Matthew 4:15

The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali. Toward the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, The people that sat in darkness saw a great light, And to them that sat in the region and shadow of death, To them did Light spring up.

Beyond the Jordan ... Jesus fulfilled this prophecy by crossing the sea many times. The trans-Jordan territory was called "Perea" by the Romans.

Galilee of the Gentiles is a proverb emphasizing the low estate of those people in Galilee. Gentile customs, morals, and culture prevailed; and these were far lower than those of Jerusalem; and thus, the wretched and despised state of the citizens of Galilee, and especially of Nazareth, was proverbial.

The people that sat in darkness ... is a reference to the spiritual poverty and ignorance of Galilee. Boles said, "The language expresses a symbol of hopeless gloom."[7] It was a peculiar providence of God that those who were in such gross darkness enjoyed the amazing benefit of our Lord's earthly residence in their midst. How marvelous are God's ways! Darkness has ever been a symbol of moral destitution and spiritual blindness. All people must remain in darkness until the Light shines in their hearts through faith.

In the shadow of death ... is an expression that occurs a number of times in the Old Testament (Job 10:21; Psalms 23:4; Jeremiah 2:6, etc.). In this place it is only a further reference to the moral and spiritual condition of the people of Galilee.