Sermon on Matthew 2:13-23

Text: 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.”
14 So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, 15 where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
16 When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. 17 Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:
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.”
19 After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt 20 and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child’s life are dead.”
21 So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, 23 and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene.

In the opening scenes from Disney’s “The Lion King,” young Simba sings the song, “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King.” In this song, he complains about all the things that people tell him to do and that, one day, he will be able to make all the rules. He will be “Free to run around all day; Free to do it all my way.” He will be king. It’s easy to understand his feelings. What child can’t wait to be old enough to make their own rules? In one respect or another, we’d all like to be in charge and have people do things our way. This morning, as we consider this tragedy recorded in the second chapter of Matthew, we will talk about some kings. We see THE ONE WHO WOULD BE KING. 1. Herod Moves To Retain His Throne and that 2. God Moves To Establish His Son As King.

Just prior to our text, we have the account of the visit of the Magi, or the Wise Men. We recall that they had seen a star and believed that this star would lead them to a king. Since the capital was in Jerusalem, they went there and came to the palace of Herod. They asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” (Matthew 2:2) At this we read, “When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.” (Matthew 2:3) Herod was disturbed, because the Jews already had a king, but not one who was born a king. Herod had usurped the throne of David, and was not a Jew, but rather an Idumean. The Magi revealed that God had now brought about the birth of the rightful heir to David’s throne.

There was good reason for all Jerusalem to be disturbed when they heard this, because they knew what kind of man Herod was. To give you an idea of what Herod was like, we read in the history books that he had his brother-in-law, the high priest drowned, and then pretended to mourn at the public funeral that Herod provided. During his reign, he had become increasingly paranoid that someone would take his throne from him. He even had his wife, mother-in-law, and three of his sons put to death, because he thought they were trying to take his throne. We even read that, just before he died, he imprisoned the most prominent people of Jerusalem. He gave the orders that, when he died, they were to execute these prominent people to assure that there would be mourning in Jerusalem at the time of his death. Now, here come these men from the east and asked where the one who was born king of the Jews was! What kind of violence would Herod commit?

Tragically, we see the extent of Herod’s paranoia in our text. After they had learned from the Scriptures that the child was born in Bethlehem, Herod had told the Magi, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” (Matthew 2:8) But God, knowing the evil intent in Herod’s heart, appeared to the Magi in a dream and told them not to return to Herod, they went home another way. It is at this time that we read, “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.’” (Verse 13) Mary and Joseph might have thought that the world had changed with the birth of Israel’s new King. He’d been blessed by the prophets, worshiped by the Magi, and received royal gifts that changed their family’s economic status. But then came the angelic warning: Run!

Herod shows the extent to which he was willing to go to keep his throne. “When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi.” (Verse 16) Herod ordered the murder of all boys who were 2 years old and younger. This is not to say that Jesus was two years old at this time. Rather, Herod was giving himself a generous margin for error. He was going to make sure that Jesus did not escape. It is estimated that between 15 and 30 boys were killed. It is for this reason that December 28 is called “Holy Innocents Day” in the Christian church calendar. We remember these little ones who were killed simply because of their proximity to Christ. This is such a tragedy! Yet, we can take solace in the fact that the boys from Bethlehem would have been circumcised and, as such, were members of God’s family. Their place in heaven was assured by the very Messiah in whose place they died. Such was their martyrdom as the Holy Innocents, not dying for Christ, but in place of him.

What makes the murder of these little ones and the flight to Egypt to save Jesus even more tragic is the fact that Jesus had not come to the earth to take the throne away from Herod or any other ruler. We see this in the answers that Jesus gave when questioned by Pontious Pilate. We read in John 18:36-37: “Jesus said, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.’
‘You are a king, then!’ said Pilate.
Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.’” While Jesus clearly says that he is a king, he, also, said that his kingdom was not of this world. In other words, his was not an earthly kingdom. He had not come to be a king on earth.

This is not to say that Jesus is not a king. We are reminded of the vision of Jesus in Revelation 19:16, “On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.” He certainly is and always has been a king. But he did not come to be an earthly king. Rather, as we read earlier, “The reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” What is the truth to which Jesus testifies? The first part of the truth is one that is not pleasant for us to hear. It is the law’s condemning tones. We noted that Herod didn’t want anyone to usurp his throne. He wanted to be king. Haven’t we acted the same way when it comes to God? We try to push God off his throne and say that we are the ones who are making the rules. We act like young Simba at the beginning of our text. We don’t want to be told to do this and not to do that. Our sinful nature causes us to rebel against God. We want to be the kings of our lives. Any attempt to usurp God’s throne is sin. Because our God is holy and just, and will not overlook any rebellion, we rightfully deserve to be thrown outside his kingdom into hell, which is described as a place of “weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 13:41)

How thankful we are that Jesus did not come to the earth in all his power and glory as king. Rather, as we celebrated a few days ago, he came in a lowly manner as our Savior. He came to rescue us from our sins. Although true God, he became a human being so that he could live a perfect life in our place. He was always obedient and gave proper respect to the earthly authorities, even when they were acting unjustly. He lived a perfect life, and he has given that to us. We now have the requirements for entrance into heaven. So that our sins would be paid for, we are reminded of another time when Jesus was called a king, though it was meant in sarcastic tones. Pilate put this notice on Jesus’ cross: “JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” (John 19:19) It was there that our king, Jesus, fought the battle for us and won. Our sins were all paid for through his suffering and death. Jesus rose from the dead as our conquering king. This is the gospel truth to which he came to testify.

This is the king, who, through faith, has come to take residence in our hearts. He doesn’t come as a tyrant to make us his slaves. Rather, he has taken up his throne in our hearts to rule our lives through his Word. In that Word, he reminds us of what he has done for us. This revelation moves us to want to thank him. In that Word, we find ways that we can serve our king. Our king also protects us from harm and danger, whether it be physical or spiritual. He rules our lives, making all things in our lives work out for our benefit. We are not just aimlessly bouncing through life. Our king is guiding and directing our lives in the way that is best for us. How thankful we are that our Savior-King has come into the world.

Despite his best efforts to retain his throne, Herod was unable to do so. His life came to an end. The throne passed down to his son, Archaleus, who only reigned for 10 years. The fact is that kings have come and kings have gone. However, there is one King, whose reign has been established by his Father, whose reign will never end. He has already begun his reign, when he rose from the dead. He has established his throne in our hearts, when we were brought to faith. At the end of time, all people will see our King in all his glory. We have this pictured in Revelation 5:6. John writes, “I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne.” At that time, we will join all creation in singing his praises: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever.” (Revelation 11:15)