The first Gospel contains at least 60 quotations from the Old Testament plus numerous allusions and echoes, by far the most among the Gospels and the rest of the New Testament.[1] France argues that the central theme of Matthew is fulfillment.[2]
It is hard to argue with France. Scholars agree that Matthew’s distinctive use of the Hebrew Bible revolves around his ten fulfillment formula quotations, which utilize the verb πληρόω, ‘to fulfill.’ These are prominent in the first two chapters (1:22-23; 2:15, 17, 23). Others are scattered across the rest of the Gospel (4:14; 8:17; 12:17; 13:35; 21:4; 27:9).
The most debated of the first four fulfillment passages is the last one – 2:23: “He will be called a Nazarene.” As all commentators point out, the problem is that there is no biblical text referring to Messiah as a Nazarene. What does Matthew mean here? How is he using the Old Testament?
First, let us deal with the context. As Matthew wraps up his birth narrative, Joseph and his family are in Egypt. They are there because Herod wants “to destroy the child” (2:13). After his death in 4 B.C., an angel appears once again to Joseph. This is the fourth dream he has had and the third appearance of an angel of the Lord.[3] Herod is dead. It is now safe to return to Israel (2:20-21).
It is noteworthy that the angel uses the plural in v. 20, “For the ones seeking the young child’s life are dead.” Herod is the only one who died so a more collective use of the plural is probable. Herod is dead so those who followed him are no longer interested in killing the child.
It is probable that Joseph intended to return to Bethlehem (2:1), but when he learns that Herod’s son, Archelaus, now rules over Judea, he changes his mind and takes his little family to Galilee, ruled by another of Herod’s sons, Antipas. Another dream confirms Joseph’s fears (v. 22).[4]
They settle in Joseph and Mary’s hometown (Luke 1:26-27; 2:4). Nazareth was no metro area. It was an obscure village, not mentioned anywhere in pre-Christian literature (BDAG). Osborne writes that its population was less than 500.[5] Matthew writes that they were in Nazareth by divine direction – “So that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene.”
As stated above, nowhere in the Old Testament is this found. What is Matthew doing? How does he see this as prophetic fulfillment?
There are two ways of handling this problem:
- Matthew is associating the place name (Nazareth) and the word for a resident (Nazarene) with either the Hebrew word for ‘branch’ [nezer] or the biblical ‘Nazarite,’ one dedicated to God. Those who hold to the former point to Isaiah 11:1, which deals with the righteous reign of one who sits on David’s throne, “There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.” Those who hold to the latter see fulfillment of Judges 13:5, 7; 16:17 – verses that show Samson as a Nazarite. The idea is that Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of one dedicated to God.
- Others see Matthew drawing together the obscure geographical origins of Messiah and the biblical/theological theme that he will be humble and despised.
The first view suffers as overly subtle and one needs to do philological gymnastics to make the proposed connections work. As Morris points out, “Despite the confident assertions of those who hold this view, it’s not easy to understand the connection between the Branch and (or) Nazarites in this passage.”[6] As Matthew referring to the Nazarite vow, Jesus is obviously one dedicated to God, but nothing suggests He refrained from haircuts or alcohol as required of the Nazarite in Numbers 6, and, as Blomberg makes clear, “the orthographical evidence for the linkage of these two words is lacking.”[7]
I favor the second view. There is no wordplay here. Matthew sees a general prophetic theme – thus the plural ‘prophets.’ The obscurity and humility of the Messiah is a common theme. Messiah will be rejected (Pss 22:6-8, 13; 69:8, 20-21; Isa 49:7; 53:2-3; Dan 9:26). Matthew stresses Jesus’ humility (11:29; 12:19; 21:5) and rejection (8:20; 11:16-19; 15:7-8).
An important point is Nazareth was a despised place elsewhere in the Gospels. When Nathaniel meets Jesus for the first time, he asks, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:46). The crowds and religious leaders are convinced that no prophet can come from Galilee (John 7:41, 52). To be among the Nazarenes in Acts led to incredible insults (24:5).[8]
If he had grown up on Bethlehem, Jesus would have been from a royal city – that of David. Jesus the Nazarene, however, carried overtones of contempt. When Matthew writes that the prophets taught He would be called a Nazarene, he sees them pointing to one who would be both despised and rejected. France concludes that Jesus would be a Messiah, “who came from the wrong place, who did not conform to the expectations of Jewish tradition, and who as a result would not be accepted by his people.”[9]
What is Matthew doing? How is he using the Old Testament in this final fulfillment formula of the birth narrative? He is doing the same here as in the others – He is showing historical patterns.[10] Events in biblical history anticipate events in Jesus’ ministry in that he fulfills them with new significance. Biblical history is fulfilled by Jesus the Messiah.[11]
The life of Jesus of Nazareth fulfills all the promises of God found in the Scriptures (Matthew 5:17-20). Jesus lifts the Old Testament to a higher plane. He has completed or ‘filled up’ the Old Testament, and he is the final interpreter of Torah.[12] As for the birth narrative, Matthew is clear — the one who is declared by Herod as illegimate is, in fact, the only legimate King of Israel.
[1] See the index of quotations and allusions/verbal parallels in UBS4. No other NT book comes close to Matthew. Hebrews is next with 37 quotations. The other Gospels – Mark (31), Luke (26), John (16).
[2] R.T. France, The Gospel of Matthew, NICNT (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans), 11.
[3] Others are 1:20-21; 2:12; 2:13-14.
[4] Archelaus was ruthless. Even before he left for Rome to contest Herod’s final will, he overreacted to an uprising in the Temple at Passover by sending in troops and cavalry, killing about 3,000 pilgrims. He was banished to Gaul in about A.D. 6 (H.W. Hoehner, s.v. “Herodian Dynasty,” in DJG).
[5] Grant R. Osborne, Matthew, ECNT (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010), 102.
[6] Leon Morris, The Gospel according to Matthew, PNTC (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1992), accessed 1/8/26, ProQuest Ebook Central.
[7] Craig Blomberg, Matthew, CSC (Nashville: Holman Reference, 2025), 90. It is obvious from 11:18-19 that Jesus did not follow an ascetic lifestyle. Turner is on point when he writes, “Wordplays are based on popular associations, not on philological sophistication.” (Matthew, BECNT [Grand Rapids: Baker, 2008], 99).
[8] Paul is accused before the Roman governor, Felix, of being a plague, a creator of dissension, and a ringleader of the sect called the Nazarenes.
[9] France, 95.
[10] In this case he is showing a broader prophetic pattern.
[11] Turner, 25.
[12] Adapted from Osborne, 38.
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