What is the meaning of Luke 24:37? But they were startled – “But they were startled…” (Luke 24:37) follows immediately after Jesus suddenly stood among the disciples in the locked room (Luke 24:36; John 20:19). – Even the most devoted followers were taken off guard when the risen Lord appeared without warning. – Scripture frequently records godly people jolted by an unexpected encounter with the supernatural: • Zechariah in the temple (Luke 1:12) • The shepherds at Christ’s birth (Luke 2:9) • The women at the empty tomb (Mark 16:5) – These instances remind us that God’s interventions often arrive unannounced, overturning normal expectations and underscoring His sovereignty. and frightened – The disciples moved from surprise to fear. “Frightened” captures a deeper, almost paralyzing alarm (cf. Matthew 14:26 when the twelve saw Jesus walking on the sea). – Their fear highlights humanity’s instinctive reaction to the holy. When Isaiah beheld the Lord, he cried, “Woe to me!” (Isaiah 6:5). When Ezekiel saw the glory, he fell facedown (Ezekiel 1:28). – Fear also exposed their lingering unbelief. Earlier, Jesus had repeatedly foretold His resurrection (Luke 9:22; 18:33). Their terror shows how slowly truth can migrate from mind to heart. – Yet Christ did not scold them first; He offered peace (Luke 24:36) and proof (Luke 24:39-40). His gentle response models how the Lord meets frail faith with reassurance. thinking they had seen a spirit – First-century Jews acknowledged a spiritual realm of angels and spirits (Acts 23:8). Lacking a category for bodily resurrection in everyday experience, they defaulted to “ghost.” – Jesus answered their misconception by displaying tangible, physical evidence: • “Touch Me and see; a spirit does not have flesh and bones” (Luke 24:39). • He ate broiled fish in their presence (Luke 24:41-43). – By inviting touch and sharing a meal, the Lord affirmed His literal, bodily resurrection, fulfilling Psalm 16:10 and Isaiah 53:10-12. – Their initial misinterpretation actually strengthens our confidence: eyewitnesses did not invent a resurrection they expected; they testified to what overturned their assumptions (Acts 1:3). summary Luke 24:37 captures the raw honesty of the disciples’ first reaction to the risen Christ—startled surprise, fearful awe, and a mistaken conclusion. Their human frailty magnifies the certainty of Jesus’ bodily resurrection, for the Lord patiently replaced panic with peace and conjecture with concrete evidence. The verse therefore underscores both the reliability of the eyewitness accounts and the gracious condescension of the Savior who turns fear into unshakable faith. |
    |