Luke 2:4

Luke 2:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)
• New International Version (NIV)So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David,
• New King James Version (NKJV)Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David,

Context of Luke 2:4

2This was the first time that the Romans had made a list of everyone's names. Quirinius was the Roman ruler of Syria when it happened. 3Everyone went to his own home town for the Romans to count them. So Joseph went to his home town, Bethlehem. He was living in the town of Nazareth, in Galilee. Bethlehem was in Judea. King David had been born there, so Bethlehem was called the town of David. Joseph belonged to the family of David. That is why he went to Bethlehem. 5Joseph took Mary with him so that the Romans could count them. She went because she had promised to marry him. She was pregnant. 6While they were in Bethlehem, the time came for her baby to be born.

Luke 2:4 word by word

ἀνέβη δὲ καὶ Ἰωσὴφ ἀπὸ τῆς Γαλιλαίας ἐκ πόλεως Ναζαρὲθ εἰς τὴν Ἰουδαίαν εἰς πόλιν Δαυὶδ ἥτις καλεῖται Βηθλέεμ, διὰ τὸ εἶναι αὐτὸν ἐξ οἴκου καὶ πατριᾶς Δαυίδ,Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Andκαίkai · andG2532
• JosephἸωσήφIōsēph · JosephG2501
• alsoδέde · thenG1161
• went upἀναβαίνωanabainō · to ascendG305
• fromἀπόapo · away fromG575
• GalileeΓαλιλαίαGalilaia · GalileeG1056
• out ofἐκek ex · out fromG1537
• the cityπόλιςpolis · cityG4172
• of NazarethΝαζαρέθ, ΝαζαράNazareth Nazaret · NazarethG3478
• intoεἰςeis · towardG1519
• JudeaἸουδαίαIoudaia · JudeaG2449
• of DavidΔαυείδ, Δαυίδ, ΔαβίδDabid · DavidG1138
• whichὅστιςhostis hētis ho6ti · who/whichG3748
• is calledκαλέωkaleō · to call: callG2564
• BethlehemΒηθλεέμBēthleem · BethlehemG965
• becauseδιάdia · through/because ofG1223
• heαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• wasεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• the houseοἶκοςoikos · house: householdG3624
• lineageπατριάpatria · family lineG3965

Cross-references for Luke 2:4

• Luke 1:26When Elizabeth's baby had grown inside her for nearly six months, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth. Nazareth is a town in Galilee.
• Luke 3:23Jesus was about 30 years old when he began his work. People thought that he was the son of Joseph. Joseph was from the family of Heli.
• Luke 4:16Jesus went to Nazareth, the town where he had grown up. On the Jewish day of rest, he went to their meeting place. This was what he usually did. He stood up to read aloud from the Bible.
• Matthew 2:23So Joseph went there and he lived in a town called Nazareth. Long ago God's prophets had said about God's Messiah, ‘He will be called a person from Nazareth.’ Now this had become true.
• John 1:46Nathanael said, ‘I did not think that anything good could come from Nazareth!’ Philip replied, ‘Come and see.’
• Genesis 35:19After Rachel died, they buried near the road that goes to Ephrath.
• Genesis 48:7As for me, I was very sad when your mother Rachel died on our journey from Paddan. She died near to Ephrath. So I buried her there, next to the road to Ephrath (that is now called Bethlehem).’
• Ruth 1:19Naomi and Ruth travelled together to Bethlehem. When they arrived there, the people were very surprised. The women from the town said, ‘Is this really Naomi?’
• Ruth 2:4Just then, Boaz arrived from Bethlehem town. He said ‘hello’ to the workers. ‘I pray that the Lord will help you,’ he said. The men replied, ‘We pray that the Lord will bless you!’
• Ruth 4:11Then all the leaders and the other people at the gate said, ‘We have seen that this is true. We pray that the Lord will bless the woman who is coming into your home as your wife. We pray that he will bless her as he blessed Rachel and Leah. They gave birth to many children for the family of Israel. We pray that you will become a rich man in Ephrathah's clan. And we pray that you will become famous in Bethlehem town.
• 1 Samuel 16:1The Lord said to Samuel, ‘Stop being sad about Saul. I have decided that he will no longer be the king of Israel. Fill your horn with olive oil and go. I am sending you to a man whose name is Jesse. He lives in Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to become king.’
• 1 Samuel 17:12At this time, David's father Jesse was a very old man. Jesse belonged to the clan of Ephrathah. He came from Bethlehem town in Judah. He had e ight sons.
• 1 Samuel 20:6Your father may see that I am not at the meal. If he does, say to him, “David asked me to let him go to his home in Bethlehem. His family offer a sacrifice there at this time every year.”
• Micah 5:2But God tells us this: ‘Bethlehem Ephrathah is only a little town, among all the many towns in Judah,’ God says. ‘But I will choose someone who is born there. He will rule Israel for me. Long, long ago, I prepared for him to come.’
• Matthew 2:1Jesus was born in a town called Bethlehem, in Judea. King Herod ruled Judea at that time. After Jesus was born, some wise men came to Jerusalem from a country in the east.
• John 7:42The Bible says that the Messiah will come from King David's family. He will come from Bethlehem, the town where David lived.’

Commentaries on Luke 2:4

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4The city of David - Bethlehem, called the city of David because it was the place of his birth. See the notes at Matthew 2:1. Because he was of the house - Of the family. And lineage - The “lineage” denotes that he was descended from David as his father or ancestor. In taking a Jewish census, families were kept distinct; hence, all went to the “place” where their family had resided. Joseph was of the “family” of David, and hence he went up to the city of…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3-4Since Joseph was a descendant of King David, he returned to David’s hometown of Bethlehem (1 Samuel 17:12, 58; 20:6). Bethlehem is a small village in Judea, eight kilometers (five miles) south of Jerusalem. The prophet Micah foretold that the Christ (the Messiah, God’s chosen king) would be born there (Micah 5:2).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4-54-5. Not only does Joseph, who was of the royal line, go to Bethlehem (1Sa 16:1), but Mary too--not from choice surely in her condition, but, probably, for personal enrollment, as herself an heiress.Read the comment

Topics related to Luke 2:4

• Bethlehem
• Jesus, the Christ
• Joseph
• Nazareth
• Tribute (Taxes)

In the dictionaries

• Bethlehem
• David
• Galilee
• Judea
• Nazareth
• City of David
• Judaea, or Judea
• Bethlehem, Ephrathah
• Galilee, Galilean
• Judea, Judah

Commentaries on Luke 2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings