and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophets: “He will be called a Nazarene.”
Parallel translations
- WEB and came and lived in a city called Nazareth; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophets: “He will be called a Nazarene.”
- KJV 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.
- NKJV 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.”
- NASB and came and settled in a city called Nazareth. This happened so that what was spoken through the prophets would be fulfilled: “He will be called a Nazarene.”
- NLT So the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth. This fulfilled what the prophets had said: “He will be called a Nazarene.”
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 family settles in Nazareth, fulfilling that he would be called a Nazarene. Jesus' humble hometown was part of God's plan.
Overview
Matthew sees Jesus' upbringing in lowly Nazareth as fulfilling the prophets, likely capturing the theme of the Messiah's humble, even despised, origins rather than a single verse. "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" later reflects this lowliness. God's chosen King grows up unnoticed in an obscure town, fitting the pattern of a humble servant-Savior.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- Judg 13:5For behold, you will conceive and give birth to a son. And no razor shall come over his head, because the boy will be a Nazirite to God from the womb, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hand of the Philistines.”
- John 1:45–46Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the One Moses wrote about in the Law, the One the prophets foretold—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
- Mark 1:24“What do You want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!”
- John 18:5“Jesus of Nazareth,” they answered. Jesus said, “I am He.” And Judas His betrayer was standing there with them.
- Acts 24:5We have found this man to be a pestilence, stirring up dissension among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes,
- Matt 26:71When Peter had gone out to the gateway, another servant girl saw him and said to the people there, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.”
- John 19:19Pilate also had a notice posted on the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
- Luke 2:39When Jesus’ parents had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth.
- Matt 1:22All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
- John 18:7So He asked them again, “Whom are you seeking?” “Jesus of Nazareth,” they answered.
- Luke 1:26In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,
- Amos 2:10–12And I brought you up from the land of Egypt and led you forty years in the wilderness, that you might take possession of the land of the Amorite.
- Acts 2:22Men of Israel, listen to this message: Jesus of Nazareth was a man certified by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs, which God did among you through Him, as you yourselves know.
- Num 6:13Now this is the law of the Nazirite when his time of separation is complete: He must be brought to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting,
- 1 Sam 1:11And she made a vow, pleading, “O LORD of Hosts, if only You will look upon the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, not forgetting Your maidservant but giving her a son, then I will dedicate him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall ever come over his head.”
- Isa 53:1–2Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
- Ps 69:9–10because zeal for Your house has consumed me, and the insults of those who insult You have fallen on me.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Pastoral
On the genealogy and the name Immanuel.
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 2:23 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.