Where Did Jesus Grow Up?

From the Bible, we can determine the places Jesus lived and it can at least give us a framework to the question where did Jesus grow up. Most famously, we know Jesus was born in Bethlehem. You will find this in Matthew and Luke’s gospel accounts of Jesus’ life. Though Jesus was born in Bethlehem, we know that from Bethlehem, his next stop was Egypt. 

“When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. ‘Get up,’ he said, ‘take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him’” (Matthew 2:13).

After the wise men had departed, Joseph took Mary and the baby Jesus to Egypt to escape Herod. We don’t know how old Jesus was when they left for Egypt, but it is safe to assume he was in the neighborhood of two years old, which again is based on Matthew’s gospel.

“When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi” (Matthew 2:16).

Matthew would tell us that Joseph, Mary, and Jesus stayed in Egypt until Herod died, and at that point, an angel of the Lord told them it was safe to return to Israel. However, when they returned, Joseph was afraid to live in Judea, because of the new ruler Archelaus, so Joseph went to the region of Galilee and settled in Nazareth, and that is where Jesus grew up. 

Nazareth was Jesus’ hometown, and this was the place from which he identified.

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The Bible does not tell us much about Jesus’ childhood. We know about his birth and that he was presented in the temple as was required by the law. Here is the extent of what we know about Jesus’ childhood.

“When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him” (Luke 2:39-40).

The next incident happened when Jesus was twelve years old in the temple, as also recorded in Luke’s gospel. Very similar to the conclusion of Jesus being consecrated in the temple, here is what Luke says about Jesus after his encounter in the temple.

“Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man” (Luke 2:51-52).

It is safe to say Jesus lived a very nondescript childhood. Based on comments that the people in his hometown made, he did not grow up telling people he was the Messiah. In one instance, after his ministry began, he went to his hometown, and this is what they said about him.

“’Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?’ And they took offense at him…” (Matthew 13:55-56).

Based on these things, I believe Jesus grew up as an ordinary child in his home with his family until it was time for him to be revealed. His childhood was probably just like every other child in Nazareth.

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Bethlehem

Besides being the birthplace of Jesus, Bethlehem was also where Rachel was buried. We learn from Genesis 35:19-21 the place where Rachel was buried was known as Migdal Eder. According to Jewish history, this place in Bethlehem was where unblemished lambs, who were firstborn males, were born. They were wrapped in cloths and eventually brought to Jerusalem to be used as Passover sacrifices in the temple.

This compares to the birth of Jesus and is a wonderful foreshadowing of what was to come in Jesus’ life.

Egypt

The significance of Jesus living in Egypt – even though it was for a brief time – was that it was a fulfillment of prophecy. Hosea 11:1 says out of Egypt I called my son.

The other significance is that Egypt was the place the Israelites were held captive before God freed them. Egypt is therefore a type of the world and sin which are places we were before Jesus freed us. Though it may have only been symbolic, Jesus walked into the sinful places of our lives before calling us out of them and delivering us from them.

Nazareth

For Jesus to come from a place like Nazareth, that was about as low on the totem pole as you could get. No one paid any attention to Nazareth and the only reason people even now pay any attention to Nazareth is because Jesus grew up there. No one from Galilee held Nazareth in any high regard and it would definitely not be the choice for the Messiah to come from. Nazareth was exactly the type of place the Messiah would come from because it fits with God’s narrative of using insignificant things for great kingdom purposes.

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Jesus was raised in a home with very devout parents as they faithfully took part in all the religious festivals, as the Scriptures tell us. He grew up with his parents and brothers and sisters and I don’t believe there was a lot of conversation around the dinner table about Jesus being the Messiah. In Mark 3, his family even says about Jesus that he is out of his mind. Again this all points to the normalcy of Jesus’ childhood. However, there are a few things that Jesus experienced that make his upbringing very relatable to many today. Here are a few.

• Jesus was not born into wealth, but lived in humble circumstances
• Jesus was raised by a stepfather and lived with half-brothers and sisters.
• As the oldest son he most likely learned the carpentry trade from his stepfather Joseph. 
• When Jesus begins his ministry, we know his mother Mary is part of his life but not Joseph. Some historians believe Joseph may have died sometime between the time Jesus was twelve and thirty which would mean he would have been part of a single parent household.

While we don’t know a lot about where Jesus grew up and what his childhood was like, we do know that he experienced many of the same issues and challenges that many people are still facing today. In my opinion, all this does is make Jesus that much more relatable and approachable because regardless of your situation, he knows exactly how you feel.

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