The Escape to Egypt
Matthew 2:13-18 (NIV – Easy English)
13 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.”
Vocabulary to Learn
- Escape: To get away from a dangerous or harmful situation.
- Furious: Extremely angry.
- Outwit: To defeat or trick someone by being more clever.
- Vicinity: The area near or surrounding a particular place.
- Mourning: A deep expression of sorrow for someone who has died.
Grammar Points
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Imperative Mood
- “Get up, take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt.”
- Used to give commands or instructions.
- Example: Close the door, please.
-
Past Perfect Tense
- “When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi…”
- Describes an action completed before another past action.
- Example: She had already left when I arrived.
-
Indirect Quotation
- “Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled…”
- Reports speech or writings without quoting directly.
- Example: He said that he was feeling tired.