Matthew 2:21

21 And he, having risen, took the child and his mother, and came to the land of Israel,

Matthew 2:21 Meaning and Commentary

Matthew 2:21

And he arose and took the young child and his mother
He exactly conformed in every circumstance to the orders given him, with respect to the persons he took, the place he went to, and the expeditiousness of doing it; and is an example of ready and cheerful obedience to the commands of God, worthy of imitation. We may learn from hence, as well as from some other instances already met with, a reason among others, why, though Mary was a virgin, and even if she was to continue so, yet she must be espoused to Joseph as her husband; that she might have one to take care of her and her young child, and be a means, under God, of preserving, protecting, and providing for them.

Matthew 2:21 In-Context

19 And Herod having died, lo, a messenger of the Lord in a dream doth appear to Joseph in Egypt,

20 saying, `Having risen, take the child and his mother, and be going to the land of Israel, for they have died -- those seeking the life of the child.'

21 And he, having risen, took the child and his mother, and came to the land of Israel,

22 and having heard that Archelaus doth reign over Judea instead of Herod his father, he was afraid to go thither, and having been divinely warned in a dream, he withdrew to the parts of Galilee,

23 and coming, he dwelt in a city named Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled that was spoken through the prophets, that `A Nazarene he shall be called.'