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'''Nazarene''' is a title applied to [[Jesus]] (''c.'' 4 BC- ''c.'' AD 30), who grew up in [[Nazareth]], a town in [[Galilee]], now in northern [[Israel]].<ref name="Britannica">"Jesus was a Galilean from Nazareth, a village near Sepphoris, one of the two major cities of Galilee". ("Jesus Christ." ''Encyclopædia Britannica,'' Chicago, 2009.)</ref> The word is used to translate two related terms that appear in the Greek [[New Testament]]: ''Nazarēne'' and ''Nazōraios''. The phrases traditionally rendered as "Jesus of Nazareth" can also be translated as "Jesus the Nazarene."<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|18:37|ESV}}</ref> So the title "Nazarene" may have a religious significance, in addition to denoting a place of origin.

'''Nazarene''' is a title applied to [[Jesus]] (''c.'' 4 BC- ''c.'' AD 30), who grew up in [[Nazareth]], a town in [[Galilee]], now in northern [[Israel]].<ref name="Britannica">"Jesus was a Galilean from Nazareth, a village near Sepphoris, one of the two major cities of Galilee". ("Jesus Christ." ''Encyclopædia Britannica,'' Chicago, 2009.)</ref> The word is used to translate two related terms that appear in the Greek [[New Testament]]: ''Nazarēne'' and ''Nazōraios''. The phrases traditionally rendered as "Jesus of Nazareth" can also be translated as "Jesus the Nazarene."<ref>{{bibleverse|Luke|18:37|ESV}}</ref> So the title "Nazarene" may have a religious significance, in addition to denoting a place of origin.

The [[Gospel of Matthew]] explains that the title Nazarene is derived from the prophecy, “he would be called a Nazarene.”<ref name="Matthew223">{{bibleverse||Matthew|2:23|ESV}}.</ref> Unlike other prophecies that Matthew quotes, this one has no literal [[Old Testament]] source. It may refer to a passage in the [[Book of Isaiah]],<ref name="Isaiah111">{{bibleverse||Isaiah|11:1}}</ref> with "Nazarene" a Greek reading of the Hebrew ''ne·tser'' (branch), understood as a [[messiah|messianic]] title.<ref name="Miller">Miller, Fred P., [http://www.ao.net/~fmoeller/nazer2.htm Isaiah's Use of the word "Branch" or Nazarene]"</ref>

The [[Gospel of Matthew]] explains that the title Nazarene is derived from the prophecy, “he would be called a Nazarene.”<ref name="Matthew223">{{bibleverse||Matthew|2:23|ESV}}.</ref> Unlike other prophecies that Matthew quotes, this one has no literal [[Old Testament]] source. It may refer to a passage in the [[Book of Isaiah]], with "Nazarene" a Greek reading of the Hebrew ''ne·tser'' (branch), understood as a [[messiah|messianic]] title.<ref name="Miller">Miller, Fred P., [http://www.ao.net/~fmoeller/nazer2.htm Isaiah's Use of the word "Branch" or Nazarene]"</ref>

The Greek [[New Testament]] uses variation of the word "Nazarene" 19 times. In the [[Book of Acts]], "Nazorean" is used to refer to a follower of Jesus, i.e. a [[Christian]].<ref name="Acts245">{{bibleverse||Acts|24:5|ESV}}</ref> The modern words for "Christian" in Hebrew (''No·tsri'', נוֹצְרִי) and in Arabic (''Naṣrānī'', نصراني) are derived from "Nazarene."

The Greek [[New Testament]] uses variation of the word "Nazarene" 19 times. In the [[Book of Acts]], "Nazorean" is used to refer to a follower of Jesus, i.e. a [[Christian]].<ref name="Acts245">{{bibleverse||Acts|24:5|ESV}}</ref> The modern words for "Christian" in Hebrew (''No·tsri'', נוֹצְרִי) and in Arabic (''Naṣrānī'', نصراني) are derived from "Nazarene."

[[Jerome]] (''c.'' 347 – 420) linked the word to a messianic prophecy by Isaiah. He claimed that it was the Hebrew reading of a word modern scholars read as ''ne·tzer'' (branch).<ref>"For in the place where we read and translate, ''There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots,'' in the Hebrew idiom it is written thus, ''There shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse and a Nazarene shall grow from his root.''" (Jerome, Letter 47:7).</ref> The text from Isaiah is:

[[Jerome]] (''c.'' 347 – 420) linked the word to a messianic prophecy by Isaiah. He claimed that it was the Hebrew reading of a word modern scholars read as ''ne·tzer'' (branch).<ref>"For in the place where we read and translate, ''There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots,'' in the Hebrew idiom it is written thus, ''There shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse and a Nazarene shall grow from his root.''" (Jerome, Letter 47:7).</ref> The text from Isaiah is:

{{cquote|There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.<ref name="Isaiah111"/>}} In ancient Hebrew texts, vowels were not indicated. So a wider variety of readings was possible in Jerome's time. Here branch has the metaphoric meaning "descendant" (of [[Jesse]], father of King [[David]]). [[Eusebius]], a 4th-century Christian polemicist, also argued that Isaiah was the source of "Nazarene." This prophecy by Isaiah was extremely popular in New Testament times and is also referred to in [[Epistle to the Romans|Romans]] and [[Revelation]].<ref>Bauckham, Richard, ''Jude and the Relatives of Jesus in the Early Church'', p. 65. See {{bibleverse||Romans|15:12|ESV}} and {{bibleverse||Revelation|5:5|ESV}}.</ref>

{{cquote|There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.<ref name="Isaiah111">{{bibleverse||Isaiah|11:1}}</ref>}} In ancient Hebrew texts, vowels were not indicated. So a wider variety of readings was possible in Jerome's time. Here branch has the metaphoric meaning "descendant" (of [[Jesse]], father of King [[David]]). [[Eusebius]], a 4th-century Christian polemicist, also argued that Isaiah was the source of "Nazarene." This prophecy by Isaiah was extremely popular in New Testament times and is also referred to in [[Epistle to the Romans|Romans]] and [[Revelation]].<ref>Bauckham, Richard, ''Jude and the Relatives of Jesus in the Early Church'', p. 65. See {{bibleverse||Romans|15:12|ESV}} and {{bibleverse||Revelation|5:5|ESV}}.</ref>

==Matthew==

==Matthew==