Escape to Egypt - December 31, 2022 - New Year’s Eve - Text: Hosea 11:1; Jeremiah 31:15; Matt. 2:13-18

This year during the season of Advent through Christmas and New Year’s Eve we have been looking at some of the Old Testament prophecies concerning the coming Messiah, including the promise to Adam and Eve, to Abraham, to David as well as His birth place, His travel to Egypt, and finding the New Testament passages that confirm their fulfillment in our Savior, Christ Jesus. This evening we conclude with Jesus escape to Egypt.
 

God, through the prophet Hosea prophesied, “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son” (Hosea 11:1). And Jeremiah prophesied, “Thus says the LORD: ‘A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more’” (Jeremiah 31:15). So, Hosea named the place to which Jesus was escape to safety, that is to the land of Egypt. And Jeremiah lamented over the sorrow that would take place.
 

Indeed, both Hosea and Jeremiah prophesied of the devil’s attempt to kill the Messiah, by the hand of Herod, even before His work began. Jeremiah expresses expressly the weeping of Rachel over her children because it was in the vicinity of Bethlehem that Rachel died during childbearing, giving birth to Benjamin.
 

The Gospel writer Matthew gives the account of the fulfillment of these prophecies. According to Matthew, “1Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, 2saying, ‘Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him’” (Matthew 2:1-2). The Magi or wise men from the East sought the Messiah, the Savior promised from of old by following the message of God in His heavens. Indeed, we are reminded when on the fourth day of Creation God created the heavenly lights and said, “14And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.’ And it was so” (Genesis 1:14-15).
 

Matthew continues, “When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him” (Matthew 2:3). So, the Magi revealed their quest to Herod and Herod, as Matthew tells, us was troubled and all Jerusalem with him. What Matthew means is that because of his  jealousy and paranoia, wicked Herod was afraid that someone may have been after his throne. He was known for killing any rivals even his own children and certainly as the Magi called Jesus the king of the Jews Herod would take this message as being the message of someone else wanting to take his throne.
 

Matthew continues, “11And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. 12And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way. ” (Matthew 2:11-12). And so after finding out where the Messiah was to be born, according to Scripture, the Magi continued their trip being advised of the probable whereabouts of Jesus by the chief priests and the scribes, as Matthew says, “4and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 5They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: 6“And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel”’” (Matthew 2:4-6). After visiting the Christ Child and after presenting their gifts, gold the gift for a King, frankincense the gift for a priest, and myrrh the gift for a prophet, recognizing Jesus as our prophet, priest and king, the Magi left by a different way.
 

Matthew continues, “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. ” (Matthew 2:16). Certainly some time, probably not much, but enough time for Herod to think the Magi had found the king and would have returned, he realized the Magi would not return, and so he ordered the killing of those males two years old and under, according to the time of the prophecy.
 

And Matthew concludes, “13Now 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’” (Matthew 2:13-18). God warned Joseph in a dream to depart to Egypt, perhaps to Alexandria, a Helenist, Jewish community in Egypt, where Mary and Joseph would find fellow Jews and relatives. And Matthew tells us this was all accomplished to fulfill God’s prophecy of Jesus coming out of Egypt.
 

What does this mean? As we rehearse the historic accounts of the life of Jesus we come to see even better that God is omniscient, that is that He knows all even before it happens and this is so because He lives in the eternal present. As we have been reminded and will continually be reminded, God knew that Adam and Eve would sin and that He would have to provide the propitiation for our sins even before He began creating the world, and yet, His great love for us is seen in that He created anyway.
 

God’s will is that all people are saved. The devil’s will is that all people suffer with him in his eternal condemnation. The devil hates everything that is of God and from God and all who put their hope and trust in Him. Thus, from his rebellion and being cast out of heaven, and having hell prepared for him, his whole existence is seeking to attempt to thwart God’s plan of salvation, beginning with his attempts at killing the Christ child.
 

So, we are reminded, once again, that we get it right when we point to Jesus. The world and the religions and philosophies of the world would point us to ourselves, to look inside ourselves, to attempt to appease God, etc., to seek to save ourselves by our good works or character. God’s plan of salvation does not depend on us, but on God; His promises, His working out their fulfillment.
 

Through one man, Adam, sin entered the world. God’s command and demand was simple, do not eat from the fruit. There was one Law, be perfect. We might say it in these terms which we often hear proclaimed by some who believe it is the way to be saved that is, “be obedient” and as we know, the man and woman could not be obedient. God gave a promise to Abraham, a promise with a heavenly eternal blessing without condition and an earthly blessing of being a great nation and people with a land with the condition of obedience. And they could not be obedient. God calls us to be perfect and to be obedient and we cannot. Through one man sin entered the world and yet, through one Man, Jesus, forgiveness has been paid for and given to all who believe. What Adam and Eve could not do, what the nation of Israel coming out of Egypt could not do, what we cannot do, Jesus did, perfectly, that is He was perfectly obedient for us, in our place. His obedience, His perfect life, suffering, death and resurrection purchased and won forgiveness and eternal life for us.
 

We are confirmed in our faith in Jesus as the Messiah as He and He alone fulfilled all that God promised. And now He sends His Holy Spirit to work faith in our hearts. It is the Holy Spirit who works through the very means God has given us, His means of grace, His Word, Holy Baptism, Holy Absolution, and His Holy Supper to give, strengthen and keep us in faith until Christ comes again.
 

As we conclude one year and are on the verge of beginning another so we rejoice in what a great and loving God we have. We see God’s great love in His creating us, in His redeeming us, in His giving us faith, forgiveness and eternal life. We see God’s great love in this fact that our salvation does not depend on us, but depends on Him and Him alone and indeed we know that He and He alone gives and does what He says. We may fail. We may fall for the temptations of the devil the world and our own sinful flesh, but Jesus never fails. He has won the victory and He gives His victory to us. And ultimately, He is the One who moves and stirs in us to rejoice and say, to God be the glory, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.