Exegetical study of Jesus' rejection at Nazareth

Exegetical Study

Matthew 13:53-58 is one of the last recorded times that Jesus teaches in the synagogue and it recounts Jesus' rejection by the Nazarene people when he preaches to them there. Jesus comes back to Nazareth and teaches the people in the synagogue, but the people are not believing, they say: "Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works? Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary?" (54-55) the people are not convinced by Jesus and they become angered. So Jesus does not do any of his great works there because they do not believe in him and who he is. Essentially, these verses in Matthew teach us that belief is the greatest hindrance to Christ's favors. One has to have complete faith in order to benefit from His grace.

Because the people of Nazareth saw Jesus grow up, they are blinded by his humanity. The do see him as wise and they are amazed by his words, but they are only commending him for his "astuteness and morality" (Bloomberg 1992). Bloomberg (1992) notes that the people's amazement increases during Jesus' service because they know the members of his family, "who seem ordinary enough" (1992).

The message of this gospel is that sometimes when something is too close to us, we dismiss it as being untrue. In other words, if Jesus had come from some far off country, perhaps the people would have believed that he was the son of God, but because the people saw him grow up from a little boy, and they knew his family, they cannot believe that someone so like them could be this person whom he claims to be. This leads us to think that familiarity can often breed contempt and people are often kinder to strangers than to people that they know. In this case, the people did not only not believe that Jesus was not who he said he was, but they did not treat him kindly; rather, they despised him. Yet, they could not condemn him really because of the fact that he was from Nazareth as well, but they did not believe he had any other abilities over them. Jesus could not perform any miracles for his fellow countrymen because without faith there is no belief and therefore there can be no miracles. However, those who know Jesus the best and do not obey him take him for granted. The people of Nazareth cannot believe that someone so special can come from where they are from. They do not expect that God can touch them so intimately or come so closely to them as it does. So those who are closest to God and his kingdom do not recognize it.

Mark 4:35-5:34 recounts Jesus' rejection at Nazareth and Matthew follows this account, however, Matthew has shortened the story and does not mention the disciples, but rather he solely focuses on Jesus. Schweizer (1975) notes that it is quite significant that Matthew refers to Jesus as "the carpenter's son." Is this because he thinks that the people in Nazareth simply don't know what the reader has known since 1:18-25 (1975). Schweizer (1975) also notes that the repetition of the astonished question show that Matthew was emphasizing Jesus' authority to teach and his power to perform miracles. He limits Mark's statement that Jesus was not able to perform even one miracle, because he deletes the words "a single" and "able" and linking the statement with the phrase "because they did not have faith" (1975) -- which Mark uses in a different context.

In Luke 4, Jesus has returned to Galilee and he begins to teach in their synagogues and he was praised by everyone everywhere. When he goes home to Nazareth, he goes to the synagogue on Sabbath day. He stands up to read from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He reads that the "Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." When he rolls up the scroll and sits back down, everyone in the synagogue looks at him. He then says, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." This is when the people say, "Is not this Joseph's son?"

The rejection narrative of Luke 4:16-29 is very different than Matthew (and Mark's as well). The people begin by being amazed by the gracious words that Jesus is speaking because it seems that they are not used to this Jesus they knew as a carpenter being a teacher. However, the congregation turns very quickly on him and attempt to drive him out of town with the goal of hurling him down the edge of a cliff. This quick change of feeling in the congregation leads us once again to believe that the people could not stop thinking about Jesus as a carpenter. He was one of the Nazarene family and nothing more.

The words, "Physician, heal yourself," are words that are not included in any other rejection narrative. The people are telling Jesus to heal the people of Nazareth like he did elsewhere; come and heal your people. The people expect for Jesus to outdo himself and do them great favors because they are from the same land. They believe that they are entitled to special treatment, however, God owes no special treatment to his people. The point of all this is that people must bind themselves freely to Jesus, not because they have a particular connection to him. If Jesus would have done special favors for the people of Nazarene, then the people would learn to take him for granted. If Jesus decides to bind himself to people and offer them healing, then it must be because he does it freely -- as grace, as a gift that is pure in heart.

Luke is addressed to someone named "Theophilus" (Luke 1:3). Stein (1993) posits that "theo-philus" means "friend of God." This does not refer to any particular person but rather to a metaphorical or a fictional one (1993), yet Stein (1993) contends that it is much more likely that this was a real person. Luke uses "most excellent" to describe him and this is found three other times in the New Testament and is using to address the Roman governors Felix and Festus (1993). Some have suggested that Theophilus may have been a provincial governor or Roman official (1993).