Why Egypt?

‘When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. "Get up," he said, "take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him."’ Matthew 2:13 (NIV)

Why did God send His Son to Egypt? The obvious answer is to protect Him from King Herod who wanted to kill Him? But why Egypt and not another neighbouring country?

Egypt is a picture of the world? God sent His Son into the world to save the world. In the same way God sent His Son into Egypt to save Him. God could have chosen another way to save the world but He choose to do it by sending His Son to be part of the world, to live in the world and to suffer and die in the world.

When the family of Jacob were suffering hardships in the Promised Land God sent them to Egypt so that they could survive the famine. However, His people got too comfortable living in Egypt so God sent them hardship but they still did not want to leave. They were comfortable living in the world and they didn’t want to leave the world. God had to send Moses to lead them out of the world and back to the Promised Land. Moses was unable to lead them into the Promised Land. He could lead them out of the world but it took Joshua, the saviour, to lead them into the Promised Land.

As the Israelites lived in Egypt and were reluctant to leave it so are we in the world. However, we do not need one leader to lead us out of the world and a different leader to lead us into the Promised Land. We have one Leader who can both lead us out of the world and into His promises. That leader is Jesus.

The picture of Jesus going down into Egypt and living there for a time before He returns to His home land is the picture of Jesus coming down into this world and living among us for thirty three years before He returned to His heavenly home. I am sure that Joseph and Mary were unaware of the significance of going down to Egypt and residing there.

Jesus never returned to Egypt after He returned with His parents. Jesus has never returned to this world after He left here to go to His heavenly home. However, unlike Egypt, Jesus will return someday to this world not to reside but to reign. This world will not be the same after He comes to reign. He will reign in righteousness, mercy and holiness and His glory will fill the whole earth.

God could have protected His Son in Bethlehem or sent Him to any place on this earth but He sent Him to Egypt. He sent His Son into the world to save the world. And as He called His Son out of Egypt He will call His people out of the world. We need to be ready to heed that call.