"And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee 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 into Egypt: And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.
Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.
But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life. And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.
But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts 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."
This lesson details how Joseph, Mary, and Jesus avoided the wrath of Herod by going into Egypt per God's instructions to Joseph.
Herod, the Jewish king, feared Jesus because he was afraid Jesus would take over his throne. That fear led to the slaughter of hundreds, or maybe thousands, of *babies in Bethlehem. The Jewish priesthood feared Jesus because they knew, that if in fact, Jesus was the Messiah, He would expose them for the hypocrites they truly were, destroying their cushy lives.
This lesson fulfills several of the prophecies concerning the coming of our savior, the Messiah.
Again, in order to fully understand this lesson, as well as all the others in the New Testament. Those who sincerely wish to understand why, and how, God dealt with the ancient Jews (His chosen people) the way He did, as well as those who might seek His presence today, the serious bible student needs to begin at Genesis 1, and read (study) through the final "amen" in the book of Revelation. This study needs to be prayerfully done with the Holy Spirit of God as guide.
*Archaeologists have recently unearthed the bones of hundreds of babies that were together buried in mass graves about the time when Herod was the king of Judea.
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