Father Snort

Brad Sullivan 2 Christmas, Year C January 3, 2015 Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church, Bay City, TX Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23 Mary and Joseph took Jesus from Bethlehem and fled to Egypt, fleeing for Jesus’ life, threatened by the murderous king Herod. This was not the first time someone from Israel fled to Egypt under the threat of death. Back before Israel was a mighty nation, there is Israel the man, whose favorite son, Joseph was about to be killed by his brothers because they were jealous of him. At the last minute, one of the brothers, Judah, decided to sell him into slavery rather than kill him, so Joseph was taken by to Egypt by some passing traders. Going to Egypt, his life was spared. Years later, Joseph had become the Pharaoh’s second hand in Egypt by predicting a drought and having them store grain to prepare. When the drought hit, Joseph’s brothers and his father, Israel, were starving, and so they fled to Egypt to escape death.