That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
Parallel translations
- WEB that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying,
- BSB to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:
- NKJV that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:
- NASB This happened so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet would be fulfilled:
- NLT This fulfilled what God said through the prophet Isaiah:
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
Matthew explains that Jesus' move fulfilled what Isaiah had spoken. It underscores that Jesus' ministry unfolds according to Scripture.
Overview
This is one of Matthew's characteristic fulfillment formulas, linking events in Jesus' life to Old Testament prophecy. The Gospel writer wants readers to see that nothing in Jesus' ministry is accidental; it is the unfolding of God's long-promised plan. The Messiah's choice of Galilee is itself a sign of His identity.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Isa 9:1–2Nevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at the first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations.
- Matt 2:23And 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.
- Luke 24:44And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.
- Luke 22:37For I say unto you, that this that is written must yet be accomplished in me, And he was reckoned among the transgressors: for the things concerning me have an end.
- Matt 12:17–21That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
- Matt 2:15And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.
- Matt 1:22Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,
- Matt 26:56But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled.
- John 19:28After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.
- John 19:36–37For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken.
- Matt 26:54But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?
- Matt 8:17That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.
- John 15:25But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 4:14 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.