Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart.
Parallel translations
- WEB And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth. He was subject to them, and his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.
- KJV And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.
- BSB Then He went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But His mother treasured up all these things in her heart.
- NASB And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and He continued to be subject to them; and His mother treasured all these things in her heart.
- NLT Then he returned to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. And his mother stored all these things in her heart.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus returns to Nazareth and is obedient to His parents, while Mary treasures these things. It matters because the Son of God submits to His earthly parents in humble obedience.
Overview
Jesus goes home and remains subject to Mary and Joseph, and Mary again treasures these events in her heart. Despite His unique sonship, Jesus honors His parents in willing submission. His perfect obedience, even in childhood, is part of the righteous life He lived for our sake.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Luke 2:19But Mary kept all these sayings, pondering them in her heart.
- Gen 37:11His brothers envied him, but his father kept this saying in mind.
- Dan 7:28Here is the end of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts much troubled me, and my face was changed in me: but I kept the matter in my heart.
- Mark 6:3Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judah, and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” They were offended at him.
- Eph 6:1–2Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
- Eph 5:21subjecting yourselves to one another in the fear of Christ.
- 1 Pet 2:21For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving you an example, that you should follow his steps,
- Matt 3:15But Jesus, answering, said to him, “Allow it now, for this is the fitting way for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed him.
- Luke 2:39When they had accomplished all things that were according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city, Nazareth.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 2:51 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.