Dr Paul Allen

QUESTION TO DICK HARFIELD: Who is the prophet referred to in Matthew? DICK HARFIELD'S RESPONSE: Matthew 2:23 refers to a prophet whose identity has long puzzled scholars because there is nothing in the Old Testament or even the Apocrypha that mentions a Nazarene. One popular suggestion is from Judges 13:5, where it says of Samson, "the child shall be a Nazirite." However, Matthew does not say ‘Nazirite ’, and the word has no known link to the town of Nazareth; moreover, Jesus was not a Nazirite and is never described as one. Some believe Isaiah 60:21-22 was the prophecy of which Matthew wrote, because the Hebrew for a small twig is netzer — presumably close enough to be a prophecy that Jesus would be called a Nazarene, but not very plausible. I believe the real reason is closer to home, as you can read in The Mystery of the Nazarenes. We now know that Matthew’s Gospel was substantially based on Mark’s Gospel, the Greek manuscripts of which always refer to Jesus the Nazar...

As you pointed out, Matthew 2:23 asserts these statements. No Old Testament prophecy corresponds to these precise words. There are two different, yet related, main scholarly explanations to illustrate what St. Matthew is attempting to say in this passage. 1. According to the first, Matthew apparently paraphrases in summary form the words of several prophets. The paraphrase is based on Jesus’ boyhood home, Nazareth, and a similar-sounding Hebrew word  netser , which is translated as “sprout,” “shoot,” or “branch.”  Recall that the family fled to Egypt because of the murderous Herod the Great, who feared the Christ Child as a potential royal competitor and thus slaughtered every male child under two in Bethlehem and the neighbouring area (Matt. 2:16-18). They returned to reside in Nazareth after word came that Herod the Great had died (Matt. 2:19-20). Scripture affirms that Jesus came to restore the throne of his ancestor King David (Luke 1:31-33) and that he is “...

Friedrich Overbeck - Christ Resurrects the Daughter of Jairus - WGA16795 (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Matthew 9:18–26 “ Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, ‘Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.’ And instantly the woman was made well” ( v. 22 ). When Matthew, Mark, and Luke describe the same event, the first evangelist usually abbreviates his account. Today’s passage, for example, describes the Lord’s healing of the hemorrhaging woman and the raising of Jairus’ daughter , an episode also found in Mark 5:21–43 and Luke 8:40–56 . Matthew 9:18–26 leaves out details found in the second and third gospels, including the synagogue ruler’s name (Jairus) and Jesus’ order to feed the young girl after He resurrects her. Also, Jairus in Matthew’s gospel says that his daughter is already dead when he greets the Savior ( 9:18 ), whereas Jairus in Mark 5:22–23 and Luke 8:41–42 says she is dying . These accounts do not contradict one another, Matthew just shortens his narrati...