Introductory remarks:
This chapter is a continuation of chapter four. This chapter may be outlined as follows: the calling of the first disciples vv. 1-11; the cleansing of a leper vv. 12-16; the healing of a paralytic vv. 17-26; the calling of Levi vv. 27-32; the question about fasting vv. 33-39.
The Calling of the First Disciples(Matt. 4:18-22; Mark 1:16-20)
Verse 1, "And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret,"
LGT "And it came to pass, at that [time], the crowd was laid upon Him, and to hear the word of God, and He was standing by the lake of Gennesaret."
The crowds pressed in upon Him to hear the Word of God, which was the main emphasis of Christ's ministry to proclaim the Word of God.
Luke for the sake of accuracy never calls Gennesaret a sea, and the other gospel writers never call it a lake (Plummer). The crowd pressed upon Him, lit. Were laid upon Him.
Barnes quotes Dr, Thompson (The Land and the Book) describing the area around the lake:
"The plain lying between Capernaum and Tiberius is said to be a little longer than thirty, and not quite twenty furlongs in breadth. It is described by Josephus as being, in his time, universally fertile. Its nature is wonderful as well as its beauty. Its soil is so fruitful that all sorts of trees can grow upon it, and all the inhabitants accordingly plant all sorts of trees there; for the temperature of the air is so well mixed that it agrees very well with those several sorts; particularly walnuts, which require the coldest air, flourish there in vast plenty. One may call this the ambition of nature, where it forces those plants, which are naturally enemies to one another to agree together. It is a happy conjunction of the seasons, as if every one laid claim to this country, for it not only nourishes different sorts of autumnal fruits beyond men's expectations, but also preserves them a great while. It supplies men with the principal fruits; with grapes and figs continually during ten months of the year, and the rest of the fruits, as they become ripe, through the whole year; for, besides the good temperature of the air, it is also watered from a most fertile fountain." Dr. Thompson describes it now as "preeminently fruitful in thorns." This was the region of the early toils of our Redeemer. Here He performed some of His first and most amazing miracles; here He selected His disciples; and here, on the shores of this little and retired lake, among people of poverty and inured [trained] to the privations of fishermen, He laid the foundation of a religion which is yet to spread through all the world, and which has already blessed millions of guilty miserable men, and translated them to heaven."
Verse 2, "And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets."
LGT "And He saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen, having gone from them, washed the nets."
Two boats were anchored just off shore while the fishermen were washing their nets of the debris from the fishing the night before.
Verse 3, "And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon's, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship."
LGT "And having entered one of the ships, which was Simon's, He asked to put Him off a little from the land, and having sat down, He taught the crowds from the ship."
Jesus asks Peter to row his boat out a little so that He could address the crowd without being smothered by them; then He sat down and continued teaching them from the boat.
Verse 4, "Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught."
LGT "And when He ceased speaking, He said to Simon, Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch."
Jesus has Peter and his crew row out into the deep part of the lake in order to prove to Peter once more who He is.
Verse 5. "And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net."
LGT "And answering Simon said, Master, through the whole night having labored, have we taken nothing: but upon Your word, I will let down the net."
Peter, the master fisherman, obeys His Master, because of the Word of the Lord. Peter shows his obedience to Christ, even though inside He thinks he knows better.
Verse 6, "And when they had this done, they enclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake."
LGT "And having done this, they shut together a great shoal of fishes, and began to break their net."
The AV says their net brake; however, the Greek word dierresseto, is lit. Began to break or were breaking giving the true meaning of the verb. For if the nets brake they would have lost all their fishes.
Verse 7, "And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink."
LGT "And they beckoned to the partners in the other ship, that coming they should take hold with them: and they came, and filled both the ships, so that they were sinking."
Peter and his crew made signs to the other boats to come help them. The other fishermen came and partnered with them and took hold of the net and they filled both ships.
Verse 8, "When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord."
LGT "And having seen, Peter fell at the knees of Jesus, saying, Depart from me, for a man, a sinner I am, Lord."
Peter went from self-confidence (verse 5) of being an expert fisherman, to abject humiliation here of being a simple sinful man; he fell down at Jesus' knees and must have wept. There was no doubt in Peter's mind now of the power and authority of Jesus.
Barnes notes:
"This expression of Peter's, Depart from me, was one of humility, and of his consciousness of his unworthiness. It was not from want of love to Jesus; it did not show that he would not be pleased with His favor and presence; but it was the result of being convinced that Jesus was a Messenger from God - a High and Holy Being: and he felt that he was unworthy to be in His presence. In his deep consciousness of sin, therefore, he requested that Jesus would depart from him and his little vessel. Peter's feeling was not unnatural, though it was not proper to request Jesus to leave him. It was an involuntary, sudden request, and arose from ignorance of the character of Jesus. We are not worthy to be with Him, to be reckoned among His friends, or to dwell in heaven with Him; but He came to seek the lost and to save the impure. He graciously condescends to dwell with those who are humble and contrite, though they are conscious that they are not worthy of His presence; and we may therefore come boldly to Him, and ask Him to receive us to His home - to an eternal dwelling with Him in heaven."
Verse 9, "For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken."
LGT "For a wonder held him around, and all the ones with him, at the haul of the fishes which they had taken:"
Peter and all his partners now learned who the real expert fisherman was.
Verse 10, "And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men."
LGT "And in like manner also James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, Fear not: from now on you shall be catching men."
Only God can make a true fisherman of men. The verb "catching" is zergon a participle that means to catch alive. No man can ordain another man to be a fisher of men; we are all fishermen, and God sends us out and catches other men through us. We have the bait, which is the Word of God alone, and anytime we attempt to save lost souls with our own cunning, we are using the wrong bait. Peter proved to be a true fisher of men at Pentecost, but not until after the Holy Spirit came upon him, and then over three thousand souls were saved. We who believe are all filled baptized with the Holy Spirit, and He alone reaps the harvest of souls; He uses us, and then at the Bema Seat will reward us with crowns.
Verse 11, "And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all and followed him."
LGT "And having brought the ships to the land, leaving all, they followed Him."
These men were willing to leave all, their business, everything, and follow Christ; they now become true disciples of the Lord.
The Cleansing of a Leper
(Matt. 8:1-4; Mark 1:40-45)
Verse 12, "And it came to pass, when he was in a certain city, behold a man full of leprosy: who seeing Jesus fell on his face, and besought him, saying, Lord, if thou canst make me clean."
LGT "And it came to pass, as He was in one of the cities, that behold, a man full of leprosy: and seeing Jesus, falling upon his face, he besought Him, saying, Lord, if You will, You are able to cleanse me."
Luke the physician notes that this leper was of an advanced stage, a man full of leprosy. The man fell at Jesus' feet and begged Him to heal him. The KJV has it wrong in that the man asks if Christ is able to heal him, if thou canst; however the Greek word is theleis meaning that the leper appealed to the will of the Lord lit. If You will, You are able to cleanse me, in other words, the leper appealed to the will and not to the power of the Lord, for he knew the Lord was able.
Verse 13, "And he put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will: be thou clean. And immediately the leprosy departed from him."
LGT "And having stretched out [the] hand, He touched him saying, I will, be cleansed: and immediately the leprosy departed from him."
What beautiful words the leper heard from the Lord, I will. The lord touched the leper, which touching was strictly forbidden by Jewish law, and immediately the leper was clean.
Pentecost notes:
"The man recognized his own uncleanness and unworthiness, for he both knelt and turned his gaze away from the One to whom he presented his petition. The man bowed his face to the ground. In such an attitude he cried out, Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean. Without doubt his faith in the person of Christ was the result of the word that he had heard concerning Christ's miracles. While the man evidently had no report of a leper being cleansed, he judged that One who had demonstrated such authority could meet his need since He had met the needs of others. We know he recognized the authority of Christ, for he said, You can make me clean. The healing however, did not depend on Christ's willingness to exercise the authority that He possessed over uncleanness, but rather on the suppliant's faith in His person. In response to the leper's plea that arose from his faith in Christ's person, Christ touched the man and acknowledged His willingness to meet his needs. Christ issued an authoritative command, Be clean!"
Verse 14, "And he charged him to tell no man; but go and show thyself to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing, according as Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them."
LGT "And He charged him to tell no one; but having gone, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing, just as Moses ordered, for a testimony to them."
There was a priest in this man's province that was in charge of the investigation of these lepers, and he was to go show himself to this priest, and not to stop along the way to show his healing to them. His healing would be a testimony to this priest as to the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ; then the priest would take the evidence to the Sanhedrin Council and tell them of this man.
Verse 15, "But so much the more went there a fame abroad of him: and great multitudes came together, to hear, and to be healed by him of their infirmities."
LGT "But was spread abroad still more the report concerning Him, and crowds were coming together to hear, and to be healed of their infirmities by Him:"
No matter how hard the Lord tried to keep the news of His healing quiet, the more it spread out. The crowds kept coming, were coming together to hear this wonderful Man, and to be healed by the Great Physician.
Verse 16, "And he withdrew himself into the wilderness and prayed."
LGT "But He Himself was withdrawing in the desert places and praying."
As His fame spread, and the crowds kept coming to Him, He always found time to be alone with His Father to refresh Himself; prayers should always be private, as Christ always demonstrated.
The Healing of a Paralytic
(Matt. 9:1-8; Mark 2:1-12)
Verse 17, "And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them."
LGT "And it came to pass on one of the days that He was teaching, and there were sitting by Pharisees and teachers of the law, who were come out of every village of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem: and power of [the] Lord was [there] for to heal them."
This is Luke's first mention of the Pharisees, but he will mention them many times following. These Pharisees were come out to find fault with the Christ, and to indict Him for their planned persecution. There were degrees of wickedness in these Pharisees as some were so wicked that they deserved the anathema of Christ soon. These Pharisees and teachers of the Law were gathered together here to compare Christ's teaching with their own.
Verse 18, "And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy: and they sought to bring him in, and to lay him before him."
LGT "And behold, men carrying upon a couch a man who was paralyzed, and they sought Him, to bring in and to place [him] before Him."
Luke uses the medical term for the "palsy", paralutikon lit. one who is paralyzed.
Verse 19, "And they could not find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus."
LGT "And not having found what way they should bring him in on account of the crowd, going up upon the housetop, they let him down through the tiles, with the little couch into the midst before Jesus."
The Jewish houses had flat roofs with an outside stairway leading up to the roof. The family would spend hot summer evenings on the roof to enjoy the evening breeze. The men carrying the couch found a place where they assumed Jesus to be standing, and they removed the tiles and let the man down before Jesus.
Verse 20, "And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee."
LGT "And seeing their faith, He said to him, Man, your sins have been forgiven you."
Jesus responds to the faith of these men and forgives the paralytic of his sins; this is the one reason the religious leaders begin to condemn Christ for saying that He is able to forgive sins, making Him equal to God.
Verse 21, "And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this which speaketh blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?"
LGT "And the scribes and Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this who speaks blasphemy? Who is to forgive sins except God alone?"
The scribes and Pharisees were right in their reasoning, God alone could forgive sins; where they went wrong is not accepting Christ as God.
"The Law knew no such form as an official forgiving sins, or absolution. The leper might be pronounced clean by the priest, and a transgressor might present a sin-offering at the Temple, and transfer his guilt to it, by laying his hands on its head and owning his fault before God, and the blood sprinkled by the priest on the horns of the altar, and toward the Holy of Holies, was an atonement that covered his sins from the eyes of Jehovah, and pledged his forgiveness. But that forgiveness was the direct act of God: no human lips dared pronounce it. It was a special prerogative of the Almighty, and even should mortal man venture to declare it, he could only do so in the name of Jehovah, and by His immediate authorization. But Jesus had spoken in His own name. He had not hinted at being empowered by God to act for Him. The Scribes were greatly excited; whispers, ominous head shakings, dark looks, and pious gesticulations of alarm, showed that they were ill at ease. 'He should have sent him to the priest to present his sin-offering, and have it accepted: it is blasphemy to speak of forgiving sins, He is intruding on the divine rights.' The blasphemer was to be put to death by stoning, his body hung on a tree, and then buried with shame. 'Who can forgive sins but One, God.'" (Geikie-quoted by Pentecost).
Verse 22, "But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he, answering, said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts?"
LGT "But Jesus, knowing their reasoning's, answering, said to them, Why reason ye in your hearts?"
These Scribes and Pharisees don't have a chance against God the Son; He reads their thoughts. The Greek word for "perceived" is a participle of epiginosko, meaning to know fully.
Verses 23,24, "Whether is easier to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee, or to say, Rise up and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go unto thine house."
LGT "Which is easier, to say, Your sin have been forgiven you, or to say, Arise and walk around? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority upon the earth to forgive sins, He said to the paralyzed, To You I say, Arise, and having taken up your little couch, go to your house."
Christ used the phrase your sins be forgiven you in order to prove that He was God. No man has ever been able to forgive sins, except the Man Christ Jesus. Jesus adds confirmation to the healing by having the paralyzed man stand up, take up his little couch, and go home.
Verse 25, "And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God."
LGT "And immediately, having stood before them, having taken up [that] on which he was lying, he departed into his own house, glorifying the God."
Two words stand out in this verse:1) immediately and 2) glorifying God. This is outstanding that he stood up immediately and because his sins were forgiven, he did the most natural thing, he went to his house glorifying God.
Verse 26, "And they were all amazed, and they glorified God, and were filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things to-day."
LGT "And amazement seized all, and they kept glorifying God, and were filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things to-day."
What the people saw was far beyond anything they might have expected. They were filled with amazement, and could not help praising God, for the extraordinary things they witnessed that day.
The Calling of Levi
(Matt. 9:9-13; Mark 2:13-17)
Verse 27, "And after these things he went forth, and saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he said unto him, Follow me."
LGT "And after these things He went forth, and beheld a tax-gatherer, by name Levi, sitting at the tax office, and He said to him, Follow Me."
Christ "saw" literally beheld, that is, looked intently upon Matthew sitting in a tollbooth (see notes on Matthew 9:9 for details on Matthew's duties) collecting a toll for the road or the lake or both. Christ calls Matthew while he was on duty, and calls him to drop everything and Follow Me.
Verse 28, "And he left all, rose up, and followed him."
LGT "And having left all, having arisen, he followed Him."
Luke alone has this detail that Matthew left "all". The tense of the Greek for followed is imperfect active meaning he began to follow Christ, and continued.
Verse 29, "And Levi made a great feast in his own house: and there was a great company of publicans and others that sat down with them."
LGT "And Levi made a great reception for Him in his house, and there was a great crowd of tax-gatherers, and others who were with him, reclining [at table]."
Levi throws a great reception for his Lord, with a motley crew of social outcast, that any self-respecting Jew would certainly shun. The Lord did not spurn Levi's invitation, but came willingly to his great feast in His honor.
Barnes notes:
"This circumstance Matthew, or Levi as he is here called, has omitted in his own gospel. This fact shows how little inclined the evangelists are to say anything in favor of themselves or to praise themselves. True religion does not seek to commend itself, or to speak of what it does, even when it is done for the Son of God. It seeks retirement; it delights in the consciousness of doing well than in its being known; and it leaves its good deeds to be spoken of, if spoken of at all, by others. This is agreeable to the direction of Solomon (Pr. 27:2): Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth. This feast was made expressly for our Lord, and was attended by many publicans, probably men of wicked character; and it is not improbable that Matthew got them together for the purpose of bringing them into contact with our Lord to do them good. Our Savior did not refuse to go, and to go, too, at the risk of being accused of being a gluttonous man and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners, Matt. 11:19. But his motives were pure. In the thing itself there was no harm. It afforded an opportunity of doing good, and we have no reason to doubt that the opportunity was improved by the Lord Jesus."
Verse 30, "But their scribes and Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, Why do ye eat and drink with publicans and sinners?"
LGT "But the Pharisees and their scribes murmured at the disciples, saying, Why with sinners and tax-gatherers do ye eat and drink?"
Notice in my LGT that the literal translation is the Pharisees and their scribes. You see some of the scribes were Sadducees. "They were not invited to this feast and would not have come if they had been. But, not being invited, they hang on the outside and criticize the disciples of Jesus for being there. The crowd was so large that the feast may have been served out in the open court at Levi's house, a sort of reclining garden party" (Robertson). In the first phrase the two parties are separated by each having an article The Pharisees and scribes of them, but the last phrase the two parties are joined by one-article sinners and tax-gatherers. The Pharisees address the disciples but their question is really directed at Jesus. These Pharisees insinuate that if Jesus were who He said He was He would be eating with them, and not this uncouth rabble.
Verse 31, "And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick."
LGT "And Jesus answering said to them, They who are in sound health have no need of a physician, but they who are ill."
Even though Jesus was not directly approached by these Pharisees, He answers them directly. Being the Great Physician He makes this logical statement. In the next verse He explains the full import of His statement here.
Verse 32, "I came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance."
LGT "I have not come to call righteous [ones], but sinners unto repentance."
The sinners know their need of being saved, but these self-righteous Pharisees, whom Christ will reveal as ravening wolves later, could never stoop so low as to admit they were sin-sick.
McGee adds:
"The scribes and Pharisees asked the disciples why they ate with sinners. The Lord's answer was simple and wonderful. He was the Great Physician and did not go around healing people that were well! He came to minister to those who were sick with sin. The gospel is really for those who recognize their need. There are some people who think they are too good to be saved. They are not aware of their need. If you recognize that you have a need, then the gospel is for you. Christ can and will save you. If you are self-sufficient, recognize no personal need, and go in your self-chosen pathway; it will lead you to destruction. I am sorry. The Great Physician can do nothing for those who think they are not sick."
The Question about Fasting
(Matt. 9:14-17; Mark 2:18-22)
Verse 33, "And they said unto him, Why do the disciples of John fast often, and make prayers, and likewise the disciples of the Pharisees; but thine eat and drink?"
LGT "And they said to Him, Why the disciples of John fast often, and make supplication, in like manner also those of the Pharisees, but those of Thee eat and drink?"
Robertson believes that this feast given by Levi was on one of the Jewish fast days, and that gave these self-righteous Pharisees impetus to their accusations. The word for "prayer' here is actually supplication, meaning that one would beg for something for himself. John the Baptist was an ascetic, and he had followers; these are the ones these Pharisees are making reference.
Verse 34, "And he said unto them, Can ye make the children of the bride chamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them."
LGT "But Jesus said to them, Are you able to make to fast the sons of the bride chamber, while the bridegroom is with them."
Christ came to introduce a new system of grace, not to teach them adherence to an old worn out system of works. Christ came to introduce His Messianic Kingdom, and as long as He was with them who accepted Him as their Messiah there was no need for them to fast or make supplication.
Verse 35, "But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days."
LGT "But the days also will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, then they will fast in these days."
"By this statement He anticipated His death and return to the Father's right hand. As the departure of the bridegroom from the wedding feast signaled the termination of the feast, so Christ's departure would bring these disciples to a time when fasting and prayer would be proper. Thus we see that during the time when Christ ministered, the kingdom was being offered. That kingdom precluded fasting" (Pentecost).
Verse 36, "And he spake also a parable unto them; No man putteth a piece of a new garment upon an old; if otherwise, then both the new maketh a rent, and the piece that was taken out of the new agreeth not with the old."
LGT "And He spoke also a parable to them, No one puts a new piece of garment on an old garment, otherwise he rends both the new, and with the old does not agree [the] piece which [is] from the new."
"In Matthew and Mark there is only a single damage, that, namely, to the old garment, the rent in which is enlarged. In Luke the damage is twofold; first, in injuring the new garment by cutting out a piece; and second, in making the old garment appear patched, instead of widening the rent, as in Matthew and Mark" (Vincent). "To the Pharisees He said one cannot make an old garment acceptable by superimposing something new on it. And to John's disciples He said that what He was offering could not be superimposed on Pharisaism so as to reform it. What He offered also could not be contained in the old system. Rather, what He was introducing had to be entirely separated from the old" (Pentecost).
Verses 37-39, "And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish. But new wine must be put into new bottles; and both are preserved. No man also having drunk old wine straightway desireth new; for he saith The old is better."
LGT "And no one puts new wine into old skins: otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins, and it will be poured out, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine is to be put into new skins. And no one having drunk old [wine] desires new; for he says the old is best."
Christ here pictures the reactionary Pharisees. The Pharisees, having tasted the old, had no desire for what Christ had to offer.
Edersheim notes:
"In general, the two illustrations employed - that of the piece of undressed cloth (or, according to Luke, a piece torn from a new garment) sewed upon the rent of an old garment, and that of the new wine put into old wine-skins - must not be too closely pressed in regard to their language. They seem chiefly to imply this: You ask, why do we fast often, but Thy disciples fast not? You are mistaken in supposing that the old garment can be retained, and merely its rents made good by patching it with a piece of new cloth. Not to speak of the incongruity [absurdity], the effect would only be to make the rent ultimately worse. The old garment will not bear mending with the undressed cloth. Christ's was not merely a reformation: all things must become new. Or, again, take the other view of it - as the old garment cannot be patched from the new, so, on the other hand, can the new wine of the Kingdom not be confined in the old forms. It would burst those wine-skins. The spirit must, indeed, have its corresponding form of expression; but that form must be adapted, and correspond to it. Not the old with a little of the new to hold it together where it is rent; but the new, and that not in the old wine-skins, but in a form corresponding to the substance. Such are the two final principles - the one primarily addressed to the Pharisees, the other to the disciples of John, by which the illustrative teaching concerning the marriage-feast, with its bridal garment and wine of banquet, is carried far beyond the original question of the disciples of John, and receive an application to all time."
McGee adds:
"The natural man likes his old ways. He likes his old wine - that is, his old religion. The important thing to recognize that our Lord brought something new to mankind - the gospel [of grace]. He did not come into the world to do any patching of the old garment. He did not come to patch up the law. He came to pay the penalty of sin by dying on the cross. But He did more than that. He arose from the dead so that He could place upon us His robe of righteousness. He gives us the new wine of the gospel. The new wine of the gospel must be placed in the new wineskin of grace, not into the old one of law."
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