Luke 2:42Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Jesus travels to Jerusalem accompanied by his parents, demonstrating his obedience to God and the requirements of the law.

Following the Evangelist's declaration that Jesus grew in wisdom and favor with both God and humanity, he provides evidence of this truth. He narrates how Jesus, accompanied by the holy Virgin, journeyed to Jerusalem for the celebration of the feast. Subsequently, he reveals that Jesus stayed behind and was later discovered in the temple, engaged in dialogue with the scholars, posing and responding to questions concerning the ancient laws. His inquiries and answers left everyone astonished. Here, we witness His growth in wisdom and grace, as He became recognized by many for His true nature.

At the age of twelve, He commenced His ministry. Scripture indicates that this was the age at which the Lord began to proclaim the message: it reflects the same number as those who were sent out to evangelize (cf. Matt. 10:1-7).

Each year, His parents traveled to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover festival. When He reached the age of twelve, they also made the journey to Jerusalem for this feast. After the completion of the days of the festival, the young Jesus chose to remain in the city. At the conclusion of the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread, He remained behind, desiring to engage with the teachers. Unbeknownst to Joseph and His mother, this occurred by Divine design to prevent them from obstructing Him, considering He was still a child and inexperienced.

Maturity can also be understood as represented by the numbers seven and twelve, with twelve emerging from the multiplication of the components of seven, symbolizing the entirety of creation and the fullness of time. Therefore, in order to encompass all locations and periods, the Divine light is rooted in the significance of the number twelve.

Every year, the parents of Jesus faithfully attended the Passover feast in Jerusalem, adhering meticulously to the commandments (Exodus 23:14, etc.). When Jesus reached the age of twelve, a time at which Jewish boys began their formal education in the law—thus earning the designation 'children of the law'—Joseph and Mary went to the festival in Jerusalem accompanied by Him. Following the conclusion of the festivities (Exodus 12:18; Leviticus 23:5-8), the throngs of people began their return journey to their homes. Typically, they traveled together in groups or caravans, and Joseph and Mary were among relatives and friends.

Every year, Our Lady accompanied Joseph to Jerusalem for the Passover feast, and it is certain that she brought Her divine Son along each time. It is inconceivable to think that she would willingly separate from Him for an extended period. The account presented by the Evangelist Luke supports this: "And when He was twelve years old, they came also according to custom to Jerusalem for the feast." After the celebrations ended, Joseph and Mary did not find Jesus among them and presumed He was traveling with relatives who were heading back to Nazareth. In previous years, it is possible that the young Jesus briefly joined other groups of pilgrims or acquaintances, returning to His parents during rest stops or overnight stays.

Since the period of the Babylonian exile, the Jewish people exhibited an intense fervor for adhering to the law that mandated all adult males to journey to Jerusalem for the three significant annual feasts. During the foremost feast, Passover, women also made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem, typically accompanied by their children once they reached the age of twelve. These feasts were critical occasions for the community, as they sent their finest offerings as gifts to the holy sanctuary. Righteous Joseph, embodying true Israelite devotion, faithfully observed this legal obligation. When Jesus turned twelve, which brought upon him the responsibility to uphold the law, the holy family made their pilgrimage to Jerusalem to celebrate a grand feast in this pivotal year of their son’s life. Nazareth lies approximately 150 versts from Jerusalem, and the path taken by the worshippers traversed a densely populated area, causing groups from various towns and villages to unite into a sizable procession filled with sacred hymns and spiritual enthusiasm as they approached the holy city.

Jerusalem held the title of the most sacred city in the promised land, housing the most revered shrine of the people: the temple. Nothing impure was permitted to enter this city, and local belief held that even its soil was so consecrated that serpents and scorpions posed no threat there. Yet, within this sacred city, the temple itself was even more hallowed, surrounded by an area known for its sanctity. The temple mount ranked fourth among local shrines, with nothing ceremonially baked permitted to ascend it. Next came the space between the court of the Gentiles and the inner courts, accessible only to Israelites, who could enter only if they were ritually clean. Following was the court of women, which excluded any individual deemed unclean. More sacred was the court of the Israelites; entry was denied to anyone needing to perform a sin offering. Even holier was the priests’ courtyard, where only priests or Levites could pass the threshold unless in exceptional circumstances stipulated by the law. The space between the altar and the temple was regarded as profoundly sacred; even a priest with any physical imperfection, in tattered garments, or who had consumed wine, was barred from entering. The temple stood in isolation, with each priest required to cleanse his hands and feet before entrance. And at the apex of holiness within the temple was the ‘Holy of Holies,’ entered solely by the high priest and then only once a year, on the Day of Atonement. Such a city, accompanied by its magnificent sanctuary, invoked profound reverence among the Jews. Their attachment to this national sanctuary intensified especially after their painful Babylonian exile. This deep sentiment is evident in a psalm recounting how the captives wept near the rivers of Babylon while reminiscing about Zion (Ps. 136:1). The well-known belief in the Targum also reflects this reverence, positing that the remains of righteous Jews who died abroad would be transported via an underground route to the Mount of Olives, allowing them to partake in the resurrection of the righteous there.

No matter where they found themselves—in all corners of the known world at the time—Jews’ eyes were ever toward the temple, finding solace in the sight of their national sanctuary. It seemed to encompass both their earthly and heavenly homeland. From various regions, the heartfelt cry, as beautifully articulated by the psalmist, resonated: “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for You, O God; my soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night, while they continually say to me, ‘Where is your God?’ When I remember these things, I pour out my soul within me. For I used to go with the multitude; I went with them to the house of God with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept a pilgrim feast” (Psalm 41:2-5). For Jews everywhere, a visit to the temple represented the pinnacle and pride of their entire religious practice. In their synagogues and places of worship scattered across the world, they maintained this sacred sentiment at every gathering. Their gifts and offerings flowed like a golden stream into the temple, fulfilling legal obligations but, more importantly, manifesting their religious devotion. Each Jew aged twenty and older paid an annual didrachmah as a legal tax benefiting the firstborn, contributing to the upkeep of the temple and its sacrifices. Beyond this, other offerings continuously flowed into the temple treasury. Rabbis demanded tithes from all Jews, regardless of their residence, and many devout Jews surely complied.

“In almost every city,” Philo notes, “there is a box designated for sacred contributions, with donations placed within.” At certain times, this money would be entrusted to dignitaries tasked with sending it to Jerusalem. The most esteemed individuals in each city were chosen to uphold this commitment of all Jews, as the faithful relied upon such gifts. This annual contribution was dutifully sent even by Jews in Egypt, despite their having their own temple in Leontopolis; it arrived consistently from Roman Jews and those in the west, as well as from Asia Minor and Syria. However, the most substantial offerings came from Babylonia and lands beyond the Euphrates, with many willingly accompanying the sacred funds to Jerusalem for its protection against thieves. Thus, the heart of the entire Jewish community resonated within the Temple in Jerusalem. The utmost responsibility of all was to ensure the sanctuary’s unwavering sanctity. Foreign powers might rule over Palestine and even Jerusalem itself, but as long as the temple remained intact, Jews accepted the situation with resignation. Yet, if the disrespect or avarice of an adversary threatened the temple’s sanctity, indignation surged throughout the Jewish world, instigating immediate and collective action; at the alarm of the temple being endangered, they would take up arms and solemnly vow to defend Jerusalem and its sanctuary with their lives.

The multitude gathered in Jerusalem for the Passover feast must have been a sight to behold. “Many thousands,” Philo writes, “from many thousands of towns and villages go up to the temple for each feast; some by land, others by sea, from east and west, from north and south.” Even for the feast of Pentecost, which attracted noticeably fewer attendees, crowds of Jews and proselytes journeyed from all corners of the Roman Empire, which at that point nearly encompassed the known world (Acts 2:9-11). According to I. Flavius, 2,700,000 souls participated in just one Passover feast, along with the city’s inhabitants. Countless caravans made their way to the city, generating an ever-growing excitement. Jews from the diaspora came from various nations, including Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia adorned in eastern attire, steered by caravans filled with camels and mules; groups from the provinces of Asia Minor such as Cappadocia, Pontus, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, each with distinct appearances in dress and speech; substantial groups of affluent Jews from Egypt, the predominant settlement of foreign Jews, as well as those from Libya and Cyrenaica in Africa; pilgrims even from imperial Rome and distant towns of desert Arabia. In essence, the entire Jewish populace convened in one place. The entirety of the past and present of God’s people converged in this city, with numerous voices in a symphony of praise unmistakably proclaiming the glory of the one true God. The pilgrims aimed to arrive in Jerusalem the day preceding Passover or, at the very least, on the fourteenth of Nisan, the evening marking the commencement of the feast. Due to the city’s limited capacity to house the throngs, many worshippers set up temporary shelters made from freshly woven willow branches just outside the city.

In town, holiday preparations began well in advance. A month before Passover, bridges and roads underwent repairs, while graves near Jerusalem were enclosed or marked to prevent pilgrims from unwittingly defiling themselves. On the Saturday before the fourteenth of Nisan, known as the Great Sabbath, special services were held in the synagogues and the temple itself, with rabbis clarifying the law and the significance of the feast for the people. Lambs for the Passover were chosen on the tenth day from the immense flocks that arrived in the city. The fourteenth day, beginning at sunset on the thirteenth, marked the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Ex. 13:7), hence referred to as the “day of preparation” (John 19:14). In accordance with the law, no leavened bread was to remain in the home at this time. When evening fell, the head of each household commenced the house-cleansing ritual, praying: “Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us by Your commandments and commanded us to remove the leavened bread,” and then silently inspecting the rooms, collecting and burning any crumbs he found. The house itself was thoroughly cleansed; thereafter, no one could enter a gentile home without becoming defiled. For the ensuing seven days, having or consuming leavened bread was prohibited to avoid defilement, preventing participation in the Passover meal. Special attention was given to the preparation of the unleavened bread itself. On the evening of the thirteenth of Nisan, “before the appearance of the stars,” the head of each family would go to fetch water, saying, “This is the water for the unleavened bread.” Then, with meticulous care, the grain was milled, and after baking the loaves, one was set aside, accompanied by the requisite prayer, to be offered to the priest in the temple. The afternoon of the fourteenth of Nisan was marked by heightened anticipation, as everyone hastened to finalize their arrangements in eager anticipation of the trumpet call from the temple, signaling the onset of the feast.

Upon the sounding of the trumpet, every family took their lamb and proceeded to the temple, where colorful carpets were hung in honor of the feast within the courtyards. The priests would inspect the numerous sacrificial lambs for blemishes before family heads, or those designated by them, alongside Levites, prepared the lambs for roasting. One can only imagine the immense effort required, as it was at times necessary to process over 250,000 lambs in unison. The designated time for slaughtering these offerings was termed “between the two evenings,” occurring from sunset on the fourteenth of Nisan until the emergence of the stars, although they could be killed during the last three hours of that day. Once the lambs had undergone their rituals, preparations for the Passover meal began. The lambs were roasted in thousands of specially constructed ovens, and the entirety of each lamb was expected to be consumed, leaving no remnants by morning. In accordance with law, lambs could only be eaten in the temple courts; however, due to the increasing number of worshippers, rabbis authorized consumption within the city limits. Groups of ten to twenty participants often dined together, with women permitted to join their families even though they were not obligated to partake in the Passover meal. Children of a certain age and even circumcised slaves or foreigners were also welcomed to participate in the observance.

At the age of twelve, this marked the year when boys were traditionally required to travel to Jerusalem for the feasts, at which point they were regarded as 'children of the law.' Joseph, Mary, and the Child Jesus participated 'according to custom,' as the laws applied principally to Joseph, while Mary and Jesus followed the general practices of the community. For the Blessed Virgin, this journey held particular significance that year as it was the inaugural pilgrimage of her only-begotten Son to commemorate the feast presented before the Lord.

When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem alongside Joseph and His mother, He beheld the city enriched by the significant occurrences in the history of God's people, reflecting on the legacy of ancient kings and prophets. His gaze fell upon the temple, which towered grandly over the city. Although generations had come and gone, the magnificence of both the city and the temple remained intact, prompting exclamations of wonder regarding the remarkable stones and structures (Mark 13:1). Observers could also appreciate the temple adorned with exquisite stones and generous offerings (Luke 21:5). Yet, how profound must have been Jesus' emotions as He surveyed this city and temple, soon to be the stage for His ministry?