Luke 4:16-20
Luke 4:16 (KJB)
And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was,
he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
Then after Jesus had preached in Capernaum, He returned to His home town of
Nazareth. His normal custom was that He would go to the synagogue. Here He
attends services on the Sabbath and was given the book to read. Normally, a
visiting Rabbi was given the privilege of bringing the message and here Jesus
had His opportunity to reach those He grew up with.
Luke 4:17 (KJB)
And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had
opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
During the normal service in the synagogue, two portions of Scripture were read,
one portion from the law and the other from the prophets. The ruler of the
synagogue probably recognized Jesus and gave Him the opportunity to read the
Hebrew Scriptures. Then Jesus took the scroll and it came to the place of Isaiah
61. The ruler of the synagogue may have given this particular section to Jesus
because he knew of the many prophecies surrounding Him when He was born or it
may have been the prescribed portion of the prophets for that Sabbath day.
Either way, they were in for a spiritual awakening.
Luke 4:18 (KJB)
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the
gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach
deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at
liberty them that are bruised,
Jesus then began to read Isaiah 61. (Isa 61:1 KJV) The spirit of the Lord
GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto
the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to
the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me - What Jesus would be
speaking was not of His own creation at present but was penned under the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit about 700 years ago. He would give Jesus the
wisdom and understanding to teach this verse so it would be opened to those who
were the elect of God in that congregation.
because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor -
The Holy Spirit had appointed Jesus to bring the true Gospel to the poor, that
is, the poor in spirit. A person can be very wealthy in material goods but poor
in spirit. Those who are trodden down by the world can be exalted through the
Gospel. The Grace of God would now be brought to the forefront and that the
keeping of the law would no longer be required for a person to atone for their
sins. Those who become saved through Christ will have all their sins removed not
covered. This is why the word “Gospel” is used because it means “good news.”
Instead of them hearing the law expounded and them having to come face to face
with their sins, the Gospel of Christ removes those sins and the guilt
associated with them.
he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted - Those whose hearts
are broken in two ways: First, by sin, as they realize that they have no power
over sin to expunge it from their lives, secondly, those who hear the Gospel and
whose hearts are broken over the sins they have committed, they are convicted.
The Gospel does not leave them in that state. The Gospel heals them by removing
the sin and guilt and replacing them with the joy of the Lord. (Neh 8:10
KJV) Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and
send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto
our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.
The joy of the Lord shall strengthen the believer and give them the strength and
ability to be able to serve the Lord without guilt and a spirit of hypocrisy.
to preach deliverance to the captives - (Isa 14:17 KJV)
That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that
opened not the house of his prisoners? The Gospel will free those who
are under the bondage of sin. The Bible calls them prisoners in the house of
Satan. Satan will not willingly release any of his prisoners but that does not
mean that deliverance and salvation is not available to many in that situation.
(Mat 12:29 KJV) Or else how can one enter into a strong man's house, and
spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his
house. When Christ went to the cross, He bound Satan so he could no longer
stop his house from being plundered by the Lord Jesus Christ under the teaching
of the true Gospel.
and recovering of sight to the blind - (Mat 15:14 KJV) Let
them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind,
both shall fall into the ditch. The people of Israel were being
taught by those who were totally blind to the truth and as a result, those
people were also spiritually blind. The Lord Jesus Christ is going to bring the
true Gospel and that will break through the blindness of the false teachings the
people had received. This same principle will be found all over the world when
the true Gospel is preached in areas of spiritual blindness to false religions.
to set at liberty them that are bruised, - The word “bruised”
carries with it the meaning of “shattered or weakened.” The word that is used in
Isaiah 61:1 is “bound” and it deals with those who are fettered or in prison.
Both words together give a very good picture. Those who are in the prison of
Satan’s house are those who have shattered lives. We see this every day with
people on drugs, alcohol, those who kill others, those who kidnap others, etc.
These things do not happen because these people are living happy or satisfied
lives, but because their lives are amounting to nothing and they see no way out.
Once Christ sets them free from Satan’s prison, they are given new life which is
eternal life. They now have something to live for and see greater things than
this life has to offer. We can also see this when murderers or thieves become
saved and their life takes on a whole new meaning. No longer is the old life
attractive but reprehensible. (John 8:36 KJV) If the Son therefore shall
make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
Luke 4:19 (KJB)
To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
Here the Scripture refers to the Year of Release which was celebrated every
seven years. If a Hebrew became a bondservant for any reason, then on the
seventh year he was to be set free. Then there was the Jubilee year celebrated
every 50th year when possessions which were sold would be returned to the
original owner and debts were canceled. It was a time of great festivity. What
Jesus was preaching here was the fact that those who become saved by Him, will
experience the freedom of being released from all the guilt of sin and the
sentence of hell hanging over them. It is a time of great joy when one becomes
saved because there is a release. We no longer look at this world as our primary
home but we realize it is only a temporary lodging. We look beyond the material
to the spiritual and realize whatever we have here is left behind.
Luke 4:20 (KJB)
And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And
the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
Once Jesus had finished reading the portions of Scripture, He handed the scroll
to the attendant and then He sat down and got ready to teach. The sitting
position was the customary position for teaching. Then the people had fastened
their eyes or were intently looking at Jesus. The people had heard many things
about Him especially since He grew up among them. At this point He had already
performed miracles in Capernaum so now they waited for Him to start teaching.