Chapter

Luke chapter 4

English Standard Version

18“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” 20And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” 22And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth. And they said, “Is not this Joseph’s son?” 23And he said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘“Physician, heal yourself.” What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.’” 24And he said, “Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown. 25But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens were shut up three years and six months, and a great famine came over all the land, 26and Elijah was sent to none of them but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 27And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.” 28When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. 29And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff. 30But passing through their midst, he went away.
New International Version

New American Standard Bible

Christian Standard Bible

New Living Translation

King James Version

14And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through all the region round about. 15And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all. 16And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. 17And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, 18The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. 20And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. 22And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. And they said, Is not this Joseph's son? 23And he said unto them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself: whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy country. 24And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country. 25But 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; 26But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow. 27And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian. 28And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, 29And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong. 30But he passing through the midst of them went his way,
31And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days. 32And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power. 33And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice, 34Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God. 35And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not. 36And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word is this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out. 37And the fame of him went out into every place of the country round about. 38And he arose out of the synagogue, and entered into Simon's house. And Simon's wife's mother was taken with a great fever; and they besought him for her. 39And he stood over her, and rebuked the fever; and it left her: and immediately she arose and ministered unto them. 40Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them. 41And devils also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou art Christ the Son of God. And he rebuking them suffered them not to speak: for they knew that he was Christ. 42And when it was day, he departed and went into a desert place: and the people sought him, and came unto him, and stayed him, that he should not depart from them. 43And he said unto them, I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore am I sent. 44And he preached in the synagogues of Galilee.

What does Luke chapter 4 mean?

Before starting His public preaching and healing ministry, Jesus goes alone into the wastelands near Judea. He spends forty days fasting—nearly the limit of what a human body can survive without food. This experience is driven by the Holy Spirit, but also includes temptation. Satan appears, enticing Jesus in several ways. All three temptations involve turning away from God's plan, seeking something easier or quicker. In one instance, the Devil even cites Scripture, twisting the meaning. Jesus resists these attempts. He maintains obedience to God and quotes the book of Deuteronomy. Parallel accounts of this experience are found in Matthew 4:1–11 and Mark 1:12–13. Having failed, Satan leaves Jesus and goes elsewhere. (Luke 4:1–13).

After enduring temptation and starvation, Jesus comes back to Galilee. This is the area north of Jerusalem, around the Sea of Galilee. There He teaches in synagogues, to great acclaim. At least one town does not approve His message: Nazareth, Jesus' childhood hometown. While visiting there, Jesus reads aloud from Isaiah. The prophecy indicates that Messiah will bring rescue, healing, and good news. When Jesus claims to be the fulfillment of this prophecy, His former neighbors react with skepticism. In their eyes, Jesus is nothing more than another Nazarene—He can't possibly be anything special (Luke 4:14–22).

Jesus knows where the Nazarenes' skepticism will lead. Critics who knew about Jesus' miracles often responded to His teaching by demanding a supernatural sign. Such ultimatums are insincere; those who won't accept the proof they've already been given aren't likely to respond to even more (John 2:18; 6:30; Mark 8:11; Luke 11:16). Jesus predicts the people want Him to repeat the same miracles He's done elsewhere. Instead, Jesus criticizes their stubbornness. He notes that at times God would withhold miracles from Israel, and instead perform them for Gentiles: non-Jewish persons (Luke 4:23–27).

At the time Jesus speaks these words, Israel was bitterly angry over being occupied by the Roman Empire. The Jewish people were deeply resentful of their national captors. When Jesus implies that the Lord is willing to speak to Gentiles—those outside of God's chosen people—the Nazarenes react with violent anger. A mob physically ejects Jesus from the synagogue and takes Him to a nearby cliff. Their intent is lethal, but Jesus can "pass through" the crowd. This is likely a miraculous escape (John 8:59; 10:39); similar events happen at other times in Jesus' ministry (Luke 4:28–30).

Luke's account is not always in order of occurrence—ancient writers often grouped events by topic rather than by timeline. At some point in Jesus' early ministry, He encounters a demon-possessed man in a synagogue. The demon recognizes Jesus as the Son of God, reacting in fear. Jesus issues a direct command, and the demon immediately leaves. The people have already been impressed by the authority of Jesus' words. Now they see the strength of His divine power. This adds even more publicity to His ministry (Luke 4:31–37).

Leaving directly from the synagogue, Jesus visits the home of Simon Peter (Mark 3:16; John 1:42). Peter's mother-in-law is so sick that she's bedridden. Luke, who knows something about medicine (Colossians 4:14), describes her fever as intense. Just as Jesus exorcized a demon with authority, He commands the woman's illness. She is instantly made well. There is no recovery process: she immediately attends to hosting duties. Since this happens on a Sabbath, people wait until sundown—which marks the start of the next day—to bring sick and afflicted people to Jesus. As Jesus heals, He explicitly forbids the demons from proclaiming Him as Christ (Luke 4:38–41).

Being fully human, Jesus needed occasional rest and refreshment. When He attempts to take a break from His ministry, the people living near Simon Peter follow Him. Though healing and preaching are good things, God's plans for Jesus involve much more than one small area. He recognizes the need to choose what is "best" over what is merely "good." Jesus plans to travel around the region, so He politely refuses to stay in one place for long (Luke 4:42–44).
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