Matthew 13:54-58

Leviticus 23:1, 4-11, 15-16, 27, 34b-37

Psalm 81:3-4, 5-6, 10-11ab

Matthew 13:54-58

Jesus came to his native place and taught the people in their synagogue.

They were astonished and said,

“Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?

Is he not the carpenter’s son?

Is not his mother named Mary

and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas?

Are not his sisters all with us?

Where did this man get all this?”

And they took offense at him.

But Jesus said to them,

“A prophet is not without honor except in his native place

and in his own house.”

And he did not work many mighty deeds there

because of their lack of faith.

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I contemplate today the mystery of the rejection of your Son in his hometown of Nazareth. I pray that I never take offense at Jesus and always welcome him into my life. I believe, Lord, help my faith grow and flourish.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Jesus’ Teaching in the Synagogues of Galilee: The Gospel of Matthew gives us a good sense of the content and style of Jesus’ preaching. Jesus often alluded to the Hebrew scriptures and invited the people to ponder his words and actions in this light. Matthew has just finished narrating the third major discourse of Jesus, which consists of seven parables about the kingdom of heaven. He taught his disciples “by the sea” and in Peter’s house in Capernaum. Jesus then leaves Capernaum and returns to Nazareth and teaches in their synagogue, likely on the Sabbath (Luke 4:16). In Jesus’ day, synagogues were used for scripture reading, prayer, and community gatherings, and were common in Galilee and in Jerusalem and wherever Jews resided outside of Palestine. “That Jesus taught in synagogues was not out of the ordinary: any qualified layman could teach, and visitors might be invited to say a few words (see Acts 13:14-15). He made use of Sabbath assemblies to proclaim his message (see Luke 4:16, 31-33, 44; 6:6; 1310). Jesus’ teaching in synagogues indicates that he is sufficiently well-versed in the law of Moses that he is able to instruct” (Martin, Bringing the Gospel of Luke to Life, 114).

2. They Took Offense: The Gospel of Matthew highlights how the people of Nazareth responded to Jesus’ teaching. They were “astonished” (Matthew 13:34; see also Luke 4:22, 32). “Though Jesus has amazed the people with his teaching before (Matthew 7:28), this time the astonishment is not an expression of admiration but of suspicion and anger. The people in his hometown are astonished in the sense that they took offense at him. They know Jesus and his family and cannot believe that he is now a great prophet” (Mitch and Sri, The Gospel of Matthew, 185). The Gospel of Luke recorded the content of Jesus’ teaching in Nazareth – it concerned the Jubilee of the Messiah. This meant that God’s merciful salvation was about to be poured out. And the people were amazed at first when Jesus proclaimed the Jubilee year (Luke 4:16-22). Almost immediately though they began to doubt Jesus’ credentials: “And all spoke highly of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They also asked, ‘Isn’t this the son of Jospeh?’” (Luke 4:22). But when Jesus taught that the Gentiles would experience this liberation and mercy, the people reacted harshly, rose up, drove Jesus out of his native town, and tried to throw him down the hill (Luke 4:29). 

3. Unbelief and Rejection of God’s Mercy: The people of Nazareth refused to believe in Jesus and rejected his proclamation of mercy. Mercy is a key theme in the next section of Matthew’s Gospel (Matthew 13:54-18:35). All five of Jesus’ discourses in Matthew reveal different dimensions of the mystery of the kingdom. The Sermon on the Mount taught how to be happy and blessed as a kingdom citizen and gave new laws and principles for life in the kingdom (Matthew 5:1-7:27). In his second major discourse, Jesus sent out the royal officers of the kingdom and commissioned them to teach the people, heal the sick, cast out demons, and be courageous amid persecution (Matthew 10:5-42). The parables in Matthew 13, which concluded the third major section of Matthew, stressed the hidden and transformative power of the kingdom. Today’s Gospel begins the Fourth Book in the Gospel of Matthew, which will see Peter and the other Apostles being given the power to forgive sins (see Matthew 16-18). Today’s Gospel, though, is a sad story of how the people of Nazareth refused to believe and rejected God’s mercy. Like the prophet Jonah, who wanted to see their enemies suffer defeat, the people wanted the Gentile Romans to be defeated. Little did they know that the people of the Roman Empire would convert, welcome the Kingdom of God, and receive the blessing of God’s Spirit and merciful love.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I see how the people of your hometown took offense at you. Instead of believing in your words of wisdom and deeds of power, they rejected you. I pray that I do not reject you in my life. Do not let me choose the path of sin or reject the way that leads to eternal life with you.

Living the Word of God: When we preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, we too will sometimes encounter opposition and be rejected like Jesus. On that day, we are not to worry about what we are to say, for the Holy Spirit will teach us and give us the words we are to say (Matthew 10:19; Luke 12:11-12). As the psalmist sings, we will bear insult and rejection for the sake of the Lord. The risen, glorified body of Jesus is the New Temple of God, and our zeal for this Temple, the Body of Christ, consumes us. We pray that God help us with his grace and favor in our mission to announce his kingdom. We pray also that men and women do not reject Jesus, but rather welcome him and his reign.