Introductory remarks:
This chapter begins where the last chapter left off with the women coming to anoint the body of Jesus with spices. This is the last chapter in the Gospel according to Luke. This chapter may be outlined as follows: the Resurrection of Jesus vv. 1-12; the walk to Emmaus vv. 13-35; the appearance to the disciples vv. 36-49; the ascension of Jesus vv. 50-53.
The Resurrection of Jesus
(Matt. 28:1-10; Mark 16:1-8; John 20:1-10)
Verse 1, "Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulcher, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them."
LGT "And on the Sabbath they remained quiet, according to the commandment. But on the first [day] of the week at early dawn, they came to the tomb, bringing aromatics which they had prepared."
There is no chapter break from 23-24, so after the women had observed the Sabbath, they rose up early in the morning to go to the tomb and anoint Jesus' body with these aromatic spices. The last clause of verse 56 of chapter 23 is the first sentence of verse 1 of chapter 24.
Verse 2, "And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulcher."
LGT "And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb,"
The women arrived at the tomb and found the huge stone already rolled away; even though Luke does not mention the stone previously, the other Gospel writers do mention it, and the women were perplexed before they arrived at how they might remove it.
Verse 3, "And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus."
LGT "And having entered they found not the body of the Lord Jesus."
They entered in without fear, and saw that the tomb was empty, except for the grave cloths.
Verse 4, "And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments:"
LGT "And it came to pass, while they were perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel."
The Greek verb for "stood by" is epestesen meaning to burst upon them suddenly; two angels came upon them in their angelic apparel.
Verses 5, 6, "And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake to you when he was yet in Galilee,"
LGT "And they becoming filled with fear, and bowing the face to the earth, they said to them, Why seek ye the living One with the dead ones? He is not here, but is risen. Remember how He spoke to you in Galilee,"
In the suddenness of not finding Jesus' body in the tomb, the women had forgotten, or misunderstood Jesus' prediction about His rising from the dead (See 9:22; 18:32,33). The women bowed their faces to the ground before the angels. These angels remind them of the fact of the resurrection. Why do you seek the living One with the dead ones? He is not here, but risen.
Verse 7, "Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again."
LGT "Saying, It is necessary that the Son of Man be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and to be crucified, and the third day to rise."
The angels refresh their memories about His prediction that He would be crucified and rise again on the third day.
Verse 8, "And they remembered his words."
LGT "And they remembered His words."
It took a little prodding from the angels but they did remember His predictions regarding His own death and resurrection.
Verse 9, "And returned from the sepulcher, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest."
LGT "And having returned from the tomb, they reported all these things back to the eleven and to all the rest."
The women went directly to the eleven apostles and reported what had taken place at the tomb; and then they went and told it to the rest of the faithful ones.
Verse 10, "It was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles."
LGT "Now it was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary [the mother] of James, and the rest of them with them. They told these things to the apostles."
Luke names these women for the first time for the reason that they were the ones who had directly informed the apostles.
Verse 11, "And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not."
LGT "And their words appeared to them as idle talk, and they disbelieved them."
The apostles had not yet learned the doctrine of the oneness of the body of Christ, that there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek, slave and master, male or female; this is one of Paul's main doctrines in Galatians and Ephesians that we are all one in Christ. The apostles had been taught by the religious leaders of that time that women were on the level of a slave; it would take Paul, in his letters to the churches, to put this heresy down. It is completely ridiculous that they did not believe these Christian women.
Verse 12, "Then arose Peter, and ran into the sepulcher; and stooping down, he beheld the linen clothes laid by themselves, and departed, wondering in himself at that which was come to pass."
LGT "But Peter, having risen up, ran to the tomb, and having stooped down he sees the linen clothes [lying] alone, and he went away wondering to himself at that which had come to pass."
Peter, stooping down and seeing the graves clothes without a body made him wonder in amazement at what had happened; it would take some time for all the apostles to accept what Jesus had taught them concerning His Person.
The Walk to Emmaus
(Mark 16:12-23)
Verses 13, 14, And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about three score furlongs, and they talked together of all these things which had happened."
LGT "And, behold, two of them on the same day were going into a village being distant from Jerusalem about sixty furlongs, whose name was Emmaus, and they were conversing with one another concerning all these things which had taken place."
Emmaus is about seven miles from Jerusalem. It is uncertain who these two disciples were except for one who, according to verse 18 was Cleopas; I searched the name and could not come up with anything definitive, and who the other disciple was is not known. It is supposed they were two Greeks that had come to Jerusalem for the Passover Feast.
Verse 15, 'And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them."
LGT "And it came to pass as they conversed and questioned one another, that Jesus Himself, having drawn near, went with them."
The word "communed" is actually the word "reasoned:" it is taken from the Greek word homileo, meaning, in company with. We get our word "homiletics" from this word; the style of preaching in the early church was that of reasoning together over doctrine, that is, discussing together the divine viewpoint, which I refer to as grace logic. Today the preacher stands up in front, standing in front of a group dictating to the people; actually not much difference from the Catholic Church and the Priesthood, stating to the congregation that they cannot learn Bible Doctrine without their help.
Jesus came and walked some distance with them before they realized He was walking with them.
Verse 16, "But their eyes were holden that they should not know him."
LGT "But the eyes of them were held [so as] not to know Him."
This is not a supernatural phenomenon that their eyes were kept in check so they were not able to recognize him. I believe that sin had marred Christ so bad that He was unrecognizable.
Verse 17, "And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad?"
LGT "And He said to them, What words [are] these which you exchange with one another as you walk? And they stood still, looking sad."
As the two disciples walked, the Stranger from Galilee interrupted them; they had been exchanging words with one another about the death of their Messiah; the disappointment was obvious of losing all hope in their King setting up His kingdom. As Jesus interrupts them, they stop and stand still, looking very sad.
Verse 18, "And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days?"
LGT "And answering, one by name Cleopas, said to Him, Do You sojourn alone in Jerusalem and have not known the things which are come to pass in these days?"
Cleopas raises the question to Jesus, asking Him if He had been all alone in Jerusalem, that is, hidden from all that happened, with the death of Christ on the cross; certainly everybody was aware of these events. He asks Christ if He had been so isolated from events that He did not know all that had taken place in the last few days. There were many strangers in Jerusalem during Passover week, and he was surprised that there might be one who did not know what had happened.
Verse 19, "And he said unto them, What things? And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people."
LGT "And He said to them, What things? And they said to Him, The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a man, a prophet, mighty in deed and word before God and all the people."
The fact that they said He was a prophet was proof that they had not yet believed He was resurrected. "Jesus was high in their estimation, but not the Highest" (TEGT). They regarded Him as a wonderful teacher sent from God, but they did not recognize Him as their Messiah because they put Him to death.
Verse 20, "And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him."
LGT "And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him up to judgment of death, and they crucified Him."
Luke regarded the crimes done against the Lord as from the Jewish people. These two disciples witnessed the death of Christ.
Verse 21, "But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to-day is the third day since these things were done."
LGT "But we were hoping that it is He that it is who is about to redeem Israel: but then, with all these things, to-day brings the third day since these things came to pass."
Here we are on the third day and we are still without hope. For all these things that have happened to Him, we had hoped that He would redeem us, but now it is the third day and we remain without hope.
Barnes notes:
"It is to be observed that Cleopas states things just as they occurred to his own mind. There is little connection. His mind is confused and distracted. There were so many things that were remarkable in Jesus; there was so much evidence that He was the Messiah; their hopes had been so suddenly dashed by His death, and the succeeding events had been so wonderful, that his mind was confused, and he knew not what to think. The things, which he now stated, served to increase his perplexity. The expressions here are perfectly natural. They bespeak an agitated mind. Jesus had foretold them that He would rise on the third day. This they did not understand; but it is not improbable that they looked to this day expecting something wonderful, and that the visit to the sepulcher had called it to their recollection, and they were more and more amazed when they put all these things together. As if they had said, 'The third day is come, and we have not seen Him. Yet we begin to remember His promise - the angels have informed us that He is alive - but we do not know how to put these things together, or what to make of them.'"
Verses 22, 23, "Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulcher; and when they found not his body, they came, saying, that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said that he was alive."
LGT "But certain women also from among us amazed us, having been early ones at the tomb, and not having found His body came, declaring also to have seen a vision of angels, who say He is living."
Cleopas goes back to when the women came and reported what had happened to them that early morning when they had gone to the tomb to anoint Jesus' body with aromatics and spices and found the tomb empty, and that they spoke with angels who had told them that Jesus lives; of course even now they aren't completely convinced of the resurrection.
Verse 24, "And certain of them which were with us went to the sepulcher, and found it even so as the women had said: but him they saw not."
LGT "And some of those with us went to the tomb and found [it] just as also the women had said, and they saw Him not."
The two apostles that went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, was Peter and John. These two disciples were not sure what had happened to the body, but they did believe the reports that it was gone.
Verse 25, "Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken."
LGT "And He said to them, O senseless and slow of heart to believe in all which the prophets spoke."
The word "fools" in Greek is anoetoi meaning without sense, or senseless ones. Our Lord would never have called His disciples fools in this particular case. He tells them that what they had read from the prophets should have been enough to convince them that He had risen. This is a case of the disciples only believing part of what the prophets had written. Jesus puts a premium on the Word of God, and tells them that they are without any sense if they do not believe in all that the prophets had written, as they were inspired by God. If a man does not believe that the Bible is the inherent Word of God, there is absolutely no use to continue the conversation.
Verses 26, 27, "Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself."
LGT "Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things, and to enter into His glory? And beginning from Moses and from all the prophets He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself."
Jesus went from passage to passage interpreting to them each Scripture that was concerning His death burial and resurrection, showing them how simple it would have been to believe if they only had the knowledge of the Word of God; there is no substitute for Bible study. What a wonderful experience this is for Christ to teach the Word of God; the Author of the Word teaching; there is no greater authority; and as I have said many times, you cannot separate the Word of Truth from the Truth Himself. There are two things required to believe the Word of God 1(the Word of God itself, and 2) faith to believe it. The Word of God is not believed by natural means; if we desire to believe His Word the Holy Spirit will open our understanding. "Natural phenomenon must be understood to be believed; the Word of God must be believed to be understood."
Verses 28, 29, "And they drew nigh unto the village, wither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further." But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them."
LGT "And they drew near to the village where they were going, and He appeared to be going farther. And they constrained Him saying, Abide with us, because it is toward evening, and the day has already declined. And He entered in to abide with them."
It is not as if Jesus just pretended to go on, it was His full intention to go further, except for the disciples constraining Him to remain with them that evening. They were spellbound by hearing Jesus teach them the Scriptures they insisted He remain in their house with them; they had not yet believed He was the Christ, but they were thrilled with His message.
Verses 30, 31, "And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew Him: and he vanished out of their sight."
LGT "And it came to pass, as He reclined [at table] with them, having taken the bread He blessed, and having broken, He gave [it] to them, and their eyes were opened and they knew Him: and He disappeared from them."
As soon as He broke the bread and gave it to them they recognized that He was the Christ; and He disappeared from their midst invisibly. He left them without excusing himself. Remember He said that as often as they broke bread and drank the cup they were to do it in remembrance of Him! Well, they remembered Him. This was an ordinary supper, but it did bring back who He was. They did not have the New Testament yet, so the Lord's Supper will have special significance to them until they have the Bible.
Verse 32, "And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?"
LGT "And they said to one another, Was not our heart burning [in us] as He was speaking to us in the way, as He was opening to us the Scriptures?"
The two disciples of the effect the scriptures had on them wonderfully describe this; it is as we learn new truths that we cry out "Eureka"! I have found it! Their hearts kept on burning from the truths they had learned.
Verses 33, 34, "And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and them that were with them, saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon."
LGT "And rising up the same hour, they returned to Jerusalem, and they found gathered together the eleven and those with them, saying, the Lord is risen indeed, and appeared to Simon."
While their hearts were still burning in them, they ran back, that same hour, to spread the news to the apostles what they had witnessed. "The Lord Jesus Christ appeared to Simon Peter privately because there was something that needed to be straightened out. Remember that Peter had denied Him. The restoration to fellowship was a personal and private transaction between Peter and the Lord" (McGee).
Verse 35, "And they told what things were done in the way, and how he was known of them in breaking of bread."
LGT "And they rehearsed [went over] the things in the way, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread."
The Greek word for "rehearsed" is exegounto from which we get our word "exegesis." The Lord had expounded the Word of the Prophets to them; if exposition is Good enough for the Author of Scripture, it is good enough for me. As was noted above, the breaking of bread was the act that finally convinced the two that it truly was the Messiah.
The Appearance to the Disciples
(Matt. 28:16-20; Mark 16:14-18; John 20:19-23; Acts 1:6-8)
Verses 36, 37, "And as they spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed they had seen a spirit."
LGT "And as they were telling these things, He Himself stood in their midst and says to them, Peace to you. But they terrified and filled with fear, being they thought they beheld a spirit."
Jesus appeared as suddenly as He had departed the two disciples. In John 20:19 we read that the apostles were gathered together in secret with closed doors hiding for fear of the Jews. Jesus calmed their fears with Peace to you as the same as He left them when He departed to the cross, My peace I leave with you as one of their future gifts.
Verse 38, "And He said unto them, Why are ye troubled? And why do thoughts arise in your hearts?"
LGT "And He said to them, Why are ye troubled, and wherefore do reasonings come up in your hearts?"
Even after what they had read in the prophets, and even after what Jesus had taught them personally about His resurrection, they still were not convinced it was He Himself.
Verse 39, "Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see, for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have."
LGT "See My hands and My feet, that I am He: handle Me and see, because a spirit has not bones, as ye see Me having."
John gives this as proof of His apostleship in 1 John 1:1 having handled the Lord Jesus Christ, being a witness of His resurrection. The Lord wants them to see for themselves that it is He Himself in the flesh. "At least this proves that He is not just a ghost and that Jesus had a real human body against the Docetic Gnostics who denied it" (Robertson).
Verses 40-43, "And when he had thus spoken, he showed them his hands and his feet. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat? And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And he took it, and did eat before them."
LGT "And having said this, He showed to them [His] hands and feet. But yet while they were disbelieving for joy and were wondering, He said to them, Have you anything to eat here? And they gave to Him part of a fish broiled: and having taken [it] He ate before them."
The fact that they were disbelieving for joy is, to put it in common everyday phraseology, 'It's to good to be true." Jesus then asks them for something to eat, not that He was hungry, but to show them that it was He Himself in the flesh, not just an apparition; and He did eat it before them.
Verse 44, "And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me."
LGT "And He said to them, These [are] My words which I spoke to you, yet being with you, because it is necessary all things must be fulfilled, that have been written [and stand written] in the Law of Moses, and prophets, and Psalms, concerning Me."
Christ is here referring to His death, burial, and resurrection, which were predicted in the OT prophets and the Psalms. He is saying that His resurrection is the fulfillment of all that had been written concerning Him.
Verse 45, "Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures."
LGT "Then He opened their understanding to understand the Scriptures:"
Only the Spirit of God is able to open our understanding of the Scriptures, and it was the same with this group of Apostles. "Jesus had all these years been trying to open their minds that they might understand the Scriptures about the Messiah and now at last He makes one more effort in the light of the Cross and the Resurrection. They can now see better the will and way of God, but they will still need the power of the Holy Spirit before they will fully know the mind of Christ" (Robertson).
Verses 46, 47, "And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem."
LGT "And said to them that, Thus it has been written [and stands written], the Christ [must] suffer and to rise from among the dead the third day, and should be proclaimed in His name, repentance and remission of sin to all nations. Beginning at Jerusalem. "
"The gist of prophecy is: the suffering and resurrection of the Christ, and the preaching in the name of the Risen One, to all nations, of repentance unto the remission of sins" (TEGT). Before the cross the disciples were only to go to the House of Israel, and they were forbidden to go into the way of the Gentiles; now that Christ had completed his mission on the cross, He commands the apostles to go into every nation, beginning at Jerusalem; the message also is different; before the cross they were to preach the Gospel of the coming Kingdom; they are to preach the Gospel of Grace.
Verse 48. "And ye are witnesses of these things."
LGT "You are witnesses of these things."
The word "witnesses" I believe refers to the apostles and the resurrection. One of the chief ways the people could recognize a true apostle from a false apostle was that the true apostle was a witness of the resurrection. Here Christ gives these eleven a vote of confidence as true apostles; Paul, remember was taken up into the third heaven where he met Christ personally, and thus qualifying him as the Great Apostle to the Gentiles.
Verse 49, "And behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high."
LGT "And behold, I send the promise of My Father upon you: But ye remain in the city until you are clothed with power from on high."
This verse is referring to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost; this outpouring must be distinguished from the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. At conversion, that is, the moment any one accepts Christ as personal Savior, he or she is immediately baptized, that is, indwelt with the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit immediately places us in union with the Lord Jesus Christ; therefore, our position now is hid with Christ in God. At Pentecost the apostles were overcome by the Holy Spirit being poured out upon them, giving them supernatural gifts, to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature, and as Paul says in his letter to the Romans, this was accomplished in the very first century. I do not believe the Lord ever sent out missionaries, for that is exactly what the apostles were, without empowering them first; now if you happen to be one who believes that the supernatural gifts are for the Church to-day, then be my guest, go into all the world and preach. I personally believe that we are all high priests, and that we have access into the very presence of God, without having a mediator to make arrangements for us; Christ is our only Mediator, and He is now at the right hand of God in His session, interceding on our behalf. I personally believe that the Word of God is the only supernatural gift we need today to be a witness for Him; we are to set Him apart in our hearts and be ready to respond with the Truth to anyone who may inquire of us the Truth. And by the way, our mission as believers is not to save the lost, for that is still Christ's mission; our mission is to sow the Seed, that is, the Word of God and He will take care of all the results.
The Ascension of Jesus
(Matt. 16:19-20; Acts 1:9-11)
Verse 50, "And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them."
LGT "And He led them [out] as far as Bethany, and having lifted up His hands He blessed them."
He led them out to Olivet, where He delivered His Great Discourse to them; from Olivet they could view Jerusalem as well as Bethany. Bethany lay on the Eastern slope of Olivet, about a mile beyond the summit.
Verse 51, "And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven."
LGT "And it came to pass, as He was blessing them, He was separated from them, and was carried into the heaven."
Jesus' final act on earth was to bless His apostles; He will come back the second time in judgment, to judge the nations and to set up his earthly Millennial reign.
"While He commanded His benediction to rest upon them; while He assured them of His favor, and commended them to the protection and guidance of God, in the dangers, trials, and conflicts which they were to meet in a sinful and miserable world" (Barnes).
Verses 52, 53, "And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy: and were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen."
LGT "And they, having worshipped him, returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple praising God."
Luke ends His gospel account with the apostles going to the Temple every day to praise God. "Now the ascension has come, they are no longer in despair. Joy becomes the note of victory as it is today. No other note can win victories for Christ. The bells rang in heaven to greet the return of Jesus there, but He set the carillon [bells] of joy to ringing on earth in human hearts in all lands and for all time" (Robertson).
It has been a wonderful study for me to make these expositions on the Gospels. I have finished up with the Gospel of Luke and now I am going to begin my studies in the Acts of the Apostles by this same author Luke. I hope you all will benefit from my research; and God will bless you as you continue to study.
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