Introductory remarks:
In chapter nine Jesus had just interviewed, as it were, three prospective disciples and listened to their excuse as to why it was not convenient at that time to forsake all and follow Christ. This chapter begins with Jesus sending out seventy to preach the kingdom of God. This chapter may be outlined as follows: the mission of the seventy vv. 1-12; woes to unrepentant cities vv. 13-16; the return of the seventy vv. 17-20; the rejoicing of Jesus 21-24; the good Samaritan vv. 25-37; visiting Martha and Mary vv. 38-42.
The Mission of the Seventy
Verse 1, "After these things, the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, wither he himself would come."
LGT "After these things, the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them two and two before His face, into every city and place, where He was about to come."
The true reading of this second phrase is the Lord appointed seventy others, making reference to his sending the twelve out on a previous mission (Luke 9:1-6). The significance of the number seventy is, according to the Expositor's Greek Testament - quoting Hahn, is the number of elders appointed by Moses, and of the Sanhedrists [the elders, Pharisees, and Scribes] in their failure to accept and proclaim Him; this is also in line with His choosing the Twelve Apostles representing the twelve tribes of Israel. I am sure that these are not the only ones He sent out, the same as it is not recorded every person He healed.
Verse 2, "Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth laborers into the harvest."
LGT "And He said to them, The harvest indeed [is] great, but the workmen [are] few: beg therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He may send out workmen into His harvest."
It is so very important that we keep this verse, as well as all scripture, in its proper context. Glenda and I went to a missionary school in Alberta Canada for two years, shortly after we were first married, with the idea of becoming missionaries. We never realized our first dreams, thank God, for we were very disillusioned by our emotions. In this school, however, we were inundated with this verse, as a missionary appeal "to pray for the Lord to thrust workers into His harvest", which they taught us, was the world. We must remember that this was before the Cross, and that each and every worker was given His supernatural gifts to accomplish the harvest time; this age of grace is the time for sowing God's Word, not harvesting souls. This is such an important issue I will give McGee's quote in full:
"The Lord sent out seventy disciples who were to prepare the way for the ministry of Jesus. Only Luke tells us of this. The work was for a limited time, and their office was temporary because Jesus was journeying toward Jerusalem.
We hear a great deal today about praying the Lord of the harvest to send forth laborers into the harvest - that the Lord looks out upon the world, which is ripe unto harvest, and our business today is to gather in the harvest. This may sound strange to you, but I do not consider it my business to harvest. My business is sowing. If you have ever been a farmer, you know there is a vast difference between sowing seed and harvesting the crop after the seed has matured. Someone counters, 'But the Lord said that the harvest is great and the laborers few.' We must remember where Jesus was when He made that statement. He was on the other side of the cross at the time, and an age was coming to an end. At the end of every age is judgment. The judgment that ends an age is a harvest, and the age itself is for the sowing of seed. I believe that we are sowing seed today, and that at the end of this age there will be a harvest. In the parable of the tares and wheat the Lord said, Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn (Matt. 13:30). My business is to sow the seed, which is the Word of God. That is the business of every Christian."
Verse 3, "Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves."
LGT "Go: behold, I send you forth as lambs in [the] midst of wolves."
Jesus sends these missionaries out with His message, but not without giving them his power to accompany them. The Lord warns them that they would not be received well, but that they would have to trust Him for protection. "He sends them out with the same message that He sent the Twelve throughout Galilee and with the same power to perform the same miracles He had been performing to authenticate His person and message" (Pentecost).
Verse 4, "Carry neither purse, not scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way."
LGT "Nether carry purse, nor provision bag, nor sandals, and salute no one on the way."
These are the same restrictions He gave to the Twelve when He sent them out throughout Galilee; note the urgency in His words, and salute no one on the way. "The kings business required haste. Elisha's servant was not to tarry for salutations or salaams (II kings 4:29). These oriental greetings were tedious, complicated, and often meddlesome if others were present or engaged to bargain" (Robertson).
Vincent describes the Oriental custom quoting Thompson's Land and Book:
"Oriental salutations are tedious and complicated. The command is suited to a rabid and temporary mission (Compare 2 Kings 4:29). These instructions were also intended to reprove another propensity, which an Oriental can hardly resist, no matter how urgent his business. If he meets an acquaintance, he must stop and make an endless number of inquiries, and answer as many. If they come upon men making a bargain, or discussing any other matter, they must pause and intrude their own ideas, and enter keenly into the business, though it in nowise concerns them; and, more especially, an Oriental can never resist the temptation to assist when accounts are being settled or money counted out. The clink of coin has a positive fascination to them."
Verse 5, "And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house."
LGT "And whenever you may enter a house, first say, Peace to this house."
This is the usual Oriental salutation.
Verse 6, "And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again."
LGT "And the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: but if not so, it shall return to you."
This first phrase son of peace is a Hebraism setting the tone of the householder and his house, that is, a peace-loving house. When they speak Peace to this house, if it is not a peace-loving house, that blessing pronounced will return back to the disciple that spoke it.
Verse 7, "And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the laborer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house."
LGT "And in the house itself abide, eating and drinking the things [supplied] by them: for the workman is worthy of his hire. Remove not from house to house."
These disciples were not to feel as if they were charity cases, but that the peace-loving people would be more than happy to entertain them with their sustenance. This is not a verse to satisfy the guilty consciences of these lazy pastor-teachers [and I use the term pastor-teacher very loosely] to make a living on their congregation. The disciples were not to remove from house to house, accepting every invitation, for they were on a mission, and they were only to accept what they needed.
Verse 8, "And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you:"
LGT "And into whatever city you may enter, and they receive you, eat the things set before you,"
All these instructions were given to the Twelve as well. This is not a lesson in politeness, as Robertson thinks, but of eating and drinking what they need. The modern day preachers could learn a good lesson from these verses if they think they are actually gifted; they would not take over and above what they needed, for if they applied this verse, they would also have to apply the next verse.
Verse 9, "And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, the kingdom of God is come nigh unto you."
LGT "And heal the sick in it, and say to them, The kingdom of God has drawn near to you."
In those pre-cross days, these evangelists were not only preaching the kingdom of God, as Christ had instructed them, but they also healed the sick, cast out demons, raised the dead, and all these sign gifts Christ had given them; today, however, the Word of God is all we need, because it is not harvest time, but the time for sowing this wonderful seed. Please do not burden yourselves needlessly over commands that do not apply to you.
Verses 10, 11, "But whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go your ways out into the streets of the same, and say, Even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you: notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh unto you."
LGT "But into whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, having gone out its streets, say, Even the dust which clung to us, out of your city to the feet, we wipe off against you: yet ye know this, that the kingdom of God has drawn near."
These men were to be obsessed with one thing and one thing only, preparing hearts to be ready for the message that the kingdom of God is near, and that there is a great harvest approaching. I believe we can apply the principles of this verse today in this respect only: if we are speaking to someone about Christ, and they begin to mock, the best thing to do is walk away, and do not cast the pearls of the Word of God before swine of this world; certainly we are not to be obsessed as these disciples, for we are simply to be ready always to give an answer to anyone that might asks us of the hope we have with meekness and fear. Furthermore, we do not possess these sign gifts that Jesus breathed on His special disciples. There is another point here; the seventy disciples also made disciples, giving them the gifts, by laying their hands on them; like the one Jesus forbade the Twelve to stop healing and casting out demons; there were many disciples preaching in those days before the cross.
Verse 12, "But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city."
LGT "But I say to you, that it shall be more tolerable for Sodom, in that day, than for that city."
"In spite of the rejection of the message, the message itself remained true. Christ's offer to the nation of a kingdom over which He would rule as King was genuinely made regardless of the response of the nation. Because it was a genuine offer, judgment would fall on the nation that rejected Him. In anticipation of the rejection of the message, Christ announced judgment on those towns that had already rejected Him - Korazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum. The Gentile cities of Sodom, Tyre, and Sidon would not come under as harsh a treatment in the Day of Judgment as these cities, because they had rejected greater revelation than was ever given to Sodom, Tyre, and Sidon."
Woes to Unrepentant Cities
(Matt. 11:20-24)
Verse 13, "Woe unto thee, Chorazin! Woe unto thee, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes."
LGT "Oooie to you, Chorazin! Oooie to you, Bethsaida: Because if in Tyre and Sidon, had the works of power taken place, which have been taken place in you, long ago they had repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes."
This message was given at the same time He had given His commission to the Seventy. The more light given, the more responsibility is expected.
Verse 14, "But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you."
LGT "But for Tyre and Sidon more tolerable will it be in the judgment than for you."
The harsher judgment would fall on those greater cities than Tyre and Sidon because they received more light.
Verse 15, "And thou Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, it shall be thrust down to hell."
LGT "And thou, Capernaum, who having been lifted up to heaven, to Hades thou shall be brought down."
Capernaum had as much light given it, even more, than all the rest of these cities.
Verse 16, "He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me."
LGT "The one who hears you hears Me: and the one who rejects you rejects Me: and the one who rejects Me, rejects the One who sent Me."
Jesus gives these seventy a word of encouragement at the close of His discourse; He assures them that they have a privilege to preach the kingdom of God, and that they can be assured that anyone who rejects their preaching, in reality, is rejecting Him and not them alone.
The Return of the Seventy
Verse 17, "And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name."
LGT "And the seventy returned with joy, saying, Lord, even the demons are subject to us through Your name."
These seventy were rejoicing, saying, even though You told us this would happen, we are still amazed that we were able to accomplish so much in Your name. The joy must have shown out on their faces. They were amazed that even the demons obeyed Christ's word through them.
Verse 18, "And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven."
LGT "And He said to them, I was beholding Satan as lightning fall out of the heaven."
While these seventy saw demons flee, Christ says that He was there when Satan fell from heaven; that is, He took them from their experience and reminded them of His seeing Satan himself fall from pride in eternity past. Isaiah records "How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, who didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north, I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man who made the earth to tremble, who did shake kingdoms, who made the world like a wilderness, and destroyed its cities, who opened not the house of his prisoners?" (Isa. 14:12-17)
Verse 19, "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you."
LGT "Lo, I have given you the authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and upon all the power of the enemy, and nothing, in any wise, shall injure you."
Jesus says, If you are amazed at what you have accomplished so far in My name, here is a list that will also astound you; the Lord was not telling these disciples to be fool-hearty, but that there is nothing in this world that Satan and his army can throw at them that they cannot overcome, for greater is He that is in you, than he that is the world. I would love to see some of these charlatans in this world who claim to be able to heal apply this verse to their preaching.
Verse 20, "Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven."
LGT "Yet in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in the heavens."
What a beautiful fact Christ makes to these seventy; He tells them not to get caught up with the supernatural powers given them, rather rejoice in the fact that they are citizens of heaven.
Barnes notes:
"Though it was an honor to work miracles, though it is an honor to be endowed with talents, and influence, and learning, yet it is a subject of chief joy that we are numbered among the people of God, and have a title to everlasting life. Names are written in heaven. The names of citizens of a city or state were accustomed to be written in a book or register, from which they were blotted out when they became unworthy, or forfeited the favor of their country. Comp. Ps. 49:28; Ex. 32:32; Deut. 9:14; Rev. 3:5. That their names were written in heaven means that they were citizens of heaven; that they were friends of God and approved by Him, and would be permitted to dwell with Him. This was of far more value than all the earthly honor, power, or wealth, and in this men should rejoice more than in eminent endowments of influence, learning, talents, or possessions."
The Rejoicing of Jesus
(Matt; 11:25-27; 13:16-17)
Verse 21, "In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy site."
LGT "In the same hour, [Jesus] rejoiced in the [Holy] Spirit, and said, I praise You, Father, Lord of the heaven and of the earth, because You did hide these things from the wise and prudent [cautious], and did reveal them to babes: yes Father, because it was well-pleasing to Thee."
Jesus rejoices in the Holy Spirit that this message the Father had given Him, and He had given to the Seventy, was such that the simplest soul was able to understand it. Remember, Christ said, only if we come as little children, that is, with the trusting faith of a little child in his father, were we able to accept and then understand His teaching.
Verse 22, "All things are delivered to me of my father: and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him."
LGT "All things were delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who is the Son except the Father, and who is the Father except the Son, whoever the Son may will to reveal [Him]."
Christ begins by saying that the message of the Gospel of the Kingdom was delivered to Him by His Father. And then He goes on to say that nothing can be known by anyone, except by His and the Father's will, that is, a person must be born again in order to even begin to know about the Godhead; Luke uses the Greek word ginoskei meaning to know by experience, and Matthew uses the Greek word epiginosko which means fully known (Matt. 11:27), so we put them together and we get fully known by experience.
Robertson comments on this verse:
"It is idle to try to whittle away by fantastic exegesis the high claims made by Jesus in this passage. It is an ecstatic prayer in the presence of the Seventy under the rapture of the Holy Spirit on terms of perfect equality and understanding between the Father and the Son in the tone of the priestly prayer of John 17. We are justified in saying that this prayer of supreme Fellowship with the Father in contemplation of final victory over Satan gives us a glimpse of the prayers with the Father when the Son spent whole nights on the mountain alone with the Father. Here is the Messianic consciousness in complete control and with perfect confidence in the outcome; The Son claims the power to reveal the Father to whomsoever He wills. This is divine sovereignty most assuredly. Human free agency is also true, but it is full of divine sovereignty in salvation that is here claimed along with possession of all power from the Father. Let that Supreme claim stand."
Pentecost notes:
"Christ's statement also revealed why the multitude rejected Him. It did not please the Father to reveal the Son to them. The nation Israel was blind. It takes a miracle to remove human blindness so that a man can see. God had not removed the blindness from the eyes of the nation so that they would know who He was."
Verse 23, "And he turned him unto his disciples, and said privately, Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see."
LGT "And having turned to the disciples, privately He said, Blessed are the ones who see what you see."
Jesus had been praying, although to His Father, in the presence of the Seventy; He now turns and speaks to the Twelve in private, that is, away from the Seventy. He tells them they are blessed to be there to hear His parabolic teaching.
Verse 24, "For I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them."
LGT "For I say to you, that kings desired to see what ye see, and see not, and her what ye hear, and heard not."
The phrase many prophets is not on the best manuscripts. These kings that Jesus is referring to did in fact see and hear of the many miracles Jesus performed, however, they did not see what these disciples saw; these disciples saw the Messiah Sovereign. Remember when Jesus taught His parables He made the statement that only those who believed in Him would be able to understand, but these truths were hidden from those who hated Him.
Today it seems to me that we have an advantage by having the completed Word of God; now I don't mean that we are saved differently than they were in the OT, but that we are witnessing the grace of God so completely because we are indwelt by His Holy Spirit.
The Good Samaritan
Verse 25, "And behold a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
LGT "And behold a certain doctor of the law stood up, tempting Him, saying, Teacher, by doing what shall I inherit eternal life?"
The key to this verse is the word "doing". This doctor of the Mosaic Law didn't have a clue at what he was saying. Had he listened even with half an ear to Christ's message, he would have known that it was not in the doing, but in the believing that a person inherits life eternal. The word "tempt" shows very plainly that this young lawyer had evil intent. McGee tells a story he heard about lawyers in our judicial system: Two lawyers were in court. It was a difficult case, and there was a great deal of controversy. The court opened and lawyer number one jumped up and called the other lawyer a liar. The second lawyer jumped up to retaliate and called the first lawyer a thief. The judge rapped for silence, and said, 'Now that the lawyers have identified themselves, we will begin the case'"
Verse 26, "He said unto him, What is written in the Law? How readest thou?"
LGT "And He said to him, In the Law what has been written? How do you read [it]?"
Jesus directs this young lawyer back to the Scriptures [the OT Cannon] and asks him what do you read there. Jesus had already told the crowd on many occasions that they must be perfect as He is perfect. We know today that it is only by Christ's imputed Righteousness on us that we are acceptable to God; and that it is accomplished simply by believing in Christ as our Savior.
Verse 27, "And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself."
LGT "And he answering said, Thou shall love your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself."
"The lawyer's answer is first from Deut. 6:3; 11:13, which was written on the phylacteries (a religious ornament worn by certain of the priests in public for show - it was obligatory from the OT - Edesheim). The second part is form Lev. 19:18 and shows that the lawyer knew the law. At a later time Jesus Himself in the temple gives a like summary of the law to a lawyer (Mark 12:28-34; Matt. 22:34-40) who wanted to catch Jesus by His question. There is no difficulty in the two incidents. God is loved with all four powers (heart, soul, strength, mind) here as in Mark 12:30" (Robertson).
Verse 28, 'And said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live."
LGT "And He said to him, Rightly you have answered: this do, and you shall live."
The lawyer wanted to know what he could do, and the Lord said, Rightly you have answered this. You see, no one has ever been able to keep even these two commandments; if the lawyer wanted to do something, this is what he would have to do; he would have to keep all the commands in order to be perfectly holy.
Verse 29, "But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbor."
LGT "But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, And who is my neighbor?"
This lawyer was caught in asking a question he knew the answer to, so in his embarrassment he asked another question, in order to justify himself.
Barnes notes:
" Desirous to appear blameless, or to vindicate himself, and show that he had kept the law. Jesus wished to lead him to a proper view of his own sinfulness, and his real departure from the law. The man was desirous of showing that he had kept the law; or perhaps he was desirous of justifying himself for asking the question; of showing that it could not be so easily settled; that a mere reference to the words of the law did not determine it. It was still a question what was meant by neighbor. The Pharisees held that the Jews only were to be regarded as such, and that the obligation did not extend at all to the Gentiles. The lawyer was probably ready to affirm that he had discharged faithfully his duty to his countrymen, and had thus kept the law, and could justify himself. Every sinner is desirous of justifying himself. He seeks to do it by his own works. For this purpose he perverts the meaning of the law, destroys its spirituality, and brings down the law to his standard, rather than attempt to frame his life by its requirements."
McGee wrote on this verse:
"Now if the lawyer had been honest, which he was not, he would have said, 'Master, I've sincerely tried to love God with all my heart, soul, strength, and mind, and my neighbor as myself. But I can't do it. I've miserably failed. So how can I inherit eternal life?' But instead of being honest, he adopted this evasive method and said, 'And who is my neighbor?'"
Verse 30, "And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead."
LGT "Taking it up, Jesus said, A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among robbers, who both having stripped him, and having laid on blows, went away, leaving [him] half dead."
Jesus takes up the issue by giving him a parable. A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho: Vincent notes about this route, "The road from Jerusalem to Jericho passed through a wilderness (Josh. 16:1), which was so notorious for robberies and murders that a portion of it was called the red or bloody way, and was protected by a fort and a Roman garrison." These vicious robbers laid blows on him and took all that he had; they beat him so bad, that when they left him, he was half dead.
Verse 31, "And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side."
LGT "And by way of coincidence, a certain priest went down in that road, and having seen him, he passed by on the opposite side."
A certain priest went down, by way of coincidence, and seeing the man, stepped to the other side of the road to avoid ceremonial contamination. Robertson wrote: "A vivid and powerful picture of the vice of Jewish ceremonial cleanliness at the cost of moral principal and duty."
Verse 32, "And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side."
LGT "And in like manner a Levite, being at the place, having come and having seen,
passed by on the opposite side."
This Levite reacted exactly the same as the priest. This Levite came and looked on him, a bit more than the priest, but he also passed him by.
Verse 33, "But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,"
LGT "But a certain Samaritan journeying, came where he was, and having seen [him] was moved with compassion,"
This Samaritan did not side step this poor wounded man, but came where he was, and had compassion on him. This was a far cry from the other two. The Samaritan was moved with pity for the poor man.
Verse 34, "And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him."
LGT "And having approached [him] bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine, and having put him on his own beast, brought him to an inn, and took care of him."
Their have been volumes written about this Good Samaritan, however I am not intending on writing a commentary but an exposition, and an exposition is concerned mainly with the facts of the parable. Luke, being a physician, was interested in the medical facts surrounding this case. The first concern of this Samaritan was to bind up his wounds; the Greek word for "wounds" is traumata. You may recognize this word from our English word trauma. This man had been beaten quite severely. The next thing he did was to sprinkle his wounds with wine and oil. Robertson notes: "Oil and wine were household remedies even for wounds (soothing oil, antiseptic alcohol). Hypocrites [the father of medicine] prescribed for ulcers: Bind with soft wool, and sprinkle with wine and oil." The next act of mercy was to set him on his beast [probably a donkey], and brought him to an inn. Robertson notes again that "an inn was a public place for receiving all comers, and that there are ruins of two inns about halfway between Bethany and Jericho."
Verse 35, "And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee."
LGT "And on the morrow going forth, taking out two denarii he gave [them] to the innkeeper, and said, Take care of him, and whatever thou may expend more, I will repay thee on my coming back."
The last act of this Samaritan was to pay for his care, and that the innkeeper was not to trouble the poor man for his pay. The money he gave was earnest money assuring him that he would settle up with him on his return.
Verse 36, "Which now of the these three, thinkest thou, was neighbor unto him that fell among thieves?"
LGT "Which of these three, seems to you to have been a neighbor to him who fell among the robbers?"
After telling this parable, Jesus turns back to the young lawyer and asks this obvious question, that is, obvious to anyone who has a shred of decency.
Verse 37, "And he said, He that showed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise."
LGT "And he said, The one who showed compassion with him. Then Jesus said to him, Go, and do likewise."
"The lawyer saw the point and gave the correct answer, but he gulped at the word Samaritan and refused to say that. Would this Jewish lawyer act the neighbor to a Samaritan? This parable of the Good Samaritan has built the world's hospitals and, if understood and practiced, will remove race prejudice, national hatred and war, class jealousy" (Robertson). Of course we know that this will not happen until Christ comes back to reign on this earth, because as Jesus has taught us, there will be wars and rumors of wars until he returns. Good men have begun good things, but in time they always fall into the hands of bleeding hearts, that ruin what the good men have begun. Righteousness can only be produce by the Holy Spirit, and any time men try by their own works to do well, it is always the effort of the flesh, and the flesh is in continual warfare with the Spirit. We see this happening in some of the best Seminaries. Fuller Seminary, Dallas Seminary, Grace Seminary, Princeton, Oxford and many others have met with the same ruin, that is, they were begun by well meaning Christian men, but in time, they fell into the hands of the liberals, who turned them into institutions more concerned with psychology than Theology; they substituted Bible Doctrine with human reasoning.
Visiting Martha and Mary
Verse 38, "Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house."
LGT "And it came to pass as they proceeded, He entered into a certain village: and a certain woman, named Martha, received Him."
"Martha received Him kindly and hospitably. From this it would seem that Martha was properly the mistress of the house. Possibly she was a widow, and her brother Lazarus and younger sister Mary lived with her; and as she had the care of the household, this will also show why she was so diligently employed about domestic affairs" (Albert Barnes).
Verse 39, "And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his words."
LGT "And she had a sister called Mary, [who] also, having sat down at the feet of the Lord, kept listening to His words."
"At the feet of the Lord was the ancient posture of disciples or learners. They sat at the feet of their teachers - that is, beneath them, in a humble place. Hence Paul is represented as having been brought up at the feet of Gamaliel, Acts 22:3. When it is said that Mary sat at Jesus' feet, it means that she was a disciple of His; that she listened attentively to His instructions, and was anxious to learn His doctrine" (Albert Barnes).
Verse 40, "But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me serve alone? Bid her therefore that she help me."
LGT "But Martha preoccupied about much serving: And coming up she said, Lord, is it no concern to Thee that my sister left me alone to serve? Speak therefore to her in order that she may help me."
Martha bursts in on Jesus and chides Him for preoccupying Mary at her detriment; she indirectly scolds both Jesus and Mary for leaving her all alone to serve. The fact that she asks Jesus to speak with Mary shows that she felt He was partly to blame for her having to do all the serving. Martha was preoccupied with serving and not occupied enough with the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Verse 41, "And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:"
LGT "But answering the Lord said to her, Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things:"
Jesus gently reproves Martha for her anxiety; He tells her very gently that she need not make such a fuss in the kitchen, but rather she should, like Mary, occupy herself with His words.
Verse 42, "But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her."
LGT "But of one there is need: for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken [from] her."
This last verse is a beautiful picture of Jesus teaching them about fellowshipping with Him. Mary and Martha were both saved, so our Lord was teaching them the importance of fellowship; He says the best part is fellowshipping in His words. There is no fellowship with the Lord outside of His Word. Salvation is the beginning of our fellowship with the Lord, and it will continue throughout all eternity, forever and ever, which shall never be taken away.
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