THE FLIGHT TO EGYPT

MATTHEW 2:13–20

Brimming with paranoia over the newborn King of the Jews, Herod the Great dispatched soldiers to Bethlehem on a heinous quest. They were to find and kill all boys in Bethlehem two years of age and under. This made it necessary for the vulnerable infant Messiah to be rescued so that later he could rescue the world. Therefore the Lord sent an angel to Joseph in a dream with this urgent message: “Take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt” (Matt. 2:13). The pressing command rings with irony. In Moses’s time, the pharaoh of Egypt ordered the execution of Israelite male infants just before the Israelite exodus from Egypt to the safer reaches of the Promised Land (Exod. 1). Now the slaughter of Israelite children in the Promised Land brought about a flight to the safer reaches of Egypt. Though we are not always aware of God’s greater plan, we can see purposeful reasons in Joseph being led by the Lord to Egypt (Matt. 2:13–18; Hosea 11:1).

While Matthew tells us about the start of this journey, exact routes and destination in Egypt are unknown. It is likely that Joseph and his family fled by the quickest route to Gaza, where they could join the International Highway. From Gaza, the family would travel as far as Pelusium, the portal of entry for greater Egypt. That is where things become less certain, so we must admit that locations visited by Jesus and his family during their stay in Egypt remain as much a mystery to us as they did to those who pursued them.

We can be a bit more certain about why they were sent to Egypt. It lay well outside Herod’s influence and had numerous, thriving Jewish centers. It was no accident that the influence of Herod the Great stopped at the border of Egypt. During the contentious days following the death of Julius Caesar, Mark Antony achieved mastery over Syria while investing romantic energy in Cleopatra VII. Her passion to possess key portions of the Promised Land was indulged by Antony at the expense of Herod. Large and significant tracts of Herod’s holdings were transferred into the hands of Cleopatra in 35 BC. But just five years later, Antony and Cleopatra took their own lives, allowing Herod to regain control of land he had lost to her. From that time on, Herod’s word was law in the Promised Land. Nevertheless, the legacy of Antony and Cleopatra meant that Herod’s control never reached deeply into Egypt, so it was the closest region that lay beyond his control.13

Tetradrachm of Cleopatra VII.

Scuola Nuova tapestry (Brussels, AD 1524–31) with the scene of the massacre of the innocents.

Another reason Egypt was such a desirable haven is that it held thriving Jewish communities. During earlier assaults on the Promised Land, Jews fled to various places throughout Upper and Lower Egypt (Isa. 11:11). Descendants of those Jewish refugees remained and formed the largest and most affluent Jewish population in the Diaspora.14 This included the descendants of the true Zadokite priesthood functioning at the temple of Onias in Leontopolis.15

Perhaps the reason the Lord instructed Joseph to take the family to Egypt was not only to escape from Herod but also to go toward faithful members of their extended Jewish family who might welcome them and provide support during their time of exile. It is strikingly ironic that Jesus left the Promised Land for Egypt ahead of the killing in Bethlehem. Just as God had instigated Jacob’s move to Egypt centuries earlier, now the Lord instructed Joseph to take Mary and Jesus. It made perfect sense in terms of what Egypt had to offer: a harbor of safety from Herod’s soldiers and a community of Jewish families who wished to separate themselves from the corrupt leadership of the Jerusalem Temple.

Eastern border of the Roman Empire, first century AD

Leontopolis—Tell el-Yahudiya, twenty miles north of Cairo.