CHAPTER NINETEEN/Joseph Protected His Family - Continue

 Happily, though, there were forces greater than Herod or Satan at work. How so? Well, when the visitors reached Jesus' house and saw him with his mother, they brought out gifts, asking for nothing in return. How strange it must have been for Joseph and Mary to find themselves suddenly in possession of "gold and frankincense and myrrh"-valuable commodities! The astrologers intended to go back and tell King Herod just where they had found the child. However, Jehovah intervened. By means of a dream, he instructed the astrologers to return home by another route. -Read MATTHEW 2:1-12. 

Shortly after the astrologers left, Joseph received this warning from Jehovah's angel: "Get up and take the young child and its mother and flee into Egypt and stay there until I give you word; for Herod is about to search for the young child to destroy it." (Matthew 2:13) So, as we noted at the outset, Joseph obeyed swiftly. He put his child's safety above all else and took his family to Egypt. Because those pagan astrologers had brough such costly gifts, Joseph now had assets that might help the family during their sojourn ahead. 

Next time: CHAPTER NINETEEN/Joseph Protected His Family - Conclusion

From the jw.org publications