Luke. Diane G. Chen
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says, “See if God will really keep his word and rescue you. Make him prove it.” Once more, Jesus replies, “Do not put the Lord your God to the test” (4:12; cf. Deut 6:16a). His answer deftly combats this temptation, but also recalls the sad history of how the Israelites did indeed put God to the test at Massah when they had no water to drink (Deut 6:16b; cf. Exod 17:1–7).
All three temptations take aim at Jesus’ trust in God and fidelity to God. The devil strikes at Jesus’ understanding of his divine sonship, but with every victory Jesus also redeems Israel’s past failure as recalcitrant children of God. The devil temporarily concedes his failure and withdraws “until an opportune time” (4:13). That time will present itself in the passion narrative when the power of darkness will attack in full force (22:3, 31, 53; 23:44–46). Just as the Holy Spirit continues to empower Jesus throughout his ministry, the devil will keep obstructing Jesus by oppressing people with unclean spirits and crippling diseases.108 By resisting these temptations, Jesus has also passed three tests and demonstrated total allegiance to and dependence on his Father. The Messiah is now ready for action.
Sermon at Nazareth (4:14–30)
With the completion of the time of preparation, Jesus returns to Galilee “in the power of the Spirit” (4:14; cf. 1:35; 3:23; 4:1). As Jesus begins his mission, his teaching activities in the synagogues place him in good repute throughout Galilee (4:14–15). Despite the people’s positive opinions of Jesus, they are far from understanding his status and the substance of his teachings. The general acclaim in this summative statement will contrast sharply with the rejection Jesus will face. The words that Simeon spoke to Mary when Jesus was presented at the temple, that “[her] child is . . . to be a sign that will be opposed” (2:34–35), will soon materialize.
Nazareth of Galilee was a poor, insignificant village with an estimated population of barely a few hundred. Nothing much was found in its excavations—no public building, no fine pottery, no paved street, no inscription—that might justify a different impression.109 In the first century, the Jews would gather for prayer and Scripture reading on the Sabbath in a synagogue. If the village was too small to have its own synagogue, a home was used. A typical service would begin with the recitation of the Shema (Deut 6:4–9) and other set prayers, followed by readings from the Torah and the Prophets, a sermon, and a prayer to close.110
Jesus, the son of law-abiding parents (2:22–23, 39, 41), has the habit of going to the synagogue on the Sabbath (4:16). As he is about to read Scripture, the narrative time is slowed down considerably. The chiastic structure of the ensuing verses describing Jesus’ actions moves the reader toward the quotation from Isaiah, and then all the way back until Jesus sits down (4:16–20):
Jesus stood up to read (16c)
The scroll was given to him (17a)
He unrolled the scroll (17b)
He read from Isaiah (18–19)
He rolled up the scroll (20a)
He gave the scroll back to the attendant (20b)
He sat down (20c)
The quotation from Isaiah, handpicked by Jesus to read, sits at the focal point of the chiasm (4:18–19). Segments of Isa 61:1–2 and 58:6 may be found in the composite quotation in 4:18–19. Aside from the glaring omission of the phrase, “the day of vengeance of our God” (Isa 61:2b), Jesus’ reading captures the positive manifestations of “the year of the lord’s favor.” It is not that God’s final judgment is taken lightly, but the emphasis here is on the good news for “the poor” who are willing to receive it. In Luke “the poor” are not limited to those who are economically poor, such as peasants, slaves, beggars, and day laborers. Others viewed by their contemporaries as having low status are also considered to be “poor”—children, barren women, widows, gentiles, tax collectors, sinners, the demon possessed, and those with physical deformities and diseases. Some are relegated to a low status because of their age, gender, ethnicity, and socio-economic status; others due to moral and ritual impurity. In verse 19 the captives, the blind, and the oppressed constitute “the poor” to whom Jesus brings the good news of the kingdom of God.
The news is good because “the poor” will experience a reversal of conditions: the captives will be released, the blind will see, the oppressed will go free (4:18). This list is illustrative, not exhaustive. Jesus’ reading of Isaiah puts the spotlight on the theme of reversal already introduced in Mary’s song (1:51–53). This note will be repeatedly sounded as the narrative proceeds (6:20–26; 7:21–22; 16:19–31). Behind the quotations from Isaiah lies the OT concept of Jubilee. Every fifty years, Israel was to “proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants” (Lev 25:10–17). In the year of Jubilee, the Jews were to leave the land fallow, set their slaves free, and forgive all debts. Although the Israelites never properly observed the year of the Jubilee, this image is evoked in later Jewish writings to describe the ideal conditions at the time of God’s final salvation.111
But Jesus is more than a social reformer; his ability to reverse a person’s situation goes far beyond writing off a debt or manumitting a slave. In conjunction with release and reversal on the physical and socio-economic level, Jesus effects spiritual renewal that reconciles the penitent to God through the forgiveness of sins (cf. 5:17–26; 7:36–50). Those who claim high social status by human standards can still find themselves in spiritual poverty, rendering them in dire need of salvation like everyone else (cf. 3:7–9).
Where does Jesus see himself in this depiction of the eschatological Jubilee? In Isa 61:1, the one anointed by the Spirit is God’s prophet and servant. Reading the passage alone does not necessarily draw an immediate link between this figure in Isaiah, his message, and Jesus. But when Jesus sits down, assuming the posture of a teacher, he declares, “Today (sēmeron) this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing” (4:20–21). He claims that the future hope of the Jews is now present reality. The identification of Jesus with the Isaianic prophet may not be immediately apparent to those sitting in the synagogue at Nazareth, but the same Spirit who descended upon Jesus at his baptism (3:22) and led him through the tests in the wilderness (4:1, 14) now anoints Jesus as God’s end-time prophet that inaugurates God’s eschatological Jubilee here and now. The Greek word, sēmeron (“today”) is more than a reference to that particular day in Nazareth (4:21). It is a catchword in Luke to denote the immediacy of God’s salvation (2:11; 5:26; 19:9; 23:43). Jesus is making a bold claim that the salvation hoped for by generations of Israelites has arrived and he is the Spirit-anointed agent through whom all forms of oppression will be lifted.
At first “all spoke well of him” (4:22a), but by the end of the pericope, “all were filled with rage” (4:28). What causes the crowd’s response to swing from one side of the pendulum to the other? Initially, the villagers are impressed and receive Jesus’ words as words of grace. They hear the message as spoken for them, that they are the beneficiaries of God’s redemption. Without the tone, it is difficult to determine the attitude behind the ensuing question, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” (4:22b; cf. 3:23). Does this question ride on the momentum of the people’s amazement or is it a sign of doubt? On the one hand, Jesus enjoyed divine and human favor while growing up (2:52), so his reputation must have been quite good. It is possible to interpret the question as a sense of hometown pride: “Isn’t this Joseph’s son? Look how well he has turned out!” On the other hand, the question may betray a tinge of contempt. According to Mark, not only do they claim to know Jesus’ father, but also his mother and siblings, “and they took offense at him” (Mark 6:2–3). Are they mumbling to themselves, “Who does he think he is? How dare he make such a claim?” Some ambiguity remains as to when the shift in the public sentiment toward Jesus begins. Regardless of whether Jesus’ familial background is used as a basis for parochial pride or a reason for skepticism, what he says next is bound to ignite a negative reaction from those who have yet to embrace his mission.
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