Matthew 4:15

““Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations:”
Matthew 4:15 · direct translation from the Greek

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With the Greek beneath

“LandΓῆof ZebulunΖαβουλὼνandκαὶlandγῆof Naphtali,Νεφθαλίμthe wayὁδὸνof the sea,θαλάσσηςbeyondπέρανthe Jordan,τοῦ ἸορδάνουGalileeΓαλιλαίαof the nations:τῶν ἐθνῶν

Quotation · Isaiah 9:1-2

Go to Isaiah 9:1-2

Matthew quotes Isaiah 9:1-2 when telling that Jesus went to live in Capernaum, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali that the prophet names.

Formula: ἵνα πληρωθῇ τὸ ῥηθὲν διὰ Ἠσαΐου τοῦ προφήτου λέγοντος “so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, when he says” (Matthew 4:14)

See the original texts

Greek of the New Testament: Γῆ Ζαβουλὼν καὶ γῆ Νεφθαλίμ ὁδὸν θαλάσσης πέραν τοῦ Ἰορδάνου Γαλιλαία τῶν ἐθνῶν ὁ λαὸς ὁ καθήμενος ἐν σκοτίᾳ φῶς εἶδεν μέγα καὶ τοῖς καθημένοις ἐν χώρᾳ καὶ σκιᾷ θανάτου φῶς ἀνέτειλεν αὐτοῖς

Hebrew (Masoretic text): כִּי לֹא מוּעָף לַאֲשֶׁר מוּצָק לָהּ כָּעֵת הָרִאשׁוֹן הֵקַל אַרְצָה זְבֻלוּן וְאַרְצָה נַפְתָּלִי וְהָאַחֲרוֹן הִכְבִּיד דֶּרֶךְ הַיָּם עֵבֶר הַיַּרְדֵּן גְּלִיל הַגּוֹיִם הָעָם הַהֹלְכִים בַּחֹשֶׁךְ רָאוּ אוֹר גָּדוֹל יֹשְׁבֵי בְּאֶרֶץ צַלְמָוֶת אוֹר נָגַהּ עֲלֵיהֶם

Septuagint (Isaiah 9:1-2 in the Septuagint numbering): Τοῦτο πρῶτον πίε, ταχὺ ποίει, χώρα Ζαβουλών, ἡ γῆ Νεφθαλείμ, ὁδὸν θαλάσσης, καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ οἱ τὴν παράλων κατοικοῦντες καὶ πέραν τοῦ Ἰορδάνου, Γαλιλαία τῶν ἐθνῶν, τὰ μέρη τῆς Ἰουδαίας. ὁ λαὸς ὃ καθήμενος ἐν σκότει, ἴδετε φῶς μέγα· οἱ κατοικοῦντες ἐν χώρᾳ, καὶ σκιᾷ θανάτου, φῶς λάμψει ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς.

The Greek of the NT matches the Septuagint word for word in 6 consecutive words: “πέραν τοῦ Ἰορδάνου Γαλιλαία τῶν ἐθνῶν.”

Septuagint, Swete’s text, First1KGreek transcription (with reading errors), CC BY-SA 4.0

Matthew 4:15, word by word

“LandΓῆGē

land

A country or a region.

Where else “Gē” appears

of ZebulunΖαβουλὼνZaboulōn

Zebulun

Zebulun, son of Jacob, and the tribe and territory that bear his name, in Galilee.

Where else “Zaboulōn” appears

of NaphtaliΝεφθαλίμNephthalim

Naphtali

Naphtali, son of Jacob, and the tribe and territory of his name, west of the Sea of Galilee.

Where else “Nephthalim” appears

the wayὁδὸνhodon

road

The route by which one goes from one place to another, or the trip itself.

Where else “hodon” appears

of the seaθαλάσσηςthalassēs

sea

Sea; also a large lake, such as the Sea of Galilee.

Where else “thalassēs” appears

beyondπέρανperan

across, beyond

On the other side, across.

Where else “peran” appears

the JordanἸορδάνουIordanou

Jordan

See it on the map Where else “Iordanou” appears

GalileeΓαλιλαίαGalilaia

Galilee

See it on the map Where else “Galilaia” appears

of the nationsἐθνῶνethnōn

Gentile

The peoples who are not Israel.

Where else “ethnōn” appears

Parallel passages

Other books that tell the same thing or quote these words.

Jesus begins in Galilee

Mark 1:14-15 Luke 4:14-15

See them side by side

Matthew 4:12-17

¹²Now when he heard that John had been handed over, he withdrew into Galilee. ¹³And leaving Nazareth, he came and settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, ¹⁴so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, when he says: ¹⁵“Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations: ¹⁶the people who sat in darkness saw a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death, light dawned on them.” ¹⁷From then on Jesus began to proclaim and to say, “Change your minds, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

Mark 1:14-15

¹⁴Now after John was handed over, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God ¹⁵and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; change your minds and believe in the good news.”

Luke 4:14-15

¹⁴And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news about him went out through the whole surrounding region. ¹⁵And he was teaching in their synagogues, being glorified by all.

Quotation · Isaiah 9:1-2

Matthew quotes Isaiah 9:1-2 when telling that Jesus went to live in Capernaum, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali that the prophet names.

See them side by side

Matthew 4:15

¹⁵“Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations:

Isaiah 9:1-2

¹But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. As at the former time he treated with contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, so in the latter time he will make it glorious, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.

Places in this verse

Approximate location. A “?” means it is not known for sure where it was.

1Jordan
Today: Jordan River: Israel, West Bank, Jordan, Dead Sea
Israel's main river; it flows from Mount Hermon in the north, through the Sea of Galilee, to the Dead Sea.
Israel crossed it on dry ground to enter the promised land (Josh 3:17). Naaman was healed in it (2 Kgs 5:14), and Jesus was immersed in it (Matt 3:13).
Joshua 3:17 2 Kings 5:14 Matthew 3:13 Mark 1:9
2Galilee
Today: northern Israel, around the Sea of Galilee
The northern region of Israel, around the Sea of Galilee.
Most of Jesus' ministry took place there; he taught, healed and called his disciples (Matt 4:23; Mark 1:14).
Isaiah 9:1 Matthew 4:23 Mark 1:14 Luke 4:14

The context

14so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, when he says:

15 · This verse (above)

16the people who sat in darkness saw a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death, light dawned on them.”

Read all of Matthew 4

To study Matthew 4 in a group

1. What it says
How did Jesus answer each time the tester spoke to him (vv. 4, 7, 10)?
2. What it means
Why does Matthew tell of the testing right before Jesus begins to proclaim the kingdom (vv. 1, 17)?
3. How I live it
Jesus called fishermen to follow him (v. 19). What everyday work could you do with more attention to God?

How to use it