What Was Jesus Like As A Boy?

What was Jesus like growing up as a young boy? What can we learn from the Bible about this question?

Born in Bethlehem

Micah the Prophet prophesied that “you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days” (Micah 5:2) and “he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God” (Micah 5:4a). This obviously refers to Jesus Christ being born in Bethlehem. Isaiah adds that “the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). Immanuel means “God with us” and Jesus came and as the Word of God (John 1:1) and dwelt in the flesh and many beheld Him (John 1:1, 14). Because Caesar Augustus required everyone to be registered in their hometown, Joseph, who was betrothed or engaged with Mary, “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, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed” (Luke 2:4-5).

Raised in Nazareth

Jesus’ was circumcised on the eighth day and presented in the temple by His parents as required and after “they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him” (Luke 2:39-40). These two verses are enough to tell us that Jesus grew up in Nazareth and became strong and filled with wisdom, so much so that once at the Feast of Passover, “they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers” (Luke 2:46-47). Jesus must have grew up cutting His teeth on Scripture because He apparently knew the Scriptures so well that he asked some great questions and everyone “who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.”

What Did Jesus do as a Boy?

I believe that Jesus was still likely to do things that boys did at that time. They went fishing, they played games, they climbed trees, they went swimming, they played hide and seek, or just about anything else a young boy’s imagination could come up with. We can only speculate on this part though because the Scriptures are silent on much of Jesus’ childhood years so I should be silent where Scripture is silent. We know that Jesus had younger brothers and sisters as He was the oldest, but beyond this, I can’t say dogmatically what Jesus was like as a boy except for the fact that He never lied to anyone, He never cheated, He never stole, He always honored His parents, and kept every Law, including the Ten Commandments.

Boy to Man

The Bible says that Jesus grew in stature (size), strength (carpentry), and wisdom (Scriptural). He was most likely a very strong man being a carpenter by trade and following in the footsteps of His step-father Joseph’s trade. Working in carpentry at that time was an extremely physically demanding job. There were no power tools to cut huge timbers or stones so it all had to be done by hand. And since buildings and homes contained both wood and stone, the carpenter must have been stronger than most but more important than that, Jesus grew in favor with mankind but later He would grow in disfavor. This would lead to the cross where He would take upon Himself the wrath of God to make possible our redemption by the forgiveness of sins.

Conclusion

Now counts forever. Today is the perfect time to repent and trust in Christ (2nd Cor 6:2) so that God will see you as having the very righteousness of Christ (2nd Cor 5:21). If you stand on your own works, the books will be opened and you will be found wanting (Rev 20:12-15). If you want to be judged by your so-called “good works,” I pray you change your mind because works are useless before God as justification (Eph 2:8-9). On that day, all your “good” will be not enough to clear your sin-debt. Jesus alone can do that (Acts 4:12).

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.