Sermon Tone Analysis

this account of a wicked pagan tyrant killing the male children and of Jesus escaping death by Joseph and Mary fleeing to Egypt cannot help but recall the story of Moses and the exodus.

Just as Moses was protected from Pharaoh’s plot to kill the Hebrew male children, so Jesus was saved from Herod’s massacre of the male children by divine intervention.

Furthermore, Egypt played a role in both Moses’ and Jesus’ escapes from death.

Moses grew up in an Egyptian household, which protected him from Pharaoh’s wicked decree, while Jesus was taken by his family to Egypt to avoid Herod’s violence.

This correspondence with Moses’ childhood tells us something important about Jesus’ future: the infant Jesus experiences divine protection from the evil rulers of this world because he, like Moses, is destined to save the people of Israel.

Indeed, as Matthew already noted, Jesus will “save the people from their sins” (1:21).

This account of a wicked pagan tyrant killing the male children and of Jesus escaping death by Joseph and Mary fleeing to Egypt cannot help but recall the story of Moses and the exodus.

Just as Moses was protected from Pharaoh’s plot to kill the Hebrew male children, so Jesus was saved from Herod’s massacre of the male children by divine intervention.

Furthermore, Egypt played a role in both Moses’ and Jesus’ escapes from death.

Moses grew up in an Egyptian household, which protected him from Pharaoh’s wicked decree, while Jesus was taken by his family to Egypt to avoid Herod’s violence.

This correspondence with Moses’ childhood tells us something important about Jesus’ future: the infant Jesus experiences divine protection from the evil rulers of this world because he, like Moses, is destined to save the people of Israel.

Indeed, as Matthew already noted, Jesus will “save the people from their sins” (1:21).

This account of a wicked pagan tyrant killing the male children and of Jesus escaping death by Joseph and Mary fleeing to Egypt cannot help but recall the story of Moses and the exodus.

Just as Moses was protected from Pharaoh’s plot to kill the Hebrew male children, so Jesus was saved from Herod’s massacre of the male children by divine intervention.

Furthermore, Egypt played a role in both Moses’ and Jesus’ escapes from death.

Moses grew up in an Egyptian household, which protected him from Pharaoh’s wicked decree, while Jesus was taken by his family to Egypt to avoid Herod’s violence.

This correspondence with Moses’ childhood tells us something important about Jesus’ future: the infant Jesus experiences divine protection from the evil rulers of this world because he, like Moses, is destined to save the people of Israel.

Indeed, as Matthew already noted, Jesus will “save the people from their sins” (1:21).

The account of the flight to Egypt also links Jesus with Israel’s exodus from Egypt.

Here we find Matthew’s second fulfillment quotation, : Out of Egypt I called my son.

This passage looked back to the founding of the nation, when God called his firstborn son, Israel, out of slavery in Egypt (; ).

Matthew views it typologically as pointing forward to this occasion when God rescues his beloved son Jesus from the tyrant Herod and later brings him out of Egypt (2:21).

The account of the flight to Egypt also links Jesus with Israel’s exodus from Egypt.

Here we find Matthew’s second fulfillment quotation, : Out of Egypt I called my son.

This passage looked back to the founding of the nation, when God called his firstborn son, Israel, out of slavery in Egypt (; ).

Matthew views it typologically as pointing forward to this occasion when God rescues his beloved son Jesus from the tyrant Herod and later brings him out of Egypt (2:21).

2:16–18 When the magi failed to return to Herod, he ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under.

Such violence is consistent with other ruthless acts Herod performed near the end of his life, including the murder of his own wife and sons whom he feared were trying to supplant him (see Biblical Background sidebar).

Yet, as horrific as the “Massacre of the Holy Innocents” was, it probably was not of the magnitude that is sometimes imagined.

Bethlehem in the first century had a maximum of a thousand people, and there were probably only about twenty male children under age two dwelling in the village and surrounding district.

It is not surprising that other historical works from this period do not mention this event.

As tragic as these killings would have been, they remain on a smaller scale compared to Herod’s other atrocities.

2:19 After Herod dies, an angel appears in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.

The mention of “dream,” “Joseph,” and “Egypt” recalls the Old Testament patriarch Joseph, who was known for having and interpreting dreams about the future in Egypt (; ).

Like the Joseph of old, Joseph the husband of Mary is associated with dreams.

An angel tells him in a dream to take Mary as his wife and name the child Jesus (1:20).

In other dreams Joseph is warned to flee to Egypt (2:13), told to return to Israel (2:19–20), and cautioned to go to Galilee in order to avoid Judea (2:22).

There are other parallels between these two Josephs.

Both have a father named Jacob (; ).

Both are persecuted—the old Joseph being sold into slavery (), the new Joseph having to flee from Herod.