What did Jesus mean in Luke 4:24–27, and why did His words make the people in His hometown of Nazareth angry?
Here are the verses from Luke 4—
“Then He said, “Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country.” 25 “But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; 26 but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 27 And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.”
I’ve put some words (Sidon and Syrian) in bold for emphasis, as they’re key to understanding why the people became so enraged after Jesus made that statement. Their reaction was so intense that what’s recorded in the very next verses immediately took place—
28 “So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, 29 and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. 30 Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.” Luke 4
Understand that these people who tried to kill Jesus were not heathens or reckless sinners unconcerned about eternity. They were deeply religious individuals who spent nearly every waking moment examining their lives for sin, striving for strict adherence to the Ten Commandments, fasting, performing various works, and constantly measuring their performance against the law to ensure compliance — all in pursuit of holiness, godliness and divine blessing — what many today would call “godly living.” So why did they become so enraged that they wanted to silence Christ for good? Here’s why:
Recall the words in bold letters Sidon and Syria—
- Naaman whom God healed through Elisha was a Syrian.
- The widow of Zarephath who received God’s provision through Elijah while those who spent their entire lives trying to be godly starved, she was from the region of Sidon
Understand that there are no insignificant words, letters, punctuations, use of plural nouns instead of singular nouns or insignificant anything in God’s word. David wrote of our Heavenly Father in Christ in Psalm 92–
5 “what mighty miracles and your power at work—just to name a few! Depths of purpose and layers of meaning saturate everything you do.” Psalms 92:5-6
God does things by speaking them into existence— through His Word. Everything God does (His Word) has layers of meaning, even His reference to Sidon and Syria in Luke 4 above. He didn’t have to describe Naaman as a Syrian or mention that the widow of Zarephath was from the region of Sidon for the people to know who He was talking about, just as we don’t have to say Beyoncé’s surname and hometown for someone in the music industry to know who she is. So why did Jesus use those terms in the context that He did?—
You see, Zarephath is a city of the region of Sidon. At the time of God’s sending of Elijah to the widow in that region, there was a great famine throughout the land because the heaven was shut up for three-and-a-half years. Jesus included this fact in the statement that got the people angry—
25 “But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; 26 but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 27 And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.” Luke 4
But do you know why “the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land;”? It was because Jezebel introduced Baal worship to her husband Ahab, the king of Israel. And guess where Jezebel was from? Sidon! In fact, Jezebel was the daughter of the king of Sidon — see this below:
”Now Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord, more than all who were before him. And it came to pass, as though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians; and he went and served Baal and worshiped him. Then he set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. And Ahab made a wooden image. Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him.“I Kings 16:30-33
1 Kings 16 ends here, at verse 33. The Bible was not originally divided into chapters and verses; Bible scholars did that to facilitate ease of reference, so the very next verses which open 1 Kings 17 is really a continuation of the last verse of chapter 16. It reads—
”And Elijah the Tishbite, of the inhabitants of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, except at my word.”” I Kings 17:1
In essence, Jezebel the daughter of the king of Sidon introduced Baal worship to her husband the king of Israel and as a result, the heavens were shut up for for three-and-a-half years, so great famine throughout the land, including Israel. And there was Jesus reminding His hearers about how God bypassed the many Ten Commandments-wielding people and religious widows in their land to choose a heathen Sidonian for His blessing of provision!—
Christ was addressing a people who expected God to send rain (His goodness) based on their obedience, plenty fasts and status as God’s chosen people. He reminded them about how God sent Elijah their greatest prophet to aid a widow in Zarephath in the region of heathen Sidon; a place which the religious Israelites not only considered as being full of godless heathens but was also the home country of Jezebel who was the cause of the great famine itself. In addition, not only did God provide for the widow of Zarephath and Elijah in the region of Baal-worshipping Sidon while many in Ten Commandments-hugging Israel starved, the widow’s “household” also benefitted from God’s Grace (unmerited favour) —
”For thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.’ ” So she went away and did according to the word of Elijah; and she and he and her household ate for many days. The bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of the Lord which He spoke by Elijah.“ I Kings 17:14-16 NKJV
“The word “household” above is translated from the Hebrew word Bayith, which conveys the idea of including friends or relatives in sharing her abundance. In essence, many Sidonians — a “heathen” people from the very land whose princess, Jezebel, had brought about the great famine — experienced God’s goodness and unmerited favour through Elijah. Meanwhile, those who considered themselves more deserving because of their obedience to the law and their works were the very ones suffering through that famine.
I believe that even Jezebel benefited from God’s grace shown to the widow; she would surely have heard of it and sent for food herself. But the religious Jews could not since the law forbade them from eating with, or partaking of anything from a Gentile.
And what about Christ’s reference to God’s healing of Naaman the Syrian through Elisha which also enraged those who heard Him? Understand that after Solomon’s reign, Syria (Aram in the Bible, although some versions like NIV use Syria) was a perpetual thorn in the side of Israel. They went to battle with Israel and killed Jezebel’s husband king Ahab (2 Chronicles 18:34). They raided Israel (2 Kings 6:8) and later laid siege to the capital, Samaria (verse 24). Elisha predicted the atrocities that the Syrians (Arameans) would commit (2 Kings 8:12). They fought King Joram of Israel and won (2 Kings 8:28). Even the fall of Jerusalem at the hands of Babylon was aided by the Syrians (2 Kings 24:2).
Under the law of Moses which they struggled so hard to obey in order to get right with God, not one Israelite leper got the privilege of being cleansed from leprosy through their obedience and good works. But a Syrian — an enemy of Israel who did not even know God, was not striving obey the Ten Commandments to become godly or worthy of healing, but was going about killing Jews en masse — he got healed! And this Naaman whom the Lord God bypassed all of the lepers in Israel to heal was no ordinary Syrian; he was a top-ranking official in the Syrian army, a commander who likely had killed many Israelites in battle. The girl who recommended that he see Elisha was even an Israelite girl that was captured from Israel during one of their raids.
This is Grace — undeserved, unearned, unmerited favour. Did you know that God’s Grace is a Person? His name is Jesus Christ. Titus 2:11 says of Him:
“God’s marvelous grace has manifested in person, bringing salvation for everyone."
Verse 14 of the same Titus 2 tells us His job description: "He gave His life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us His very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds."
He is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 10:8), still saving and delivering the lost, the last and the least— utterly helpless to save themselves from their sins and acknowledging Him as Saviour to the uttermost.
In that same meeting, Jesus proclaimed Himself to the people in the synagogue, telling them that the Scripture in Isaiah — “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me…” — was fulfilled in their hearing. But they rejected Him. He spoke to them about this grace of God lavished upon Naaman and the widow of Zarephath, and the implications were not lost on His religious hearers—
Remember, they believed that God’s blessings should come to them because of their law-keeping prowess and religious works — not on the basis of His Grace- unmerited favour. And it angered them, just as it angers many churchgoers today who still expect that God should bless based on human effort (arm of flesh)-driven obediences, and law-based works. Such actually think they can stand or be godly — be like God — through human effort, just as Peter once did before his denials exposed his utter weakness and his absolute need for God’s saving grace.
God’s way of salvation is by grace through faith. The law is not of faith.
The law (which kills and is the knowledge of good and evil like the tree of the same name) was not given for us to keep or be made godly (be like God) by. No. As it was with Adam and Eve, trying to obey the law in order to be godly or deserve the blessing will only expose how naked (devoid of righteousness) one really is—the law was given not for us to keep in order to be godly but to show us how naked (devoid of righteousness or sinful) we are--
"Obviously, the law applies to those to whom it was given, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God. 20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are." Romans 3:19-20.
Here is smack where Satan wants everyone to be: striving to be godly (be like God) by human effort (the arm of flesh) at keeping the law which kills and is the knowledge of good and evil, just like the tree of the same name.
God’s word in Romans 7:8-12 (MSG) shows us that the tree is a picture or typology for the law which many churchgoers are trying to keep in order to become godly (be like God)—
"The law code started out as an excellent piece of work. What happened, though, was that sin found a way to pervert the command into a temptation, making a piece of “forbidden fruit” out of it. The law code, instead of being used to guide me, was used to seduce me.”
Satan is still seducing many with the same seemingly moral but actually deathly doctrine. That has been Satan’s way and what led to his fall— trying to be godly aka “be like God” the Most High!
See the sin as well as the heart and mind of Satan whose thought it was to “be like the Most High” which he is still trying to convert that of man to become, written for us in Isaiah—
““How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’ Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit.”Isaiah 14:12-15
That was Satan’s sin — trying to be like God; this same sin is what many church folk believe to be the definition of being a Christian:
dependence on self-effort (for man, the arm of flesh) for the attainment of godliness (to be like God) by feeding on the law (the letter) which kills and is the knowledge of good and evil.
—this after our Heavenly Father sacrificed His own Son to make us godly- like Himself! Trying to be godly by human effort which Adam and Eve tried to do, it is the testament to rejecting Jesus Christ the Tree of Life.
It is sad to see many religious folk striving to get the Ten Commandments back into classrooms so that kids can use it to mold themselves into godliness (God-likeness) by human striving. Man sees following that doctrine of Satan as morally upright, but to God, it is nothing but Pride in none good flesh-
How can a heap of rubbish or debris improve itself by itself? Recall Genesis 2:7–
“And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”
Also Psalm 103:13-14 tells us—
“As a father pities his children, So the Lord pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.”
“Dust” in the verses above is translated from the original Hebrew text “apar” and has the following outline of Biblical usage—
- dust, dry earth
- ashes
- debris
- a heap of rubbish
The above is the constitution of man of himself.Debris. But man who is “none good” flesh of himself attributes the benefits of the “skeleton” that is the remnants of the breath of God in his nostrils to his own human ability to stand or be godly, and expects that God should recognize him for it, like an infant on his father’s shoulders in a parade boasting about how he can see further and better than his peers, and disregarding his father’s help, attributing it to his own strength. That was the mindset that Job had before his suffering began! So much to say here. God’s word addresses this truth in Romans 1 where a group who “suppress the truth” of righteousness by faith (verses 16-19) devolved into sin after “God lifted off His restraining hand…” —
24 “This is why God lifted off His restraining hand and let them have full expression of their sinful and shameful desires…”
If God lifted off His restraining hand that restrains man from devolving into committing heinous sins and let us rely on our human effort and will-power at keeping the law or doing good works to prove our faith or for whatever reason, like Peter who trusted himself before falling flat on his face three times, we would all devolve into terrible sin and see how utterly lacking in good we are of ourselves. That trust in self for the attainment of even an atom of good (be like God the Most High) is what opens the door for Satan to sift a person like wheat for the good that he claims to be when Christ says—
“There is none good but God,”
— so let he that is standing take heed lest he falls into copious sins like Peter or into calamity like Job who also thought that he was being good by himself until he saw that he was not; or like Judas who plodded on in his own might to fix his ungodliness but became depressed and suicidal. Even non-Christians Satan shoots with charges or accusations of ungodliness (shortcomings) which many try to rid themselves of by human effort (the arm of flesh).
Whether one believes it or not, there is a LAW governing this world. It is called the Law of Sin and Death. As it is in any legal system, the law can take seconds or decades to catch up with one— before one gets arrested in his conscience—
You see how some people can be grossly overweight and think nothing of it, while another might gain just two pounds and spiral into depression or even suicidal thoughts over the same issue? That’s Satan — the Accuser — bringing charges against the one whose conscience has been arrested for gaining two pounds. HaSatan (TheSatan) is literally “prosecutor at law” in Hebrew. In Israel today, prosecuting attorneys go by the term “Ha Satan.” In Hebrew, “Ha” is the definite article “The.” So Ha Satan = The Prosecutor.
In the Bible verse “your adversary the devil goes about like a roaring lion,” the word “adversary” is translated from the Greek word “antidikos” meaning “opponent in a lawsuit.”
Satan is a lawyer. This is why Revelation 12:10 describes him as “he who keeps bringing before our God chargesagainst them day and night, has been cast out!”—
His work is to bring charges (those depressing arguments, thoughts and imaginations that we think we came up with all by ourselves and which the verse on our warfare in Corinthians talks about) against man in order to get him to accept the guilt and condemnation that Christ died to take away for us.
Just like in any court of law, it is the one on trial who feels anxious and condemned. The spectators may be guilty of far worse, yet they sit comfortably simply because they haven’t been arrested.
Our warfare, dear believer, is a legal battle — fought in the courtroom of the conscience aka the mind and the heart from which Proverbs 3 tells us “proceed the issues of life”. The worst thing a Christian can do when he gets arrested in his conscience — when Satan starts shooting fiery darts of charges of ungodliness (those thoughts and imaginations which we think we made up on our own) into his heart — is to “approach the bench” to try to present God the Righteous Judge with his obediences, good works, church donations and sacrifices as why he should be freed from the prison of death— preceded by time on deathrow of lack, stupid mistakes and other earthly ills, and manned by prison wardens of demonic oppression. That is akin to what Cain did — offering his own works in order to be accepted; Abel was accepted because of the lamb be offered— a typology for Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. No other sacrifice will suffice. Grace is sufficient.
Besides, any lawyer will tell you that to approach a judge directly with your own defense or evidences to get an acquittal, you need to turn your back on your lawyer— your Advocate. And that is what many churchgoers are doing today: turning their back on Christ!
Only by remaining seated with Christ our Advocate — acknowledging Him as the only reason why we are justified/acquitted (same meaning —translated from the Greek text dikaio) do we escape judgment and live the abundant life. And the Holy Spirit witnesses or testifiesthat in Him, God does not remember our sins and lawless deeds (Hebrews 10).
Notice the judicial terms? Our warfare is a legal battle
HaSatan is literally “Prosecutor at law” in Hebrew— a lawyer/prosecutor cannot pass any sentence over anyone. He can only bring charges to get a guilty verdict so the judgment can follow. Passing a sentence is the work of the Judge and is based on the legal standing of the accused— “guilty” or “not guilty.” And this is God’s verdict over all who WHOLLY put their trust in Christ as their Advocate and Bearer of sins—
“Who then would dare to accuse those whom God has chosen in love to be His? God Himself is the Judge who has issued His final verdict over them—“Not guilty!””Romans 8:33
But I digress…
Just like the Law of Gravity which does not require one to believe in it before that one splats on concrete should he leap off a high rise building, the Law of Sin and Death does not need one to believe in God the Righteous Judge before it executes judgment. Check out the belief system of any other religion in “the world” that God so loved— you will find that it is based on the Law of Sin and Death. Some call it Karma. That is the religion of the world. Recall that Bible refers to Satan as “the god of this world.”
Since Eden, Satan’s religion which is the religion of the world has been trust in self for the attainment of good (be like God) through the use of the knowledge of good and evil— and that is what “the world” is all about, including super-religious Nicodemus when he went to visit Jesus.
The law was given to bring us to the end of our self-help tether and cause us to see our UTTER need for God’s Saving Grace— Christ Himself.
It is also very important for us to understand the context of Christ’s statement about God’s choice of healing of Naaman over all the lepers in Israel et al in Luke 4:25. Jesus didn’t just present them with those two Old Testament references of God’s Grace. He first offered them God’s Salvation (Yeshua in Hebrew) — Himself — but the people of His hometown just could not see Him beyond being the son of Joseph the carpenter— this is pretty long but this helps for context:
16 So 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 to read. 17 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:
20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” 22 So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”
23 He said to them, “You will surely say this proverb to Me, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your country.’ ” 24 Then He said, “Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country. 25 But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; 26 but to none of them was Elijah sent except to [l]Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 27 And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.”
28 So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, 29 and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. 30 Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way. Luke 4:18-30
Right there and then, the Grace of God Himself was standing in their midst, proclaiming the arrival of “the acceptable year of the Lord” with His Word— so that they could experience the same True Grace (unmerited favour) which Naaman and the widow of Zarephath did. But their eyes were focused on what they could do in their own strength to be godly (be like God), deserve God’s goodness and escape the unspoken “the day of vengeance of our God” which Christ did not come to proclaim— He “closed the Book” beloved. Recall that the verses which Christ read on that day were taken from Isaiah —
”To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God;…” Isaiah 61:2
Christ closed the Book after “to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord” because that is what He came to do; He did not come to proclaim God’s vengeance. But the desire of His religious hearers who would rather enter through the wide gate that leads to destruction (trying to keep the law in order to be godly) was to use the demands of the law to rain God’s vengeance on the people, this when even they could not cast the first stone!
As it was with the religious people in the synagogue on that day, the same message of Christ (Grace) is still a source of grief and anger to usually very religious church leaders and churchgoers who depend on their own obediences, fasts and good works to nudge God into acting on their behalf and to transform their own version of “great famine,” “leprosy” and “issue of blood” to wealth or provision. Beloved of God, let us not be found on such ground. God’s word in Philippians counsels us to “Beware of dogs.” The context in that particular counsel entails our avoidance of “I sowed my car, fasted for 78 days and got a jet” preachers who bandy as much as an atom of their own obedience and works about as why God blesses, saves and delivers. Christ the Beloved who alone saves from sins and is the only Reason why we are accepted and blessed with good success is of no effect in the lives of such.
Beloved of God, recall the woman with the issue of blood? Are you right now experiencing unpleasant issues of life— “haemorrhaging” issues such as fear, addiction, lack, debt, uncontrollable kids, unemployment and barrenness in any facet of life; and bogged down with a religous leader’s various prescriptions or terms and conditions such as 67 days of fasting in order to be better-positioned to receive from God? Like the woman with the issue of blood, we need to let go of those silly efforts to save ourselves and let God enfold us in Christ’s blood-bought robe of righteousness. Recall that according to Galatians 3, to depend on what we can do to save ourselves as why God should bless, save or deliver is the Bible’s definition of foolishness. In fact, Isaiah 64:6 describes God’s estimation of such obediences or righteous acts which many are trying to present to Him in order to get Him to bless, save or deliver—
“We are all like one who is unclean, all our so-called righteous acts are like a menstrual rag in Your sight."Isaiah 64:6.
As it was with the people in the synagogue on that day, the same message of Christ (Grace— undeserved, unearned, unmerited Favour) still angers religious churchgoers who expect that God should bless and accept one based on one’s ability to obey the law and fast for 80 days to be more spiritual and closer to God, hence the reaction—
28 “So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, 29 and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. 30 Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.” Luke 4
In summary, in that passage where Christ referred to God’s healing of Naaman the Syrian and the widow of Zarephath, and throughout His message, even in the teaching of His apostles, Jesus was and is still showing us that dependence on our own obedience and good works for the attainment of godliness or to get God’s free favours is a testament to pride in self, an effort in futility and the way to get cut off from God’s saving Grace who is Christ Himself. His word in Galatians 5:4 tells us—
“For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace.” Galatians 5:4
For His statement in Luke 4, the religious folk who heard Him got so angry that they thrust Him out of their city and tried to kill Him with their attempt to throw Him off a cliff. They totally could not reconcile their action with the law—
“You shall not kill…”
Their reaction is a practical example of how fighting to keep the law or trying to keep it only causes sin to increase—
“The law was given that sins might increase…” Romans 5:20.
And that angry reaction from religious folk — those who, like Peter before his denials, believed they were walking uprightly by their own strength — persists even today. Still blind to the truth that man, by himself, is nothing but flesh, held together only by the skeleton called God’s mercy, lest he crumble under the weight of sin and calamity. This same angry resistance from religious folk who seem to be all for serving God, it marked the ministry of Christ throughout His time on earth — and it still does to this day.
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