Matthew reads, “When Herod died, an angel of the LORD suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.’” (NRSV, Matthew 2:19–20) Herod died in 4 B.C.E., so presumably Joseph and his family were in Egypt at least for a few months, but perhaps for as long as a couple of years.