Introductory remarks:
Jesus begins His ministry in Nazareth where He was rejected. "Nazareth was situated in a basin in the south side of a hill 1150 ft. above sea level. From the top of the hill, ten minutes climb, a view unrivalled in Galilee. To the north a beautiful panorama of fertile hills and valleys dotted with prosperous cities, snow-capped Hermon in the distance. Nearby, 3 miles distant, was Geth-helper, the ancient home of Jonah. To the south the Plain of Esdraelon extending from the Jordan to the Mediterranean, the principal scene of Israel's age-old struggle for existence. Ten miles to the west of Nazareth, in full view, Mt Carmel, where Elijah, in his contest with Baal, had called down fire from heaven. To the S W, about the same distance, the pass of Armageddon, famous battlefield of the nations, which suggested to Jesus the name of the great final battle of the ages in which He Himself will lead His own to victory. To the S from Nazareth, only eight miles, Shunem, where Elisha raised the Shunammite's son to life. Nearby the spring of Herod, where Gideon with his 300 had put the Midianites to route. And Jezreel, where the infamous Jezebel had met her unhappy fate. And Mt Gilboa, where King Saul was slain by the Philistines. And Endor, where the witch had called back Samuel's spirit. The river Kishon, where Deborah and Barak subdued the Canaanites. All this in full view from the top of the hill of Nazareth. What a center of historic associations. We can imagine that Jesus often climbed the hill, and meditated deeply on history that had been made to bring Him into the world.
Aramaic was the common language of the people. This was the language Jesus used. He was instructed in Hebrew, the language of the O.T. Scriptures. He must have known Greek, for it was the language of a large part of the population, and the universal language of the time. Jesus was familiar with both the Hebrew and Septuagint O.T. His own language is superb" (Halley's Bible Handbook pp. 452-453)
This chapter may be outlined as follows: the temptation of Jesus vv. 1-12; the beginning of the Galilean ministry vv. 14,15; the rejection of Jesus at Nazareth vv. 16-30; the man with an unclean spirit vv. 31-37; the healing of many people vv. 38-41; a preaching tour vv. 42-44.
The Temptation of Jesus
(Matt. 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13)
Verse 1, "And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,"
LGT "And Jesus full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness."
At His baptism, Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit, and now is led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan. The forces of evil over the forces of righteousness will prepare Christ for His Messianic reign. Only the synoptic Gospels present the wilderness testing because John stresses Christ's deity and the synoptic writers stress Christ's humanity. As we study Luke's account of the temptation of the Lord, we will see that Christ won a victory for us all in His meeting our foe head on, and winning this victory, that not only prepared Him for His earthly ministry, where He was completely dependant on the Holy Spirit, but it also prepared Him for the cross, where He will win the final victory for all mankind; inevitably He is prepared for His Messianic reign at the end of the seven year Tribulation.
Pentecost notes:
"Since Christ was under the full control of the Spirit, and since the purpose of the temptation was to demonstrate His sinlessness and thus prove His moral right to be Savior-Sovereign, we must recognize that Jesus was the aggressor in the temptation. He forced Satan to put Him to the test so that His true character might be revealed. (That explains why He spent forty days in the desert before the temptation began. Satan sought to escape the confrontation.) Had there been a longer delay, it would have been a concession that Jesus was the sinless One."
Verse 2, "Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered."
LGT "Forty days being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and being ended He hungered."
The forty days being the duration of His stay in the wilderness, and not the duration, as McGee thought, of His temptation. It is quite clear from Matthew's account that it was at the end of the forty days. It is always preferable to compare the Gospel accounts to receive the entire story. Concerning the forty days, Farrar says:
"The number occurs again and again in Scripture, and always in connection with the facts of temptation or retribution. It is clearly a sacred and representative number, and independently of other associations, it was for forty days that Moses had stayed on Sinai, and Elijah in the wilderness."
Verse 3, "And the devil said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread."
LGT "And the devil said to Him, If You are the Son of God, speak to this stone, in order that it become a loaf."
The "if" here in this verse is a condition of the first class, so it may be rendered since You are the Son of God; The devil assumes rightly that He is the Son of God. Satan does not ask Christ to do a sinful act, as it were, but simply to stray from His righteous purpose in obeying the will of God. Satan uses his first of the threefold basis of appeal to tempt Christ, the lust of the flesh.
Verse 4, "And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God."
LGT "And Jesus answered to him, It has been written [and stands written], That not on bread alone shall man live."
Jesus answers Satan's first temptation, the lust of the flesh, with this, That man shall not live by bread alone, literally, on bread alone, suggesting dependency. The KJV adds the rest of His quote from Deut. 8:3, But by every Word of God. Jesus was telling Satan that He would not take one bite of natural food out of the will of God. Satan was not asking Jesus to break a commandment, simply to do something against the will of God, which would have been a gross sin to Christ, and the Supreme Purpose of God.
Verse 5, "And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, showed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time."
LGT "And leading Him up, he showed Him all the kingdoms of the habitable world in a moment of time."
The next temptation, the lust of the flesh, by a panorama, showing Jesus all the kingdoms of this world, in a moment of time. The order of the temptation is unimportant.
Verse 6, "And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it."
LGT "And the devil said to Him, To Thee I will give all this authority and their glory, because to me it has been delivered, and to whomsoever I will, I give it."
This is a legitimate claim for Satan to make, for he is the prince of the power of the air, and at this time he has authority to go about as he pleases; however at the end of the Tribulation, Christ will return and destroy the world powers that have followed Satan, and He will wrest the scepter from Satan's hand and chain him and cast him in the abyss, and then Christ will rule the world for one thousand years with the scepter of perfect justice.
Verse 7, "If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine."
LGT "If Thou therefore will worship before me, all things shall be Yours."
Here in this verse Satan gives Jesus the condition whereby He could become the world ruler; all Christ had to do was to bow the knee once to Satan, and admit that he was the rightful ruler of this cosmos, and he would crown Christ its ruler; however Christ would then forfeit by deceit, what was His by God's will, and He is now biding His time for the big takeover.
Verse 8, "And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get the behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve."
LGT "And answering, Jesus said to him, It has been written [and stands written]
Thou shall worship [the] Lord God
And him only shall thou serve."
Jesus quotes Deut. 6:13; Luke does not record the phrase Get thee behind Me Satan, for Satan has one more temptation to offer Jesus. This temptation was designed to get Christ to either serve God or Satan. These temptations were designed ultimately to demonstrate that we serve a sinless savior.
Verse 9, "And he brought him to Jerusalem, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down from hence:"
LGT "And he led Him to Jerusalem, and set Him upon the edge of the temple, and said to Him, If thou art the Son of God, cast Yourself down from here:"
Satan makes the statement acknowledging Christ as God's Son, for it would be better translated, Since You are the Son of God, cast Yourself down from here. Here Satan makes his final tempting of the Lord, the pride of life.
Pentecost writes:
"Satan's implication was that Jesus, as a Son, had a right to put His Father to a test. The one who puts another to a test is putting himself in a superior position. For Christ to put God to a test would be for Him to abandon His dependence on God. You test another because you do not have confidence in him. If you have full confidence, no test is necessary. Any promise of the Word of God is to be claiming the promise is in the will of God. If one steps outside the will of God, he cannot expect that God will then fulfill what He has promised. For Christ to act in obedience to Satan would remove Him from the protection of this promise of God."
Verses 10, 11, "For it is written, He shall give his angels charge over thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone."
LGT "For it has been written [and stands written] that
To His angels He will give charge concerning You,
To guard You: and that in [their] hands they shall bear You up, lest You strike Your foot against a stone."
Satan misquotes Psalm 91:11,12: For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. God sent Christ with His purpose, and Christ was guarded in all His ways in order to perform God's will, and save mankind.
Verse 12, "And Jesus answering said unto him, It is said, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God."
LGT "And Jesus answering said to him, It has been said, Thou shall not tempt [the] Lord thy God."
Of course Jesus does not misquote Deut 6:16. Jesus is quoting from the Septuagint [the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament]. Jesus makes the point that tempting His Father is not trusting His Father.
Verse 13, "And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from him for a season."
LGT "And having completed every temptation, the devil departed from Him for a time."
The devil exhausted his repertoire of temptations; all temptation is found under these three-fold basis of appeal devised by the father of lies; the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. The devil departed from Jesus for the time being, but will hound Him throughout His ministry trying to thwart Jesus from the culmination of the cross, where Christ will bruise Satan's head, Genesis 3:15.
The Beginning of the Galilean Ministry
(Matt. 4:12-17; Mark 1:14-15)
Verse 14, "And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him throughout all the region round about."
LGT "And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and a rumor went out into the whole country around concerning Him."
Jesus' ministry was marked by this phrase, the power of the Spirit; Christ had just finished with Satan and was empowered with the Spirit, not weakened by Satan. The Greek word for "power" is dunamis from which we get our English word "dynamite." Jesus' popularity began with the ministry of John the Baptist and was spread by Himself, especially in the synagogues.
McGee notes:
"After the temptation the Lord comes forth in the power of the Holy Spirit. Temptation will do one of two things for an individual: it will either strengthen or weaken him. It is like the army, which will make or break you. Whether this is actually true of the army, I do not know. This I do know, however, that suffering and testing will either sweeten or sour you, soften or harden you. There is an old familiar illustration, which says that the same sun will melt the wax but harden the clay. It is the character of, or the condition of, the element and not the sun that melts the wax and hardens the clay. God is not going to harden you. He did not harden Pharaoh's heart. Pharaoh already possessed a hard heart, and God only brought that fact out into the open. Our Lord identified Himself with mankind. Scripture confirms this fact: Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people" (Heb. 2:17). The Lord Jesus Christ became a man and so after His ordeal He needed the strengthening of the Holy Spirit. And if our Lord needed the strengthening of the Holy Spirit after His testing, how much more do we need Him!"
Verse 15, "And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all."
LGT "And He Himself taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all."
The people listened very attentively to Jesus as He taught, and they glorified Him, and admired His wisdom, before the Pharisees began to feel threatened by His popularity, and they learned to criticize and malign Him.
The Rejection of Jesus at Nazareth
(Matt. 13:53-58; Mark 6:1-6)
Verse 16, "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."
LGT "And He came into Nazareth, where He was brought up, and He entered according to His custom, on the day of the Sabbaths, into the synagogue, and stood up to read."
Jesus returned to Nazareth after a year of His public ministry; according to His custom refers to His going to the synagogue from His childhood onward. And stood up to read after He was summoned by the superintendent of the synagogue.
Edersheim notes about this occasion:
"Sabbath morn dawned, and early He repaired to that Synagogue where, as a Child, a Youth, a Man, He had so often worshipped in the humble retirement of His rank, sitting, not up there among the elders and the honored, but far back. The old well-known faces were around Him, the old well-remembered words and services fell on His ear. How different they had always been to Him than to them, with whom He had thus mingled in common worship! And now He was again among them, truly a stranger among His own countrymen; this time, to be looked at, listened to, tested, tried, used or cast aside, as the case may be. It was the first time, so far as we know, that He taught in a Synagogue, and this Synagogue that of His own Nazareth."
Verse 17, "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,"
LGT "And there was given to Him [the] Book of Isaiah the prophet, and having unrolled the Book He found the place where it was written,"
"At the proper stage of the service The attendant or minister or beadle took out a roll of the law from the Ark, unwrapped it, and gave it to some one to read. On Sabbath days some seven persons were asked to read small portions of the law. This was the first lesson or Parasha. This was followed by a reading from the prophets and a discourse, the second lesson or Haphtarah. This last is what Jesus did. The book of the prophet Isaiah lit. A roll of the prophet Isaiah. Apparently Isaiah was handed to Jesus without His asking for it. But certainly Jesus cared more for the prophets than for the ceremonial law. It was a congenial service that he was asked to perform. Jesus used Deuteronomy in His temptations and now Isaiah for His sermon. The Syriac Sinaitic manuscript has it that Jesus stood up after the attendant Handed Him the roll, really it was unrolled. He continued to unroll (rolling up the other side) till He found the passage desired. It may have been a fixed lesson for the day or it may have been His own choosing. At any rate it was a marvelously appropriate passage (Isaiah 1 and 2 with one clause omitted and some words from 58:6). It is a free quotation from the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures)" (Robertson).
Verses 18, 19, "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 broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord."
LGT "[The Spirit of [the] Lord [is] upon me, on account of which He anointed me to announce the glad tidings to [the] poor, He has sent me to proclaim deliverance to captives, and recovery of sight to [the] blind, to send forth [the] crushed in deliverance, to proclaim [the] acceptable year of [the] Lord."
In these two verses Isaiah is picturing the Jubilee Year of the Lord and the release of captives from the Babylonian captivity, with a view of the Messianic Kingdom. Jesus applies these words of Isaiah to Himself; The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me. Here we have a reference to His baptism. To announce glad tidings to the poor refers to those that the Pharisees and Sadducees hated. The poor are those who were destitute of this world's goods, but knew they had a need of a Savior. Barnes notes that "the poor are the ones who seek treasures in heaven." Christ sought to give comfort to the poor. To heal the broken hearted is not in the best text, however, Christ does have healing for the ones who are overcome with grief. Deliverance to the captives refers to those who have been released from Babylonian captivity. Sight to the blind, Christ literally fulfilled this many times over. To set at liberty them that are bruised refers not only to those who are overcome with the weight of this world's pressures, but also to those who are overcome with the guilt of sin. To preach the acceptable year of the Lord refers to "The time when God is willing to accept of men, or to receive sinners coming to Him. The gospel assures us that the guilty may return, and that God will graciously receive them. There is perhaps, here, an allusion to the year of jubilee - the fiftieth year, when the trumpet was blown, and through the whole land proclamation was made of the liberty of Hebrew slaves, of the remission of debts, and of the restoration of possessions to their original families, Lev. 25:8-13. The phrase acceptable year means the time when it would be acceptable to God to proclaim such a message, or agreeable to Him - to wit, under the Gospel" (Barnes).
Verse 20, "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."
LGT "And having rolled up the book, having delivered [it] to the attendant He sat down: and all the eyes of those in the Synagogue were fixed upon Him."
Jesus rolled the scroll up and returned it to the attendant that was in charge of the scroll, who then put it away in its case. He sat down and began to teach, and all the eyes of those in the Synagogue were fixed upon Him in expectation of the coming message.
Verse 21, "And he began to say unto them, This day is the scripture fulfilled in your ears."
LGT "And He began to say to them, Today is fulfilled this Scripture in your ears."
"The moment of expectation was now passed, and Christ now begins to speak. Jesus says that Isaiah 61:1,2 stands fulfilled in your ears. "It was a most amazing statement and the people of Nazareth were quick to see the Messianic claim involved. Jesus could only mean that the real year of Jubilee had come, that the Messianic prophecy of Isaiah had come true today, and that in Him they saw the Messiah of prophecy" (Robertson).
Verse 22, "And all bare witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, Is not this Joseph's son?"
LGT "And all bore witness to Him, and wondered at the words of grace, the ones which proceeded out of His mouth; and they said, Is not this the son of Joseph?"
"And all bare witness,"
They began to witness to the fact that what they had heard about this Jesus is true.
"And wondered at the gracious words that proceeded out of his mouth."
This phrase is literally, at the words of grace. Here we have the people beginning to wonder at the first words about grace; they had been so long under the Law, that now Christ is beginning to introduce them to grace; this is the introduction to the age of grace. After Christ died on the cross, the apostle Paul takes this wonderful theme of grace, and teaches the Church its true meaning. The people were so used to the harsh unforgiving words of the Pharisees and Sadducees that now they were filled with awe at these words of grace.
"And they said, Is not this Joseph's son."
How could such words come from anyone but the expected Messiah, certainly not from the carpenter's son?
Verse 23, "And he said unto them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself: whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy country."
LGT "And He said to them, Indeed you will say to Me this parable, Physician, heal Yourself: whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your [own] country."
These first words of Jesus in this verse are prophetic, for the people will say the same thing as He hangs on the cross (Matt. 27:40,42). "The point of the parable seems to be that the people were expecting Him to make good His claim to the Messiaship by doing here in Nazareth what they had heard of His doing in Capernaum and elsewhere" (Robertson). "This raised the question of Christ's eligibility to be the Messiah. They knew He was counted to be Joseph's son. How could a son of Joseph of Nazareth be the royal heir? Christ realized their reluctance to accept His word. He knew that in their minds they were asking for a proof of His claim to be the Messiah. Christ said they would speak a proverb that asks the One who claims to have power to heal as a physician to demonstrate that power by healing. They heard of the miraculous healing of the son of the royal official from Capernaum. They were asking Him to perform similar miracles in their presence so that they might accept His word concerning His person" (Pentecost).
Verse 24, "And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country."
LGT "But He said, Verily I say to you, that no prophet is acceptable in his [own] country."
Jesus refused to display His deity by performing miracles in Nazareth because He says that familiarity breeds contempt; this is often true today when someone whom we know so well speaks of the things of God, we often reject his words because we know that person's bad side, as well as possibly his good side; however with Christ, He had no bad side, but they simply would not accept His words that might condemn them. Remember Satan also wanted Christ to display His power by "floating down from the pinnacle of the temple." The Jews persecuted the prophets, because God sent them with a message of doom if they did not turn to Him.
Verses 25, 26, "But I tell you a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; but unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow."
LGT "But in truth I say to you, many widows were in the days of Elias in Israel, the heaven was shut up for three years and six months, when there came a great famine upon all the land, and Elias was sent to none of them, except to Sarepta of Sidonia, to a widow a woman."
In 1 Kings 18:1 the rain is said to have come in the third year, but the famine probably lasted still longer (Robertson).
Barnes notes:
"He calls attention to two cases where acknowledged prophets had so little honor in their own nation that they bestowed their favors on foreigners. So, says He, such is the want of faith in my own country, that I shall work no miracles here, but shall give the evidence of my divine mission to others. In Israel, in the land of Israel, or Judea. It was therefore the more remarkable, since there were so many in His own country whom He might have helped, that the prophet should have gone to a heathen city and aided a poor widow there. Save unto Sarepta. Sarepta was a town between Tyre and Sidon, near the Mediterranean Sea. It was not a Jewish city, but a Sidonian, and therefore a Gentile town. The word save in this verse does not express the meaning of the original. It would seem to imply that the city was Jewish. The meaning of the verse is this: He was sent to none of the widows in Israel. He was not sent except to Sarepta, to a woman that was a Sidonian. Dr. Thompson (The Land and the Book) regards Sarepta as the modern Sarafend. He says that the ruins have been frequently dug over for stone to build the barracks at Beirut, and that the broken columns, marble slabs, sarcophagi, and other ruins indicate that it was once a flourishing city. A large town was built there in the time of the crusades."
Verse 27, "And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them were cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian."
LGT "And many lepers were in Israel, in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian."
The Lord is telling the people they would be like the many widows and many lepers of Israel who were not healed during the time of Elisha.
Naaman was the lone leper healed in Israel, recorded in 2 Kings 5:1, 14. "In the time of Elisha, a prophet was sent from God with His message of promise to the people. At that time there were many lepers in Israel. But Israel did not believe the word of the prophet and turn to him for help. The only one who received help from Elisha's ministry was a Gentile. He was Naaman, the Syrian" (Pentecost).
Verse 28, "And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath."
LGT "And all were filled with indignation in the synagogue, hearing these things."
The Jews of Nazareth knew clearly what Christ was saying by using these two illustrations from the Old Testament. The Jews of Nazareth were no better than those of Capernaum, if as good, simply because they were from the place where He grew up. They were filled with anger at His words that they were not worthy of receiving any special privileges because they rejected Him as their Messiah. All through the Gospels we have these same attitudes from the Jews, thinking they were privileged by being Jews, but with Christ that alone cut no ice.
Verse 29, "And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong."
LGT "And having risen up, they cast Him out of the city, and led Him unto the brow of the mountain upon which their city had been built, so as to throw Him down headlong:"
The people took Him out to the edge of a cliff in order to get rid of Him; this was a lynching party of Nazareth. "At the southwest corner of the town of Nazareth such a cliff today exists overhanging the Macronite convent. Murder was in the hearts of the people. By pushing Him over they hoped to escape technical guilt" (Robertson). Men always think they can escape personal guilt by acting in a group, but they were all individually responsible. They could not escape His condemnation by murdering Him.
Verse 30, "But he passing through the midst of them went his way."
LGT "But He passing through [the] midst of them He was going on His way."
The imperfect tense here gives the picturesque account Of Christ completely ignoring the rabble His going on His way. Christ went through the crowd completely untouched. "Jesus by divine power, by the force of a word or look, stilled their passions, arrested their purposes, and passed silently through them. That He had such power over the spirits of men we learn from the occurrence in Gethsemane, when He said, I am He; and they went backward and fell to the ground, (John 13:6)" (Barnes).
The Man with an Unclean Spirit
(Mark 1:21-28)
Verse 31, "And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the Sabbath days."
LGT "And He went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And was teaching them on the Sabbaths."
From this verse to the rest of the chapter is one day spent with the Christ. He moves His headquarters from Nazareth to Capernaum because as He has explained above, His hometown people would not accept Him, that is, a prophet is not welcome in his own country. Jesus goes into the Synagogue as His custom was and began to teach.
Verse 32, "And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power."
LGT "And they were astonished at His teaching, because with authority was His word."
The people were astonished because Jesus did not teach as a scribe or Pharisee, but with authority from heaven, that is, as One sent, God's Apostle. This detail that He did not speak as a scribe or Pharisee is provided by Mark. The people were amazed because of His authority and the content of His doctrine.
Verses 33, 34, "And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice, saying, let us alone: what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? Art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God."
LGT "And in the Synagogue was a man having an unclean spirit of a demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, Ah! What to us and to You, Jesus of Nazareth? Are You come to destroy us? I know You who You are, the Holy One of God."
Even the demons believe and tremble. The demons cry out What have we in common? It is one thing to know who Christ is, and a completely different thing to believe on His name. These demons also recognize He was sent from God, and that His authority was manifest.
Verse 35, "And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not."
LGT "And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Be muzzled and come out from him. And the demon, having thrown him into the midst, came out from him, in nothing having hurt him."
Jesus muzzles the demon and commands him to come out of the man; the demon causes the man to seizure and be thrown down in their midst. The demon comes out of him and causes him no harm, a detail only Luke the physician notes. "The violent convulsions the man experienced together with the loud shriek the demon emitted suggested that the demon was fiercely resisting the command of Christ. Unable to resist, the demon came out of the man" (Pentecost).
Verse 36, "And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word is this! For with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out."
LGT "And astonishment came upon all, and they spoke one to another, saying, What word [is] this, that with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits and they come out?"
Demon possession was very common in those days before the Bible was completed. Everyone stood astonished that the unclean spirits obeyed the command of Christ. I personally believe that we no longer experience demon possession because of the abiding presence in believers of the Holy Spirit, and that we have the completed Word of God. However, when we see the hideous things that are being done by the unbeliever today, it makes one wonder if demons aren't still active. I believe that demon possession takes the form of drugs in our culture, for there has to be some accounting for the insane behavior we are witnessing. I personally believe that the Word of God is the sole weapon against spiritual wickedness, and that our confidence must be solely in God's Word, in combating these forces.
Verse 37, "And the fame of him went out into every place of the country round about."
LGT "And a rumor went out concerning Him into every place of the country around."
The imperfect middle is used to give the full force of the verb, exeporeueto; a rumor kept going out. The word spread out in the surrounding country side about the power and authority of the Messiah, for no one could do these things except God be with Him.
The Healing of Many People
(Matt. 8:14-17; Mark 1:29-34)
Verse 38, "And he arose out of the synagogue, and entered Simon's house. And Simon's wife's mother was taken with a great fever; and they besought him for her."
LGT "And rising up from the Synagogue, He entered into house of Simon. And the mother in law of Simon was oppressed with a great fever, and they asked Him for her."
Simon and Andrew's house becomes the headquarters for Christ from this point on, since He left Nazareth. Peter was married, much to the disappointment of the Roman Catholics who teach that Peter was the first Pope. The physicians in that day categorized fevers as small and great, and Peter's mother-in-law had a great fever, that is, she was seriously sick with a high chronic fever.
Verse 39, "And he stood over her, and rebuked the fever; and it left her: and immediately she arose and ministered unto them."
LGT "And standing over her, He rebuked the fever, and it left her; and immediately arising, she served them."
Jesus had only to speak words of rebuke, as He did the waves, and the serious fever was gone. And she immediately arose, and began waiting on them, with no serious side affects of a serious fever that would normally leave one weak, and need of rest.
Verse 40, "Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them."
LGT "And at the going down of the sun, all they, as many as had [persons] sick with various diseases, brought them to Him: having laid hands on each one of them, He healed them."
It was the end of the Sabbath, and it was not regarded as work, the people brought their sick to Him, having heard about His healing, the news traveling very fast that He was back in Capernaum. Jesus healed all, that is, none went away disappointed, regardless of their station in life; today, the pretending faith healers, require money from those who are to be healed, and then leave many disappointed.
Verse 41, "And devils also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou art Christ the Son of God. And he rebuking them suffered them not to speak: for they knew that he was the Christ."
LGT "And also demons went out from many, crying out and saying, You are the Son of God. And rebuking, He suffered them not to speak, because they knew Him to be the Christ."
The demons confessed what most of the people rejected, that He was the Messiah, the Son of God. Christ silenced the demons, for He would not accept demons to speak His name, that is, He would only accept a witness from His own family.
A Preaching Tour
(Mark 1:35-39)
Verse 42, "And when it was day, he departed and went into a desert place: and the people sought him, and came unto him, and stayed him, that he should not depart from them."
LGT "And day being come, having gone out, He went into a desert place: and the crowds sought Him, and came up to Him, and detaining Him, that He should not go from them."
Christ, tired from a night's activity of healing, went away into a deserted place where He might fellowship with His Father. The crowd kept hounding him; this is the only place that I might concur that anyone would persistently seek a man to be their pastor, and this because Christ was not only the Man, but also the God.
Verses 43, 44, "And he said unto them, I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore am I sent. And he preached in the synagogues of Galilee."
LGT "But He said to them, Also to the other cities, it is necessary to announce the glad tidings of the kingdom of God; because for this I was sent forth. And He was preaching in the synagogues of Galilee."
Christ assured the crowd that His mission was to go to all the cities, and not just to stay with the favored few. These verses are a wonderful exposition on the fact that The Son of God came to seek and to save that which was lost. This time period is still in the intertestamental period between Law and Grace.
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