Daily Blast - The Book of Matthew: Chapter 2
Scripture
“19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt. 20 “Get up!” the angel said. “Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead.”
21 So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel with Jesus and his mother. 22 But when he learned that the new ruler of Judea was Herod’s son Archelaus, he was afraid to go there. Then, after being warned in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee. 23 So the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth. This fulfilled what the prophets had said: “He will be called a Nazarene.”
Reflection
Today we are continuing with Matthew looking at Chapter 2. By this point, Jesus has been born and is about to be visited by the wise men. The first part of Chapter 2 (V1-12) is the wise men’s visit to Herod. As we know Herod was furious to find out that there was a newborn king. He told the wise men to find the new king and let him know where He was so that he may go and worship Him too. We all know that Herod did not want to worship Jesus, he wanted to get rid of his opposition. The wise men visited Jesus but when it was time to leave, they went home via another route avoiding Herod’s place just as instructed by an angel.
In the second part of Chapter 2 (v13-18), an angel also appears to Joseph in a dream warning him that Herod wanted to kill Jesus and instructing him to flee with Jesus and Mary to Egypt until Herod died.
The third and final part of Chapter 2 (v19-23) is about returning to Nazareth. After Herod died an angel appeared to Joseph telling him it was safe for him and his family to return to Nazareth. Joseph was hesitant to return as Herod’s son had taken the throne but after being warned in a dream, he and the family went back to Nazareth.
One thing that really stood out to me in this chapter was the way that Joseph and the wise men obediently followed the instructions from God. They clearly responded to what God was asking them to do and as a result, God’s plan was fulfilled. I wonder how often we recognise God’s voice and have the courage to follow His direction.
Sometimes we can be like Joseph and a little hesitant to follow God’s voice. What we need to remember God works for the good of His people and if He is telling you to do something or go somewhere it is because He has a plan that will enable you to grow and prosper.
Challenge
The challenge for today is to stop, turn off distractions, and get quiet with God. I wonder what He wants to say to you. Remember God can speak to us in different ways, for some it might be an audible voice, but for others it might be through thought, feeling, mental picture, a wise word from someone else, or a Bible verse.