Bible Strands
Luke 2:40
And the Child grew and became strong. He was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon Him.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator's summary of Jesus' childhood, placed between the temple presentation and the annual Passover trips. No one is speaking; Luke compresses the intervening years into a single sentence.
The words — Both ηὔξανεν ("was continuing to grow") and ἐκραταιοῦτο ("was being strengthened") are imperfect tense, marking ongoing progressive action rather than a single event. The growth is presented as a process, not a destination.
The thread — The phrasing closely parallels Luke 1:80 of John the Baptist ("grew and became strong in spirit"), and Luke 2:52 later adds "stature" and "favor with God and man." Isaiah 11:1's "shoot from the stump of Jesse" provides the prophetic backdrop for this quiet growth.
Why it lands — The verse asks the reader to hold an entire childhood in one line and resist the urge to fill the silence with spectacle. It also sets the stakes: the same child who "was being strengthened" will be the one who is broken.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him.
Cross-references
- Luke 2:52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.
- Luke 1:80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the wilderness until the time of his public appearance to Israel.
- Isaiah 11:1 Then a shoot will spring up from the stump of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.
- John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
- 1 Samuel 2:26 And the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favor with the LORD and with man.
- 1 Samuel 3:19 And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and He let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground.
- Isaiah 53:1 Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
- Luke 2:47 And all who heard Him were astounded at His understanding and His answers.
- Psalms 22:9 Yet You brought me forth from the womb; You made me secure at my mother’s breast.
- Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.