Matthew 2:11, The Nazarene from Bethlehem

Posted on Thursday, July 17, 2014 in Bible Commentary | 0 comments

And when [the magi] were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him.

//There are two different birth stories of Jesus in our Bible. One comes from the gospel of Matthew (see above), and the other comes from Luke. Here is Luke’s story:

And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

Both stories account for Jesus’ roots in both Galilee (Nazareth) and in Judea (Bethlehem). In Matthew, Jesus’ family resides in Bethlehem, and Jesus is born there in Joseph’s home. From there, Jesus’ family flees to Egypt, and later moves to Nazareth:

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

But in Luke’s story, Jesus’ family resides in Nazareth, and inadvertently delivers the child Jesus while visiting Bethlehem. Then they return to Nazareth. So in one story, Jesus lives in Nazareth and goes to Bethlehem; in the other, he lives in Bethlehem and goes to Nazareth?

So, here’s the question: Is Jesus the Nazarene from Bethlehem, or the Bethlehemite from Nazareth?