Luke 9

Luke 9:1

Luke: The Man Christ Jesus Jesus in Galilee An EasyEnglish Bible Version and Commentary (2800 word vocabulary) on Luke 4:14 to 9:50

www.easyenglish.info Ian Mackervoy This commentary has been through Advanced Checking.

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Chapter 9 Jesus and the 12 *disciples – Luke 9:1–50 Jesus sends out the 12 *disciples – Luke 9:1-9 v1 Jesus called the 12 *disciples together. He gave to them power and authority over all *demons and to cure diseases. v2 Then he sent them to tell about God’s *kingdom and to cure ill people. v3 And he said to them, ‘Take nothing for your journey. Do not take a stick or a bag. Do not take any bread or money. Do not take any extra clothes. v4 When you enter a house, stay there. Stay in that house until it is time to leave. v5 The people may not receive you. If so, leave their town. But shake the dust off your feet as evidence against them.’ v6 The *disciples left, and they went through the villages. They told the people the good news. And everywhere that they went, they cured people.

v7 Herod was the ruler of a fourth part of the nation. He heard about all that happened. Some people said that John the *Baptist had come back from death. This caused Herod much confusion and doubt. v8 Some people said that Elijah had appeared. Other people said that one of the old *prophets had risen from death. v9 But Herod said, ‘I cut off John’s head. But I hear so much about this man. I want to know who he is.’ And he tried to see Jesus.

Verses 1-6 Jesus gave to his 12 *disciples power and authority. Then he sent them to the villages of that region. They went in 6 teams of two (Mark 6:7). They would use that power and authority to free people from *demons. And they had the power to cure diseases. But the main purpose was to *preach and to speak about the *kingdom of God.

Perhaps Jesus knew that he would soon leave Galilee. And he wanted people in the whole region to hear the good news. And maybe he wanted to give his *disciples experience for the future.

The *disciples must take nothing for their journey. They had to depend on God and the kindness of the people. In those days, it was a custom for people to receive travellers into their houses. It was the custom to offer them a bed and food while they were there. So, the *disciples could expect such kindness in each place. And while they remained in that town or village, the *disciples should stay in one house. Jesus did not intend that his *disciples should follow these instructions on every future occasion. These instructions were just for that trip.

They may come to a place where the people would not receive them. Then they must leave that place. But they should shake the dust from their feet. The *Lord will consider that as evidence against the people of that place. And that action would warn the people that it is a very serious matter to refuse God’s message (Matthew 10:14-15).

The *disciples did what Jesus had told them. They *preached the good news and they cured the people.

Verses 7-9 The area that Herod Antipas ruled included Galilee. He had heard what had happened in this area. He heard about Jesus and what he had done. Herod thought that perhaps John the *Baptist had come back to life. And he thought that perhaps Jesus was John the *Baptist (Matthew 14:1). Some other people thought the same as Herod. This was a strange idea. Jesus was already *preaching and he did *miracles before John’s death. And earlier John had *baptised Jesus. But such an idea made Herod uneasy because he had killed John. So, Herod wanted to meet with Jesus. He wanted to know who Jesus was.

Many people were curious to know who Jesus really was. Some people thought that Jesus was Elijah. They believed that Elijah would come again (Malachi 4:5). And they believed that Elijah would come before the *Christ. But other people saw that Jesus was a great *prophet. Perhaps Jesus was one of the old *prophets who had come back to life. That was what they thought. Jesus feeds 5000 men – Luke 9:10-17 v10 The *apostles returned to Jesus. They told him everything that they had done. He took them on a private journey to a town called Bethsaida. v11 But the crowds found out about this and they followed him. Jesus did not send them away. He spoke to them about the *kingdom of God. And he cured those people who were sick.

v12 Late in the afternoon, the 12 *disciples came to him. They said to him, ‘Send the crowd away to the villages and farms near here. They need to get food and to find somewhere to stay. We are in a desert place here.’

v13 Jesus replied to them, ‘You must give them something to eat.’ They said, ‘We have only 5 loaves of bread and two fishes. We have nothing more, unless we go to buy food for all these people.’ v14 (There were about 5000 men there.) But Jesus said to his *disciples, ‘Tell the people to sit in groups of about 50 people.’ v15 The *disciples did this, and all the people sat down. v16 Then Jesus took the 5 loaves and the two fishes and he looked up to heaven. He thanked God for the food. He broke the loaves and the fishes. He gave the pieces to his *disciples for them to give the food to the people. v17 All the people ate as much as they wanted. The *disciples collected the food that remained. They filled 12 baskets with the pieces.

Verses 10-17 The 12 *disciples came back to Jesus. They told him all that they had done. Then Jesus took them across the Sea of Galilee by boat to a place near Bethsaida. Bethsaida was a town on the east of the river Jordan. It was near to where the river flowed into the Sea of Galilee. This was on the north and east side of the Sea of Galilee and it was outside of the territory of Herod Antipas.

Jesus intended that he and his *disciples should have a quiet time away from the crowd. But the crowd followed them. So, Jesus talked to the crowd about the *kingdom of God. And he cured those people who were sick.

They were in a desert place near to Bethsaida. It was late in the day. The people needed to get food to eat and somewhere to spend the night. The *disciples asked Jesus to send the people away. But Jesus told them to feed the crowd. He did not want to send the people away while they were still hungry.

The *disciples had 5 small loaves of bread and two fishes. Even if they could have bought food for the crowd, it would have cost a lot of money. However, it would be very difficult to find the amount of food that they needed.

The crowd was much more than 5000 people. There were about 5000 men plus women and children. Jesus told the *disciples to tell the people to sit in groups, with about 50 people in each group. Then he took the loaves and the fishes and he thanked God for them. He broke the food and he gave it to the *disciples. From that small meal, everybody in the crowd had more than enough food. At the end of the meal, the *disciples collected 12 baskets full of the food that the people had not eaten.

This was a great *miracle. It shows us that nothing is impossible to God. In Jesus Christ, God can supply all that we need. Peter says that Jesus is the *Christ – Luke 9:18-22 v18 Once when Jesus prayed in private, his *disciples were with him. At that time, he asked them a question. ‘Who do the people say that I am?’

v19 They answered, ‘Some people say that you are John the *Baptist. Other people say that you are Elijah. Some other people say that you are one of the ancient *prophets. They say that one of the *prophets has become alive again.’

v20 Then Jesus asked them, ‘What about you? Who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered, ‘You are the *Christ of God.’

v21 Jesus warned them that they must not tell this to anybody. v22 And he told them, ‘The Son of Man must suffer many things. The leaders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law will refuse to accept him. People will kill him. But three days later, God will raise him to life.’

Verses 18-22 Jesus and his *disciples were in the region of Caesarea Philippi (Matthew 16:13). Caesarea Philippi was a town in the north of *Israel near the mountain called Hermon. There Jesus prayed with his *disciples. Then he asked about the opinion of the people. He wanted to hear what the people said about him. Who did they think that he was?

The answer to that question was the same as before (Luke 9:7-8). Some said that Jesus was really John the *Baptist. Herod had killed John. Those people thought that John had come back to life in Jesus. Some people said that he was Elijah. Elijah had not died. He went up to heaven in a strong wind (2 Kings 2:11). And the people believed that he would come to earth again. Some people considered Jesus to be one of the *Old Testament *prophets who had become alive again.

Then Jesus asked the *disciples what they thought. They had seen all that Jesus had done already. They had listened to all that he had taught. They could see that Jesus was more than a *prophet. He was greater than John the *Baptist or Elijah. So, Peter gave the answer: ‘You are the *Christ of God.’ This was the first time that any of the *disciples called him *Christ. The *Jews expected God to send the *Christ. But when he came, most of them did not recognise him. Jesus was not the sort of person that many *Jews expected to be the *Christ (John 1:10-12). Peter knew who the *Christ was. This knowledge could only come from God (Matthew 16:17).

Jesus did not want the *disciples at this time to tell the people that he was the *Christ. If they spoke about Jesus as the *Christ, it would have caused political problems.

This is the first time that Jesus spoke clearly about his death. From this time on, Jesus taught the *disciples about what would happen. He told them that he would suffer many things. The leaders of the people would not believe that he was the *Christ. They would cause the *Romans to kill Jesus. He would die on a wooden cross. But death was not the end. Three days afterwards, God would make him alive again. How to follow Christ – Luke 9:23-27 v23 Then Jesus spoke to all the people that were there. ‘Those people who want to follow me must say “no” to themselves. They must take up their cross each day. Then they can follow me. v24 Those people who want to save their lives will lose them. But those people who lose their lives for me will save them. v25 A person may gain the whole world. But it will not benefit him if he loses himself. He will suffer the loss of his life. v26 Some people may be ashamed of me and of what I say. The Son of Man will be ashamed of those people when he comes in his *glory. Also, he will come in the *glory of the Father and of the holy *angels. v27 Some of the people here will see the *kingdom of God before they die. I tell you that this is true.’

Verses 23-26 Before a person died on a cross, that person had to carry that cross. All who want to follow Jesus must be ready to lose their lives. They will not do just what they want. But they will do what Jesus wants. Each day, it is as if they carry their cross. Then they can follow Jesus. This is the attitude in life of a person who gives his life completely to the *Lord. It is the only proper attitude for a person who truly wants to serve God. Nothing in his life is as important as his relationship with God.

Here Jesus contrasts life on earth and *eternal life. Those people who want to satisfy their desires in this life will lose that life in death. All that is in the world is not worth the cost of a life. All those things are of no value to a person who loses his life. Those people who live for themselves will not have *eternal life. But those people who live for Jesus will have *eternal life.

If we are ashamed of Christ now, he will be ashamed of us in the future. That future will be when Jesus comes again in his *glory. Whatever other people may do to us, we must always be loyal to Jesus. Then we will share in the *glory of Jesus.

Verse 27 Some of those people who lived then would see the *kingdom of God. They would see the Son of Man come in his *kingdom (Matthew 16:28). They would see the *kingdom of God come with power (Mark 9:1).

There are several different ideas as to what Jesus meant. The first one is what happened a week later. Then Jesus showed his *glory to Peter, James and John (Matthew 17:1-8, Mark 9:2-8, Luke 9:28-36). The three *disciples saw the *glory of Jesus on that mountain. And Jesus received honour and *glory from God (2 Peter 1:16-18).

Another idea is that Jesus spoke about *Pentecost. Then the *kingdom of God came with power. And the *Holy Spirit came to those people who believed. That was the first time that a large number of people became Christians (Acts chapter 2).

When Jesus died, he defeated *Satan. Jesus took all our *sins upon himself. And he died to free us from our *sins. Then he became alive again and many people saw him. In him, they saw the power of the *kingdom of God.

When people trust Jesus to save them, they become citizens of God’s *kingdom. Perhaps that was what Jesus was referring to here. Their bodies may die, but in their spirits they have *eternal life. So, their spirits will never die. Jesus shows his *glory – Luke 9:28-36 v28 About 8 days after he had said these things, Jesus went up a mountain to pray. He took Peter, John, and James with him. v29 As Jesus prayed, his face seemed to change. And his clothes shone as with a bright white light. v30 Two men appeared and they talked with Jesus. These men were Moses and Elijah. v31 Their appearance was of bright *glory. They spoke about the death that Jesus would soon achieve at Jerusalem. v32 Peter and the men who were with him were very sleepy. But then they awoke completely.

So they saw the *glory of Jesus and the two men who stood with him. v33 When Moses and Elijah were leaving Jesus, Peter spoke to Jesus. Peter said, ‘Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three tents, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.’ Peter did not know what he said.

v34 While he said these things, a cloud came. It covered them all. And they were afraid as they went into the cloud. v35 A voice came from the cloud. It said, ‘This is my Son. I have chosen him. Listen to him.’ v36 When the voice had spoken, Jesus was there alone. Then Peter, John and James kept quiet. In those days, they told nobody what they had seen.

Verses 28-36 A week later, Jesus went up a mountain to pray. He took with him Peter, James and John. As Jesus prayed, they saw him change. His face shone like the sun (Matthew 17:2). And his clothes shone with a bright white light. They were seeing his *glory with their own eyes. Then they saw two men in bright white clothes. These were Moses and Elijah, and these men talked with Jesus.

The three *disciples heard some of the conversation. Moses and Elijah spoke to Jesus about his death. They spoke about it as something that Jesus would achieve. Jesus would die soon at Jerusalem. But that death was not a defeat. That death was the purpose for which Jesus had come. The word for death here means a departure. Jesus would pass through death and then he would rise (become alive) again.

The three *disciples were sleepy. Perhaps they were asleep when Jesus began to pray. And they woke up to find that Moses and Elijah were there. They probably missed much of the conversation that Jesus had with Moses and Elijah.

Moses was the great leader of *Israel. He led them out of Egypt. And by him, God gave the law to *Israel. Elijah was a great *prophet.

Moses and Elijah were just leaving. The *disciples were afraid. And Peter did not know what to say. So, he said to Jesus, ‘Master, it is good for us to be here.’ Then he suggested that he should make three tents. These would be one tent for Jesus, one tent for Moses, and one tent for Elijah.

As Peter spoke, a cloud came on them all. It covered Jesus, Moses and Elijah. This was not an ordinary cloud. The cloud increased the fear of the *disciples. Then they heard the voice of God, which came from the cloud. God said that Jesus was his Son. God had chosen Jesus and he had sent him. Therefore, they (the *disciples) must listen to what Jesus says.

When they heard the voice, the *disciples fell down to the ground. The voice frightened them so much (Matthew 17:6-7).

When the cloud moved away, Moses and Elijah had gone. Jesus was alone with the three *disciples. The sight of his *glory had passed. Jesus came to them and he touched them. He said, ‘Get up. Do not be afraid’ (Matthew 17:6-7). Jesus was as they usually saw him. The *disciples did not speak about this experience until after Jesus had come back from death. Jesus cures a boy with an evil spirit – Luke 9:37-45 v37 The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met Jesus. v38 A man in the crowd shouted to Jesus, ‘Teacher, I appeal to you. Look at my son, because he is my only child. v39 A spirit seizes him and it makes him scream. It shakes him so that he loses control of himself. Bubbles burst from his mouth. The spirit hurts him and it almost never goes from him. v40 I appealed to your *disciples to force the evil spirit out of him. But they could not do it.

v41 Jesus answered, ‘You people today have no *faith. You have turned away from the truth. I do not know how long I could stay with you. I do not know how long I could deal with you. Bring your son here.’

v42 While the boy was coming, the *demon threw him on the ground. It shook him so hard that he lost control of himself. Jesus ordered the evil spirit to leave. Jesus cured the boy and he gave him back to his father. v43 The greatness of God astonished all the people.

They all wondered at the things that Jesus did. But Jesus spoke to his *disciples. v44 ‘Give careful attention to what I tell you. Someone will turn against me and he will give the Son of Man into the hands of men.’ v45 But the *disciples did not know what this meant. It seemed as if a curtain covered their minds. So, they could not understand it. And they were afraid to ask Jesus about it.

Verses 37-40 Maybe Jesus and the three *disciples had stayed on the mountain overnight. The next day, they came down and they saw a large crowd there. In the crowd was a man with his son, his only child. The son was sick because an evil spirit took control of him. This was not a normal physical disease. Luke was a medical doctor. He recognised the difference between a normal disease and the work of an evil spirit. Luke was not there. But he had studied what happened.

The man cried out to Jesus. He described to Jesus what the spirit did to his son. The man had appealed to the *disciples to free his son from the evil spirit. But they did not have that power. They were not able to send the spirit out of the boy. A short time before this, Jesus had given to the *disciples the power over *demons (Luke 9:1). It seems that they had lost the *faith to use that power. Now the man appealed to Jesus.

Verses 41-43a (Verse 43a means the first part of verse 43.) Jesus spoke to the crowd. Some of the teachers of the law were in that crowd. They argued with the *disciples (Mark 9:14). However, nobody there had the *faith to cure the boy. Many of the people with the *disciples had seen the *miracles that Jesus did. They heard what he taught. But many of them did not believe the truth. It seems that Jesus was sad because of their lack of belief.

Then Jesus asked the boy’s father to bring him. As the boy came, the *demon attacked him. Jesus asked the father how long the boy had suffered in this manner (Mark 9:22). The boy had suffered from the *demon since he was a young child. The father then asked Jesus if he could do something. The father said to Jesus, ‘If you can, take pity on us. And help us.’ Jesus replied to him that, with *faith, all things are possible. The man said that he did believe. But he asked Jesus to help him with his lack of *faith (Mark 9:20-23).

Then Jesus ordered the *demon to go. The boy was there on the ground. He seemed as if he was dead (Mark 9:26). Some people said that he was dead. But Jesus took the boy by his hand and lifted him up. Jesus cured the boy and he gave the boy back to his father.

The greatness of God’s power in this *miracle astonished all the people.

Verses 43b-45 (Verse 43b means the last part of verse 43.) Jesus then spoke with his *disciples. He told them about his death. Someone who was close to him would turn away from him. That person would hand Jesus over to his enemies. The *disciples did not understand what Jesus said. And they were afraid to ask him to explain it. A question of importance – Luke 9:46-50 v46 The *disciples started to argue about which of them was the most important. v47 Jesus knew their thoughts. So, he took a child and he stood the child next to him. v48 Then Jesus said to his *disciples, ‘Whoever receives this child because of me receives me. Also, that one receives him who sent me. For the one who is least among you all, this one is great.’

v49 John answered, ‘Master. We saw a man force *demons out of people. He did it in your name. We stopped him because he does not follow you with us.’

v50 Jesus said, ‘Do not stop him. Whoever is not against you is for you.’

Verses 46-48 The *disciples knew that Jesus will rule as king. They discussed which of them would be the most important in his *kingdom. Jesus was not in this conversation. But he knew what they thought.

Jesus caused a little child to stand next to him. A little child had no rank in that society. The child was not an important person. It was just a child. But if one receives a child because of Christ, he receives Christ. To receive Christ is to receive God the Father as well. That is because God the Father sent Christ to this world.

The one who considers himself the least among God’s people will be great. Those people who are great in their own eyes will become of little importance (Luke 1:51-53; Luke 6:20-26).

Jesus was teaching that Christians, and especially their leaders, should have humble attitudes. In other words, they must not allow themselves to become proud because of their own importance. A truly important Christian must serve other people - even little children - on God’s behalf. As Christians do that, they are serving Christ. And when they serve Christ, they are doing God’s work (Mark 9:33-37, Mark 10:42-45).

Verses 49-50 The *apostle John now told Jesus about a man who freed people from the power of *demons. This man forced the *demons out in the name of Jesus. But the man was not with the *disciples who followed Jesus. John and some other *disciples saw this man, and they told him to stop. To do this work, the man should be one of their group. That is what John and the other *disciples told that man.

Jesus told John that they were wrong to stop the man. Someone who does a *miracle in the name of Jesus will not soon say anything bad about Jesus (Mark 9:39). This man was not against Jesus and his *disciples. People are either on the side of Christ, or they are against him. No welcome in a  *Samaritan village – Luke 9:51-56 v51 The time was coming soon when Jesus would go back to heaven. So, he decided that he would go to Jerusalem. v52 He sent some men ahead of him. They went into a *Samaritan village to arrange a place for him to stay. v53 The people there would not receive him because he was on his way to Jerusalem. v54 James and John, two of Jesus’ *disciples, saw this. They asked Jesus, ‘*Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to burn them up?’ v55 But Jesus turned to them. He told them that they had a wrong attitude. v56 So, they went to another village.

Verses 51-56 Jesus was in the north of *Israel. He knew that the time of his return to heaven would be soon. Therefore, he set out to go to Jerusalem. There he would die and he would rise from death. Then 40 days later he would go up from the earth into heaven (Acts 1:1-9).

The journey to Jerusalem would take about three days by the most direct route. Jesus’ route went through Samaria. He sent some *disciples ahead of him to find a place to stay. The *Samaritans and the *Jews were not friends. The *Samaritans knew that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. So, they would not give him a place to stay in their village.

James and John were angry because of this. It seems that these two *disciples had bad tempers. Jesus called them ‘sons of thunder’ (Mark 3:17). Thunder is the loud noise that that you may hear in a storm. James and John wanted to call fire down from heaven on this *Samaritan village. Some translations add ‘as Elijah did.’ Elijah had called fire down from heaven on the soldiers that had come to arrest him (2 Kings 1:10-12). But Jesus told James and John that their attitude was wrong. Those people who follow the *Christ should not have such angry reactions. They should love their enemies and they should not want to hurt them. The cost to be a  *disciple – Luke 9:57-62 v57 As they walked along the road, a man spoke to Jesus. The man said, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’

v58 Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have holes. Birds of the air have nests. But the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.’

v59 Jesus said to another man, ‘Follow me.’ However, that man said, ‘*Lord, first let me go to bury my father.’

v60 Jesus answered him. ‘Leave dead people to bury their own dead people. You must go and tell about the *kingdom of God.’

v61 Another man said, ‘I will follow you *Lord. But first let me say goodbye to those at my home.’

v62 Jesus replied to this man. ‘Nobody who starts to plough should look back. If he does, he is no use in the *kingdom of God.’

Verses 57-62 These three incidents show that to follow the *Christ can be difficult. These three men did not understand what it meant to follow Jesus. There is a cost to pay if we would follow him.

The first man approached Jesus. If this is the same event as in Matthew, the man was a teacher of the law (Matthew 8:19). He spoke to Jesus. He said that he would follow Jesus. He would go wherever Jesus went. The man had not understood what this might mean.

Jesus replied that animals and birds have their homes. Jesus, as the Son of Man, had no home in this world. To follow him would mean to share his way of life.

Jesus asked the second man to follow him. This man is called a *disciple in Matthew 8:21. Jesus called him to *preach the good news. But this man was not yet ready to come. He wanted to bury his father first. If his father had died, the man would not have been with Jesus. He would have been busy until he had buried the father. So probably the meaning is that the father was still alive. The man wanted to stay at home until his father died. Then he would follow Jesus.

Whether the father was dead or not, the work of God’s *kingdom must come first. Let those who are at home bury that father. Not even this family matter is a sufficient excuse not to obey Jesus. This man must obey Jesus now. When Jesus tells a person to do something, he expects there to be no delay.

The third man said to Jesus that he would follow him. He asked that first he might say goodbye to his family at home. This sounds like a reasonable request. But perhaps in this case he was delaying his decision. Later he might follow Jesus or maybe he will not follow Jesus.

Jesus shows that the work of the *kingdom will not wait. Those people who start this work must not turn back. The man who starts to plough must go forward to finish the task.

© 2013, Wycliffe Associates (UK)

This publication is in EasyEnglish Level B (2800 words).

April 2013

Visit our website: www.easyenglish.info

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