Where was Jesus between 12 and 30 years? What happened during that period?
There is a good amount of information given concerning the first few years of the life of Christ on earth. From Luke 1:5 to Luke 2:40, we learn much about the first 2 or 3 years of the Lord’s life on earth. That portion ends by saying, “And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him.” Luke 2:41-52 tells us of the time that the Lord Jesus, as a young lad was in the temple “sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions.” (Verse 46). Verse 42 tells us that, “…he was twelve years old…” That portion ends by saying, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.” We see in both of these portions that the Lord was growing up, growing strong in the Spirit and gaining wisdom. God’s grace was upon Him and he increased “in favor with God and man.”
In Luke 3:21-23, we have the account of the Lord’s baptism. We read in verse 23, “And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age…” We have an 18 year gap in between the event when He was 12 years old and His baptism at about 30 years old. I think we can well assume that the Lord’s growth continued in physical presence and in wisdom. Certainly He was in preparation for the start of His ministry.” Although there have been speculations about what the Lord was doing during those 18 ‘silent years’, we do not have any mention of His activities in the Bible. To put it simple, we just do not know where the Lord went and what He was doing.
We read in John 21:25, “And there are also MANY OTHER THINGS WHICH JESUS DID, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.” During his ministry years, the Lord certainly did more things than what is written in the Word. In His ‘silent years’ His activities are not recorded. Most of the things written about the Lord while He was on the earth, are concerned with His birth and His years of ministry, His crucifixion, His resurrection, and His return to Heaven. We might realize that the Lord has told us what He wants us to know. Once we realize that the scripture is silent concerning those 18 years of the Lord’s life, let us move on and be occupied with the things the Word does tell us about the Lord Jesus. (305.6)