Stop Calling Jesus A “Refugee”
A sure sign of Marxist ideological indoctrination is the use of revolutionary rhetoric to describe Jesus.
Social justice manipulators of our day often claim that Jesus was a “refugee” just like the so-called asylum seekers who were flooded into the United States over the last 4 years. This concocted narrative is nothing more than a manipulation devised by social engineers that utterly ignores the historical and biblical context. Attaching the term to Jesus is an emotional manipulation designed to draw social capital to make Christians feel guilty so they’ll support radical Leftist political agendas.
Biblically, Jesus’ journey to Egypt was not analogous to modern refugee crises. Historically, the use of such language is anachronistic, imposing modern socio-political categories onto ancient events. But, it is a good example of the use of rhetorical tactics instead of a faithful representation of Scripture or history.
The term refugee refers to someone who is forced to flee their country due to persecution, war, or violence. Modern concepts of refugees arise from post-Enlightenment nation-state systems and international laws such as the 1951 Refugee Convention. Leftist groups like the He Gets Us campaign who apply the term “refugee” to Jesus are typically referring to Jesus’ flight to Egypt during Herod’s massacre of the innocents (Matthew 2:13-15).
Let’s dive in and find out the truth about this within the historical and biblical framework.
Biblical Context
The key passage often cited is Matthew 2:13-15:
“Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.’ And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, ‘Out of Egypt I called my son.’”
Three important points emerge from this passage:
1. Fulfillment of Prophecy: “Out of Egypt I called my son”
Matthew explicitly connects Jesus’ journey to Egypt with Hosea 11:1. This is a huge theological point because it identifies Jesus as the true Israel, reenacting Israel’s exodus from Egypt.
The journey is part of God’s redemptive plan, not a political migration or displacement caused by geopolitical circumstances.
2. Temporary Flight, Not Permanent Displacement:
Jesus’ family fled to Egypt for a short time, returning to their homeland (Nazareth in Galilee) after Herod’s death.
Unlike modern refugees who often face indefinite exile or statelessness, Jesus’ family maintained their connection to their homeland and returned as soon as it was safe.
3. Sovereign Protection:
The journey was undertaken under divine instruction and guidance, which emphasizes God’s providence rather than socio-political vulnerability.
This differentiates the flight from situations of desperate or forced migration commonly associated with refugees.
Historical Context
In the ancient world, Egypt and Judea were part of the Roman Empire. Jesus’ family did not cross international borders in the modern sense; they traveled within the bounds of a unified political entity.
Egypt had long been a refuge for Jewish communities, with established settlements such as Alexandria. Joseph, Mary, and Jesus likely integrated into these Jewish networks.
This differs significantly from modern refugee scenarios, where individuals often flee to foreign nations with significant cultural and linguistic barriers.
Labeling Jesus as a refugee imposes a post-Enlightenment framework onto an ancient setting and distorts the historical reality by suggesting parallels that did not exist. Jesus’ family’s journey was not one of seeking asylum under international law but a divinely directed retreat within a region familiar to their people.
Emotional Manipulation
Advocates of the “Jesus was a refugee” narrative often employ this label to evoke sympathy for specific modern policies or social causes. While Christians are called to care for the vulnerable (e.g., James 1:27; Matthew 25:40), this appeal misuses Scripture in several ways:
1. Reductive Narratives
Simplifying Jesus’ flight into a refugee story strips the event of its rich theological meaning. It downplays its connection to prophecy and redemption in favor of a politicized message.
2. Emotional Appeals Over Truth
The narrative is designed to bypass rational debate by framing dissent as a lack of compassion. By emotionally identifying Jesus with modern refugees, proponents seek to silence disagreement by equating policy critique with unchristian behavior.
3. Co-opting Christ for Political Agendas
Using Jesus to validate political positions risks subordinating the gospel to temporal concerns. It shifts the focus from the kingdom of God to human agendas, contrary to Christ’s teaching in John 18:36: “My kingdom is not of this world.”
Historical Misuse of Jesus for Social Capital
This tactic is not new. Throughout history, various groups have appropriated Jesus to lend moral weight to their causes. For example:
During the Medieval Crusades Jesus was framed as a warrior-king to justify military campaigns.
Enlightenment Liberals portrayed Jesus as a moral teacher who rejected supernatural claims to align with rationalist agendas.
Liberation Theology proponents have presented Jesus as a revolutionary figure advocating for class struggle, co-opting his message for Marxist ideologies.
One might be convinced that they’re doing good by associating Jesus with their modern political agenda. Not so. When ideologues and their uninformed followers reduce Jesus to the role of refugee, warrior, teacher, or revolutionary they are distorting Scripture and denying the fullness of our Lord’s person and mission.
A Biblical Response
The refugee narrative is a tactic and we ought to correct such ahistorical and unbiblical ideas whenever we encounter them. All that said, Christians are no doubt called to care for the marginalized. Scripture consistently affirms compassion for sojourners and the vulnerable (Exodus 22:21; Deuteronomy 10:19).
However, such compassion must be grounded in truth rather than emotional manipulation. Misrepresenting Jesus for political gain undermines the integrity of the Christian witness and does violence to the fullness of the Christological doctrine that Jesus is the incarnate Son of God in whom the fullness of the deity dwells.
Jesus’ earthly life surely included experiences of suffering, poverty, and rejection. But, these were secondary to his redemptive purpose. Labeling Jesus as a refugee reduces a complex and divinely orchestrated event to a modern political analogy.
Approach claims such as these with discernment, always ground your knowledge and arguments in Scripture, and faithfully represent the gospel. God does not need any help drawing attention to important ideas or spreading the gospel. As Christians, we ought to be focused on Jesus’ true identity as God, the Savior, and His true mission, which is to save sinners (Luke 19:10) and establish the eternal Kingdom.
Sources:
Calvin, John. Commentary on a Harmony of the Evangelists.
Guzik, David. Enduring Word Commentary on Matthew 2.
Schaeffer, Francis. A Christian Manifesto.
Sproul, R.C. The Holiness of God. Taylor, Charles. A Secular Age.
Scripture quotations from the ESV.
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