Matthew 13:55-56
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The people are not just stating facts about Jesus' family; they're using a rhetorical question to dismiss Him. By listing His earthly connections – His profession as a "carpenter's son" and His known family – they imply that someone from such a humble background couldn't possibly possess extraordinary wisdom or perform miracles, effectively shutting down their own capacity to believe.
Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother called Mary? And are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And are not all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?”
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jesus returns to his hometown, Nazareth, and teaches in the synagogue, amazing the people with his wisdom. However, this amazement quickly turns to offense as they recognize him and his family, questioning his authority and source of knowledge based on his humble upbringing. They dismiss him because they know his mother, Mary, and his brothers—James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas—as well as his sisters, all of whom live among them.
Jesus returns to his hometown, and the people are amazed. But their amazement quickly turns to something else entirely.
The people of Nazareth knew Jesus as the carpenter's son. They remembered him growing up, likely working alongside Joseph. This familiarity bred a sense of ordinary. When he spoke with wisdom and performed miracles, they were stunned, not because they recognized divine power, but because it seemed to contradict their understanding of him. They couldn't reconcile the Jesus they knew from the carpenter's shop with the prophetic figure standing before them. Their amazement wasn't awe; it was confusion and offense. They saw him through the lens of his earthly family and profession, unable to perceive the divine mission he carried.
The villagers list Jesus' family members, using them as a reason to dismiss him. What does this reveal about their hearts?
The listing of Jesus' mother and brothers isn't just a neutral observation; it's a rhetorical weapon. By emphasizing his 'ordinary' family connections, they create a barrier to accepting his divine authority. They imply that if he were truly from God, he wouldn't be so closely tied to their common community. This highlights a critical aspect of human resistance to God: we often try to fit God into our human categories and expectations. When Jesus doesn't fit, we can reject him. The commentators note that 'brothers' in the Hebrew cultural context could refer to broader relatives, but the people of Nazareth likely meant literal siblings, emphasizing his humble, human lineage.
Ask a follow-up
Jesus spent most of his life in a humble trade. Why would the Son of God do this, and what does it teach us?
Several commentators point out that Jesus working as a carpenter until the age of thirty was a deliberate act of humility and obedience. It was not a waste of time but an honorable way to live, setting an example for all. This period of 'ordinary' life, learning a trade and living under parental authority, was preparation. It shows that God doesn't always operate through the spectacular from the outset. He often works through the humble, the hidden, and the seemingly mundane. This approach can stagger those who expect God only to act in grand, external ways, causing them to stumble, just as the people of Nazareth did. His thirty years of humble labor demonstrate that faithful, ordinary work is pleasing to God.
Understand the original words
tektōn · Greek Noun
A craftsman skilled in working with hard materials, traditionally wood or stone. This humble occupation highlights the humanity of Jesus and the unexpected nature of his ministry.
adelphai · Greek Noun
Refers to sisters by blood, sharing the same parents. In a biblical context, this term highlights the human, familiar nature of Jesus' upbringing, which became a stumbling block for those who knew him merely as a neighbor.
The disbelief of Jesus' own townspeople in Nazareth highlights the tension between His divine nature and His humble human origins, demonstrating how familiarity can breed contempt and blind people to God's work.
c. 6 BC - AD 4
Jesus' Childhood in Nazareth
Jesus grew up in Nazareth, a small town in Galilee, learning the trade of a carpenter, likely from Joseph.
c. AD 27-30
Jesus' Public Ministry Begins
After His baptism and temptation, Jesus began His public ministry of teaching, preaching, and performing miracles throughout Galilee and surrounding regions.
c. AD 30— this verse
Jesus Returns to Nazareth
Jesus visits His hometown of Nazareth, teaching in the synagogue and astonishing the people with His wisdom and miracles. However, their familiarity with His humble upbringing leads them to reject Him.
c. AD 30
Rejection in Nazareth
Due to their disbelief and offense at His background, Jesus is unable to perform many miracles there, fulfilling His own proverb that a prophet is not without honor except in his own country.
The religious leaders in Jerusalem are astonished that Jesus has such deep knowledge of Scripture without formal training, much like the people in Nazareth questioned Jesus' wisdom given his humble background.
Isaiah 53:2-3This prophecy describes the Suffering Servant who would have no 'beauty or majesty to attract us to him,' having a 'despised and rejected' background, which echoes the way Jesus' hometown neighbors viewed him based on his family and occupation.
Luke 4:24Jesus himself quotes the proverb, 'A prophet is without honor except in his hometown, in his own relatives, and in his own house,' directly addressing the sentiment of rejection he faced from those who knew him best.
1 Corinthians 1:27-29The Apostle Paul highlights how God often chooses the 'lowly' and 'despised' to shame the wise and strong, reflecting the principle that Jesus' humble origins were part of God's plan to reveal His power through apparent weakness.
calvinMatthew 13:53-58: "And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed thence."
- And it happened, when Jesus had concluded these discourses, [342] that he departed thence. 54. And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, so that they were amazed, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom and these miracles? 55. Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary, and his brothers James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? 56…
clarkeMatthew 13:55: "Is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?"
Is not this the carpenter's son? - Seven copies of the old Itala have, Is not this the son of Joseph the carpenter? But it is likely our Lord, during the thirty years of his abode at Nazareth, wrought at the same trade with Joseph; and perhaps this is what is intended, Luke 2:51 . He went down with them (his parents) to Nazareth, and was Subject unto them. A…
The people are not just stating facts about Jesus' family; they're using a rhetorical question to dismiss Him. By listing His earthly connections – His profession as a "carpenter's son" and His known family – they imply that someone from such a humble background couldn't possibly possess extraordinary wisdom or perform miracles, effectively shutting down their own capacity to believe.
Jesus returns to his hometown, Nazareth, and teaches in the synagogue, amazing the people with his wisdom. However, this amazement quickly turns to offense as they recognize him and his family, questioning his authority and source of knowledge based on his humble upbringing. They dismiss him because they know his mother, Mary, and his brothers—James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas—as well as his sisters, all of whom live among them.
Jesus returns to his hometown, Nazareth, and teaches in the synagogue, amazing the people with his wisdom. However, this amazement quickly turns to offense as they recognize him and his family, questioning his authority and source of knowledge based on his humble upbringing. They dismiss him because they know his mother, Mary, and his brothers—James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas—as well as his sisters, all of whom live among them.
"Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother called Mary? And are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And are not all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?”" — The people are not just stating facts about Jesus' family; they're using a rhetorical question to dismiss Him. By listing His earthly connections – His profession as a "carpenter's son" and His known…
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Last reviewed October 2026
