The Five Dreams of Christmas

In Matthew’s account of Jesus’ birth, it is striking how many dreams are mentioned, and the significant roles each one played. Joseph had four dreams, and the wise men had one.

The Old Testament prophet Joel predicted:
It will come about after this
That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind;
And your sons and daughters will prophesy,
Your old men will dream dreams,
Your young men will see visions. Joel 2:28

This prophecy of Joel of the coming of the Holy Spirit was fulfilled on the first Pentecost after Jesus’ resurrection. Peter quotes this prophecy in his address to the people just after the Spirit was poured out, resulting in 3,000 people coming to faith in Jesus! But I think the dreams in Matthew may have been an “early installment” of Joel’s prophecy , prior to the Holy Spirit’s work on Pentecost and after.

God used dreams to speak to people throughout the Old Testament as well, for guidance and also prophetic revelation. But the Christmas story is unique with so many dreams that impact the events of the story.

Here are the five dreams in Matthew’s Christmas account:

Dream 1
Joseph assumed that Mary was pregnant due to infidelity, and planned to send her away secretly. “But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 1:20)
Joseph woke up and obeyed what the angel told him to do.

Dream 2
The wise men presented their gifts to Jesus. “After having been warned by God in a dream not to return to Herod, the magi left for their own country by another way.” (Matthew 2:12)

Dream 3
The very next verse describes the third dream, “Now when they (the wise men) had gone, behold, an angel of the Lord *appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to destroy Him.” (Matthew 2:13)

Dream 4
Joseph went to Egypt as ordered. We don’t know exactly how long they stayed there, but Herod’s death was not long after the birth of Jesus. Another Christmas dream: “But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord *appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and said, “Get up, take the Child and His mother, and go into the land of Israel; for those who sought the Child’s life are dead.” (Matthew 2:19-20)

Dream 5
When Joseph arrived in the land of Israel, he discovered some bad news: “But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Then after being warned by God in a dream, he left for the regions of Galilee…” (Matthew 2:22)

These dreams in Matthew contained very specific guidance.  They were God’s provision for protecting the new born Messiah from Satan’s attempts, through Herod, to kill him.  They demonstrate God’s concern and care for not only Jesus, but his human family Joseph and Mary.  God’s direct intervention through these dreams also emphasize the importance of the most significant event in human history, God, in Jesus, entering into our world to redeem us!

Dreams Continue…

God is still speaking to people today through dreams. I have experienced that myself. Tom Doyle, in his book Dreams and Visions, describes how Jesus is appearing to Muslims throughout the Middle East, revealing who he really is to them. Many are becoming followers of Jesus through these dreams and visions.

Many people are also experiencing “near death” dreams and visions, often with Jesus speaking to them. John Burke’s book, Imagine Heaven, documents many of these.

We all dream, and most of them are hard to recall later. Sometimes dreams are so vivid and real that we remember them. My test as to whether a dream is from God is like any other form of prophetic word: is the message consistent with the character of God as revealed in the Scriptures? Determining this takes prayer and reflection after having such a dream. It’s also important to write these dreams down in as much detail as you can remember.

God speaks to us in many ways; mostly through his written Word, but also through other means including dreams and visions. I encourage you to pray for “God dreams” every night, and that he would protect you from enemy onslaughts on your mind and heart.

Pray Psalm 4:8, “In peace I will both lie down and sleep, For You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety.”

Psalm 127:2b “…For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.“