Anchor My Faith

Safely Back in Nazareth

Scripture: Matthew 2:23; Luke 2:40

In the previous lesson we left Joseph and his family on the road to someplace in Galilee. At this time the land of Palestine was divided into three parts: Galilee was to the north, Samaria was located in the middle and Judea was to the south. Joseph had heard that Herod Antipas was ruling Galilee and that he was a comparatively mild ruler and so Joseph decided he might find safety there for Jesus. In particular “. . . [Joseph] went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene” (Matthew 2:23 ESV).

The city of Nazareth in Galilee would be the residence of Jesus until he entered the work of ministry at around 30 years of age. Nazareth was a relatively small village located in the lower Galilean hills halfway between the Mediterranean Sea and the Sea of Galilee. Nazareth is where Mary lived when Gabriel visited her and where she became pregnant with Jesus. They went to Bethlehem to register and while there she gave birth to Jesus. If they returned to Nazareth, as Luke said in Luke 2:39, they would have moved back to Bethlehem because it was there where the wise men found them living in a house and from where they fled to Egypt.

It is not clear what Matthew meant by his comment, “spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled,” because there is no such prophecy found in the Old Testament. Commentators express different views on what Matthew meant, so we will leave this unsolved.

There is one more verse needed to properly finish this section and that comes from Luke: “And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him” (Luke 2:40 ESV). Notice the four things listed about Jesus as a child. The first two are physical: he grew and became strong. The second two are spiritual: he was filled with wisdom and the favor of God was upon him. Notice the parallel with John as a child: “And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel” (Luke 1:80 ESV). Jesus was greater than John in that he experienced “the favor of God” in his everyday life in an unusual and increasing measure. This will be pointed out later in Luke 2:52 (ESV): “And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.”

Now that Jesus is safely back in Nazareth, we come to the end of a short section. Our next lesson will begin a new section, which will focus on Jesus, at age 12, and his experience in the temple.

Prayer

Father, there appears to be times when one experiences persecution, that if possible, we are to move to a safer location, to retreat. Advancing the kingdom is a spiritual battle and requires front line workers as well as those supplying the needs to those willing or employed to face the enemy. The risk of harm is greater on the front line and many are chosen by God to give their lives in advancing the gospel; to find lost sheep scattered amongst the darkness; to expand the Kingdom of Christ.