Nazareth was the Galilean town where Jesus was brought up.
It was small enough that Nathanael asked whether anything good could come from there.
The prophets had said the Messiah would be called a Nazarene, and the Gospels take care to show that the Holy Family returned there after Egypt.
From Nazareth the true Light of the world stepped into public view.
Luke says the angel Gabriel was sent to a virgin in Nazareth of Galilee, betrothed to Joseph of the house of David. After the birth in Bethlehem and the flight into Egypt, Joseph was warned in a dream and withdrew to the district of Galilee. He went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled: He shall be called a Nazarene.
Jesus grew there in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. When He began His ministry He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up, and on the Sabbath He stood up in the synagogue to read. He opened Isaiah and said the Scripture was fulfilled in their hearing. The town that knew His family took offense and tried to throw Him down from the hill. He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief. Yet the name stuck.
He was Jesus of Nazareth, the Nazarene, the name written above the cross and the name by which the apostles healed and preached.
- Nazareth is the hometown of Jesus’ hidden years.
- Bethlehem is the city of David; Nazareth is the place of upbringing and of early rejection.
- “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” is answered by “Come and see.”
- Jesus read Isaiah in the Nazareth synagogue and claimed the fulfillment.
- Familiarity without faith became offense; a prophet is not without honor except in his hometown.
- The title Nazarene is not an insult the church need hide. It is part of the promised story.
- The risen Lord is still Jesus of Nazareth, whom God made both Lord and Christ.
- Town of the Annunciation – Gabriel was sent to Mary in Nazareth of Galilee.
- Home after Egypt – Joseph settled there, fulfilling the prophetic word that He would be called a Nazarene.
- Years of Growth – Jesus was subject to His parents and increased in wisdom and stature.
- Synagogue Rejection – He preached grace and judgment; they rose up and drove Him out.
- Unbelief – Few mighty works were done there because they took offense at Him.
- Public Name – Jesus of Nazareth became the name used by friends, enemies, and apostles.
- Hill and Town – Built among the hills of Galilee, near enough to Cana and the lake for the ministry that followed.
- Luke 1:26-27 – “In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary.”
- Luke 2:4, 39, 51-52 – Joseph went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Bethlehem… “And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth… And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them… And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.”
- Matthew 2:23 – “And he 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.”
- John 1:45-46 – “Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ‘We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.’ Nathanael said to him, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?’ Philip said to him, ‘Come and see.’”
- Luke 4:16-21, 28-30 – “And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read… ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…’ And he began to say to them, ‘Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’… When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff. But passing through their midst, he went away.”
- Matthew 13:54-58 – “And coming to his hometown he taught them in their synagogue… ‘Is not this the carpenter’s son?’… And he did not do many mighty works there, because of their unbelief.”
- Mark 6:1-6 – He came to His hometown; they took offense at Him. “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.”
- Matthew 21:11 – “And the crowds said, ‘This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.’”
- Matthew 26:71 – “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.”
- John 19:19 – “Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It read, ‘Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.’”
- Acts 2:22 – “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst…”
- Acts 3:6 – “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”
- Acts 10:38 – “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.”
- Acts 22:8 – “And I answered, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And he said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.’”
- Isaiah 61:1-2 – The passage Jesus read in the Nazareth synagogue.
- Isaiah 11:1 – “There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.” (often connected with the Nazarene title through the word for branch)
- John 18:5, 7 – “Jesus of Nazareth.” They answered, “I am he.”
Can anything good come out of Nazareth? Come and see.
The town was small. The family was known. The carpenter’s son stood up to read, and they tried to throw Him from the hill.
Unbelief at home does not make the promise void.
He shall be called a Nazarene. The inscription on the cross named Him Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.
The apostles healed and preached in that name.
Do not despise the place God chooses for hidden years. Do not take offense at the familiar Christ.
The good that came out of Nazareth is the Savior of the world.
Entry compiled for the JESUSaves.com Bible Glossary. Optimized for wiki.js Visual Editor.