A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted, because they are no more

 

 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."  When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son."

 

Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male  children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.  Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:

"A voice was heard in Ramah,

Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning,

 Rachel weeping for her children,

Refusing to be comforted,

Because they are no more." 

 Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."  Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.  And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.  And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."

 

- Matthew 2:13-23  

 

Yesterday we read that after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?  For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."  When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.  And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.  So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:  'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah are not the least among the rulers of Judah;  For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.'"  Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.  And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."  When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.  When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.  And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him.  And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him:  gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

 

  Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."  My study Bible points out that Egypt is where Israel once took refuge; as Joseph of the Old Testament once saved God's people by bringing them to Egypt (Genesis 39 - 47), now Christ's stepfather Joseph finds safety for the Savior in Egypt.  It is probable, it adds, that the gifts of the magi paid for this journey.  

 

 When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son."   This quotation is from the prophet Hosea (Hosea 11:1).  It refers first to Israel being brought out of captivity.  In the Old Testament, my study Bible explains, "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.  

 

 Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.   My study Bible tells us that the cruelty of Herod was prefigured by Pharaoh, who, in an attempt to destroy the power of Israel, commanded the death of all the newborn Jewish boys (Exodus 1:16, 22).  

 

 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:  "A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted, because they are no more."   The prophet Jeremiah recorded the people of Jerusalem being led away into exile (Jeremiah 31:15).  On their way to captivity, my study Bible says, they passed Ramah, which was near Bethlehem, where Jacob's wife Rachel lay buried.  In his prophecy, Jeremiah saw Rachel, even from the grave, moved with compassion for the fate that had come to her descendants.  St. Matthew writes that Rachel once again is weeping for her children, and according to my study Bible, it shows that the saints in heaven have awareness and compassion for those yet on earth.  These slaughtered children are regarded as saints and martyrs in the Church and are known as the Holy Innocents.  Just as Rachel was told that her children would return from exile in Babylon (Jeremiah 31:16-17), so Jesus will return from His exile in Egypt.

 

 Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."  Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  According to historical records reported by my study Bible, Herod the Great died in 4 BC.  So, the date of Christ's birth on our current AD (Anno Domini, Latin for "year of the Lord") calendar is based is off by four years.

 

 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.  And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.  My study Bible cites Augustus Caesar having banished Archelaus for his cruelty in AD 6.  This cruelty, it says, was revealed as a warning to Joseph, hence the detour to Nazareth.  This town was in Galilee, and governed by a different son of Herod the Great, whose name was Herod Antipas (see Luke 3:1). 

 

 And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."  My study Bible tells us that this prophecy cannot be precisely identified.  It has been taken as a reference to the rod (Hebrew neser) in Isaiah 11:1, and to the Nazritie (Hebrew Nazir) of Judges 13:5.   It says that St. Matthew might also have been alluding to passages in which the Messiah was despised, since Nazareth did not have a good reputation (John 1:46).  

 

In these early "chapters" of Christ's life, we see that His entry into the world as Human Being was anything but simple and easy.  First of all, His pregnant mother and Joseph had to travel to Bethlehem for Caesar's census.  This cannot by any means have been an easy journey.  Then, for the Savior of the world, there was no place -- no place to stay and to be born.  So He was born in a cave, used as a barn for animals, where the shepherds, informed by angels, came to adore Him (see Luke 2:1-20).  As we have read so far in St. Matthew's Gospel, the wise men have made their way from Persia to find this Child born under a star which foretold a tremendous identity and destiny.  In Bethlehem they are brought before Herod to tell him about the Child, but they manage to escape Herod when leaving through divine warning in a dream.  This is after they bring Christ their gifts of gold for a King of the ages, frankincense for the God of all, and myrrh for One who is Immortal and yet will be three days dead.  Shortly after, based upon the information he was given by the wise men (or magi), Herod orders the death of all male infants under the age of two years.  But Joseph -- similarly to the wise men -- has been divinely warned in a dream to take the Child to Egypt, and so they must live in exile until King Herod is dead.  Then this holy family returns, but the fear of Archelaus, new ruler of Judea, keeps them from going to Bethlehem, so they turn to Galilee to establish themselves there, where Jesus will be raised.  As my study Bible points out, Jesus will meet with disapproval and suspicion, even contempt, because it will be known that He is from Nazareth, a town which holds little importance in terms of prophesy and spiritual history.  But that, of course, will come from people who do not know that He was born in Bethlehem, the city of King David.  So let us start here, with all of these difficulties, present in simply the first few years of Christ's life.  We should note, too, that they are difficulties for His parents, His mother and earthly guardian Joseph, who take all precautions and take on hardships to protect this Child.  What does it say about the Incarnation story?  If you and I were writing a story about the King of all, the Lord of the universe, come into the world and born on planet earth in the form of a helpless baby, what would we write?  Could we even imagine these difficulties?  Would we write such a story of exile, of being despised and being hunted?  Would we invent a story of the wise men who come to honor Him but who are also in mortal danger for doing so, and must leave the country by evading King Herod?  I hardly think so, for our ideas about majesty and grandeur are not compatible with God's plans and the truth of the Gospels, and indeed, of the whole Bible.  One thing we can say is that most certainly, in His Incarnation, Christ most definitely experiences the dangers of life that we are subject to -- and maybe even more so than most.  Even as an Infant, He's subject to the hatred and envy of those in power and who wish to simply kill Him because He is already a perceived threat.  There are those who come to adore and worship Him, and even His mother knows not simply to marvel, but that she "kept all these things and pondered them in her heart" (Luke 2:19), the way a loving mother pores repeatedly over pictures at various ages of her child, and landmarks in his childhood kept in a scrapbook.  Mary kept them all in her heart to ponder.   We can only imagine her distress to come after Jesus begins His public ministry.  But this is the story of our Lord.  This is the way that God has sent His Son into the world -- not to have an easy, simple, or comfortable life, but to share our fears, our dangers, our woes, our worries.  He shares our vulnerability to abusive power, to coercive military might, to cruelty, and to death.  He shares everything we share in a world beset by the effects of sin with which we cope every day, and the ongoing hatreds, lies, envy, injustice, and vicious behaviors we know and may experience.  He is also born into a world beset by temptations and the malice of demons, but that will become a special hallmark of His presence -- effects that will become immediately discernible to people once His public ministry starts.  But as we go on to read about Christ's life, let us first take a minute to consider these dangers and fears that we all experience that are already borne in upon Christ, even as a little Child.  Let us consider the sacrifices and love of His parents, and know that God's plan was not for worldly greatness, but for something quite different.  And in this inclusion in our subjection to the same difficulties and dangers, let us know that this is shared with us so that we are also born into a mission if we are His followers.  He did not come to be treated "like a King" but to show courage against the adversary, to teach us His way, give us His light and the Holy Spirit, so that we bring in a Kingdom into this world that is His together with the Father and the Holy Spirit.  We are invited to share in a mission with Him.  And when we face a world shaken by senseless violence, malicious hatreds, cruelty that we can't imagine, and a host of evils and effects that frighten and terrify, He has been here with us and this is somehow, in ways we can't imagine, a part of the plan.  Midst all this strife and even senseless things to our minds, we  have a role to play, something important to do, and the salvation of the world even perhaps depends upon it.  There have been countless saints, martyrs, confessors, and unknown faithful who have lost their lives and faced perils for the sake of His name and His gospel.  Let us take up His mission and know the power of His Cross, the courage that He gives, the strength of His truth, and the meaning even in His suffering and that of those who follow.  For God's ways are not our ways, nor God's thoughts our thoughts, but His Kingdom is ours when we meet Him at His Cross, and carry our own His way. Nothing we know of in history has had the impact of Christ and His followers upon the world; let us continue to seek His way with prayer and through the living faith He teaches.  And remember that even the sparrows are known to Him, even the hairs of our head (Matthew 10:29-31).

 

 

 

Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee into Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him

 

 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee into Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."  When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son."

Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.  Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:

"A voice was heard in Ramah,

Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning,

Rachel weeping for her children,

Refusing to be comforted,

Because they are no more."

 

Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."  Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.  And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.  And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."

 

- Matthew 2:13–23 

 

Yesterday we read that after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?  For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."  When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.  And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.  So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:  'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.'"  Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.  And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."  When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.  When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.  And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him.  And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him:  gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

 

  Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee into Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."  My study Bible comments that Egypt is where Israel once took refuge; as Joseph of the Old Testament once saved God's people by bringing them to Egypt (Genesis 39-47), now Christ's stepfather Joseph finds safety for the Savior in Egypt.  It is likely that the gifts of the magi paid for this journey of safety.  Note the importance of dreams of divine warnings in these readings of Jesus' early life, both in today's reading and yesterday's (above).

When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son."  My study Bible says that this is a reference first to Israel being brought out of captivity (Hosea 11:1).   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.

Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.  Herod's cruelty was prefigured by Pharoah, who, in an attempt to destroy the power of Israel, had commanded the death of all the newborn Jewish boys (Exodus 1:16, 22).  

Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:  "A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted,

because they are no more."  Jeremiah the prophet recorded the people of Jerusalem being led away into exile (the quote is from Jeremiah 31:15).  On their way to captivity, they passed Ramah near Bethlehem, where Jacob's wife Rachel lay buried.  In his prophecy, my study Bible says, Jeremiah saw Rachel, even from the grave, moved with compassion for the fate that had come to her descendants.  Here she is again weeping for her children during what is known as the Slaughter of the Innocents by Herod, which shows that the saints in heaven have both awareness and compassion for those yet on earth.  These slaughtered children are regarded as saints and martyrs in the Church and are known as the Holy Innocents.  Just as Rachel was told that her children would return from exile in Babylon (Jeremiah 31:16-17), so Jesus will return from His exile in Egypt.

Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."  Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  My study Bible says that according to historical records, Herod the Great died in 4 BC.   Therefore, the date of Christ's birth on which the our "AD" (Anno Domini, Latin for "year of the Lord"), more recently called "CE" (Common Era), calendar is based is off by four years.

But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.  And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.   Augustus Caesar banished Archelaus for his cruelty in AD 6.   This cruelty was revealed to Joseph as a warning in a dream; therefore he detours to Galilee, a region north of Judea.  At that time, succeeding Herod the Great, Herod Antipas (another son) ruled Galilee as tetrarch for Rome, and was commonly called "king" (see Luke 3:1).

And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."  My study Bible says that the prophecy referred to here cannot be exactly identified.  It might be taken as a reference to the rod (Hebrew neser) in Isaiah 11:1, and to the Nazirite (Hebrew Nazir) in Judges 13:5.  Matthew also could be alluding to passages in which the Messiah was despised, as Nazareth did not have a good reputation (John 1:46).

 

 In the early life of Jesus, as the God-man Messiah gets His start in the world, we see that nothing is easy.  In fact, it is quite the opposite.  Jesus the Messiah is born into a world of hostility to Him, and terrible cruelty carried out in order to wipe Him from the world.  His mother and faithful guardian Joseph must act constantly to protect the Child from harm, moving into exile in Egypt, even though He has already been welcomed into the world by the shepherds who were informed by hosts of angels (Luke 2:8-20), by the wise men or Magi in yesterday's reading (above), and received in the temple with prophecies by Simeon and Anna (Luke 2:25-38).  Jesus, hailed as King of the Jews, and feared by Herod the Great, has already faced terrible threats and hardships in His young life, and an immediate slaughter of innocent babes carried out in order to eliminate Him.  While we can look at the beautiful and extraordinary gifts of the Magi (gold, frankincense, and myrrh) as those which honor a King, they must have been used by Joseph and Mary in order to go into Egypt, as Christ is not born into a family with great wealth or status, even though His human lineage can be traced to ancestors from the Old Testament.  In all ways, the world's outward reception of the Christ is one of hostility; certainly this can be said of the powers of the world.  It resembles the way that Jesus will have to conduct His ministry, frequently withdrawing into Galilee and even to Gentile regions further north in order to avoid the Pharisees and other powerful leaders in Jerusalem after a conflict.  Contrary to current popular notions which reflect much more notions of magic rather than holiness, the birth of our Lord is not a story about splendid lives of great welcome and majesty in some material sense -- it is rather just the opposite.  Christ's life, and the lives of those who care for Him and protect Him, begin with hostility and hardship, exile and return to an obscure and unheralded place in which it is safe for Him to be raised.  If you or I were to plan this birth of the God-man Christ in the world, would we do it this way?  Could we possibly expect so much danger and hardship -- let alone obscurity in what was thought of as a backwater sort of town -- would accompany the entrance into the world of the Lord of lord and King of kings?  Even after twenty centuries, our worldly notions and expectations about holiness and grace and blessedness and God's favor still haven't quite caught up with God's plan.  For all along, salvation was planned as that which would transform the world, and a plan which transfigures through faith, and asks human beings to willingly participate in that saving effort.  It does not present the world as perfect and magical (or fully "fixed"); quite the contrary, there is power at work in the world -- both "otherworldly" and entirely human --  which is frequently evil and cruel and oppressive, and particularly hostile to the people of God.  As the multitude of hosts of angels and wise men from the East welcome Christ into the world, so the forces of power in the world oppose Him.   Jesus' early history, as my study Bible repeatedly notes, mirrors the history of struggle of the people of God, Israel.  Jesus is born of this spiritual history, and is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets, and His young life already illustrates indeed, in the fullness of its unfolding, that "salvation is of the Jews" (John 4:22).   But this time, the fullness of salvation, as it has unfolded through the history in the Old Testament, is now resting within one Person, this Child, the Son Incarnate, both fully human and fully divine -- and so all is on His shoulders, including the opposition of "the worldly" and the prince or ruler of this world, as we shall see unfold at the beginning of His public ministry.  We should take it to heart, for we who follow in faith must participate in that same life.  The history of the saints is filled with stories of suffering and hardship, humility and exile, and times of obscurity.  For now in Christ's life there is refuge in Nazareth.  Perhaps it is wise to consider the suggestion that out of the name of Nazareth we are reminded of the budding rod of Jesse, nurtured here in an out-of-the-way and overlooked garden, where He may grow until His mature manhood and the time to proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene"

Flight into Egypt - Gentile da Fabriano, 1423

 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."  When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son."

Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.  Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:

"A voice was heard in Ramah,
Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children,
Refusing to be comforted,
Because they are no more."

Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."  Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.  And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.  And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."

- Matthew 2:13-23

 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?  For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."  When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.  And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.  So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:  'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you shall come a Ruler who will shepherd My people Israel.' "  Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.  And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."  When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.  When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.  And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him.  And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him:  gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."   My study bible says that Egypt is where Israel once took refuge; as Joseph of the Old Testament once saved God's people by bringing them to Egypt (see Genesis 37, 39-47).  In this story of the infant Christ, his stepfather Joseph finds safety for the Savior in Egypt.  My study adds that it is likely the gifts of the magi (see yesterday's reading, above) paid for their journey.

When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son."  Out of Egypt I called my Son is a reference first to Israel being brought out of captivity (Hosea 11:1).  My study bible adds that in the Old Testament, "son" can refer to the entire nation of Israel.  In this case, Jesus fulfills this calling as the true Son of God by coming out of Egypt.

Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.  My study bible tells us that the cruelty of Herod was prefigured by Pharoah.  Pharoah, as does Herod, attempted to destroy the power of Israel by commanding the death of all the newborn Jewish boys (Exodus 1:16, 22).

Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:  "A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted, because they are no more."  The quotation is from Jeremiah, who recorded the people of Jerusalem being led away to exile (Jeremiah 31:15).  On their way into captivity, they passed Ramah near Bethlehem, where Jacob's wife Rachel was buried.  In his prophecy, my study bible says, Jeremiah saw Rachel, even from the grave, moved with compassion for the fate that had befallen her descendants.  Here Rachel is once again weeping for her children, which shows that the saints in heaven have both awareness and compassion for those still in the world.  It is also noted that these slaughtered children are regarded as saints and martyrs in the Church, and they are known as the Holy Innocents.  As Rachel was told that her children would return from exile in Babylon (Jeremiah 38:16-17), so also Jesus will return from His exile in Egypt.

Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."  Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  Historical records indicate that Herod the Great died in 4 BC.  The date of Christ's birth, upon which the current  AD (Anno Domini, Latin for "year of the Lord") calendar is based is off by four years.

 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.  And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.   My study bible notes that Augustus Casar banished Archelaus for his cruelty in AD 6.  Joseph was warned in a dream of this cruelty, and thus the family detoured to Nazareth (see the following verse).  Nazareth was in Galilee, a region to the north of Judea, across Samaria, and was governed by another son of Herod the Great, named Herod Antipas, who will yet reign during Jesus' adulthood and the time of His ministry (Luke 3:1). 

And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."   My study bible says that this prophecy cannot be exactly identified.  It has variously been taken as a reference to the rod (Hebrew neser) in Isaiah 11:1, and to the Nazarite (Hebrew Nazir) of Judges 13:5.  My study bible adds that Matthew may have been alluding to passages in which the Messiah was despised, since Nazareth did not have a good reputation (John 1:46).

Joseph brings Jesus and Mary to Nazareth, thus having avoided the dangers that await this Child.  As my study bible says, Nazareth did not have a "good reputation," citing Nathanael's question in John's Gospel, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"  Galilee itself was not considered of great importance to the Jewish tradition, being a place of mixed Jewish and Gentile population, and to the north of Samaria, away from Judea.  Even the Pharisees mistakenly assert that "no prophet has arisen out of Galilee" (see John 7:45-52), when in fact Jonah the prophet was from Gath-Hepher, which was a small distance from Nazareth.  But Nazareth itself was perhaps even less "stellar" than Galilee as a whole.   Any way we look at it, this childhood home of Jesus is a humble and out-of-the-way place.  When Jesus will encounter criticisms of His ministry, much of it will center upon the fact that He is from Nazareth, as it is unknown to the leadership that He was born in Bethlehem, the city of David.  But this humble beginning teaches us something very important and relevant to our faith.  St. Paul will write in 2 Corinthians, chapter 12 of the experience of visions and revelations.  He remarks that he knows a man in Christ who was "caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words," most likely referring to himself.  But then he adds that "yet of myself I will not boast, except in my infirmities."  All of this is prelude to write, "And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure."  This thorn in the flesh, about what exactly it was we can only speculate, he prayed to have taken away from him.  But he was told by God, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness."  (See 2 Corinthians 12:1-10).  All of this is to emphasize by St. Paul the great importance of humility in our relationship with God.  Christ's upbringing in Nazareth is wise in this respect.  Joseph himself is a man to whom great things have been revealed repeatedly in dreams (see the several instances in today's reading), as was the case of the earlier Joseph of the Old Testament.  By making their home in Nazareth, the Christ child is freed from the unwanted attention of the authorities in the "greater" cities and central capitols of Israel.  And Jesus' humble upbringing itself is also a key to our faith, as in Christianity tradition holds that humility is the greatest of virtues.  This humble place of Nazareth allows Jesus to flourish and grow, to become the Man He will be when He begins His ministry.  Thus we should all take it to heart that humility is first of all a foundational ground in which virtue may grow, and through which -- as in the case of St. Paul -- God's grace can take root and work through us.  John's Gospel speaks of those members of the ruling council who had faith in Jesus, but for whom the praise of men was more important than the praise of God (John 12:42-43).  In Mark's Gospel, when Jesus is questioned in the temple about paying taxes to the Romans, He is approached with the words, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and care about no one; for You do not regard the person of men, but teach the way of God in truth" (see this reading).  Nazareth, the humble town, was a place in which Christ could grow to be such a Man, who would accept the humble circumstances through which He would conduct His ministry, and the suffering and humiliation He would endure as Savior.  Nazareth, the humble and out-of-the-way town also stands in for the times in which we may need to withdraw from the attentions of the world at times, for our own spiritual, mental, and physical health.  To take a break from the competitions of the world allows us to nurture something good that may grow within us, to care for our souls, and to pay attention to God.  There are times, as with Jesus' life, in which we need withdrawal to protect what is being nurtured away from the dangers of the power of the world and its ruthless competition.  This is the great paradox of our faith:  the very fact that God condescended to become fully man -- even this Man of Nazareth -- is the teaching that is perhaps the greatest key to our faith.  That it is through our own humility, our acceptance and understanding of what it means to have the capacity to "bear a little shame" in life (in the oft-repeated phrase of the blogger Fr. Stephen Freeman), which enables us to live a life of grace and communion with God, a truly prayerful life.  Let us consider Nazareth, when we are confused by the judgment of the world and its conflict with the judgments of God -- and how God's love can be at work in us and through us.  The spirit of the humble, even of seeming failure, may be just that opportunity for what is truly valuable beyond all else. 

He shall be called a Nazarene

 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word, for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."  When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son."

Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all his its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.  Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:

"A voice was heard in Ramah,
Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children,
Refusing to be comforted,
Because they are no more."

Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."  Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.  And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.  And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."

- Matthew 2:13-23

In yesterday's reading, we were told that after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?  For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."  When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.  And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.  So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:  'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not least among the rulers of Judah;  For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.'"  Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.  And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."  When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.  When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.  And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him.  And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him:  gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word, for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him."  My study bible tells us:  "Egypt is where Israel once took refuge and was made captive.  As the Israelites fled from Egypt (Ex. 12:31-42), so Joseph flees into Egypt, by night.  It is probable the gifts of the Magi paid for this journey.  Some of the first steps of Jesus are taken in exile.  This is one of a number of instances in Scripture where God's people must elude civil power in order to do His will."

 When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called My Son."  This saying refers to Israel in Hosea 11:1.  My study bible also cites several other verses, and adds, "In the Old Testament the son of God is Israel; here Jesus is the true Israel.  He reenacts in His own life the history of Israel, without falling into sin."

Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all his its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.  Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:  "A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted, because they are no more."  Herod's ruthless cruelty is a sort of mirror image (a type) of action from the Old Testament, in which Pharaoh tried to kill all the male children of Israel when Moses was born (Ex. 1:16, 22).   The quotation is from the prophet Jeremiah.  My study bible says, "Jeremiah recorded the people of Jerusalem being led away to exile (Jer. 31:15).  On their sad pilgrimage to an alien land, they passed Ramah, where Rachel, wife of Jacob lay buried (1 Sam. 10:2).  In his prophecy Jeremiah pictures Rachel, who had long been dead, weeping even in her tomb for the fate that had befallen the people, her children.  Now, the mothers of Bethlehem weep for the slaughter of their children, the Holy Innocents . . . As Rachel was told her children would return from exile in Babylon (Jer. 31:16-17), so Jesus will return from His exile in Egypt."

Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead."  Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.  But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there.   Herod the Great (also known as a builder, who rebuilt the Jerusalem Temple to its magnificent proportions) died in 4 B.C.  My study bible concludes that the dating of the A.D. (Anno Domini, Latin for "in the year of the Lord") calendar was based was off by several years.  It says that "Archelaus was banished by Augustus Caesar to Gaul in A.D. 6, when the Jews, protesting the cruelty of Archelaus' rule, petitioned his removal.  That very cruelty is foretold by the Lord as a warning to Joseph; hence the detour to Nazareth, a town in Galilee governed by another son of Herod, called Herod Antipas."

And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.  And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."  A note here says, "This prophecy cannot be conclusively identified.  It has been taken variously as a reference to the Branch (Hebrew neser) of Isaiah (Is. 11:1) or to the Nazirite (Hebrew nazir) of Judges (Judges 13:7; see also Numbers 6:1-21).  Or Matthew may be alluding to passages which speak of the Messiah as despised, since Nazareth did not have a good reputation among the Jews (John 1:46).  Nazarene later became a designation for followers of Jesus, especially in the Semitic world, although 'Christian' was the more common name."  Many Church Fathers comment that the words "spoken by the prophets" indicate a general saying, and not necessarily a canonical single reference from Scripture (quoting one prophet); thus they generally interpret the sense that a Nazarene is a holy one, set apart; an alternative meaning is a "branch" or "flower" of Jesse -- also of the holy ones.

Again the events of mystery and paradox surround and shape Jesus' life.  We note His father, Joseph, who responds to warnings from dreams (as did the wise men), and departs with Jesus and His mother Mary, to exile in Egypt.  Of course, as my study bible points out, this exile is a kind of type of the exile of the Israelites in Egypt.  But we get a deeper sense, once again, of the conflict from the start between worldly power and the power of the Holy One.  And, once again, as my study bible notes, this is a parallel to Old Testament Scripture:  "God's people must elude civil power in order to do His will."  Again, in a parallel to Old Testament Scripture, all the male children are slaughtered, the Holy Innocents, by the ruthless power of Herod in order to make sure there is no threat to his throne.  In many traditions of the Church, these children are considered martyrs and saints.   Again, Joseph takes heed from an angel in a dream to return to Israel; yet another dream warns him not to return to Bethlehem.  And so Jesus is raised in Nazareth of Galilee, fulfilling a prophecy of holiness -- and yet this contains a paradox, a kind of mystery in its double meaning of the town's reputation among the Jews.  From the beginning, the Messiah's story is complex, shadowed by evil intent and harm from the official worldly powers, the hardship imposed on His parents to care for Him through flight and exile, the first martyrs are the children who are killed for His sake, and Joseph's final settling not in his hometown but rather in Nazareth in Galilee.  God's plan takes many people, many forms, a struggle and a kind of shadowy pursuit of Jesus from His birth:  there are those who also come from a foreign land to worship Him (the wise men of yesterday's reading), who are also outsiders.  Exile, the pursuit of evil forces, death, and still another type of exile in Nazareth, the outsiders who recognize Him (the wise men in Matthew's Gospel, the poor shepherds of Luke's), these are the elements that surround Jesus' birth, His advent into the world.  And then there are the dreams, and we understand that His protectors and those who recognize Him are the ones who are capable of being warned by God, who heed the voice of the angels, who have the capacity for this kind of discernment and understanding.  The world is populated in these stories not by miraculous perfection, but in the reality of Jesus' picture of weeds and wheat which He will use in His parables (later on in Matthew's Gospel).  From the beginning, our Savior's life is shadowed by evil and forces which malign Him, making His journey difficult and His parents' one of sacrifice and hardship.  There is slaughter and death, and a kind of homelessness which shadows Jesus all of His life, in which He remains in a kind of exile, even rejected by those in His hometown (recorded as Jesus' saying in all four of the Gospels).  This is a story that gives us the reality of the world, populated by those who would use and abuse power and position, who harm the good, and by those who can heed the voice of the good that calls them in all kinds of ways, and suffer for that good.  Can we see our world in His story?  Can we make the sacrifices we may be called to do for the good, for the reality of that Word that calls us in all kinds of ways?  Where does our loyalty lie, and how do we discern where it calls us in ways that no one else hears or knows?  Can we have that kind of faith?

He shall be called a Nazarene

Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead." Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee. And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene."

- Matthew 2:19-23

I have chosen a short reading for today, as we go through Christmastide. We begin with the Holy Family in Egypt, where they have fled because of Herod's murder of the children of Bethlehem, in order to destroy the Child King whom he fears threatens his reign (see The Holy Innocents).

Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, . . . A note in my study bible says here that "Herod the Great died in 4 B.C. The dating of Christ's birth on which the A.D. (Anno Domini, Latin for 'in the year of the Lord') calendar was based was off by several years." I think it's important that we understand the Bible, or any form of Holy Scripture, to be something much more than a history textbook. It's important to know the reality of Our Lord's life, the circumstances into which He was born. But if we base our understanding of life merely on a historical approach, we miss the entirety of spiritual and religious reality that permeates our worldly lives on so many levels of understanding. I once read a text that speculated on the origins of the Star followed by the wise men (see yesterday's reading, Wise men from the East). It focused on a particular day several years earlier than the traditional estimate on which there would have been a alignment of many planets in our solar system -- viewed together from earth's vantage point in that particular orbital cycle to form what would appear to be a blazing star. An interesting speculation, but the basis for our faith encompasses so much more, and impacts us at levels within ourselves that give meaning and power to our choices for faith.

. . . saying, "Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child's life are dead." In the earlier reading on the Holy Innocents (cited above), my study bible had an important comment: "This is one of a number of instances in Scripture where God's people must elude civil power in order to do His will." And so, we see from the very beginning of the life of Jesus an interaction with civil power that makes the birth of the holy into our world quite difficult. There is so much that pervades this story of Jesus' birth, giving them difficulties to surmount in order to bring the holy into the world: His mother's pregnancy before her marriagel her spouse, Joseph, must be a man of faith, who can accept an angel's word that comes to him in a dream; Elizabeth and Zacharias who were childless until old age, who are called to name their child a special name, not in the family. Mary and Joseph had to travel for the census when she is ready to deliver her Child, and because there is so much crowding in Bethlehem, there is no room in the guest quarters, and the child is laid in a manger. Finally, having heard the news from the wise men, Herod seeks to kill the child (and the wise men, too, are warned in a dream to avoid Herod on their return). All the parties involved in this story, who welcome the holy at work in their lives and being born into the world, have difficulties to encounter, to avoid, to endure as they play their roles in the Scriptures. We are not given a story of a perfectly charmed life, but rather the avoidance of the pitfalls of a difficult life in order to bring this fruit to bear in the world, the story of the birth of the holy among us (Emmanuel or "God with us").

Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel. And finally, in today's reading, the Holy Family can make the journey from Egypt to Israel, but there are still difficulties to encounter.

But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee. My study bible says here: "Archelaus was banished by Augustus Caesar to Gaul in A.D. 6, when the Jews, protesting the cruelty of Archelaus' rule, petitioned his removal. That very cruelty is foretold by the Lord as a warning to Joseph; hence the detour to Nazareth (v. 23), a town in Galilee governed by another son of Herod, called Herod Antipas (see Luke 3:1)." Again, Joseph is warned in a dream. We see the workings of grace repeated in this story and all through the readings that surround Jesus' birth: there are repeated warnings in dreams, including an angel that appeared previously in a dream to Joseph to tell him about the baby his wife Mary was carrying, the wise men are warned in a dream, and angelic messengers appear to Zacharias and to Mary. The Spirit also speaks through prophecy. So we encounter two important elements laced into all of these stories: the difficulties of human worldly life that are encountered, the burdens placed upon these individuals or persecution or social stigma; and the work of the Holy Spirit, of grace, which must be heeded through faith in order for this story of the birth of Jesus and the work of the Holy in the world to be completed. How do these two elements show themselves to be at work in our lives? This is the question that begs to be asked.

And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, "He shall be called a Nazarene." My study bible has an interesting note on this passage: "The prophecy here cannot be conclusively identified. It has been taken variously as a reference to the Branch (Heb. neser) of Isaiah (Is. 11:1) or to the Nazirite (Heb. nazir) of Judges (Judg. 13:7; see Num. 6:1-21). Or Matthew may be alluding to passages which speak of the Messiah as despised, since Nazareth did not have a good reputation among the Jews (John 1:46). Nazarene later became a designation for followers of Jesus, especially in the Semitic world, although 'Christian' was the more common name." We will see that even from the reference cited here in John's Gospel, about Nathanael's response to Jesus ("Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"), the birth of the Holy into our world is not one of easy, streamlined, problem-free life, but of difficulties and challenges, and the faith necessary to see them through and into the life of the Spirit.

All of this, of course, goes entirely counter to our human assumptions about how the holy should work in our world. One would think that with God's hand behind all that happens in a life, all should be smooth. The way should be paved with golden paving stones. But that's not the way that this story works and that's not the way the Scriptures teach us about life in the Way of the Holy in our world. Our Scriptures, on the contrary, teach us about this Light that is born with us, into the darkness that fills or overshadows our lives and our world. And it tells us much more than just about the difficulties, but about the necessity that shapes our choice to hear the holy, through those difficulties -- to receive, accept, and understand. All of those figures that people this story endure hardship and difficulties, whether they be from the civil authorities or social shame in some sense. Worldly coercive power via political or social pressures works against them - and in the midst of that, the holy: grace at work in dreams, via angelic messenger, the work of the Holy Spirit in prophecy. Spiritual inspiration comes via spiritual means through the difficulties and in the midst of them. And there we have our test of what meets humankind in the darkness and difficulties of our lives. Without their reception and follow through, we just wouldn't have this story. And that is where the great test of what makes this story or not comes through: how do they respond? Joseph, with his acceptance of the angel's message, takes Mary as his wife and cares for this Son. Mary accepts the word of the angel and "ponders all these things in her heart." Elizabeth knows and understands what is happening through her unborn infant son and his response to Mary's just-conceived child. And there is so much more. Without them, all these people who choose, symbolically, to be "God-bearers" as was Mary, there would be no story here. There would be no Scriptural event to teach us about the work of the Holy in our world, about how God works with us and within us and through us to make such a story. So let us consider then the two elements we encounter in life in this Scripture, in this world of people who seek to hear and understand, to be the light-bearers and help to bring that light into the world: difficulties or conflicts with worldly power in one form or another, and the action of grace which must be received, accepted and acted upon. Both elements make up our story in the Scriptures, and they make up, also, our encounters in our lives. Can we understand this midst our own desires for a care-free life? Can we find God in the difficulties, love midst our encounters in life showing us the Way? Ask, He said, and ye shall receive. Let us remember the man from Nazareth who asks us for our faith, love and trust -- and that so much also depends on our answer, on us. We remember, also, that to be holy, or sacred, is to be set apart. Time and again, we encounter in the Scriptures those who are set apart via exclusion and hardship, and it is faith they are called upon to heed. Jesus will call us all to invite to the table those who are excluded, in so many ways. To be set apart is not easy - but to hear the voice of the Shepherd is the work of those who would give birth to the holy. Can we do this?