Luke 2:4

2:4 So ¹  Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth ²  in Galilee to Judea, to the city ³  of David called Bethlehem, ⁴  because he was of the house ⁵  and family line ⁶  of David.

Luke 2:51

2:51 Then ⁷  he went down with them and came to Nazareth, ⁸  and was obedient ⁹  to them. But ¹⁰  his mother kept all these things ¹¹  in her heart. ¹² 

Luke 4:16

Rejection at Nazareth

4:16 Now ¹³  Jesus ¹⁴  came to Nazareth, ¹⁵  where he had been brought up, and went into the synagogue ¹⁶  on the Sabbath day, as was his custom. ¹⁷  He ¹⁸  stood up to read, ¹⁹ 

[2:4]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the consequential nature of the action.

[2:4]  ² sn On Nazareth see Luke 1:26.

[2:4]  ³ tn Or “town.” The translation “city” is used here because of its collocation with “of David,” suggesting its importance, though not its size.

[2:4]  ⁴ sn The journey from Nazareth to the city of David called Bethlehem was a journey of about 90 mi (150 km). Bethlehem was a small village located about 7 miles south-southwest of Jerusalem.

[2:4]  ⁵ sn Luke’s use of the term “house” probably alludes to the original promise made to David outlined in the Nathan oracle of 2 Sam 7:12-16, especially in light of earlier connections between Jesus and David made in Luke 1:32. Further, the mention of Bethlehem reminds one of the promise of Mic 5:2, namely, that a great king would emerge from Bethlehem to rule over God’s people.

[2:4]  ⁶ tn Or “family,” “lineage.”

[2:51]  ⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[2:51]  ⁸ map For location see Map1 D3; Map2 C2; Map3 D5; Map4 C1; Map5 G3.

[2:51]  ⁹ tn Or “was submitting.”

[2:51]  ¹⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast.

[2:51]  ¹¹ tn Or “all these words.”

[2:51]  ¹² sn On the phrase his mother kept all these things in her heart compare Luke 2:19.

[4:16]  ¹³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

[4:16]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[4:16]  ¹⁵ sn Nazareth was Jesus’ hometown (which is why he is known as Jesus of Nazareth) about 20 miles (30 km) southwest from Capernaum.

[4:16]  ¹⁶ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:15.

[4:16]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “according to his custom.”

[4:16]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “And he.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[4:16]  ¹⁹ sn In normative Judaism of the period, the OT scripture was read and discussed in the synagogue by the men who were present. See the Mishnah, m. Megillah 3-4; m. Berakhot 2. First came the law, then the prophets, then someone was asked to speak on the texts. Normally one stood up to read out of respect for the scriptures, and then sat down (v. 20) to expound them.