Flight into Egypt

==Matthew's gospel account==
[[Image:Fra bartolomeo 10 Rest on the Flight into Egypt.jpg|thumb|right|[[Fra Bartolomeo]], ''Rest on the Flight into Egypt'', c. 1500 ([[Pienza]])]]
[[File:De vlucht naar Egypte.jpg|thumb|Print of the flight into Egypt. Made by Johannes Wierix.<ref>{{Cite web|title=De vlucht naar Egypte|url=https://lib.ugent.be/viewer/archive.ugent.be:416E2300-A6A8-11E6-B1A4-293ED43445F2#?c=&m=&s=&cv=&xywh=-1594,-226,6054,4508|access-date=2020-10-02|website=lib.ugent.be}}</ref>]]

===The flight from Herod===
When the Magi came in search of Jesus, they went to [[Herod the Great]] in Jerusalem to ask where to find the newborn "King of the Jews".  Herod became paranoid that the child would threaten his throne, and sought to kill him ({{bibleverse-nb||Matthew|2:1–8|KJV}}).  Herod initiated the [[Massacre of the Innocents]] in hopes of killing the child ([[Matthew 2:16]]). But an [[angel]] appeared to [[St. Joseph's dreams|Joseph in a dream]] and warned him to take Jesus and his mother into Egypt ([[Matthew 2:13]]).

Egypt was a logical place to find refuge, as it was outside the dominions of King Herod, but both Egypt and Judea were part of the [[Roman Empire]], linked by a coastal road known as "[[Via Maris|the way of the sea]]",<ref>{{cite book|first=Victor W.|last=Von Hagen|page=106|title=The Roads that Led to Rome published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson 1967}}</ref> making travel between them easy and relatively safe.

===Return from Egypt===
{{Main|Return of the family of Jesus to Nazareth}}
[[File:Jordaens Return of the Holy Family from Egypt.jpg|thumb|left|240px|''The Return of the Holy Family from Egypt'' by [[Jacob Jordaens]] (c. 1616)]]

After a time, the holy family returned from Egypt. The text states that Herod had died. Herod is believed to have died in 4 BC, and while Matthew does not mention how, the Jewish historian [[Josephus]] vividly relates a gory death.

The land that the holy family return to is identified as ''Judah'', the only place in the entire New Testament where ''Judah'' acts as a geographic description of the whole of [[Kingdom of Judah|Judah]] and [[Galilee]] ([[Matthew 2:20]]), rather than referring to a collection of religious people or the Jewish people in general. It is, however, to Judah that they are described as initially returning, although upon discovering that [[Herod Archelaus|Archelaus]] had become the new king, they went instead to Galilee. Historically, Archelaus was such a violent and aggressive king that in the year 6 AD he was [[deposition (politics)|deposed]] by the Romans, in response to complaints from the population. 

===Prophecy of Hosea===
{{see|Hermeneutics|Pardes (Jewish exegesis)}}
[[Matthew 2:15]] cites [[Hosea]] {{bibleverse-nb||Hosea|11:1|HE}} as prophetically fulfilled in the return of Joseph, Mary and Jesus from Egypt: <blockquote>"... and out of Egypt I called My son".</blockquote>

Matthew's use of Hosea 11:1 has been explained in several ways. A [[sensus plenior]] approach states that the text in [[Book of Hosea|Hosea]] contains a meaning intended by God and acknowledged by Matthew, but unknown to Hosea. A [[Typology (theology)|typological]] reading interprets the fulfillment as found in the national history of Israel and the antitypical fulfillment as found in the personal history of Jesus. Matthew's use of typological interpretation may also be seen in his use of [[Isaiah]] {{bibleverse-nb||Isaiah|7:14|HE}} and {{bibleverse-nb||Isaiah|9:1|HE}}, and [[Jeremiah]] {{bibleverse-nb||Jeremiah|31:15|HE}}. Thus according to the ''Ignatius Catholic Study Bible'', "Hosea 11.1 points back to the Exodus, where God's 'first-born son' (Ex 4:22), Israel, was delivered from slavery under the oppressive Pharaoh. Matthew sees this text also pointing forward, when Jesus, the eternal first-born Son (Rom 8:29), is delivered from the tyrant Herod and later brought out of Egypt (2:21)."<ref>''Ignatius Catholic Study Bible, New Testament'' (2010). San Francisco: Ignatius Press. p. 9. {{ISBN|978-1586174842}}</ref> Likewise, ''The Orthodox Study Bible'' states that the citation of Hosea 11.1 "refers first to Israel being brought out of captivity. In the Old Testament 'son' can refer to the whole nation of Israel. Here Jesus fulfills this calling as the true Son of God by coming out of Egypt.<ref>''The Orthodox Study Bible'' (2008). Nashville: Thomas Nelson. p. 1268. {{ISBN|978-0718003593}}</ref> The Anglican scholar [[N. T. Wright]] has pointed out that "The narrative exhibits several points of contact with exodus and exile traditions where Jesus' infancy recapitulates a ''new exodus'' and the ''end of exile'', marking him out further as the true representative of Israel."<ref>Wright, N. T. and Michael F. Bird (2019). ''The New Testament in its World''. London: SPCK; Grand Rapids: Zondervan Academic. p. 590. {{ISBN|978-0310499305}}</ref>
[[File:Adorazione dei Magi by Gentile da Fabriano - Predella.jpg|thumbnail|388px|''Flight into Egypt'', by [[Gentile da Fabriano]] (1423)]]
Another reading of Hosea's prophetic declaration is that it only recounts God summoning of the nation of Israel out of Egypt during [[the Exodus]], referring to Israel as God's ''son'' in accordance with [[Moses]]' declaration to Pharaoh: <blockquote>"Israel is my first-born son; let my son go, that he may serve me" ({{bibleverse||Exodus|4:22–23|HE}}).</blockquote> The [[Masoretic Text]] reads ''my son'', whereas the [[Septuagint]] reads ''his sons'' or ''his children'';<ref>[http://biblehub.com/sepd/hosea/11.htm Brenton's Septuagint Translation of Hosea 11], accessed 4 December 2016</ref> the Masoretic Text is to be preferred, the singular being both consonant with the other words which are in the singular in Hosea 11:1 and with the reference to Exodus 4:22–23. The Septuagint reading may be explained as having been made to conform to the [[plural]]s of {{bibleverse||Hosea|11:2|HE}}, ''they'' and ''them''.