Luke 7:17
ESV
And this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.
NIV
This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.
NASB
And this report about Him spread throughout Judea and in all the surrounding region.
CSB
This report about him went throughout Judea and all the vicinity.
NLT
And the news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding countryside.
KJV
And this rumour of him went forth throughout all Judaea, and throughout all the region round about.
NKJV
And this report about Him went throughout all Judea and all the surrounding region.
What does Luke 7:17 mean?
Jesus has raised a man from the dead. The townspeople and the crowd that came with Jesus glorify God and fear Jesus (Luke 7:11–16). The news spreads."Judea" doesn't refer to the tetrarchy where Jerusalem is. It means the regions where Jews live, specifically, the districts of Judea and Galilee. Starting from the northwest and going clockwise, the "surrounding country" includes Tyre and Sidon, where Jesus heals the Syrophoenician woman's daughter (Mark 7:24–30); across the Jordan to Batanea, where the transfiguration takes place and Jesus heals the demonized boy (Luke 9:28–43); south to Decapolis, where Jesus heals the demoniac in the tombs (Luke 8:26–39); Perea, where John the Baptist is imprisoned (Luke 3:19–20); and west again to Samaria, which sits between Judea and Galilee and is where John and James offer to throw down fire upon an unhospitable town (Luke 9:51–56).
Most importantly, the report reaches John the Baptist (Luke 7:18). He has been imprisoned by Herod Antipas, who governs both Galilee and Perea. Jesus is in Nain in the far south of Galilee. According to ancient Jewish historian Josephus, Antipas imprisoned John in Perea because John speaks out about Antipas' marriage to his brother's wife Herodias (Luke 3:19–20).
John has trained his disciples to look for the Christ (John 1:35–36). When they hear what Jesus is doing, they report to John. John understands that all these miracles fulfill the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah, but Jesus' work is incomplete. He hasn't judged the wicked, like Antipas, nor freed the prisoners, like himself. This provides just enough opening for doubt to creep in: is Jesus really the Messiah, or did John waste his entire life?
Luke 7:11–17 is the story of Jesus in the village of Nain. There, Jesus raises to life the only son of a widow. The people are terrified, but praise God. The mother parallels the sinful woman caught powerless in a male-dominated society (Luke 7:36–38); the boy is like the demoniac who cannot ask for healing (Luke 8:26–39). Luke again ties Jesus to Old Testament prophets, specifically Elijah, with the healing of the son of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:8–24), and Elisha, who raised the Shunammite woman's son (2 Kings 4:18–37).
Luke 7 presents a chiasm: a set of themes mirrored around a reflection point. The humble centurion (Luke 7:1–10) contrasts the legalistic Pharisee (Luke 7:39–50). The widow of Nain (Luke 7:11–17) and the sinful women (Luke 7:36–38) have nothing to offer but gratitude for Jesus' blessings. In the center are John the Baptist and his disciples who struggle to trust that Jesus is worth following (Luke 7:18–23), then the sinners who do choose to follow Jesus and the religious leaders who refuse (Luke 7:24–35).
