Exiled in Egypt

 
Matthew 2:13-15 (NRSVUE) as it is written,

Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, 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.” Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son.”

The wise men had made the long journey to see Jesus, who by this time was close to two years old but definitely not a baby as is normally suggested and depicted. Herod’s decree evidences this fact; he had ordered the killing of every male child in and around Bethlehem, who was no more than two years old (see Matthew 2:16-18).

This atrocity of Herod’s slaughter of innocent children for his own selfish ambition was retaliation against the Magi’s deception. In a dream, they’d been warned not to return to Herod, so they left for home via a different route.

And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road. – Matthew 2:12 (NRSVUE)

So many of us ignore our dreams. We fail to see the messages they contain, instead we say things like, “Oh, it was just a dream.” But that’s a topic for another day.

Both Joseph and the Magi did not hesitate to act on the messages they received in their dreams. Without a clue as to what might be in store if they hadn’t taken heed, their responses were instant.

For Joseph, Mary and the infant Jesus, there was no time to linger, under the cover of darkness they fled to Egypt in exile.

Once a country of Jewish captivity, God used Egypt as a solace of protection for His beloved Son.

The Lord has made everything for his own purposes, even the wicked for a day of disaster. – Proverbs 16:4 (NLT)

God can and will use anything and anyone to fulfill His purpose.

Notice that everyone was forced to change direction, all the wise men and Joseph with his family in tow.

Immediately after God spoke to Joseph, he responded in obedience to God’s instructions. He neither hemmed nor hawed, he did not procrastinate, he did not turn over in bed and go back to sleep, he got up, took up and went.

Joseph left Bethlehem, to live in a land that was not his home. He was a refugee, a foreigner in a strange country. He was exiled in Egypt.

How many times has God spoken to you to leave a situation because of impending danger but you ignore the voice and stay? You stay because of your fear of uncertainty. You stay because of someone else’s experience in the place where God has told you to go. You stay because you still have hope that one day things will change. You stay because you simply don’t want to go. You stay because for you, God’s voice is not enough.

Beloved, God’s voice must be enough; He must be all in all sufficient for you. It doesn’t matter what is in the night because the dawn must come. It does not matter what lay ahead because God is already there; He goes before you.

“Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”  – Deuteronomy 21:8 (NLT)

On this spiritual walk, there will be uncertainties and transitions. God will lead you in a direction you did not see coming but even when your route changes suddenly or the path you’re on leads you into an unfamiliar place, or the road you’ve been traveling for years takes an unexpected turn or you have to immediately trek into a life of exile, remember God is with you every step along the way. Listen to His voice and trust His leading.   

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “Exiled in Egypt” © October 14, 2025