Sharper Iron — The Reign of Heaven Stands Near – Matthew 2:13-23: God Brings His Son Out of Egypt

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God will not allow Herod to kill the Christ as a baby, so the Lord sends His angel to Joseph so that he will take Mary and Jesus to safety in Egypt. This fulfills the Word of God from Hosea 11, showing Jesus to be the people of Israel reduced to one Man. Herod’s foiled plan leads to murderous rage, and he kills the boys of Bethlehem in an attempt to kill Jesus. Even in such evil actions, however, the Scriptures show that the Lord remains present for His mourning people. For all Herod’s raging, he still dies, and the Lord brings Joseph, Mary, and Jesus back to the land of Israel, where they settle in Nazareth. This too fulfills the Word of the Lord that the Christ would be despised by men.

Rev. Nate Hill, pastor at St. Michael’s Lutheran Church in Winchester, TX, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Matthew 2:13-23.

To learn more about St. Michael’s Lutheran, visit stmichaelswinchester.org.

“The Reign of Heaven Stands Near” is a series on Sharper Iron that studies the Gospel according to St. Matthew. The first evangelist proclaims that God has fulfilled His Old Testament promises by sending Jesus to bring the reign of the heavens among us. As the Son of David, Jesus is the gracious King we need, and as the Son of Abraham, Jesus is the blessing to all the families of the earth.

Sharper Iron, hosted by Rev. Timothy Appel, looks at the text of Holy Scripture both in its broad context and its narrow detail, all for the sake of proclaiming Christ crucified and risen for sinners. Two pastors engage with God’s Word to sharpen not only their own faith and knowledge, but the faith and knowledge of all who listen. Pastor Appel serves at Faith Lutheran Church in Godfrey, IL. Learn more at flcgodfrey.org. Submit comments or questions to: listener@kfuo.org

Sharper Iron is underwritten by Lutheran Church Extension Fund. Together in faith, LCEF helps to start, sustain and strengthen LCMS ministries through financial and strategic partnerships. Visit lcef.org.

Matthew 2:13-23

The Flight to Egypt

[13] 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.” [14] And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt [15] 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.”

Herod Kills the Children

[16] Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. [17] Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah:

[18] “A voice was heard in Ramah,

weeping and loud lamentation,

Rachel weeping for her children;

she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.”

The Return to Nazareth

[19] But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, [20] saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.” [21] And he rose and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. [22] But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee. [23] And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene.