Readings:
Isaiah 11-12
Proverbs 8

Isaiah 11-12

This prophecy is quoted in the gospels for good reason. Jesus is the fulfillment of all the things we read about the person who is the “root of Jesse” and then his ministry will draw people from all the tribes, not just of Israelites but from all the world to be part of his kingdom.

And he went and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled. “He shall be called a Nazarene.”

Matthew 2:23

The quote that the evangelist is revering to is from the first verse of this chapter. Jesus was from Nazareth, as made clear by the evangelists as a matter of fact, in a dismissive way by his apostle Nathaniel when he first hears of him Pharisees in a derisive way, and finally as part of an epithet placed above his head on the cross.

But where in the Old Testament does it say that the messiah will be from Nazareth? It doesn’t. Nazareth was a fairly new town, probably settled by returning exiles and only really expanding into a large regional town during the Roman occupation. So where does Matthew get his quote from?

The town of Nazareth has a meaning that when translated from Aramaic would be “Branchton” or “Branchville” because it’s named after the Aramaic word for branch. Saint Matthew sees this combination with lineage from king David (the son of Jesse) as the “branch of Jesse” that Isaiah is talking about.

Tomorrow’s Readings:
Isaiah 13-14
Proverbs 9
Romans 1