Down to Earth But Heavenly Minded

What does Luke Chapter 7 mean?

Luke 7 continues Luke’s pattern of describing Jesus’ Galilean ministry by alternating stories with calls to faithfulness. This chapter presents six events which describe reactions to Jesus and His ministry. Interestingly, the events are arranged in a chiastic structure. “Chiasms” group related stories in a pyramid form and are common in the Bible and ancient literature. The form for this passage may be:

A. The faith of the generous: the centurion (Luke 7:1–10).

  B. The blessed powerless woman: the widow of Nain (Luke 7:11–17).

    C. John the Baptist: doubt and encouragement for continued faith (Luke 7:18–23).

    C’ John the Baptist: the two reactions to his and Jesus’ message (Luke 7:24–35).

  B’ The blessed powerless woman: the sinful woman (Luke 7:36–40).

A’ The faithlessness of the generous: Simon the Pharisee (Luke 7:41–50).

Luke 7:1–10 gives the first account: the faith of the generous other. A centurion in Capernaum who built the local synagogue sends Jewish elders to ask Jesus to heal his servant. Unlike others who have sought Jesus’ help, the Gentile military commander trusts that Jesus is powerful enough to heal over distance. He does not expect such a prestigious teacher to condescend to enter his home. Jesus marvels at his faith and heals the man’s servant. Simon the Pharisee is a foil for the centurion (Luke 7:39–50). He doesn’t realize who Jesus is, nor does he understand the depth of his own sin, and his actions prove it.

Luke 7:11–17 records the first story of a powerless woman. While walking into Nain, Jesus raises the dead son of a widow. Luke does not record any interaction between the woman and Jesus beforehand. Nor does he note if those in the funeral procession recognize Him. The passage merely says He acts out of compassion. In response, the townspeople fear Jesus and glorify God. The companion event is that of a sinful woman who anoints Jesus in thanks for His forgiveness (Luke 7:36–38)—giving her eternal life.

Luke 7:18–23 contains the first of two stories about faith and John the Baptist. This account shows that despite Jesus’ works, John still has a misunderstanding of who Jesus is. John is in prison and sends disciples to ask Jesus if He is the one they have waited for, or should they expect another. Jesus reassures John with descriptions of His ministry that demonstrate how He fulfills Old Testament prophecy.

In Luke 7:24–35, Jesus describes the two reactions the people have to John and Jesus’ different lifestyles and their shared message. John fasts while Jesus feasts, but they both teach repentance. Those who know they need forgiveness don’t care about the different lifestyles; they love the message. The religious leaders who think they need no forgiveness reject both.

Luke 7:36–38 is the second story of a powerless woman. While Jesus eats at a Pharisee’s house, a sinful woman washes Jesus’ feet with tears, her hair, and precious perfume. Like the widow of Nain, she has no power in Jewish society. Yet she knows Jesus forgives and loves her. Her response to Jesus’ work in her life mirrors the widow’s neighbors who glorify God (Luke 7:16).

Luke 7:39–50 finishes with the foil for the faith-filled centurion. Simon the Pharisee has invited Jesus to a banquet; but unlike the centurion or the sinful woman, he has given the bare minimum in courtesies. Like the religious leaders in Luke 7:24–35, he does not properly see his condition in comparison to Jesus.

Luke 8:1–3 is not, of course, in this chapter, but it completes the series of stories. We learn that Jesus has many disciples but it is women who financially support Him. Like the centurion, they are outside of the respected Jewish male culture but show their faith with their lives, and like the sinful woman, they understand the honor Jesus deserves. Their story helps transition to a subtle call to salvation through the Parable of the Sower (Luke 8:4–8).

Between Luke 4 and 9 are numerous ties between Jesus and the Old Testament prophets Elijah and Elisha. Several are included in Luke 7; these show that Jesus is a prophet and a healer and is willing to minister to Gentiles. The Hebrew symbolism may seem out of place considering Luke was a Gentile writing for Gentiles. Yet Luke worked with Paul, who always started his evangelism in a local synagogue, arguing that Jesus of Nazareth fulfilled the Jewish Scriptures’ prophecies about the Messiah (Acts 9:20; 13:5, 14; 14:1; 17:1; 18:4, 19; 19:8). Invariably, the Jews as a community would reject Paul’s message—except in Berea (Acts 17:10–12)—and he would move on to the Gentiles. In his Gospel, Luke does something similar. He describes how Jesus fulfills the Jewish Scriptures and how the Jews rejected Him, but he also proves that Jesus always intended to save Gentiles, as well as the Jews.

Luke’s pattern continues with stories of faith, teaching, and powerful miracles. Directly after the account of the practical faith of the women, he records the Parable of the Sower. The parties mentioned in Luke 7:1—8:3 loosely fit: John the Baptist, for example, the seed choked by thorns; the Pharisees are like rocky soil; the centurion is a picture of the good soil, and the women are a picture of the good soil that yields a hundredfold with their faithfulness. The examples continue. Jesus’ mother and brothers (Luke 8:19–21) are like the Pharisee who had the background information of Jesus’ past—the Pharisee had the prophecies while Jesus’ family had His birth—but can’t accept it. The frightened disciples in the storm (Luke 8:22–25) are like the concerned John the Baptist. The man with a demon receives unsought, miraculous grace (Luke 8:26–39) just like the widow of Nain. Jairus, fearful for his daughter’s life and demanding that Jesus come in person (Luke 8:40–42, 49–56) serves as a foil for the trusting centurion. And the woman who dares to touch Jesus’ robe (Luke 8:43–48) is the faith-sister of the sinful woman who trusts Jesus for more than physical healing.

Context doesn’t suggest a strong, deliberate connection between the stories and the types of soils. However, it seems reasonable that Luke surrounded the Parable of the Sower with examples. At the least, these are examples of Jesus’ interactions with a variety of types of people and their varied responses. Next is a section of events where Jesus calls His disciples to a deeper, sacrificial faith (Luke 9:1–50). Then, He starts His journey to Jerusalem and the cross.

Chapter Context
Luke 7 continues Jesus’ mission primarily to the people of Galilee expressed as a series of pointed events and teachings punctuated by calls to follow Him. He has finished teaching the rigors of discipleship (Luke 6:17–45) and invited the crowd to place their faith in Him (Luke 6:46–49). Here, Luke describes different reactions to Jesus’ miracles and message. Next, Jesus will reveal the mechanics of and reactions to His call (Luke 8:4–21) before showing His great authority over nature, demons, sickness, and worldly powers (Luke 8:22—9:17). After a final call to the disciples to deepen their faith (Luke 9:18–50), Jesus will turn toward Jerusalem (Luke 9:51—19:27).

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Verse by Verse

Verse 1. After he had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum.

Jesus has just finished the “Sermon on the Plain” (Luke 6:17–49). Much of His teaching involved the responsibility of God-followers to love their own persecutors. We don’t know if the Sermon on the Plain is the same event that Matthew records as the “Sermon on the Mount” (Matthew 5—7). It could be, as “plain” can mean a high plateau. Most likely, Jesus would have delivered the same themes in many places as He travelled and taught (Mark 1:39; Luke 8:1).

Luke mentions that Jesus spoke “in the hearing of the people” showing that the “Sermon on the Plain” was spoken to at least the “great crowd of his disciples” if not the “great multitude,” not just the Twelve (Luke 6:17). The wording reflects Jesus’ comparison between those who hear His words and follow them to those who hear and don’t follow (Luke 6:47–49). The people have heard Jesus’ words; now they need to decide whether to do them.

Capernaum was a town in the district of Galilee which was ruled by Herod Antipas. The town sits on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee and was the home of Peter and Andrew; it served as Jesus’ homebase (Mark 1:21, 29).

Context Summary
Luke 7:1–10 records the story of a Gentile centurion with humble faith. The centurion’s servant is dying, so he sends messengers to only ask for healing, assuming Jesus doesn’t need to be physically present. Jesus is amazed at his faith. Matthew 8:5–13 also records the story; John 4:46–54 is a different event. The centurion’s faith contrasts Simon the Pharisee. Simon invites Jesus to a banquet without realizing his unworthiness to have such a guest (Luke 7:39–50). Jairus is another foil (Luke 8:40–42, 49–56) while the Syrian general Naaman serves as a prophetic parallel (2 Kings 5).

Verse 2. Now a centurion had a servant who was sick and at the point of death, who was highly valued by him.

Luke begins his section on faith with a centurion. This man is a Gentile—not one of God’s own chosen people—yet has more faith in the Jewish Messiah Jesus than any Jew has yet shown (Luke 7:9).

Matthew says the servant is “paralyzed” (Matthew 8:6). This can mean lame, but Luke says the man is dying. The centurion sends elders from the town to go to Jesus and ask Him to heal the man (Luke 7:3).

In Luke 7—8, Luke makes several allusions to Elijah and Elisha. The first two parallel Elisha’s healing of Naaman (2 Kings 5:1–14) and Elijah’s raising of the son of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:8–24). These are two stories Jesus mentioned when presenting Himself as the Messiah in Nazareth (Luke 4:25–27). Naaman was a foreign military commander who had leprosy. His Israelite servant girl told him of a prophet who could heal him. Elisha did so without speaking directly to the general. The stories aren’t identical, of course, but the Jews who read Luke’s account would see the connection. Even though Naaman commanded soldiers for Israel’s enemy, Elisha mediated his healing. Though the centurion commands soldiers for Roman occupiers, Jesus willingly heals his servant (Luke 7:10).

A centurion is an officer who commands about a 100 soldiers. He is a Gentile (Luke 7:5), meaning he is not part of the nation of Israel. He most likely serves in Herod Antipas’ army. Although centurions are not always described favorably in secular literature, they are spoken well of in the New Testament (Acts 10:1–2; 27:1, 3, 42–44).

This verse uses the word doulos, which means “a slave, indentured servant, or attendant.” Luke 7:7 and Matthew 8:6 use pais which literally means a child, but metaphorically refers to someone of a lower social status. Pais was used much as English speakers may refer to coat-check “girls” or bus “boys” no matter their actual age.

“Highly valued” means “esteemed as something of considerable worth, valuable, precious.” Jesus, as the Cornerstone, is also described this way (1 Peter 2:4, 6).

Verse 3. When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant.

A centurion in or near Capernaum sends Jewish elders to Jesus to ask Him to heal a sick servant. When this story is taught, one of the most frequent questions is, why does this verse differ from Matthew 8:5? Matthew’s account phrases the scenario that the centurion, himself, came to Jesus. The answer is simply that when powerful people commission others to perform tasks, it’s common to say they “did” such a thing, though the literal action was delegated. The centurion’s own explanation for his approach trades on this idea (Luke 7:8).

The Greco-Roman Empire worked on the patronage system. A man who was rich and powerful—the patron—would do favors for those who needed something—the clients—like lend money or request something of a politician. In return, the client would run errands for the patron, including introducing new potential clients to the patron. The entire system was based on loyalty and relationship. Similarly, benefactors gave gifts to the community at large. The gifts were far too extensive for the people to respond in kind, but the recipients did give the benefactors great honor. Some benefactors acted out of good will while others used largess to maintain their subjects’ loyalty. This may apply to the centurion as he built the local synagogue (Luke 7:5).

Whether the town sees the centurion as a patron or a benefactor, the elders are properly acting as his clients by representing him; this is somewhat like how a “press secretary” speaks for a political leader. Luke gives specifics as to who is talking to Jesus; Matthew is referring to the authority behind the messengers. Luke’s Gentile audience would understand more readily than some commentators might suggest.

The use of the Jewish elders reflects more than the Roman patronage culture; it shows the centurion also respects Jewish culture. Jesus is a well-known rabbi; it would have been improper for the centurion, as a Gentile, to approach Jesus directly. He sends Jewish civil authorities to bridge the gap. This attitude shows how he won the respect of the Jewish elders.

Note that it is the elders who act as liaisons between Jesus and the Roman, not the religious leaders like scribes or Pharisees. Simon displays their faulty judgment of Jesus (Luke 7:39–50). “Elders” were civic leaders in a town, often successful businessmen, who judged legal cases and witnessed financial transactions (Deuteronomy 21:19; 22:15; Ruth 4:1–12). Moses established elders upon the advice of his father-in-law (Exodus 18:13–27); God later formalized the office in the Law (Numbers 11:16–27).

Verse 4. And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him,

It’s possible Luke wrote his Gospel during Paul’s two-year imprisonment in Caesarea (Acts 24:27). Luke was with Paul when he arrived in Jerusalem (Acts 21:17) and during the voyage from Caesarea Maritima to Rome (Acts 27:1). It would be natural for him to use the opportunity to speak to the apostles and others who knew Jesus while he was in Judea. After all, Luke was a Gentile living in Jewish territory, worshiping the Jewish Messiah.

If so, this story provides a unique opportunity to give an example of how Jews and Gentiles benefited each other even before the establishment of the multi-ethnic church. Elders of the town of Capernaum so respect the local centurion that when he asks them for a favor, they readily agree. The centurion’s valued servant is paralyzed and near death (Matthew 8:6; Luke 7:2). The centurion knows Jesus can save his servant, but as a Gentile he is not worthy to approach an honored Jewish rabbi. So, he asks the elders to go as his representatives.

“Earnestly” means they have wasted no time. They immediately approach Jesus and passionately try to convince Him to act.

The term translated “worthy” here also reflects the ancient concept of benefactors. The word literally means “creating a balance of the scale” That is, the restoration of the centurion’s servant would be an appropriate reciprocation for his service for the Jewish community. The elders go on to say that the centurion loves the Jewish nation and even built the local synagogue (Luke 7:5). It’s even possible the centurion, like Cornelius (Acts 10:1–2), is a God-worshipper: not a full proselyte, but a Gentile who respects and honors the Jewish God, though the text doesn’t say this directly.

Ironically, the Jews hold the centurion in higher regard than he does himself. Later, as Jesus approaches, he will send another message: “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof” (Luke 7:6). Considering the extensive authority soldiers of the Roman Empire had over civilians, the elders’ valuation of the centurion’s honor is proven true.

Verse 5. for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.”

While in Capernaum, city elders approach Jesus with a request. The local centurion’s servant is on the brink of death. The centurion has sent them to ask Jesus for healing. The elders do so willingly. They quickly find Jesus and passionately make their case. For the good the centurion has done for the community, they believe he deserves this request (Luke 7:2–4).

The elders point out the centurion “loves our nation.” Such details are one reason scholars suggest the man was not a convert to Judaism: he is not described as a lover or worshipper of “our God.” Perhaps he appreciates the morality and monotheism of Jewish culture, or simply the culture itself, but has not gone as far as adopting their religion.

A synagogue was a place where Jews met regularly, particularly on the Sabbath, to read from Scripture and discuss its meaning. Jesus often went into the synagogue on the Sabbath and healed someone, much to the consternation of the Pharisees (Luke 6:6–11; 13:10–17). Paul would go to the local synagogue whenever he entered a new city and argue from the Scriptures to try to convince the Jews that Jesus is the Messiah (Acts 9:20; 13:16–41; 14:1). Archaeologists have found a synagogue in Capernaum built in the second or fourth century that, they suggest, may be built on the foundation of this synagogue.

It’s not entirely clear how the centurion built the synagogue. He may be a benefactor: someone with power and influence who uses their own resources to benefit the community. Yet it wasn’t unusual for Romans to support synagogues; some leaders did so because they promoted general morality. According to Josephus, the emperor Augustus even decreed that internal taxes on Jews be reserved for their own use, including for their “sacred schools.” So, it’s not entirely clear if the centurion paid for the synagogue himself or used government funds, although most commentators suspect the former.

Verse 6. And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof.

A centurion has sent elders to ask Jesus to heal his dying servant. The elders tell Jesus that the centurion is a generous man who built the synagogue. Healing his servant is a just reward for his service (Luke 7:1–5). Jesus agrees to heal the servant but as He approaches, the centurion sends other friends to stop Him.

The humility of the centurion is striking. He is a military commander with significant authority over the region. Though a Gentile, his respect for Jewish culture goes beyond building the synagogue. He assumes no self-respecting Jewish rabbi would condescend to enter his home (John 18:28). The centurion didn’t feel worthy to speak with Jesus in person, which is why he initially sent Jewish elders. His respect for Jesus and His power is such that he assumes Jesus could heal the servant from a distance. This is a level of faith Jesus honors above that of any Jew He has met (Luke 7:7–10). The centurion’s attitude is opposite of that of Simon the Pharisee who shows Jesus the bare minimum of social niceties (Luke 7:44–46).

In the story of the centurion’s faith, this is the second variation from the phrasing offered in Matthew’s account. First, Luke states that the centurion sent Jewish elders of the city of Capernaum to Jesus (Luke 7:3) while Matthew states the centurion went, himself (Matthew 8:5). Now, as Jesus comes toward the house, Luke says the centurion sends friends to meet Him while Matthew says the centurion speaks directly (Matthew 8:8). Matthew’s phrasing is no different than modern people speaking of national leaders communicating, while knowing that emissaries and ambassadors are the ones literally having conversations.

Luke’s readers would have more readily understood that cultural context. The centurion is either a patron or a benefactor of the city. A patron is a man of means who helps clients who need loans or legal help and, in return, the clients run errands or complete small tasks. A benefactor completes larger favors for the public, like building a synagogue (Luke 7:5). When a patron or a benefactor sends a client to do something in their name, the authority is the same as if he had been there, himself. Despite the minor differences in language, this is the same story as Matthew 8:5–13.

John 4:46–54 is easily confused with this account, but it an entirely different story. Here, the centurion insists that Jesus not come to his house; he didn’t deserve the honor of Jesus’ presence. In John, the official insists that Jesus does come, but believes Jesus when He says the son will live and is willing to go back to his home without Jesus.

Verse 7. Therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed.

A centurion sends word to Jesus which expresses faith and humility. The man assumes Jesus is powerful enough to heal his dying servant without entering his house. The centurion doesn’t believe he is worthy to show hospitality to a Jewish rabbi who has proven to be so holy. Jesus responds with marvel that this Gentile expresses more faith than any Jew He has ever met (Luke 7:9). Later, Luke provides a direct contrast in a Jewish Pharisee with access to proof that Jesus is the Messiah (John 5:39–40). This religious leader invites Christ to a meal but gives Him a somewhat cool welcome and doubts that Jesus is even a prophet (Luke 7:36–50).

Unfortunately, understanding of this verse has been derailed by speculation about the centurion’s relationship with his servant. This has come in a modern attempt to suggest Jesus affirmed homosexual relationships. Luke 7:2 uses the word doulos for the servant, here the centurion is quoted to use the term pais. Doulos can mean any servant or slave. Pais has more of the meaning of a social inferior and can refer to a child or a servant.

Homosexuality was common in the Roman Empire, particularly sexually abusive interactions between men and young slaves. Some modern critics insist the centurion and servant have a sexual relationship. They further stretch their interpretation to deduce that because Jesus healed the servant and praised the faith of the centurion, He approves of same-sex relationships.

Two considerations counter this error. Frist, the Jewish elders praise the character of the centurion (Luke 7:4–5). At this point in history, homosexuality was clearly and universally abhorred by Jewish culture. It’s doubtful religious leaders would associate with, praise, or accept a synagogue from someone who so openly engaged in homosexual acts. This makes it extremely unlikely that the scenario involves a man and his male lover, rather than a master and his servant.

Second, the Gospels rarely record Jesus initiating a conversation about a specific person’s sin. This is especially true if they are not a religious leader or one of His disciples. He will address sin if it is relevant to the conversation (Matthew 19:16–22) or brought directly to His attention (John 8:1–11). Even then, He responds with grace. Even if the centurion and servant were in a consensual same-sex relationship, it would be consistent with other accounts for Jesus to praise the centurion’s faith—expressed in his humility and respect for Jesus’ power—without mentioning his sin. He is known to eat with tax collectors and sinners for the purpose of calling them to repentance (Luke 5:27–32).

Verse 8. For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

A centurion has expressed his belief that Jesus can heal his servant without being physically nearby. To explain, he mentions examples of his own authority. In fact, the entire incident shows the centurion’s authority: he told the city elders to go to Jesus and ask Him to heal his servant, and they did (Luke 7:3). When Jesus approached the house, the centurion sent friends to speak with Jesus, and they followed his direction (Luke 7:6).

The centurion assumes Jesus works under the same pattern. Jesus represents God; what God tells Him to do, He does. And Jesus apparently has authority over illness, as He has healed many people. If the centurion’s supervisors don’t have to be present to make sure he does his job, and if he doesn’t have to be present to make sure his soldiers and slaves do their jobs, and if God doesn’t have to be present to make sure Jesus does His job, there’s no reason to think Jesus would have to be present to make sure His will is carried out.

Still, it’s not clear what the centurion understands about Jesus’ power. He has a high enough view of Jesus to assume He will not want to be tarnished by the company of a Gentile. He respects the Jewish culture and religion (Luke 7:4–5). There’s no indication he understands that Jesus is God and the Jewish Messiah, but he apparently believes that Jesus is empowered by the Jewish God. If so, Jesus is obviously holy, and the Jewish God can do whatever He wants.

The centurion’s comment about his servant may tie back into the servant’s description of “highly valued” (Luke 7:2). Some modern scholars claim the description is personal and attempt to warp this into evidence the two had a sexual relationship. Such interpretations ignore the scholarly process, which moves from specific words to the passage, then the book, other works by the author, then the entire Bible. Other useful references are writings of the early church and secular contemporaries. One such reference, in the text Shepherd of Hermas, cites a Roman philosopher using “highly valued” to mean a servant who went beyond the bare minimum of service. In short, nothing in the story, text, or related culture implies that this passage has any overtones of same-gender relationships.

Verse 9. When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”

A centurion has sent elders to ask Jesus to heal his slave. When Jesus approaches the house, the centurion sends friends, this time to tell Jesus he is not worthy to host such an honored man. As a military commander, he knows what it means to hold power and authority. If he tells an officer or a slave to act, he expects that they will; he doesn’t need to be present to make sure the task is complete. He assumes Jesus has the same authority (Luke 7:2–8).

The centurion contrasts with men of other stories. Simon the Pharisee invites Jesus to a banquet, then doubts His credentials as a prophet (Luke 7:36–39). When Jairus’ daughter lies dying, he insists Jesus follow him home (Luke 8:40–42). When the official’s son is ill, he begs Jesus to come and heal his son until Jesus gives him assurance that his son will live (John 4:46–54).

Later, people will rely on Peter’s shadow (Acts 5:15) or a piece of cloth Paul has touched (Acts 19:11–12) for healing. Naaman—eventually—trusted that Elisha’s second-hand instructions would heal his leprosy (2 Kings 5:9–14). We have the ironic advantage that because Jesus is no longer physically present, we know He can work remotely. As Jesus told Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29).

“Israel” doesn’t refer here to the geographic area but to Jews. The Jews had the advantage of God’s favor since the time of Abraham, thousands of years before. They had the prophets who described Jesus’ messiahship with startling clarity. Even then, they doubted. The faith of this Gentile outpaced them all.

The only other time Jesus is described as having “marveled” is in Mark 6:6 when the Nazarenes refused to believe Him. Does this mean Jesus is surprised by something He did not know? Many scholars believe Jesus had complete omnipotence and omniscience throughout His life on earth. Others consider that as a child He “increased in wisdom and in stature” (Luke 2:52) and throughout His time on earth “emptied himself” (Philippians 2:7) to mean that He only had the supernatural wisdom and knowledge that the Holy Spirit gave Him. Jesus didn’t lose His deity when He lived on earth; He merely refrained from using His full power.

Verse 10. And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well.

Two groups have come to Jesus on behalf of a centurion in Capernaum. The first are Jewish elders—respected businessmen of the city—who ask Jesus to heal the centurion’s dying servant. They try to convince Jesus by telling Him that the centurion respects the Jewish nation and built them a synagogue (Luke 7:2–5). Jesus agrees and follows them toward the centurion’s house.

When the centurion realizes the elders are bringing Jesus to him, he sends the second group: friends. The centurion believes Jesus is far too honorable to set foot in his home. He trusts that Jesus’ power and authority are like that of a military officer. He has faith Jesus can be effective without direct physical presence or supervision. Jesus is amazed at the man’s faith.

The healing is completed quickly. The second group came “when [Jesus] was not far from the house” (Luke 7:6). Jesus doesn’t always heal immediately, but when He heals remotely, He seems to do so in a way that leaves no question that it was He (John 4:52–53).

Verse 11. Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him.

Between Jesus’ presentation as the Messiah in Nazareth (Luke 4:16–30) and James and John’s request to call down fire on a village in Samaria (Luke 9:51–56), Luke alludes to the Old Testament prophets Elijah and Elisha fifteen times. Some are subtle, others are overt. The account of Jesus raising the son of the widow of Nain is the second of two stories that directly point back to Jesus’ statement in Nazareth (Luke 4:24–27). First, like Elisha cleansing the foreign military commander Naaman of leprosy (2 Kings 5:1–14), Jesus healed the servant of a centurion—a foreign military officer—remotely (Luke 7:1–10). Second, this story, which parallels Elijah bringing to life the son of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:8–24).

The imagery is powerful. As Jesus walks into the gates with a crowd of followers, they meet a crowd of mourners carrying the body of the only son of a widow. It’s as if two waves meet; which will give way? Normally, Jesus’ crowd would follow social convention and join the funeral procession. Not this time.

“Soon afterward” is vague, so all that’s sure is this event happened after the centurion’s servant was healed and before John the Baptist died. Nain is a small town in the far south of the district of Galilee, not the city in Judea mentioned in Josephus’ Jewish War. It’s within walking distance of Nazareth and maybe two days from Capernaum. It’s only about half a mile, or less than a kilometer, from Shunem: the hometown of the woman whose son Elisha raised from the dead (2 Kings 4:8–37).

Context Summary
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).

Verse 12. As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her.

Jesus, His disciples, and a crowd are entering the town of Nain near the southern border of Galilee. As they approach, they meet a large funeral procession. A widow’s only son has died. The crowd gives what emotional support they can. She now has no husband and no son; her future appears hopeless.

Funerals were held in the evening. Once the man’s death was confirmed, he was washed and anointed and either dressed in his own clothing or wrapped in a cloth. Attendants carried the body away on a litter or wooden board to a burial place where it would remain for a year until the flesh was gone. Then the bones would be moved to a family ossuary: a stone box made for that purpose.

The gate would be important to the widow in the coming days as the elders of the city settled her estate. If she is young enough, she may enter a levirate marriage there (Deuteronomy 25:5–6). If her family still has property, she will sell it to a kinsman redeemer (Leviticus 25:25–28, 47–49). Or she may watch, a passive witness to almost any financial transaction that will determine how impoverished she will be. Instead, moments after she expected her son to leave through the gates for the last time, he comes back to life.

The man is mentioned first, but the verse reveals that the story is about the mother. Like the previous story, Jesus heals someone dear to the main character. Although the servant and the son receive healing, the stories are about the centurion and the woman.

Verse 13. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.”

A widow is in the funeral procession for her only son when Jesus and His disciples meet them. Luke introduces Jesus to the situation through His compassion. Undoubtedly, the procession includes professional mourners who weep and wail to create an appropriate atmosphere. A “considerable crowd” (Luke 7:12) is with the woman, lending support in the face of her newfound powerlessness and, likely, destitution.

Jesus has compassion (Matthew 9:36; 14:14; 15:32) and values compassion (Luke 10:33; 15:20). He doesn’t tell the widow to stop weeping because He disapproves of mourning. He tells her this because He can make her happy again. Like Jesus told His followers, “Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh” (Luke 6:21). The woman’s situation is about to change. It is time for hope, not weeping. It is unsuitable to cry when the Son of God is about to turn death into life again. Like Naomi, who entered Bethlehem with no husband and no sons, the woman will soon have a son back in her arms and her friends will glorify God (Luke 7:15–16; Ruth 4:13–16).

Christ followers who lose loved ones can feel the same. If those who have died are also believers, we can be assured we will see them again, reunited for eternity. We still mourn while we are separated. Yet, as Paul said, we do “not grieve as others do who have no hope” (1 Thessalonians 4:13).

When people in the Gospels do not understand Jesus’ identity as Messiah, “Lord” is a title of respect, like “sir” (Luke 5:8, 12). Luke, of course, knows Jesus is the savior and uses the word to show his readers that Jesus’ authority to raise the dead is a clear sign that He is the Christ.

Verse 14. Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.”

The only son of a widow has died. Jesus meets the funeral procession and decides to do something about it (Luke 7:12–13).

The evening of the day of the death, the dead would be washed, anointed, and dressed in their own clothes or wrapped in a cloth. The body would be placed on a bier or plank and carried to the burial site where it would stay for a year until only the bones remained. Then the bones would be buried in a stone box made specifically for that purpose.

Jesus first comforts the mother (Luke 7:13) and then touches the bier. Doing so would make a person ritually unclean. Many Bible scholars believe that as God, Jesus cannot be unclean. This is because He has the power and authority to cleanse what is unclean.

However, this assumption seems to miss important aspects of ritual cleanness. “Unclean” does not mean sinful. Nor is uncleanness always avoidable: menstrual cycles (Leviticus 15:19–23), removing dead animals (Leviticus 11:8), and some physical ailments (Leviticus 13:1–3; 15:1–12) made people unclean. Even blessed things like having sex (Leviticus 15:16–18) or giving birth made people unclean (Leviticus 12:1–5). Jesus’ birth made Mary unclean (Luke 2:22). And Jesus’ burial made Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus unclean (Numbers 19:11; John 19:38–40). Uncleanness is used as metaphor for sin, but ritual purity is not exactly identical to righteousness.

Becoming ceremonially unclean would bear no effect on Jesus’ deity and holiness. He would not be sinning by doing something which would then require ritual cleansing, so long as He didn’t enter the temple until the cleansing was complete. Voluntarily becoming unclean for the sake of the son would go even further in showing compassion to the woman.

This is the first time in Luke that Jesus raises the dead; Jairus’ daughter is next (Luke 8:40–42, 49–56). In both cases, Jesus tells them “arise.” Though Jesus’ raising of the widow’s son resembles what Elijah and Elisha experienced, there is a significant difference. Elijah begged God for healing and stretched himself on the boy three times (1 Kings 17:19–21). Elisha had his servant lay his staff on the Shunamite’s son and then, when that didn’t work, stretched out on him (2 Kings 4:29–35). Jesus’ power is much greater. As He spoke creation into being, so He speaks life into the widow’s son.

Verse 15. And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.

Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself” (John 5:25–26). Now, He proves it. While entering the town of Nain, Jesus comes across a funeral procession. When He realizes the only son of a widow has died, He first comforts the widow, then goes to the bier and tells the dead man, “Young man, I say to you, arise” (Luke 7:11–14). To the astonishment of the crowd, the man obeys.

“Sat up” is biblically uncommon term, from the Greek word anakathizō. It seems to narrowly refer to a severely debilitated person becoming well and sitting up from their bed. The only other occurrence of this word in the original New Testament is when Peter raises Tabitha from the dead (Acts 9:40).

The phrase “gave him to his mother” is identical to the Septuagint version of 1 Kings 17:23. In that passage, Elijah raised the son of the widow of Zarephath and returned him to her. Again, Luke identifies Jesus with the prophetic and miraculous ministries of the Old Testament prophets.

Luke mentions that the young man immediately speaks. He may mention this as proof that the man is truly alive. According to Jewish folklore, a particularly powerful magician could make a golem out of clay. The golem would have a soul and could move, but it could not speak. Tractate Sanhedrin 38b.1, part of an ancient Jewish treatise on interpreting the Old Testament, says Adam was first formed as a golem: animated dust (Genesis 2:7). Only afterwards was he given real life, available only through the power of God.

Verse 16. Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!”

Two crowds met at the gates of Nain. One was entering; the other was leaving to bury the only son of a widow. Traditionally, anyone meeting a funeral procession would join out of respect. This time, however, the first crowd included Jesus. He raised the dead man, and the two crowds join in celebration (Luke 7:11–15).

Responses to Jesus’ miracles vary but often include fear. That’s a natural response when something extraordinarily powerful happens. Here, the people fear Him and glorify God. When He calms the storm, the disciples fear Him (Luke 8:25). When He expels the Legion of demons from a man, the man begs to be allowed to stay with Him, but his neighbors react in fear (Luke 8:37).

The quotes from the people strengthen Luke’s association between Jesus and the Old Testament prophets even more. They call Jesus “a great prophet.” Once again, specific words imply key details. The people refer to Jesus without using the article “the,” meaning they see him as “a” prophet among many. They perceive Him like Old Testament prophets, but not as the Messiah promised by Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15). They associate Jesus with Elisha who raised the dead (2 Kings 4:32–37; 13:20–21) but particularly Elijah who raised the only son of a widow (1 Kings 17:17–24) (Matthew 16:13–14).

“God has visited his people” also ties into the words of Zechariah, John the Baptist’s father. After John is born, Zechariah becomes filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesies. He begins, “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people” (Luke 1:68). The people of Nain don’t realize Jesus is the Messiah, but Luke’s readers should.

Verse 17. And this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.

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?

Verse 18. The disciples of John reported all these things to him. And John,

John the Baptist is in prison (Matthew 11:2) because he had publicly called out Herod Antipas for marrying his brother’s wife (Luke 3:19–20). Antipas’ territory includes two separate areas. Jesus is in Galilee, north of Samaria and west of the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan River. John is in Perea, farther south and east, on the other side of the Jordan and the Dead Sea from Judea.

Given that he was a prisoner, one might wonder how John heard what Jesus is doing. After Jesus raised the widow’s son in Nain, “this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country” (Luke 7:17). John knew his purpose was to identify Jesus as the Christ, and he made sure his disciples knew Jesus (John 1:35–36). Jews traveled from Galilee to Judea often to worship at the temple. If someone were in prison, his friends and family were responsible to feed him, so John’s disciples would have seen him regularly. Paul’s letters show that he had contact with friends even while in the Roman dungeons (2 Timothy 4:11–13).

John’s disciples report Jesus’ miracles, including healing the blind and raising the dead. The miracles Jesus is doing, particularly raising the widow’s son (Luke 7:14–15), healing the centurion’s servant (Luke 7:1–10), and other miracles the men witness directly (Luke 7:21) prove Jesus is at least a great prophet. The question is, is He the Messiah: the Promised Savior?

Context Summary
Luke 7:18–23 speaks about John the Baptist’s expectations regarding Jesus. He understands how Jesus has fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah in His healing and good news. Yet Jesus hasn’t completed every aspect of prophecy yet. He has not freed the prisoners—like John—nor judged the wicked. Jesus doesn’t criticize John. He simply asks him to be patient. Next, Jesus describes the different reactions to His and John’s contrasting lifestyles, though both come with the same message. John’s doubt is also recorded in Matthew 11:2–6. Later verses tie Old Testament prophecy to John with references to Malachi 3:1 and to Jesus via several passages in Isaiah.

Verse 19. calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?”

John the Baptist is imprisoned by Herod Antipas. His disciples have reported to him about Jesus’ miraculous works. John tells two of his disciples to confirm Jesus is the One John had been called to herald (Luke 3:15–18). Scholars debate why John asks the question. Some insist John is not showing doubt, since he even recognized Jesus before his own birth (Luke 1:41–44). They think he is transitioning his own disciples to follow Jesus.

Most Bible teachers, however, interpret John’s motivation through the lens of Luke 7:23. Jesus says, “And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” In this context, that phrasing implies someone becoming apostate: to abandon faith entirely. There’s no suspicion John would ever do so; Luke 13:28 assures that all God’s true prophets are saved. So, if John knows more about Jesus than almost anyone else, why would he doubt?

Any hesitation from John might come from his interpretation of prophecy. He knows Jesus fulfills the Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah. But, to this point in Jesus’ life, He has only filled prophecies about healing and good news (Isaiah 26:19; 35:5–6; 61:1). He has not fulfilled the prophecies of judgment against the wicked (Isaiah 26:20; 29:20; 61:2). Especially relevant to John—currently a prisoner—Christ has not yet established freedom for captives (Isaiah 61:1). The disciples and Jewish rulers struggled to understand a Messiah who did not expel Roman occupiers and bring political freedom for Israel. John still waits to be released from the prison of Herod Antipas who should be judged for brazen adultery (Mark 6:17).

Luke’s version of this event is more detailed than Matthew’s (Matthew 11:2–6). This may be on behalf of Theophilus to bolster his own “certainty concerning the things [he had] been taught” (Luke 1:4). Luke calls Jesus “Lord” as if to remind his reader that despite John’s doubts, Jesus really is Lord. Luke also specifies that John sends two disciples, which follows the regulation for legal witnesses (Deuteronomy 19:15).

“The one who is to come” is an important descriptor. It is a Messianic title in Daniel 7:13, a reference to God in Isaiah 40:10, and a prophesied figure from John, himself (Luke 3:15–16). John wants to be clear that Jesus is more than “a great prophet [who] has arisen among us” as the people of Nain called Him (Luke 7:16).

Verse 20. And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’”

Herod Antipas has imprisoned John the Baptist, likely in Perea in Machaerus, a fortress east of the Dead Sea. Jesus began His public ministry when John was arrested by Herod Antipas, and John’s disciples have kept him informed about Jesus’ teaching (Mark 1:14–15; Luke 7:18). While Jesus has clearly established His divine power and fulfilled prophecy, He has not yet completed every prophecy associated with the Messiah. This leads John to hesitation, and a desire to be sure Jesus is the Christ.

In fact, John asks a question that is common in our time: Is Jesus more than just a good man? He heals, raises the dead, and encourages the downtrodden (Isaiah 26:19; 29:18–19; 35:5–6; 61:1). But to this point in Jesus’ life, John sees no sign that Jesus releases the prisoners—particularly him—or judges the wicked such as Antipas (Mark 6:17; Isaiah 26:20; 29:20; 61:1–2). Jesus’ response is more evidence of what He’s already done. John’s disciples witness healing miracles and good news for the poor (Luke 7:22). But Jesus does not promise that John, himself, will be released. He does not promise that the evil Herod Antipas, himself, will receive earthly justice. Nor does He promise to drive the Romans out of Jerusalem…yet.

Jesus-followers of every age must understand that Jesus brought the kingdom of God “now and not yet.” As Paul will later say, “For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.…For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:9–10, 12). Jesus fulfilled more than enough Messianic prophecy to prove who He is; some of the prophetic work of Messiah won’t be accomplished until the end times.

Matthew records a condensed version of events (Matthew 11:2–6). Luke records John the Baptist’s disciples repeating his question to Jesus verbatim. Luke wrote his Gospel to Theophilus, to bolster his friend’s own faith (Luke 1:1–4). It’s possible Luke wants Theophilus to know he can come to Christ with his own doubts.

To John and Jesus’ direct audience, the question is if Jesus is “the one to come”—a Messianic title and one John had used earlier (Daniel 7:13; Isaiah 40:10; Luke 3:15–16). To Luke and Theophilus, Jesus is established as “Lord” (Luke 7:19).

John’s disciples had been with him, likely in Perea. Apparently, Jesus is still in Galilee. Herod Antipas rules both, but Machaerus is several days’ journey from Galilee. It’s not clear how John’s disciples heard of Jesus’ miracles or how quickly they spoke to John and came to Galilee.

Verse 21. In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight.

Jesus is the Jewish Messiah. As such, throughout His ministry He fulfilled many Messianic prophecies as recorded in the Jewish Scriptures—that which Christians label the “Old Testament.” John the Baptist has sent his disciples to determine if Jesus’ works really affirm that identity (Luke 7:18–20). He may be experiencing hesitation because Jesus had not yet fulfilled some prophecies about Messiah. In the presence of those messengers, Jesus performs miraculous acts. Next, He will explain to them what they’ve seen and how to explain it to John (Luke 7:22–23).

“Disease” as used here simply means illness. A “plague” implies a more painful condition; the Greek word is sometimes used of torture. “Evil spirits” are demons, such as the one Jesus expelled in the synagogue on the Sabbath early in His ministry (Luke 4:31–37). Healing disease, expelling demons, and even raising the dead (Luke 7:14–15) are powerful signs that someone is a prophet of God, but they don’t necessarily identify the promised Messiah.

Where Jesus is different is in healing the blind and deaf. No prophet in the Old Testament healed a blind person other than events where the blindness was for temporary judgment (2 Kings 6:18–19). Even in the New Testament, this is the case (Acts 9:18). Giving sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf is a sign of the Messiah (Isaiah 35:5).

Jesus makes many blind people see again. John the Baptist, the son of a priest (Luke 1:5, 57), would understand the significance of such an act. But John also knows that Jesus had not yet fulfilled every prophecy of the Messiah. He has not yet freed the prisoners nor judged the wicked (Isaiah 61:1–2). John is looking for “the one who is to come” (Luke 7:20)—”one like a son of man” whom the Ancient of Days will give “dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him” (Daniel 7:13–14). Sitting in prison, soon to be beheaded (Mark 6:21–29), John reaches out for reassurance that he did not spend his life in vain.

Verse 22. And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them.

John the Baptist’s disciples have delivered John’s question to Jesus: “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” (Luke 7:19–20). While they are present, Jesus accomplishes a full array of impressive miracles (Luke 7:21). He tells the disciples to pass on what they have seen and heard Him do.

Most of the miracles Jesus is performing are specifically mentioned in Old Testament prophecy about the Messiah. The lame will be healed according to Isaiah 35:6, the dead raised per Isaiah 26:19, and the poor receive good news as stated in Isaiah 61:1. These particular miracles, are also seen in the ministry of Old Testament prophets. The two signs unique to Messiah are the deaf hearing and the blind seeing (Isaiah 35:5). These are strong indications that Jesus is, in fact, the Promised One.

But when John sent his messengers, Jesus had not yet fulfilled the two signs of the Messiah likely close to John’s heart at the present moment: He has not freed the prisoners nor brought vengeance on the wicked (Isaiah 61:1–2). John is currently imprisoned and will soon be executed by an evil man (Mark 6:25–28). Judgment and repentance are the core of John’s message. He called the insincere crowds a “brood of vipers” and warned them that their identity as Jews would not save them from God’s wrath (Luke 3:7–9). Jesus will make similar remarks during His altercations with religious leaders (John 8:39–47), but if He is the Messiah, John would expect Him to bring God’s judgment, not just warn about it.

Jesus wants to open John’s eyes to the truth, to heal his spiritual blindness. This is the beginning of a special time. God’s full plan will not be entirely completed, yet. The earthly prisoner will not be released, yet. Jesus is “winnowing:” establishing the distinction between God-follower and God-rejector. He is not yet gathering “the wheat into his barn” nor burning the chaff with unquenchable fire as John prophesied (Luke 3:17).

The list Jesus gives is representative, not inclusive, and reflects what He proclaimed in Nazareth (Luke 4:18–19). The poor receiving good news might refer to the physical healing; injury and disease were erroneously seen as God’s judgment for sin. Ultimately, however, the good news is forgiveness from sins, as the woman in Luke 7:37–38 knows personally.

Verse 23. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

For three years, the Messiah declares and brings the kingdom of God to people who frequently misunderstand His role; they doubt He is enough. His disciples want Him to be an earthly king so they can rule with Him (Mark 10:35–37). The Pharisees want a religious example who follows and affirms their traditional Oral Law (Mark 7:1–5; Matthew 23:23). The Zealots want a conquering hero who will drive out the Roman occupiers and bring freedom to the Jews. The Nazarenes want someone they haven’t watched grow up (Luke 4:22–30; Matthew 13:55–57).

Even John the Baptist is unsettled. He knows Jesus has performed the miracles of a prophet: healing the lame and lepers and raising the dead. He knows Jesus has performed miracles which specifically identify the Messiah, such as bringing sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf (Isaiah 35:5). But Jesus evidently still falls short of John’s expectations, because He has not—yet—completed all the prophecies associated with the Messiah. He hasn’t freed the imprisoned, including John (Mark 6:17; Luke 7:18–22). And, although He preaches that judgment is coming, He hasn’t brought God’s wrath on the wicked. In fact, judgment doesn’t even seem to be part of His plan (John 3:17).

This incident is a powerful reminder to those who think the world would believe in Jesus if only He’d show Himself. All Jesus can provide is the evidence His Father has instructed Him to give (John 5:19), and it will not convince or satisfy everyone (Luke 16:19–31). Despite His presence right in front of them, Jesus still asks His followers for faith. Hebrews 11:6 says, “without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” The evidence for God is plentiful and sufficient (Romans 1:18–32), and yet faith is still necessary to become His child (John 1:12; 3:16–18).

“Blessed” can refer to happiness or privilege, as resulting from God’s favor. The tense of “blessed” in the Greek indicates a singular subject; Jesus is specifically speaking of John. “Anyone,” as translated in the NIV, emerges from Jesus’ Greek phrasing, also rendered as “the one who” or “whoever;” Jesus’ comment applies to any person.

“Offended” can mean “led into sin;” here, however, the sin in question is unbelief. In the case of a formerly professing person who turns away from faith, this is called “apostasy.” The blessing here is on anyone who can look beyond their own understanding—their limited, self-defined, preference-driven view—of what the Messiah should be, choosing to have faith in Jesus. As Jesus will later teach, some cannot accept that He is who the Messiah is supposed to be. To them, He is like a stone that will cause them to stumble away from God’s truth and be crushed (Matthew 21:44).

John’s disciples leave with the message, but Jesus doesn’t leave the topic of John there. He goes on to tell the people that John is the greatest man to live up until that point. He is the pinnacle of God’s prophets—before the coming of the Holy Spirit (Luke 7:28).

Verse 24. When John ‘s messengers had gone, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind?

Jesus is probably in Galilee. John the Baptist is in Herod Antipas’ prison, probably in a fortress in Perea, east of the Dead Sea. John has sent two of his disciples to ask Jesus if He is the one they have been waiting for. Jesus responds by pointing out the miracles he has been performing that fulfill the Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah. Having received their evidence, John’s disciples return to him (Luke 7:18–23).

Jesus now turns to the people and explains to them who John is. It’s interesting to note that so many in the audience know about John. Years later, when Paul comes to Ephesus in modern-day Asia Minor, he will meet some who identify with John’s message, yet have never heard of salvation through Jesus (Acts 19:1–7).

Scholars debate as to whether the symbolism of this comment extends to the “reed” itself. Many note that Luke 7:25 is clearly literal. When the people went to the wilderness around the Jordan River, east of Jerusalem, they did not go to look at plants. They went because they heard about John and wanted to know more about his message.

Others say Jesus is including a figure of speech. A “reed shaken by the wind” may imply a poor instructor who lacks conviction and is therefore easily influenced by others. Or the imagery of a “reed” may refer to an unreliable person. The Pharaoh is called a “broken reed of a staff, which will pierce the hand of any man who leans on it” (Isaiah 36:6). Jesus’ implication is that the audience can depend on John. He will not betray them, nor Jesus.

Jesus repeats variations of the question, “What did you go out to see?” three times (Luke 7:24–26). Triple repetition has long been a technique used for emphasis. In ancient writing, such as Hebrew, repeating something three times emphasizes the point and draws the listeners to the third repetition with the intent they arrive at the correct answer.

Some translations use the word “desert” instead of “wilderness.” Where John lived wasn’t completely devoid of water—he baptized in the Jordan River. But it was fairly deserted in terms of human population.

Context Summary
Luke 7:24–35 records Jesus making an interesting observation. John lived an ascetic, monk-like lifestyle in the wilderness; Jesus eats and drinks alongside moral and social outcasts. Yet both preach the same message of repentance of sins. The sinners and tax collectors respond to both John and Jesus, drawn to the message without concern for their lifestyles. Stubborn religious leaders, however, claim to judge their lifestyles; what they really can’t accept is the message proclaimed by Jesus and John. This section is also depicted in Matthew 11:7–19.

Verse 25. What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who are dressed in splendid clothing and live in luxury are in kings ‘ courts.

Jesus presents the second of three options regarding the nature of John the Baptist. When the people went out to see John, what did they expect? Most scholars agree that the comparison phrased in this passage is to be taken literally. The people did not go out to look at plants (Luke 7:24), nor did they go to see a man dressed in expensive, comfortable clothing. They met a man who wore clothes made of camel hair tied with a leather belt (Mark 1:6). John’s asceticism sets up Jesus’ comparison between John and Himself in Luke 7:32–34.

It’s still possible Jesus is using a metaphor. As the “reed” may have represented unreliable, easily swayed teachers, He could be referring to people with power and money: those who wear fine robes, like priests (Exodus 39:24), kings (1 Chronicles 15:27), Levites (2 Chronicles 5:12), or courtiers (Esther 8:15). Jesus’ audience, many of whom were baptized by John, did not go into the wilderness to see an honored nobleman or a leader of the religious establishment. They went to see a prophet—a prophet whose lifestyle was so austere and his message so harsh that many of the powerful in society rejected him (Luke 3:19–20; 7:30, 33).

Verse 26. What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.

Jesus is addressing a mixed crowd of people. Some heard and accepted John the Baptist’s message; others rejected his call to repentance because they would lose too much influence in society. Jesus designs His third question to lead the crowd into understanding who John the Baptist is. He has already asked if they came to see reeds so fragile the wind can shake them, or a man dressed in fine clothes (Luke 7:24–25). Now, He reveals the answer.

John was born about four hundred years after Malachi, the last of the Old Testament prophets. Although we have Intertestamental books, like the Maccabees, no inspired Scripture was written between the book of Malachi and the New Testament. And although God seems to have, on rare occasion, spoken to the priests, like John’s father Zechariah (Luke 1:8–23), John was the first to be truly called as a prophet since Malachi.

But John is not an ordinary Old Testament-era prophet. He is the promised prophet who speaks with the spirit of Elijah (Luke 1:17). He is the one Malachi promised who would herald the Messiah (Luke 7:27). Because of his role, John is the greatest prophet who ever lived. He is the bridge between the Jewish prophets and the coming of the Holy Spirit.

Even though John is in prison, Jesus’ audience knows John and has heard him speak. Many of them—the sinners and tax collectors—received his baptism and repented of their sins. Others, such as the Pharisees, rejected him and his message (Luke 7:29–30).

Verse 27. This is he of whom it is written, “‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,who will prepare your way before you.’

Jesus is explaining who John the Baptist is to a group of people who have heard him and know his message. John is more than a prophet; he is the prophet promised in Old Testament prophecies.

This verse is a combination of Malachi 3:1 and Exodus 23:20.1Malachi 3:1 reads:

Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me.

Exodus 23:20 reads:

Behold, I send an angel before you to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have prepared.

Malachi 3:1 records God speaking about a prophet who will prepare the way for Him to come to judge and purify Israel. Exodus 23:20 is God’s promise to the Israelites that He will send an angel before them when they conquer Canaan. It’s important to note that the Jews would take any reference to the exodus very seriously.

By combining the two, Jesus is saying that God sent John to prepare the way for “you”—but scholars are split as to whom “you” refers. Some say it’s Jesus, which would fit Malachi. But others say that by combining the verse with Exodus, it means Israel as a nation. Either way works. John prepared the hearts of the Jews so they would more easily recognize Jesus as their Messiah. At the same time, John prepared the people so that Jesus would have an easier time reaching them.

Luke 1:16–17 tips the favor on the side of John preparing the way for the nation of Israel. An angel tells Zechariah, John’s father:

“And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

The fact that Jesus has changed the pronouns from both Malachi 3:1 and the angel’s prophecy to Zechariah suggests that John prepared the way for the Jews so they could more easily recognize their Messiah. The differences in reactions between the sinners and the Pharisees serve as an example of John’s preparation.

Verse 28. I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”

Jesus finishes His explanation of the importance of John the Baptist with a cryptic description.

John is the last of the Old Testament-era prophets (Luke 16:16). As such, he will share a fate common to prophets: being murdered for his message (Mark 6:17–29). Jesus, He whom John heralded, affirms John is the greatest of all prophets to that time. This is not because of personal holiness or merit, but because of his prophetic role. He is the last of the Old Testament prophets. He is the hinge between the Old and New Testaments: the Dispensation of the Law and the Dispensation of Grace. He is the forerunner of the Messiah. His prophetic work provides a transition between the promise of salvation and its fulfillment.

Greatness aside, John is also like the Old Testament prophets who did not live to see their own predictions completed. John dies before the crucifixion, the resurrection, the ascension, and Pentecost. As a prophet of the Old Testament age, he is filled with the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:15), but he is not indwelt by the Spirit (Acts 2). His natural life does not last until the inaugurated kingdom of God. He only gets to announce its coming arrival.

The kingdom is inaugurated in the days from Jesus’ crucifixion to Pentecost. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit blesses Christians, makes them citizens of God’s kingdom (Philippians 3:20), and seals them for salvation (Ephesians 1:13). The kingdom will not be fulfilled until Jesus’ return—we are in the “now and not yet”—but it has begun. Christ-followers now are “greater” than John not because of anything we have done, but because we are blessed to live in this time.

Luke goes on to compare the reactions to John by the sinners and the Pharisees (Luke 7:29–30). The sinners and tax collectors accepted John’s baptism and repented from their sins. They are “prepared” to accept Jesus (Luke 7:27) and, at Pentecost, receive the Holy Spirit. The Pharisees and scribes rejected John’s message. At this point, they are not ready for the kingdom of God; they choose to stay in the time of the prophets and the Law. Jesus is saying that the vilest sinner who repents and enters the kingdom is greater than John who is greater than all the Pharisees, scribes, and priests who heard his message and rejected it.

“Born of women” is probably in comparison to those who will be born again: born of the Spirit (John 3:1–15). It is not saying that if technology develops an artificial womb, a child could be greater than John.

Verse 29. (When all the people heard this, and the tax collectors too, they declared God just, having been baptized with the baptism of John,

Jesus is explaining to a crowd how important John the Baptist is: the greatest prophet of the age. He is the herald of the Messiah and prepares the hearts of the Jews for their Savior (Luke 7:24–28). Now, Luke records the responses of the crowds.

We don’t know when John started his ministry. He seems to have centered it on the Jordan River, just north of the Dead Sea. From there, he was a convenient walk from Jerusalem on the west, right in the middle of the path most Jews from Galilee took to travel to Jerusalem. His reach was monumental. Decades from this moment, in modern-day Asia Minor, Paul will meet twelve “disciples” who follow John’s teachings despite knowing little if anything about Jesus (Acts 19:1–7).

John’s ministry stopped when Herod Antipas arrested him for criticizing the leader’s relationship with his brother’s wife (Luke 3:19–20). At that point, Jesus began His public ministry (Mark 1:14–15).

It appears most of Jesus’ current audience had heard John preach. They certainly know his message. He exhorted the people to repent of their sin and live a righteous life. When asked, he told the tax collectors to take only what they were due. He told the soldiers to be content with their pay instead of extorting money from the people. And he told the people to share with the needy (Luke 3:7–14).

Those who accepted John’s challenge were baptized by him. Baptism was a public sign that someone had chosen a sect to join or a rabbi to follow. The people flocked to John because they felt convicted of their sins and he gave them something to do about it. Like Jesus after him, John did not automatically favor the legalistic Pharisees or the high-ranking priests. His message was for everyone, and many responded, fulfilling Luke 1:16: “And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.” In contrast, the Pharisees and scribes rejected John’s baptism, meaning they rejected God’s call to repent of their sins. They preferred to rely on their own actions and positions to earn God’s favor (Luke 7:30).

Prior to Jesus’ affirmation of John, two of John’s disciples had asked Jesus if He was the One for whom they were to wait. Their question came from John. Scholars have debated why John would ask the question; why would he doubt the Messiah he was born to herald? A convincing theory is that although Jesus fulfilled many of the signs of the Messiah (Isaiah 26:19; 35:5–6; 61:1), He has neither released the prisoners—like John—nor judged the wicked (Isaiah 26:20; 29:20; 61:1–2).

Prophets are not all-knowing conduits of God’s omniscience. They know what they are told, and the Lord does not always tell them everything. John likely doesn’t understand that the kingdom of God comes in stages. Jesus inaugurates the kingdom during His ministry, crucifixion, and resurrection, but it will not be fulfilled until His second coming. John had said of Jesus, “His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire” (Luke 3:17). Like many others, John expects this fire in his lifetime. He doesn’t understand that first, Jesus must winnow to separate the grain from the chaff. This is part of that process—distinguishing between the grain of the repentant sinners and the chaff of the proud religious leaders.

Occasionally, debate arises as to whether the words of this verse are Jesus speaking or Luke making a parenthetical remark. Grammatically, there’s no reasonable way to make this something Jesus speaks. Luke is describing the people’s reaction to Jesus’ confirmation of John. “This” refers to Jesus’ words. John is not present and baptizing, here. He is in Herod Antipas’ prison (Luke 3:19–20).

The King James Version uses “publican” which is an old English term for “tax-farmer.” Jews considered tax collectors dishonorable. They not only collaborated with Roman occupiers to collect money from other Jews, but they were also allowed to demand more than the Romans required so as to fill their own pockets. In the Gospels, tax collectors are portrayed as corrupt and greedy but eminently redeemable (Luke 5:27–28; 18:9–14; 19:1–10).

“Declared…just” is the same verb as “justified” in Luke 7:35; it means “shown to be right.” Bauer’s Lexicon summarizes this as, “by ruling in God’s favor they admitted that they were in the wrong and took a new direction.”

The statements of Luke 7:29–30 aren’t found in Matthew’s parallel account. He records similar words in Matthew 21:31–32.

Verse 30. but the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.)

John the Baptist’s ministry was extensive. From his post on the Jordan River east of Jerusalem, he preached to the people of Judea and the Jews from Galilee, Decapolis, and Perea who traveled to the temple for the festivals. Decades after Jesus ascended into heaven, Paul met men following the teachings of John who had never heard of the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:1–7). The Pharisees and Sadducees are painfully aware of John the Baptist, as well. When they came to hear John’s message, he attacked them, saying, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” (Matthew 3:7). He called them to repent of their sins and change their ways (Matthew 3:8). Unlike the sinners and tax collectors, they refused.

Jesus has finished telling a crowd of the importance of John’s mission as the herald to the kingdom of God. John represents a transition: living as an Old Testament prophet in the days before the Holy Spirit will indwell God’s followers (Acts 2:1–4). The crowd knows of John, and many were baptized by him (Luke 7:29).

The Pharisees and their lawyers rejected John’s message of repentance and his offer of baptism. Repentance is God’s will for them so He can forgive them. Even though Jesus recognizes their ability to keep the Mosaic law (Matthew 5:20), they are born into sin. Heeding John’s call to follow the Messiah who can save them is God’s purpose. Even after watching Jesus’ miraculous works (Luke 7:21) which fulfill prophecy about the Messiah (Isaiah 26:19; 29:18–19; 35:5–6; 61:1), they refuse.

In the next verses, Jesus points out the irony. John wore camel-hair clothes and ate locusts and honey (Mark 1:6). As a lifelong Nazirite, he didn’t drink alcohol (Luke 1:15). The Pharisees and scribes rejected him for his extreme asceticism (Luke 7:33). Jesus eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners (Luke 5:27–32). The Pharisees and scribes reject Him for being a glutton and a drunkard (Luke 7:34). They reject the message that they’re sinners, and instead look for faults in the messengers who tell them the truth.

Pharisees belonged to a sect of Judaism that valued the extra-biblical Oral Law. They believe that in addition to the law Moses wrote down, God gave specifics as to how that law should be followed. For instance, they had twenty-four chapters just on how to observe the Sabbath. “Lawyers,” or “scribes,” were experts in the Mosaic and Oral laws. Usually, they’re called “scribes,” but Luke’s Gentile audience is probably more familiar with “lawyer.”

This isn’t found in Matthew’s account, but he does include something similar in Matthew 21:32.

Verse 31. “To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like?

Jesus has addressed John the Baptist’s questions about who He is (Luke 7:18–23). He has explained the unprecedented prophetic role John holds in God’s plan (Luke 7:24–30). Now, He describes the response of the people to both John’s and His messages.

“Generation” is a term which can be over-analyzed. In the simplest sense, it means some collection of people living in roughly the same time and place. The ensuing description is negative, which fits with the Pharisees and lawyers Luke has just mentioned (Luke 7:30). Yet the criticism is not merely about those religious leaders. The majority of both John’s and Jesus’ audiences reject them and their messages. The Jews as a people reject their Messiah. Jesus points this out in a bit when He comments that “this generation” considers Him “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Luke 7:34). The Pharisees and lawyers, or scribes, certainly do, but the average person attempting to live a good life by following the Mosaic law likely would, as well.

Still, there is always a remnant. Those sinners and tax collectors—and even Roman soldiers—accepted John’s message of repentance and are “prepared” for Jesus’ (Luke 3:10–14; 7:27). Matthew’s version says, “But to what shall I compare this generation?” (Matthew 11:16).

Verse 32. They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, “‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’

Verses 32, 33, and 34 present an interesting challenge in interpretation. Some see a chiasm: a pyramid-like expression of ideas mirrored around a central point. This would connect the flute players to Jesus (Luke 7:34) and the dirge singers to John the Baptist (Luke 7:33); the religious leaders reject both. That Matthew does not include the text found in 7:29–30 also leads some to interpret the passage this way. However, this does not seem to match the intent of the writer.

The “children” are “the people of this generation” (Luke 7:31). Specifically, this means the “Pharisees and the lawyers” (Luke 7:30), but also ultimately every respectable Jew who does not recognize they are a sinner and, therefore, rejects John’s call to repent. The Pharisees and the lawyers sit in the marketplace, dictating what proper worship looks like: more celebratory than John and more rigid than Jesus. They condemn both Jesus and John for rejecting their direction (Luke 7:33–34).

The part about the flute is included in Aesop’s fable The Fisherman Piping. A fisherman played a flute in hopes the fish would be attracted to the music. When that didn’t work, he put down his nets and the fish jumped right in. He said, “You wouldn’t dance when I piped: but now I’ve stopped, you can do nothing else!”

The part about the dirge is very poignant considering Luke’s previous story (Luke 7:11–17). As Jesus and His followers entered the city of Nain, they crossed paths with a funeral procession for the only son of a widow. Culturally, Jesus’ group should have turned around and joined the procession. But Jesus didn’t have to. He is God, the creator of the world, and He has the power to raise the dead—so He did. Indeed, the religious leaders may play a dirge, but Jesus—and His followers—do not have to “grieve as others do who have no hope” (1 Thessalonians 4:13).

Verse 33. For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’

Having defended John’s unique prophethood and message (Luke 7:24–28), Jesus condemns both those who reject John and those who reject Himself. He compares these religious leaders and their followers to children who dictate the rules of the game then complain when others don’t want to join (Luke 7:32).

Jesus isn’t equating John’s ascetic lifestyle to children who sang a dirge that the people refused to weep to; He’s saying that when the Pharisees and scribes “played the flute,” John did not dance. John did not worship the way the Pharisees wanted him to: according to the Oral Law. Nor did he take pride in his ability to keep the Law. Instead, he lived in the wilderness, wore camel-hair clothing, and ate wild honey and locusts (Matthew 3:4). Even worse, John called the religious leaders “vipers,” questioned their descendancy from Abraham, and told them they needed to repent (Matthew 3:7–10). The respectable Jews, including the Pharisees and lawyers, reject him for his ascetic lifestyle and his extreme message.

John is fulfilling the purpose God has for his life in his message and his lifestyle. Meanwhile, his detractors reject God’s purpose (Luke 7:30), replacing it with human tradition in the form of the Oral Law. It’s not that God intends the religious leaders to live like John. But He does expect them to live out John’s message of repentance.

“You say” shows that John’s critics are present. That Jesus calls them “the people of this generation” indicates He means more than just the Pharisees and lawyers (Luke 7:31). Although many individuals and groups of Jews did become John’s disciples, the Jews as a nation rejected his call to repentance and, consequently, Jesus’ offer of salvation.

Matthew’s account uses shorthand, saying, “For John came neither eating nor drinking” (Matthew 11:18). Luke uses the same terms in Luke 7:34.

Verse 34. The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’

Jesus is completing His description of people who reject the message preached by Himself and John the Baptist. The detractors are complaining about the messenger, not the content of the message. Jesus compares those who reject John the Baptist to children who play lively music and complain that others will not dance (Luke 7:32). The Pharisees, religious lawyers, and respectable Jews live a normal life that includes linen robes, bread, and wine. They reject John’s austere lifestyle of camel-hair clothes, locusts, and wild honey. This would be fine; Jesus doesn’t expect everyone to live an ascetic lifestyle. But they also reject John’s call for them to repent, thinking both John’s message and his method too extreme (Luke 7:33).

Conversely, the religious leaders and those who follow them are also like children who play a dirge and can’t understand why Jesus won’t “weep.” They condemn Jesus for eating with sinners and tax collectors, believing Him guilty by association. They don’t understand that it is not appropriate to fast and mourn while the bridegroom is present or that, as the spiritual Physician, He must go where the sick are (Luke 5:27–35).

“Son of Man” is one of Jesus’ favorite ways to identify Himself. It comes from Daniel 7:13–14 in which Daniel had a vision of “one like a son of man” who was given dominion over all people and nations by the Ancient of Days. The King James version uses terms such as “winebibber” and “publican.” A winebibber is a drunkard. “Publican” is an old word for “tax-farmer” and means a tax collector.

Verse 35. Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.”

Jesus has explained how Jews have used uncomfortable aspects of God’s messengers as excuses to ignore their consistent message. Religious leaders and common people alike shun the self-denying lifestyle of John the Baptist, as well as his antagonistic call to repentance. They do the same with Jesus’ own more celebratory lifestyle with repentant sinners (Luke 7:31–34). Jesus is directly referencing the “Pharisees and lawyers” who refused to be baptized by John (Luke 7:30), but He also speaks of “the people of this generation” (Luke 7:31). Few culture-sensitive Jews of that era would follow a rabbi who ate with sinners and tax collectors. Nicodemus’ clandestine visit (John 3:1–2) makes for sharp contrast to Zacchaeus’ public celebration (Luke 19:1–10).

Now, Jesus describes the sinners and tax collectors as wisdom’s children. They are children in that they follow the ways of wisdom, compared to the religious leaders whom Jesus calls the children of the Devil (John 8:44). Wisdom has told them to repent of their sins, and they obey. “Wisdom” is presented as a personification of right thinking, as in Proverbs, directly coming from the nature of God (Proverbs 1:7). It is “justified” in the sense of being proven correct; this is the same way God is declared just (Luke 7:29). The choice of those who listen and accept God’s purpose for them demonstrate the truth of His message.

In Matthew’s account, Jesus says, “Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds” (Matthew 11:19). The two nouns—children and deeds—represent aspects of the full result: the followers are the children, and acts of repentance are their deeds.

Verse 36. One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee ‘s house and reclined at table.

In this passage, Luke provides a practical application of Jesus’ dissertation on John the Baptist (Luke 7:24–28). This comes in the form of faithful, loving, culturally scandalous actions of a repentant woman. It hinges on her reputation for sin and the dismissive, vague judgmentalism of a Pharisee. Jesus told a crowd that the tax collectors and sinners who accepted John’s call for repentance are more pleasing to God than the Pharisees and scribes who refused (Luke 7:29–34). This event provides a real-life example.

Luke does not name the city where the Pharisee lives. However, the term “of the city” (Luke 7:37) fits with the description of “a town called Nain” (Luke 7:11). It’s possible the Pharisee invites Jesus to a banquet because He raised a dead man (Luke 7:14–15). However, news of that miracle spread “through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country” (Luke 7:17), so this isn’t proof they’re in Nain.

We know this is a banquet because Jesus reclines at the table. At family meals, people would sit; at more formal affairs, they would stretch out, resting their head on the left arm and eating with their right hand with their feet away from the table. Guests would eat and sometimes engage in philosophical discussions. Local people were welcome to enter through the open door, stand against the walls, and quietly listen.

Jesus has no problem accepting the invitations of Pharisees, but they quickly realize Jesus’ status as a guest does not mean He will be subservient to the hosts. In Luke 11:37–54, a Pharisee verbally corrects Jesus for not washing His hands. Jesus responds with His own rebuke of the Pharisees’ and scribes’ abusive legalism. In Luke 14:1–6, Jesus dines at the home of a ruler of the Pharisees on the Sabbath and sees a man in need of healing. While healing the man, Jesus points out they would do no less for an ox.

Earlier, Jesus dined with the tax collector Matthew. The Pharisees criticized Him for eating with cultural outcasts and offenders. Yet Jesus dismissed them by saying, “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:29–32). Ironically, even when Jesus is reclining at the home of a Pharisee, a sinner finds Him (Luke 7:37). The Pharisee should not be surprised when the “sick” find the “Physician” (Luke 5:31).

Context Summary
Luke 7:36–38 presents a repentant woman who understands she is forgiven. Like those baptized by John, she proves that those forgiven of their sins respond with love for God (Luke 7:29–35). This is a truth the watching Pharisee doesn’t understand (Luke 7:39–50). This woman is like the widow of Nain: helpless in the face of evil and relying completely on Jesus for rescue (Luke 7:11–17). This is not the same event as Matthew 26:6–13, Mark 14:3–9, or John 12:1–8.

Verse 37. And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee ‘s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment,

A Pharisee has invited Jesus to a banquet. The wording of Luke 7:12 is similar to the reference to “the city” and might suggest they are still in Nain. Regardless, the Pharisee probably invited Jesus because he heard about the raising of the dead man (Luke 7:14–17). Jesus and the guests are lying with their heads toward the food and their feet away from the table. In such cases, the door to the house typically is left open so those who are not invited to eat can still listen to the conversation.

During the meal, a woman enters for the sole purpose of seeing Jesus. Her actions are intentional: she seeks Him out; brings perfume; stands behind Him; cleans, kisses, and anoints His feet (Luke 7:38). In contrast, the Pharisee “asked” Jesus to come, yet provides no graces, such as offering water for Jesus to wash His feet. Such steps are not required but would have been courteous.

The woman’s exact reasons for arriving are unknown. She must know about Jesus’ teaching. She must hold some appreciation, respect, trust, and love for Him and His message. In a previous encounter, Jesus told the Pharisees, “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32). It may be that she loves because Jesus offers her a path to forgiveness where everyone else merely uses or dismisses her.

Much ink has been used in Bible commentaries debating what it means that the woman is described as a “sinner.” As used in the Gospels, the term usually refers to those who overtly crossed moral boundaries—those who would have a reputation for their immorality. Sometimes, it was used to imply a specific sin; the traditional view is that this woman is a prostitute. Then, as now, this was sometimes seen as the only option left for a woman with no money or relative willing to care for her. This might be payment from a client or a gift from her well-to-do husband. Either could explain the presence of expensive perfume.

A separate theory is this woman is Mary Magdalene, as she is the next woman named (Luke 8:2). However, there is no contextual tie between the two. This woman is unnamed, whereas the Pharisee is named (Luke 7:40), and Mary is identified by her former state of demonization, not prostitution.

“Alabaster flask” is all one word in Greek. The flask is a small jar or vase made of alabaster, stone, or glass. The neck is sealed and must be broken to access the contents. Despite the alabaster jar of ointment in Matthew 26:7 and Mark 14:3, this is not the same event.

Verse 38. and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment.

When Jesus speaks and heals, He is surrounded by crowds; those who want to speak with Him directly can find it difficult. A sinful woman manages to track Jesus down to show her love and appreciation personally.

A Pharisee has invited Jesus to a banquet. The dinner guests are reclining (Luke 7:36) and the doors are left open for servers and passers-by who want to listen in. The woman has found Jesus and is prepared with a flask of ointment (Luke 7:37). This is a rare opportunity, and she seems determined not to let judgmental religious leaders discourage her. Such a lesson is often missed in this story: the importance of not letting religious practices or legalism get between sinners and Jesus!

In other events, women anoint Jesus’ head (Matthew 26:6–13; Mark 14:3–9; John 12:1–8), but since Jesus’ head is toward the table, the woman is content to minister to His feet. Even lowly slaves were rarely required to wash another person’s feet. John the Baptist’s claim of unworthiness (Luke 3:16) and Jesus’ washing the feet of the disciples (John 13:1–11) were both scandalous. Less dramatic, but similar, is that a host was not required to provide water for his guests’ feet or oil for their heads. Such a gesture would be appreciated, but not necessary. The woman’s ministrations show her great appreciation for, devotion to, and love for Jesus.

The woman is labeled a “sinner” (Luke 7:37). Traditionally, this has been taken to mean she is a prostitute. “A woman of the city” is sometimes interpreted much as the modern English phrase “woman of the streets.” The expensive perfume is assumed to be payment from a client. Her actions, also, have been interpreted as having sexual overtones. In certain contexts, “feet” can be used as a euphemism for male sexual organs, and a woman’s uncovered hair is considered intimate and provocative.

Such a reading is not necessary. “Of the city” could well mean of the city of Nain (Luke 7:11). Perfume was often left to a woman as her inheritance. Considering the context is a meal in a crowded room, it’s obvious that “feet” mean Jesus’ literal feet. And loose, disheveled hair is a sign of distress or mourning. The woman may be a prostitute, but the text isn’t certain.

The kisses are intense; not sexual, but heartfelt, like those given to the Prodigal Son by his father (Luke 15:20). At some point in the past, this woman repented of her sins and is now expressing her devotion and gratefulness in a public, extravagant way. The Pharisee sees scandal (Luke 7:39), but Jesus sees love.

Verse 39. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.”

Jesus is at a banquet at the home of a Pharisee. A sinful woman has entered the room to wash Jesus’ feet with tears, wipe them with her hair, and anoint them with perfume (Luke 7:36–38). They are possibly still in the town of Nain where, while entering the gates, Jesus raised a dead man to life. In response, the people “glorified God, saying, ‘A great prophet has arisen among us!’” (Luke 7:16).

The Pharisee has doubts. Pharisees were morally-minded men who diligently tried to follow the Mosaic law. They also followed their own traditional Oral Law, which added extra measures to avoid any violation of Moses’ instructions. Pharisees took extra steps to remain ceremonially clean; they avoided contact with anyone who did not. This woman is a sinner, which means she is likely exposing Jesus to ceremonial uncleanness. Simon assumes Jesus does not know this woman’s character, so He must not be a prophet. Since Jesus doesn’t send the woman away, He must not be concerned for His own cleanness, so He can’t be holy—or so Simon thinks.

Simon is guilty of two erroneous assumptions. Both are just as common in modern Christian culture. The first is that those who are disreputable, who have ignored calls for obedience, who have insisted on immorality, are irredeemable. We are likely to assume such people will never respond to Jesus’ loving call for repentance. We often focus our thoughts on how much that person “needs to change,” rather than on how many reasons they would have to rejoice in Christ’s forgiveness.

The second assumption is that shallow reputation is more important than engaging with lost people. Followers of Christ should never carelessly appear to approve of sin, nor engage in it (1 Peter 2:12). Yet it’s also crucial not to self-righteously ignore the needs of the lost, in fear others will foolishly judge our image and apparent lack of holiness (1 Corinthians 5:9–10; Mark 2:16–17; John 7:24). Too often, we criticize fellow believers who sincerely engage with sinners when we should be joining them in their efforts.

Of course, Simon is wrong, because Jesus knows who the woman is (Mark 2:8; John 2:25; 4:28–29). He knows she has already repented and God has forgiven her. He knows she is showing gratitude and love in response to that forgiveness (Luke 7:41–47). He also knows Simon needs the same forgiveness.

The Gospels include a few unique occasions where the narrator reveals what others are thinking (Matthew 9:3; Mark 14:4). How do the writers know what they thought? Partly because of Jesus’ reaction, but also because the Holy Spirit inspired them. A third option is sometimes missed. Here, it’s worth noting that the Gospels rarely give the name of someone who was not either a public figure or a Jesus follower. It’s possible Simon repented in response to this teaching and later told Luke his story.

Context Summary
Luke 7:39–50 places Simon the Pharisee at center stage. Unlike the centurion (Luke 7:1–10), Simon misreads his standing in comparison to the greatness of Jesus. He’s somewhere between the humble who accept Jesus and the arrogant who flatly reject Him (Luke 7:29–34). Simon has invited Jesus to dinner, given Him the minimum hospitality, and silently judged Him. This contrasts with the repentant woman who interrupts dinner to bless Jesus (Luke 7:36–38). Jesus goes where Simon doesn’t expect: Simon understands neither forgiveness nor love.

Verse 40. And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he answered, “Say it, Teacher.”

While Jesus is dining at the home of Simon the Pharisee, a repentant woman arrives. She washes Jesus’ feet with her tears and anoints them with perfume. Simon decides Jesus must not be a prophet if He doesn’t know the character of the woman (Luke 7:36–39) or won’t send her away.

Jesus proves him wrong on several levels. First, He knows what Simon is thinking (Mark 2:8). Second, He knows exactly what the woman has done (Luke 7:47; John 4:28–29). Third, He not only accepts the woman’s ministrations, but her actions are more righteous than those of Simon. Still, the conversation remains cordial, as befits a banquet. Jesus calls His host by his first name, and Simon respectfully calls Jesus “Teacher,” an honorable title when not used ironically (Luke 11:45; 20:28).

Simōn is a common name in Jesus’ era. Two of Jesus’ disciples are named Simon, including the one renamed Peter (Luke 6:13–15), and Jesus has a brother named Simon (Matthew 13:55). During the week before Passover, Jesus will dine at the home of Simon the leper in Bethany. While there, a woman will anoint Jesus’ head with expensive ointment (Matthew 26:6–13). Despite the similarities, these are two different events.

Verse 41. “A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.

Jesus is telling Simon the Pharisee a parable. This counters Simon’s mental judgment of Jesus and His acceptance of honor from a repentant woman (Luke 7:36–39). Jesus uses this story to explain the connection between God’s forgiveness of someone and their love for Him. The story is straightforward: a moneylender forgives two debtors; the man who owed more loves the moneylender more (Luke 7:42).

One denarius was roughly the daily wage of a laborer or soldier. The lesser debtor would have owed about two months’ wages and the greater owed nearly two years’ wages. Simon the Pharisee, rich enough to afford a banquet, would understand that forgiving loans implied something far deeper than mere money. Roman culture was caste-based: arranged in relatively strict layers without much ability to move upwards. By forgiving debt—almost surely for those poorer and of lower class than himself—the moneylender was dishonoring his higher caste. If too many lenders did this, the patronage-client system would fall apart.

An echo of this attitude remains in theologies teaching that salvation can be lost. Such teachers fear that Christians who fully understood their sins to be forgiven forever will disrespect their debt to Christ and rush into sin. That attitude not only conflicts with how the concept of “eternal security” is taught, but it also ignores passages such as this. Those who believe true salvation can be undone fail to understand the point of Jesus’ parable: the release of great debt leads to love and a deeper commitment, not a desire to take advantage of the benefactor. Those who are truly saved don’t sneer at Jesus’ willingness to humble Himself for us.

Verse 42. When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?”

Jesus is telling a parable to a Pharisee named Simon. This explains why He appreciated a chaste but extravagant display of gratitude by a sinful woman (Luke 7:36–39). In the story, one man owes roughly two months’ wages while another owes almost two years’ wages (Luke 7:41). The moneylender cancels both their debts. Jesus wants Simon to explain which debtor will love the moneylender more.

The parable is related to the present interaction. Jesus is the moneylender. Instead of money, however, the debt is recompense for sin. The Pharisee is the man who owes less because he sins less. His religious sect ensures he follows the Mosaic law to the letter, as well as the Oral Law which scribes added just in case. For their poor reputation in the modern world, it’s often forgotten that Pharisees were morally minded and well respected in their culture. Even Jesus acknowledged the Pharisees’ righteousness (Matthew 5:20).

The man who owes more is represented by the woman. She entered Simon’s home, the door being open as was tradition for a banquet. As Jesus reclines for the meal, she only has access to His feet. In her gratitude, she weeps, her tears falling on His feet. She uses her hair to clean away the tears and dirt, then anoints them with costly perfume (Luke 7:36–38). We don’t know what sins she has committed, but Simon considers her a “sinner” (Luke 7:39), and Jesus admits her sins “are many” (Luke 7:47).

Jesus offers both Simon and the woman forgiveness of their sins. The woman knows her sin, accepts His forgiveness and, in gratitude, loves Jesus for it. Simon’s proper, culturally appropriate interactions with Jesus reveal a lack of love. In his self-righteousness, he likely doesn’t consider himself in need of forgiveness.

Simon isn’t thinking of Jesus as God and the Messiah who forgives the sins of the world, however; he barely thinks Jesus may be a prophet (Luke 7:39). He knows the greatest commandment is to love God, but he thinks love is only following the Law. It would never occur to him that a “sinful woman” could love God more than he.

Verse 43. Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.”

A Pharisee named Simon had his banquet interrupted by a woman with an immoral reputation. She started washing his guest’s feet with her tears and hair and anointing them with perfume. The guest was thought to be a prophet of some kind but made no move to dismiss the woman. According to Simon’s way of thinking, if the guest doesn’t even know what kind of woman this is, He must not be much of a prophet (Luke 7:36–39).

The guest, of course, is Jesus. He knows exactly who the woman is and what she has done (Luke 7:47). He also knows why the woman is acting this way. At some point, she heard Jesus’ message and accepted forgiveness for those many sins. In response, she wants to extravagantly show love and gratitude. A banquet, where the door is open to those who want to listen in on the conversation, is much more convenient than trying to push through the crowds that follow Jesus wherever He goes.

Simon doesn’t see things this way, of course. Rather than being confrontational, Jesus tells him a parable (Luke 7:40–42). Two men owe a moneylender. One man owes two months’ worth of wages while the other owes two years’ worth. The moneylender forgives both debts. Jesus asks Simon to deduce which debtor will love the moneylender more.

Roman culture relied on the patronage system. A wealthy and/or powerful man would do favors for those who needed help, often by loaning money. The client would in turn do the bidding of the patron. The system worked on honor and trust. Jesus, however, adds another element: sacrificial love that wants the best for another. Simon has likely never considered that a client would love a patron. And yet, the Mosaic law, which Simon is devoted to, says, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:5). Simon’s perspective doesn’t allow for the idea that a sinful woman could obey the most important part of the Law better than a Pharisee.

Simon gives a half-hearted response. He may be grudgingly conceding the point. Or, perhaps rabbinical training, which values vague answers, is kicking in. Jesus approves as far as it goes: Simon correctly judged the human response to charity and forgiveness. However, he misjudged God’s eagerness to give charity and forgiveness.

Verse 44. Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.

After a sinful woman interrupts a banquet at the home of Simon the Pharisee to wash Jesus’ feet and anoint them with perfume, Jesus tells a parable. His story demonstrates that loving God, which is the most important of all the laws the Pharisees claimed to follow, is most easily fulfilled by those who understand the weight of the sins of which God has forgiven them (Luke 7:36–43). Now, Jesus closes the interaction by comparing the woman’s extravagant display of honor to Simon’s bare minimum attentions.

As in the case of the woman with the issue of blood (Luke 8:43–48), Jesus stops everything to affirm the actions of a desperate woman. In the home of Simon the Pharisee—a man who lives every day in incessant rituals meant to protect him from sin—Jesus presents a sinful woman as an example to follow. In so doing, Jesus publicly announces that her loving actions are a sign that God has already forgiven her. This implies that Simon, the other guests, and all the onlookers should no longer consider her a sinner when God has made her whole, and ought to learn from her example.

Scholars debate whether Simon was culturally obligated to give Jesus water for His feet, kiss Him, and anoint His head with oil (Luke 7:45–46). Considering the echo of “the city” in verses 11 and 37—the Greek is the same, even though English translations differ—this is could still be the town of Nain, where Jesus raised the dead man (Luke 7:14–15). If so, Jesus has been there for enough time for John’s disciples to visit him near the Dead Sea and return, and Jesus has spent this time healing the people and expelling demons (Luke 7:21–22). Even if this is not Nain, Simon knows what Jesus has done (Luke 7:17).

Simon is interested enough in Jesus to invite Him to his home, and respects Jesus enough to give a banquet; the reclining diners describes a formal meal (Luke 7:36). If the courtesies Jesus lists, such as water for feet, kiss of greeting, and oil for His head, are cultural standards, Simon has disrespected Jesus. Considering the importance of hospitality and honor in that time and place, that’s unlikely.

It’s more likely that Jesus is noting the things Simon could have done if he loved and honored Jesus. Simon invited Jesus to a culturally appropriate meal and gave a culturally sufficient welcome. The woman Simon silently shamed (Luke 7:39) has shamed Simon by demonstrating what it means to truly honor Jesus.

Verse 45. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet.

A Pharisee named Simon invited Jesus to a banquet. While they were reclining at the table, a woman, known in town as a sinner, walked in and found Jesus. She washed His feet with her tears and hair and anointed them with perfume. Watching, Simon presumed Jesus must not be a prophet if He doesn’t know the woman’s reputation (Luke 7:36–39).

Jesus now compares the woman’s actions with those of Simon. Simon did not give Jesus water for His feet, he did not greet Jesus at the door with a friendly kiss, and he did not anoint Jesus’ head with oil (Luke 7:45–46). None of these things were strictly required, but they would have shown a level of honor.

In judging the situation, Simon compared the sinful woman’s reputation to his own. As a Pharisee who is devoted to the Mosaic law, he assumes this makes him superior to her. His life appears to be “clean,” and hers is not. However, Jesus compares their current actions and motivations. Certainly, if the woman had made the same movements with a hardened heart, they wouldn’t have meant anything. But she acted because she loves Jesus. Why wouldn’t Jesus accept the honor of someone who loves Him? Why wouldn’t her conduct be a welcome break from Simon’s cool courtesy?

To add insult to injury—for the judgmental—Jesus goes on to explain that the reason the woman loves Him is because she knows her many sins have already been forgiven (Luke 7:47). This previously sin-stained woman now bears God’s gift of righteousness. This is something Simon can never accomplish with his obsessive rule-following.

Jesus’ reference to the woman kissing His feet “from the time I came in” is obviously hyperbole: an exaggeration for effect. The text notes she did not start until He was already settled on His couch (Luke 7:36–38).

Verse 46. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.

Jesus finishes His comparison of Simon the Pharisees’ greeting of Jesus with that of the sinful woman. Simon invited Jesus to a banquet and provided the minimum required welcomes. He didn’t provide Jesus with water to wash His feet, he didn’t greet Him with a kiss, and he didn’t provide oil for His head (Luke 7:36, 45–46). That’s fine, as such honors were not mandatory. Yet, considering Simon knew this man has raised the dead, expelled demons, and healed all sorts of illnesses and injuries (Luke 7:14–17, 21), such courtesies would have been appropriate.

The woman, however, first wept so much she was able to clean Jesus’ feet with her tears. After wiping His feet with her hair, she then kissed them and anointed them with a bottle of perfume. While she did so, Simon silently dismissed her as too sinful for his consideration and judged Jesus for letting her touch Him (Luke 7:37–39).

Jesus takes Simon through three steps. First, He will not be shamed for accepting the gracious attentions of a woman who did far more for Him than Simon (Luke 7:45–46). Second, He knows she’s sinful, but He also knows she acted out of love, which Simon lacks (Luke 7:47). Finally, she loves much because she knows she is forgiven of much. More to the point: she is forgiven. Simon has no right to judge her character, let alone her actions, because she is reconciled to God (Luke 7:48). Repentance, not rule-keeping, reconcile us to God and, in turn, make us love Him (Deuteronomy 6:5).

Verse 47. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven — for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”

A woman has washed and anointed Jesus’ feet during a banquet at the home of a Pharisee named Simon (Luke 7:36–39). Simon and Jesus see the event in vastly different ways.

Simon sees a woman with a dirty reputation touching a man who claims to be a prophet. Simon believes the sinful woman should not attempt to touch a holy man. No holy man should let a sinful woman touch Him, or so Simon would think. In fact, Simon assumes that if Jesus really is a prophet, He should know what kind of woman she is and dismiss her. Simon sees himself as the righteous observer who condescended to invite this “prophet” for a meal. He follows the Mosaic law and the extra Oral Law that the scribes established. He, as was his right, did not extend any unnecessary courtesies to this “prophet” (Luke 7:44–46). Apparently, he was right to do so in his own eyes.

Jesus sees far more than Simon can imagine. He knows the woman has committed many sins, but He also knows that at some point in the past, she repented, and her sins were forgiven. Her display is not about cultural courtesies. It’s an expression of love she has for Jesus because her sins are forgiven. Simon, who loves the Law, likely has so few overt sins that he doesn’t consider himself in need of forgiveness. He is wrong. If he understood the weight of even the smallest sin, he would repent, receive forgiveness, and love God as he should.

The woman understands who she is. She grasps at least something of who Jesus is, showing her love in humble and expensive ways. Simon does not even greet his Messiah with a friendly kiss.

The preposition “for” in Greek and English can make Jesus words sound like the woman received forgiveness because she loved. The term is meant to show connection through relationship, not by causation: her love is evidence that she knows she’s been forgiven. The NIV is clearer: “Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”

Luke writes approximately thirty years after this event, directing his account to a Greek Christian (Luke 1:1–4). The young church struggled with how to integrate formerly pagan Gentiles with Jews who accept Jesus as their Messiah but still feel devotion to the Mosaic law. This story relates to their angst.

Verse 48. And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

A sinful woman’s loving display to Jesus was a sign she has repented. Despite her identity as a “sinner,” despite the fact she is most likely ceremonially unclean, she had already been forgiven before she walked through Simon’s door (Luke 7:44–47). Here, Jesus is stating what has already happened. The woman’s great acts of love are evidence that she is forgiven and knows it. Jesus says the words for the benefit of Simon and the others in the room (Luke 7:49).

Many people in the New Testament were healed without having a conversation with Jesus (Luke 6:19), Peter (Acts 5:14–16), or Paul (Acts 19:11–12). This current story evokes comparison to the woman with an issue of blood (Luke 8:43–48). That woman could have been healed and then snuck away, but Jesus wouldn’t let her. He stopped the crowd so that He could see her face, tell her He loved her, praise her faith, and announce to the crowd that she is now clean.

Jesus’ words here are similar. Simon has already dismissed the woman as a sinner (Luke 7:39). We don’t know what that means, but she has a bad reputation in town. Jesus now announces what had already taken place: her sins are forgiven. She wears righteousness as a gift of God not earned by deeds (Ephesians 2:8–9), like those Simon has devoted his life to (Romans 3:20).

The guests at the banquet are shocked when Jesus announces that her sins are forgiven (Luke 7:49). He adds: “Your faith has saved you” (Luke 7:50). She already knows this; it’s why she’s there. But to hear Jesus say it in a room filled with judgmental men makes any disgrace they may throw her way completely meaningless.

Verse 49. Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?”

When Jesus told the sinful woman her sins were forgiven, He revealed that it was He, Himself, who had forgiven them (Luke 7:48). The other dinner guests don’t approve.

The host of the banquet, Simon, personally invited Jesus. He must know Jesus’ reputation as a miracle worker (Luke 7:14–17, 21). Yet he provided the minimum of courtesies when Jesus arrived, revealing that Jesus is not an honored guest (Luke 7:44–46). Jesus’ interactions with the woman inspire Simon’s judgmental doubt that Jesus is even a prophet (Luke 7:39).

Now, Jesus has compared Simon’s and the woman’s attentions in an interesting way. Jesus says the woman washed and anointed His feet because she loves Him. And she loves Him because she knows her many sins are forgiven. Simon’s minimal attentions to Jesus show that if he loves Him, it’s just a little. And if he only loves Jesus a little, it’s because his righteous lifestyle as a Pharisee has led him to underestimate God’s forgiveness. The mercy shown by God is extraordinary, no matter how much or how little sin is involved.

The guests’ question here is important. Jesus has made it clear that He did not just announce that the woman’s sins were forgiven—as any prophet of God could. He forgave her—as only God could. This is a much greater offense than a sinful woman disrupting a dinner party. While meaningful, the question is not unique. It’s been asked by other Pharisees (Luke 5:20–21). Jesus’ disciples will later wonder at Jesus’ command over winds and water (Luke 8:25). Herod Antipas will wonder at who Jesus is (Luke 9:7–9). John the Baptist has questioned whether Jesus is the Messiah or if another is coming (Luke 7:19). Who is this Jesus?

The inquiry is vital; it should be asked by every one of us. Who do we believe Jesus is? Do we believe He can forgive sins? It’s the most important question of anyone’s life.

Verse 50. And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

The story of Simon the Pharisee and the sinful woman comes on the heels of Jesus’s interaction with the disciples of John the Baptist (Luke 7:18–35). Like Simon’s dinner guests (Luke 7:49), John questions who Jesus really is (Luke 7:19). Jesus points out to John the same things the dinner guests likely know of: His healing miracles match the prophecies of the Messiah given in Jewish Scriptures. Jesus’ last words for John are, “And blessed is the one who is not offended by me” (Luke 7:23).

The sinful woman is not offended by Jesus. At some point, prior to this meal, she heard the message of repentance and forgiveness and believed. Her sins were forgiven. In humble thanks, she showed her love and appreciation by washing and anointing Jesus’ feet (Luke 7:36–38). Simon and his other guests are “offended:” they see and hear Jesus and seemingly want to reject the claims connected to His actions and words (Luke 7:39, 49). Only God can forgive sins. Jesus let a disgraced woman touch Him, so Simon assumes He is not a prophet of God (Luke 7:39), let alone God Himself.

Jesus reiterates His previous affirmation to the woman: that her sins are forgiven (Luke 7:48). He says this not for her benefit, entirely, but so it’s heard by the men who deny His authority (Luke 7:49). The faith of the woman has saved her; the works of the Pharisees cannot. Finally, Jesus tells her to “go in peace.” She is in peace with Him and Father God. There is no reason for her to stay with these men who will judge and condemn her. She is reconciled with God; she does not need the approval of other people any more than Jesus does.

Luke is writing to a Gentile Jesus-follower (Luke 1:1–4). His recipient was most likely in a church with Jews who accept Jesus as their Messiah. Luke also spent several years traveling with Paul. One of Paul’s primary frustrations with the early church was the insistence by some Jews that Gentiles had to convert to Judaism before they could worship the Jewish Messiah. This little story shows Theophilus what Jesus thinks about the matter: salvation is by grace, through faith, not works (Ephesians 2:8–9). Works are motivated by love which results from the thankfulness of people who know their sins are forgiven (Ephesians 2:10; 1 John 1:8—2:6; 4:19–21; Galatians 5:13–25). Those who understand their forgiveness by God react in humility and love, not hedonism or arrogance.

Like many stories and parables in the Gospels, this story comes with no official closure. We’re not told, explicitly, how Simon responded. And yet, the context of this passage hints that Simon did, at some point, repent and follow Jesus. This suggestion comes simply because we know his name. As carefully as Luke researched Jesus’ life, he doesn’t seem to include the names of non-public officials who didn’t accept Christ. It’s likely Simon joined the sinful woman by repenting of his sins, accepting forgiveness, and loving Jesus in response. Then, at some point, he related his perspective of the story to Luke.

End of Chapter 7.

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