Jesus The Nazarene :: By Matt Leasher

The gospel of Matthew was written to present Jesus Christ as the King and Messiah to Israel, the ancient nation that brought forth the lineage of the birth of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:1-16).

We know from Scripture that Jesus was of the tribe of Judah, (Revelation 5:5). Judah was one of the twelve sons of Jacob, who had his name changed to Israel (Genesis 32:28). Through this continued lineage we know that Jesus also stemmed from the lineage of King David (Matthew 1:6). All of this is important when we observe the birth of Christ and the prophecies that foretold His first coming.

Micah 5:2 is the one that announces that He would be born in Bethlehem, but specifically Bethlehem Ephratah.

“But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall He come forth unto Me that is to be Ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting” (Micah 5:2).

This is an interesting verse where we see the mention of Jesus’ first advent, and His still future second advent as the Ruler in Israel, and even the mention of His eternal past “whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting”!  This prophecy was quoted to Herod by the wise men when they were inquiring about the young Child’s whereabouts after following His star (Matthew 2:1-6).

We know from Scripture that Bethlehem Ephratah is also where King David was born (Ruth 4:11-18; 1 Samuel 17:12; Luke 2:4).  From this, we can already see the geographical significance connected to the lineage of Jesus Christ.

With that said, there is a mysterious verse in Matthew 2:23 after Mary and Joseph return from sheltering the baby Jesus in Egypt from Herod’s decree to slaughter all the children in Bethlehem, thus fulfilling the prophecy of Jeremiah 31:35 and Hosea 11:1.

Matthew says: “And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene” (Matthew 2:23).

The curious thing about this verse is that there is no specific passage found anywhere in the Old Testament declaring those exact words, but Matthew says it was spoken by the prophets, so it must be there.

Only the book of Luke and the book of Matthew record the birth of Christ and His lineage, and Matthew quotes the Old Testament more than any of the other three gospel writers. Many Bible scholars have linked this verse to Isaiah 11:1, and correctly so.

“And there shall come forth a Rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots” (Isaiah 11:1).

This passage is a prophecy of the Messiah stemming from the lineage of Jesse (David’s father), as confirmed in Matthew 2:6 in his recording of Christ’s lineage. But there is no mention of Him being a Nazarene. This is where we have to consult the Hebrew text of that passage, as sometimes certain fine details get lost or buried in our English translations.

The Hebrew word for “Branch” in Isaiah 11:1 is “nēṣer,” and it means a “sprout, shoot, branch.” The Isaiah 11:1 verse is written like a family tree (just as we do in our modern day for our own families). It is saying that the Messiah will come forth from the stem (tree trunk) of Jesse (David’s father), and a Branch (a sprout, growing shoot) shall grow out of his roots. The word “roots” is plural because Jesse had other sons other than David, but Jesus would become that Rod (Hebrew “ḥōṭer”), who would eventually rule over Israel and the world as King on the throne of David (Isaiah 9:6-7).

As a side note, the reason why the trunk of the tree is mentioned here and not with Jacob is because the Kingship lineage of Christ the King is specifically linked to David (2 Samuel 7:12-13; Psalm 132:11; Psalm 89:3-4), and remember the book of Matthew is declaring who the eternal King of Israel is!

Jesus is mentioned as The Branch in relation to the salvation of Israel several times throughout the Old Testament (Isaiah 4:2; Jeremiah 23:5; Jeremiah 33:15; Zechariah 3:8; Zechariah 6:12-13; Micah 5:2).

Now let’s get back to the mention of Christ being called a Nazarene in Matthew 2:23 and being linked to the word “nēṣer” in Isaiah 11:1. Many have pointed out the similarity in the word “nēṣer” and Nazarene, and as intriguing as that is, there is a much deeper connection here.

To reiterate, the meaning of the word “nēṣer” used for Branch is (sprout, shoot), which implies something growing out of the tree. In Luke 2:40, it informs us that Nazareth is where the Christ child grew up!

“And when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city Nazareth. And the Child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon Him” (Luke 2:39-40).

So the real connection from Matthew 2:23 to Isaiah 11:1 is in the fact that both passages reveal where the Christ would grow up and become a man. That is how we know that “from the fulfillment that was spoken by the prophets,” that He would grow up in Nazareth and be called a Nazarene.

In Jesus’ day, there were others named Jesus, so it was important that He was recognized specifically as Jesus of Nazareth, as spoken of by the prophets. In fact, we find a few other men named Jesus in the New Testament, such as “Jesus, called Justus” in Colossians 4:11, a co-worker with Paul, and a false prophet named Bar-Jesus in Acts 13:6.

What many people may not know is that Barabbas had a first name that we don’t see in our KJV Bible but does appear in different manuscripts of Matthew 27:16-17, and that name is Jesus!! So there were actually two men named Jesus that stood as prisoners that Pilate gave the crowd a choice to release – Jesus Christ or Jesus Barabbas!

The title “Jesus of Nazareth” occurs 21 times in the KJV Bible. Jesus confirmed this title of Himself when the guards came to arrest Him in the garden.

“Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come upon him, went forth, and said unto them, Whom seek ye? They answered Him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am He. And Judas also, which betrayed him, stood with them” (John 18:4-5).

Jesus also referred to Himself as Jesus of Nazareth when He appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus (Acts 22:8)

The blind man, Bartimaeus, in Mark 10:47, recognized Jesus as Jesus from Nazareth and even knew enough to link Him to the lineage of David.

“And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me” (Mark 10:47).

Peter raised the lame man in the name of Jesus of Nazareth in Acts 3:6. And in Acts 4:10-14, he declared to the high priests that it was done in the name of Jesus of Nazareth and that “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”

The angel in the empty tomb told the three women that came there on Resurrection morning, “Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: He is risen; He is not here: behold the place where they laid Him. Even after Christ died and rose again, He still needs to be known as Jesus of Nazareth.

The demon that Jesus cast out of the man in the synagogue in Luke 4:34 even referred to Jesus as “Jesus of Nazareth,” showing that the spiritual world of angels and demons revere the name of Jesus of Nazareth.

Jesus of Nazareth (the Branch) isn’t just an identifier of where He would grow up and the place where He is from, but is also mentioned in Scripture as the One (the Branch) that will come to rule the earth from the throne of David.

“Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth” (Jeremiah 23:5).

Come, Lord Jesus!!!

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