And they said, Is not this Joseph's Son? Quickly the preacher caught the mind and feeling of his audience. Surprise and admiration soon gave place to a spirit of unbelief. Is not this who speaks to us such words, bright and eloquent with hope, often with a ring of sure triumph and certain victory in them—is it not the young Carpenter we have known so long in our village? read more
The graciousness of the words of Christ. "The gracious words [words of grace] which proceeded out of his mouth." The "words of the Lord Jesus" were "words of grace" indeed. They were so whether we consider— I. THEIR SUBSTANCE . They were not, indeed, without seriousness, and at times not without severity. Christ did say, when the occasion required it, things which startled his hearers, things which are well fitted to make us pause and even tremble if we are obnoxious to their... read more
Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself. "There is something interesting in our finding this proverb in the Gospel of the beloved physician. May we think of him as hearing the proverb casually, tracking out its application, and so coming on this history? It was, probably, so far as is known, a common Jewish proverb; but there is no trace of it in Greek writers, and it was therefore likely to attract his notice" (Dean Plumptre). Whatsoever we have heard done in... read more
And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country . But instead of gratifying their curiosity and supplying them with some more empty arguments why they should not listen to his words, the Lord quietly quotes a proverb well known to all people—Farrar calls it a curious psychological fact—the quoting prefaced by the solemn "verily." The Master was evidently looking far beyond the little prejudices of Nazareth. "His own country" meant far more than the narrow... read more
But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; but unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow. And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian . In support of these assertions, Jesus proceeds to quote two well known incidents in the... read more
All bare him witness - All were witnesses of the power and truth of what he said. Their reason and conscience approved of it, and they were constrained to admit the force and propriety of it, and on this account they wondered.They wondered - They were struck with the truth and force of his words; and especially when they remembered that he was a native of their own place, and that they had been long acquainted with him, and that he should “now” claim to be the Messiah, and give so much evidence... read more
Physician, heal thyself - This proverb was probably in common use at that time. The meaning is this: Suppose that a man should attempt to heal another when he was himself diseased in the same manner; it would be natural to ask him first to cure himself, and thus to render it manifest that he was worthy of confidence. The connection of this proverb, here, is this: “You profess to be the Messiah. You have performed miracles at Capernaum. You profess to be able to deliver us from our maladies, our... read more
No prophet is accepted - Has honor, or is acknowledged as a prophet. See the notes at Matthew 13:57. read more
Of a truth - Truly, and therefore worthy of your credit. He calls attention to two cases where “acknowledged” prophets had so little honor in their own nation that they bestowed their favors on foreigners. So, says he, such is the want of faith in my own country, that I shall work no miracles here, but shall give the evidence of my divine mission to others.In Israel - In the land of Israel, or Judea. It was therefore the more remarkable, since there were so many in his own country whom he might... read more
Get Bible verse every day in your inbox
Read on Mobile
The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 4:14-30
Christ's sermon in Nazareth. The temptation of Christ strengthened all the graces within him, so that he felt himself prepared, on returning from the wilderness, for public work. Luke does not take us, as John does in his Gospel, back to the Jordan; nor does he take us to the marriage in Cana of Galilee, where the wonderful works began ( John 2:1-13 ). He prefers to sum up for us his early Galilaean ministry in two verses, before proceeding to a detailed account of his visit to Nazareth... read more