and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.” Matthew 2:15

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“And he was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled, having been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, ‘Out of Egypt, I called my Son’” (CG).

The previous verse noted that Joseph arose from his sleep and took the Child and His mother and withdrew to Egypt. The narrative now continues with, “And he was there until the death of Herod.”

In these words, is a word found only here in Scripture, teleuté, translated as “death.” It signifies a finishing or an end. In this case. It is the termination of Herod’s life. As for the event itself, there is a problem with the dating that is explained by Albert Barnes –

“Herod died in the thirty-seventh year of his reign. It is not certainly known in what year he began his reign, and hence it is impossible to determine the time that Joseph remained in Egypt. The best chronologers have supposed that he died somewhere between two and four years after the birth of Christ, but at what particular time cannot now be determined. Nor can it be ascertained at what age Jesus was taken into Egypt. It seems probable that he was supposed to be a year old (see Matthew 2:16), and of course the time that he remained in Egypt was not long. Herod died of a most painful and loathsome disease in Jericho.”

Because of the unsurety of the matter, a general timeframe of a few months to a couple of years is the general consensus. As for the time in Egypt and their return to Israel, Matthew next says, “that it might be fulfilled, having been spoken by the Lord through the prophet.”

Matthew is stating that God foresaw the events and spoke of them in advance, using the prophetic word to provide His people with assurance that what came to pass was a part of His unfolding plan.

In other words, the dream that Joseph had, the flight to Egypt, and then the return from Egypt wasn’t something that occurred on the spur of the moment. Rather, it was intended to occur so that God could fulfill His own word concerning certain matters. As for what was spoken through the prophet, He was “saying, ‘Out of Egypt, I called my Son.’”

The words are a general citing of Hosea 11:1 from the Hebrew text –

“When Israel was a child, I loved him,
And out of Egypt I called My son.”

Matthew saw in the verse from Hosea a parallel to what happened to Jesus. None of the surrounding text follows this thought, and yet, it is repeated by Matthew because of the understanding that what happened to Israel as a type is fulfilled in Jesus, who is the Antitype.

Israel went down to Egypt (Genesis 46:3). Israel was called out of Egypt by the Lord (Exodus 3:8). Israel is the Lord’s firstborn son (Exodus 4:22).

Likewise, Jesus went down to Egypt. He was called out of Egypt by the Lord. Jesus is God’s only begotten Son.

The parallels between Israel and Egypt are seemingly innumerable. As one travels through the Old Testament, Israel is given as a type of the coming of Christ Jesus again and again. They are equated to a vine, while Jesus says He is the true vine. They were to be a sort of light to the nations, while Jesus says that He is the Light of the world. The temple was the place where God would dwell among His people. Jesus is the true Temple and dwelling place of God. On and on throughout Scripture, such patterns are seen.

But not all of them are explicitly highlighted in the New Testament. Rather, in citing the words of Hosea as Matthew did in this verse, it is a call for those who read Scripture to look for other such connections as well. Christ Jesus is thus the fulfillment of what Israel anticipated. In understanding this, and in looking for types and pictures from the Old Testament Scriptures, we can gain a fuller understanding of the Person and work of Jesus as detailed in the New.

Life application: One of the things about properly elicited typology from the Old Testament is that it helps settle what is to be considered sound theology in the New. In other words, it is argued in the church whether there is still a role in the world for Israel the nation or has the church replaced them, thus becoming “spiritual Israel.”

In properly understanding types and pictures from the Old Testament (such as Genesis, Joshua, Judges, Esther, etc.) it becomes perfectly clear that Israel the nation has a future role in redemptive history. Are dispensations a valid interpretation to be derived from Scripture or are they later-derived false machinations of incompetent scholars? The answer can be found in the types and pictures of the Old Testament.

Again and again, types are given to help us to understand what is considered proper concerning New Testament theology. The obvious question may be, “Why don’t we just get that from the New Testament?” But the answer is obvious. How many denominations are in agreement on almost any major doctrine? Very few.

This is because of biases, a lack of discernment, a lack of applying proper context, and so forth. Unfortunately, these differences exist, not because God’s word is confused but because we are. In every aspect of theology, there is one correct avenue. Old Testament typology, when rightly considered, will help clarify which avenue is proper.

Lesson: Read your Bible – both testaments. Read it often, meditate on it always, and consider what you are reading. It is a unified whole that has been given to us to know our Creator and what is pleasing to Him. Read your Bible.

Lord God, give us the wisdom and the desire to want to know You more. We have a short span in this life to pursue You and to refine our thinking concerning You. Forever is a really long time, and that is how long we will have to be in Your presence. And so, help us to strive for the eternal now, even while we are living out this temporary, trying existence. Amen.