Gospel of Matthew Chapter 2 Vs. 15

 The Flight to Egypt

Matthew 2:15 “And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.”

death of Herod... Recent scholarship sets this date at 4 B.C. It is probable that the stay in Egypt was very brief – perhaps no more than a few weeks.

Out of Egypt... The 3rd Old Testament prophecy fulfilled in Matthew (Mat. 2:15; Hos. 11:1). Next, Mat. 2:18. This quotation is from Hos. 11:1, which speaks of God’s leading Israel out of Egypt in the Exodus. Matthew suggests that Israel’s sojourn in Egypt was a pictorial prophecy, rather than a specific verbal one such as verse 6 (1:23). These are called “types” and all are always fulfilled in Christ, and identified clearly by the New Testament writers. Another example of a type is found in (John 3:14).

Every detail of prophecy was fulfilled, as we said in the earlier lessons. It is interesting to note, again, that Joseph, (the coat of many colors Joseph), who was a type and shadow of Jesus, was a refugee in Egypt as well.

Why Egypt? The Messiah was sent to and returned from Egypt so that the prophet’s words, Out of Egypt I called My Son, might be fulfilled. This is a reference to Hos. 11:1, which does not seem to be a prophecy in the sense of a prediction. Hosea was writing of God’s calling Israel out of Egypt into the Exodus. Matthew, however, gave new understanding to these words. Matthew viewed this experience as Messiah being identified with the nation. There were similarities between the nation and the Son. Israel was God’s chosen “son” by adoption (Exo. 4:22), and Jesus is the Messiah, God’s Son. In both cases the descent into Egypt was to escape danger, and the return was important to the nation’s providential history. While Hosea’s statement was a historical reference to Israel’s deliverance, Matthew related it more fully to the call of the Son, the Messiah, from Egypt. In that sense, as Matthew “heightened” Hosea’s words to a more significant event — the Messiah’s return from Egypt — they were “fulfilled.”