New Testament · Gospel

Matthew 2:20

The Magi and the Escape

“Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and go to the land of Israel, for those seeking the Child’s life are now dead.” Matthew 2:20 · Berean Standard Bible
What It Means

Matthew 2:20, in plain English

The angel's words are almost identical to what God told Moses centuries earlier: the people who wanted to kill you are dead. Go home. Jesus's story echoes Moses's story at every turn.

Why it's here

Joseph had been waiting in Egypt for this word. Now the way was clear. The family could finally go home to Israel.

Who's speaking

The angel gives Joseph the all-clear to return home.

Where it sits in the story

God's deliverance is a pattern in Scripture: exile, waiting, then a word of freedom. It happens for Moses, for Israel, and now for Jesus.

A Closer Look

The scholarly reading

The plural 'those seeking the Child's life' (hoi zetountes ten psychen tou paidiou) echoes Exodus 4:19, where God tells Moses to return to Egypt because 'those seeking your life are dead.' The Moses-Jesus parallel is unmistakable.

Language and setting

Matthew deliberately frames Jesus's return from Egypt using Exodus language, reinforcing the typological identification of Jesus as the new Moses.

Voice

The angel of the Lord speaking to Joseph in Egypt.

Significance

Just as Moses returned to Egypt after his enemies died, Jesus returns to Israel. The new Exodus is underway.

In context

Matthew 2:18–22

18“A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.”

19After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.

20“Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and go to the land of Israel, for those seeking the Child’s life are now dead.”

21So Joseph got up, took the Child and His mother, and went to the land of Israel.

22But when he learned that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee,

Read all of Matthew 2 — Foreign stargazers arrive bearing gifts while a jealous king plots murder. From the start, following Jesus means danger.

Understand every verse, not just this one

This page covers one. BibleKey does all 31,102 — tap any verse for its meaning, any word for its Hebrew or Greek root, and keep reading without leaving the chapter.

Get BibleKey

Understand every verse.

Not just the famous ones. BibleKey is free on iPhone and iPad.

Download on the App Store

Free on iPhone & iPad