Secrets of the Kingdom
Aren’t all His sisters with us as well? Where then did this man get all these things?” Matthew 13:56 · Berean Standard Bible
The people of Jesus' hometown can't get past the fact that they know His family. They assume ordinary origins mean ordinary ability.
You might relate to being underestimated by people who think they already know everything about you. Familiarity can blind us to what God is doing.
The townspeople of Nazareth are speaking, expressing their collective disbelief.
Jesus has returned home to Nazareth, but instead of celebrating Him, the people stumble over His ordinariness.
The townspeople catalog Jesus' family members to undermine His authority, employing a rhetorical question (pothen, 'from where') that expresses incredulity.
In first-century Judaism, a teacher's credentials derived from his rabbinic lineage. Jesus' ordinary family background created cognitive dissonance with His extraordinary wisdom.
The people of Nazareth speak collectively, voicing communal skepticism.
This is part of Jesus' rejection at Nazareth, where familiarity with His humble origins blinds the townspeople to His divine mission.
54Coming to His hometown, He taught the people in their synagogue, and they were astonished. “Where did this man get such wisdom and miraculous powers?” they asked.
55“Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother’s name Mary, and aren’t His brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas?
56Aren’t all His sisters with us as well? Where then did this man get all these things?”
57And they took offense at Him.
58And He did not do many miracles there, because of their unbelief.
Read all of Matthew 13 — A farmer scatters seed, a woman hides yeast, a merchant finds a pearl. Jesus teaches in parables — and not everyone is meant to understand.
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