And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. And they said, Is not this Joseph’s son?
Parallel translations
- WEB All testified about him, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth, and they said, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”
- BSB All spoke well of Him and marveled at the gracious words that came from His lips. “Isn’t this the son of Joseph?” they asked.
- NKJV So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”
- NASB And all the people were speaking well of Him, and admiring the gracious words which were coming from His lips; and yet they were saying, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”
- NLT Everyone spoke well of him and was amazed by the gracious words that came from his lips. “How can this be?” they asked. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”
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
The crowd marvels at His gracious words yet questions, 'Isn't this Joseph's son?' Familiarity breeds doubt about His true identity.
Overview
The people are impressed by Jesus' gracious speech but stumble over His ordinary origins as the carpenter's son. Their amazement is mingled with unbelief, unable to reconcile His claims with the man they knew. This tension exposes how familiarity can blind people to who Jesus really is.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Matt 13:54–56And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works?
- Ps 45:2Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore God hath blessed thee for ever.
- Acts 6:10And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spake.
- John 6:42And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? how is it then that he saith, I came down from heaven?
- Mark 6:2–3And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands?
- Eccl 12:10–11The preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth.
- John 7:46The officers answered, Never man spake like this man.
- Luke 21:15For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.
- Isa 50:4The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned.
- Song 5:16His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
- Titus 2:8Sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you.
- Prov 16:21The wise in heart shall be called prudent: and the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning.
- Ps 45:4And in thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness; and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things.
- Prov 25:11A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.
- Prov 10:32The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable: but the mouth of the wicked speaketh frowardness.
- Luke 2:47And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers.
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 4:22 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.