Matthew 2:14Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

In His mercy, God turned Joseph's sorrows into joy, as He often does for all His saints, neither leaving them in constant peril nor in complete tranquility, but orchestrating the lives of the righteous through a blend of both. In this instance, too, He arranged matters accordingly. Consider: Joseph saw what the Virgin carried within her and became greatly distressed, suspecting her of infidelity. Yet, an angel quickly appeared, dispelling his doubts and fears. Upon witnessing the newborn child, Joseph was filled with profound joy. However, this joy soon gave way to deep sorrow; the city was in an uproar, the king was enraged, seeking the life of the one who had been born. Yet even this sorrow was followed by a fresh joy—the star and the reverence of the Magi. Then, fear and danger returned; Herod's pursuit of the Child’s life necessitated another divine warning for Joseph to flee, a circumstance unique to mankind, as the time for miracles had not yet come. Had the Lord performed miracles from infancy, He would not have been acknowledged as human. Thus, the temple was not merely constructed; there was a full-term gestation of nine months, followed by illness and birth, then nourishment and a lengthy period of rest, all leading to the proper maturation of humanity. This sequence was meant to unveil the mystery of creation more clearly. Were these signs meant only for certain individuals? For the mother, for Joseph, for Simeon, who awaited his end, for the shepherds, for the wise men, for the Jewish people. Had they desired to scrutinize the events unfolding at that time more deeply, they would have gained much insight for the future. If the prophets did not mention the wise men, worry not; they did not predict everything, nor were they silent on all matters. Had people been witnesses to occurrences of which they had prior knowledge, it would have led to immense bewilderment; similarly, had they been privy to all beforehand, there would have been no motivation to seek understanding, leaving no role for the evangelists to fulfill.

Let us also remember that just as God predetermined the destiny of the future through the sons of the Patriarchs, He has similarly ordained the future of the Church in the life of Jesus Christ. The calling of the Gentiles to faith, which arose from the disbelief of the Jews, is clearly foreshadowed by the Savior's flight from Judea to conceal Himself among the Gentiles. To prepare unbelievers for the grace of the Gospel, the Son of God fled the realm of Herod, His adversary, choosing as His sanctuary the dominion of exceedingly superstitious Gentiles. This is evident in the well-known collapse of idols upon the entrance of the Divine Child into Egypt, in accordance with the prophecy of Isaiah: "He shall come into Egypt, and the man-made things of Egypt shall be shaken from His face" (Isaiah 19:1). Additionally, the abundant grace that illuminated Egypt during the era of St. Anthony, Pachomius, Hilarion, and the numerous other hermits living angelic lives there is a manifestation of the Divine blessing that Jesus brought when He sought refuge from Herod's wrath.

This promise was realized when God instructed Joseph, through the Angel in Egypt, to return to Israel with the Child and His Mother; thus, God called His only begotten Son out of Egypt. It’s essential to recognize that just as the cloud that enveloped the Israelite people during their departure from Egypt symbolizes the Holy Spirit, the parting of the Red Sea represents holy baptism, and the rock that followed them signifies Christ (1 Cor. 10:4), likewise, the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt serves as a foreshadowing of Jesus Christ's own departure from Egypt and His return to Israel. For this reason, the Prophet Hosea, foreseeing this coming of Christ from Egypt, prophesied to those who were to announce it; and the Evangelist Matthew, clarifying the profound words of Hosea, connected them to both the anticipated event and its fulfillment, stating: "Out of Egypt I called My Son." This encapsulates the meaning of Hosea’s prophetic utterance. As he illustrates this, the Evangelist also recounts the events that unfolded when Joseph, with the Child and His Mother, arrived in Egypt.

“Picture,” says Innocent, Archbishop of Kherson, “a holy elder suddenly rising from his humble bed in the still of night; envision how, moved by the message from the Angel, he approaches with trembling steps the slumbering Child, gently waking Her; how he humbly informs Her of the urgent need to leave not just their home, but their native land, and travel to Egypt under the cover of darkness, before the night’s coolness gives way to the sweltering heat; how he immediately prepares for the journey, gathering a few essential belongings; how the Mother, unfamiliar with the shifting sands of the barren desert, cradles the sleeping Child in her arms and mounts the modest beast; how the elder follows beside Her, anxious in his steps, all of this shrouded in the darkness of night... What a moving scene! How profound their commitment to obeying God’s will!”

The gifts from the Magi provided them the necessary funds for their journey. Ultimately, their faith in God—along with belief in the value of the Child’s life, which was already evident through remarkable occurrences—overcame all fears and trepidations. Thus, Joseph immediately departed for Egypt with Mary and the Child that same night, as indicated by Matthew the Evangelist, likely the very night of his dream.

Meanwhile, Jerusalem was in turmoil—the king, and even the lowliest citizen, was anxious. Herod, in particular, grew increasingly impatient, anxiously awaiting news from the Magi about their expedition’s outcome. Others were preoccupied with various anticipations: some experienced dread concerning Herod, others felt joy and quiet confidence in God’s Providence, believing that the long-awaited truth would soon be revealed, and still others were simply curious to witness the unfolding events. Yet, none of their expectations came to fruition. The ruler, further agitated by the thought of a rival to his throne, ordered the massacre of all male infants in Bethlehem and its vicinity, targeting those up to two years old. This brutal command was executed with such swiftness that many parents could not shield their children from the tyrant's onslaught. Those who had previously heard of Jesus from trustworthy witnesses—even those who had witnessed Him themselves—were left in uncertainty about His fate, as Joseph had departed from Bethlehem in haste and with little warning.

Tradition later embellishes the narrative of Jesus’ flight to Egypt and his time there with miraculous accounts. Eusebius and Athanasius report that the idols of Egypt fell before Jesus, seeing this as a fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy (Isaiah 19:1). Sozomen recounts that in Hermopolis, a revered tree at the city gates bowed down when Jesus entered, and its branches subsequently provided healing remedies until Julian's decree led to its destruction. The Gospel of the Infancy details several miraculous events: 1) upon entering Egypt, the city's inhabitants encountered a disturbance and consulted their priest, who, upon inquiry, saw their idol fall, proclaiming that the true God had come; he also witnessed his demon-possessed son delivered after inadvertently touching Jesus’ veil, with demons fleeing as birds and serpents. 2) Holy travelers inadvertently stumbled upon robbers, who were frightened away by the noise accompanying Joseph and Jesus. 3) In another town, Mary healed a woman afflicted by demons. 4) A newlywed woman, deprived of her speech through witchcraft, regained it through her continuous grasp of the Child. 5) In another location, a woman was released from an evil spirit in a serpent’s form, and from the water she used to wash Jesus, a leprous girl traveling with them was cured. 6) A governor's son in another town received help in overcoming his struggles with marriage. 7) A man who had recently wed found resolution to intrusions disrupting his marriage. 8) In another place, a brother transformed into a donkey by envy was restored to his sisters, regaining his humanity upon the touch of the infant, which prompted a marriage with the maiden who had accompanied him. 9) While journeying, they encountered two robbers, one of whom respected Jesus and paid the other not to rob them; Mary sought forgiveness for him, and Jesus foretold they would hang alongside Him. 10) An idol city was transformed into sand dunes. 11) At a sycamore tree, Jesus caused a spring to emerge where Mary bathed His clothing, leading to the birth of balsam in that land.

The account of Jesus’ travels notes that “Joseph and his mother and child came to Memphis; they saw Pharaoh here; they were in Egypt three years; Jesus did many miracles here, which, however, are not recorded either in the Gospel of Childhood or in the Gospel of the Perfect.” However, the specific details of this period remain uncertain and include many implausible elements. If Jesus intended to conceal His miraculous power, why did He retreat to Egypt? With the same authority, He could have defended Himself in Judea, where He vanquished idolatry. Consequently, the full span of Jesus' time in Egypt, including the duration of His stay, remains largely a mystery to us.

Nevertheless, he said nothing, for he was a faithful servant, showing no curiosity about when they might return. Chrysostom addresses the somewhat perplexing query of why Christ did not protect Himself from Herod's assassins by saying, "If the Lord had begun to perform miracles from His earliest days, He would not have been recognized as Man." The prophecy of Hosea, "Out of Egypt have I called My Son" (Hosea 11:1), originally refers to the Exodus of the Israelite people led by Moses, where the Son of God symbolizes the entire nation of Israel, making it difficult to apply this scripture directly to Christ's situation.