacre is not mentioned by the Jewish historian Josephus or by any of the other Gospel writers.

[2]. The Romans wrote mostly on papyrus (made from the Cyperus papyrus plant), parchment (made from animal skins), or wax tablets. All are subject to deterioration over time, the extent of which can depend on climate and other factors. In addition, manuscripts can be destroyed through human action, such as fire and war. What we have of those ancient writings today is almost exclusively the result of recopying, which was expensive since it had to be done by hand and therefore was done only for the most important documents. The writings we do have are generally copies rather than the original writings.

[3]. The wife was Mariamne (executed in 29 B.C.). The three sons were Alexander (executed in 7 B.C.), Aristobulus IV (also executed in 7 B.C.), and Antipater II (executed in 4 B.C.).

[4]. See Jeremiah 40:1.