Luke 17:11 - 19
11 On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. 12 And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers,[f] who stood at a distance 13 and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” 14 When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed. 15 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; 16 and he fell on his face at Jesus' feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. 17 Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? 18 Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”
Questions:
ReplyDelete1. Why did Jesus expect that the other nine would return?
2. How did the one leper have faith?
3. If the leper's faith had made him well, what made the other nine leper's well?
https://biblehub.com/commentaries/luke/17-11.htm says:
ReplyDeleteIt appears to coincide with the journey of which we read in Matthew 19:1, Mark 10:1, and is the commencement of the last progress through the regions in which our Lord had already carried on His ministry.
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To set out to the priest while they felt themselves full of leprosy would seem absurd, unless they believed that Jesus could and would heal them. He gives no promise to heal, but asks for reliance on an implied promise.
How like us all it is to hurry away clutching our blessings, and never cast back a thought to the giver!
But may we not learn the lesson that the common human virtues are often found abundantly in nations and individuals against whom we are apt to be deeply prejudiced? And may we not learn another lesson-that heretics and heathen may often teach orthodox believers lessons, not only of courtesy and gratitude, but of higher things? A heathen is not seldom more sensitive to the beauty of Christ, and more touched by the story of His sacrifice, than we who have heard of Him all our days.
https://biblehub.com/commentaries/luke/17-14.htm says:
the command was therefore, in a greater degree than it had been before, a trial and test of faith. It did not necessarily imply a journey to Jerusalem. Any priest in any town was qualified for the function of inspecting and deciding on the completeness of the cure.
https://www.preceptaustin.org/luke-17-commentary says:
ReplyDeleteJohn MacArthur - Up to this point, Luke has focused on Jesus’ coming, detailing the angelic announcement of His birth to Mary the account of His birth, the incident in the temple when He was twelve, His baptism by John, His temptation by Satan, and the first two and a half years of His ministry as Messiah, reaching its pinnacle at the transfiguration. But at this point, the whole tenor of Luke’s gospel changes. The focus is no longer on Jesus’ coming, but on His going. The Galilean ministry is over, and He is on His way for the final time to His passion in Jerusalem. Although the Lord would, in the few intervening months of His Judean ministry, make brief return visits to Galilee (e.g., Lk 17:11-37), Galilee was no longer His base of operations.
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Arnold Fruchtenbaum has an interesting note stating that "The priests kept close records of those who were declared lepers in Jewish society, and they taught that only the Messiah could heal a leper."
Questions and findings:
ReplyDelete1. Why did Jesus expect that the other nine would return?
There's a couple of things to think about. First of all, the Samaritan couldn't go to the Jewish priest, although there was probably a Samaritan equivalent. Secondly, the Samaritan presumably didn't go to the priest before turning around to thank Jesus. So, why would Jesus scold the nine for obeying what He told them to do? Why wouldn't He scold the one for not obeying? Was there a different standard for Jews and Samaritans?
I can't find anything explaining these difference between the rules for Samaritans and the rules for Jewish people. It's possible there was a difference, and if there was, it would have been well known to the people. If this is the case, it's also possible that Jesus was making a statement about religious practices keeping people (in this case, the Jews) from doing the right thing.
2. How did the one leper have faith?
Faith is seeing what God is doing and doing it. The Samaritan recognized Jesus for someone great and returned to give glory to Him - perhaps breaking rules to do so.
3. If the leper's faith had made him well, what made the other nine leper's well?
Jesus was not referring to their physical healing, but to the Samaritan's spiritual healing. Based on what Jesus is saying here, the Samaritan displayed faith in Jesus and was eternally saved. Being physically healed is great. Far better that we are healed from our sin which dooms us to be separated from God.
The nine who were healed had faith and obedience, but the one thing they lacked was the overwhelming gratitude that drew the other man back to Jesus, "glorifying God with a loud voice." I see application for me: when the Lord answers a prayer, even one a result of my obedience, that I ought never forget to shout His praises publicly and let it draw me closer to Jesus.
ReplyDeleteI love it! God does desire our obedience, and He does desire faith. But even more, He desires us to glorify Him, for the sake of ourselves and the entire world.
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