What is the meaning of Luke 4:28? On hearing this • The “this” reaches back to Jesus’ words in Luke 4:24-27, where He reminds His hometown that Elijah was sent to a widow in Sidon and Elisha healed Naaman the Syrian—both Gentiles. • By highlighting God’s grace to outsiders, Jesus exposes the people’s unbelief, mirroring the pattern seen in Isaiah 6:9-10 and fulfilled later when Paul turns to the Gentiles in Acts 13:46-48. • The listeners grasped the implication: the Messiah stands before them, yet He implies they share the same hard-heartedness as their forefathers (see Matthew 13:57; John 1:11). All the people in the synagogue • These are the men and families of Nazareth who watched Jesus grow up (Luke 4:16, 22). • Their familiarity bred contempt: instead of celebrating fulfilled prophecy, they stumble over His humble background—just as later crowds question, “Is this not the carpenter’s son?” (Matthew 13:55). • Their collective identity matters: Luke stresses that unbelief can become communal, like the mob at Pentecost before repentance (Acts 2:36-41) or the unified opposition Paul faces in Pisidian Antioch (Acts 13:45). Were enraged • “Enraged” signals more than irritation; it is a furious, violent anger that prompts immediate action. The next verse records, “They rose up, drove Him out of the town, and led Him to the brow of the hill… to throw Him off the cliff” (Luke 4:29). • This rage fulfills Simeon’s prophecy that the Child would be “a sign to be opposed” (Luke 2:34). • Scripture often links truth-filled rebuke with explosive backlash: – Stephen’s accusers “were furious” and stoned him (Acts 7:54-58). – Herodias nursed a grudge against John the Baptist and sought his death (Mark 6:19-27). – Jesus warns His followers of the same hatred in John 15:18-22. • Their anger does not thwart God’s plan; Luke closes the scene with Jesus “passing through the midst of them” (Luke 4:30), displaying sovereign protection until His appointed hour (John 7:30). summary Luke 4:28 shows that when Jesus confronts unbelief and pride, even a synagogue congregation can erupt in murderous fury. Their rage flows from rejecting gracious truth extended to Gentiles and refusing to honor the Messiah in their midst. The moment previews the broader pattern of resistance Jesus and His Church will face, yet it also underscores God’s unshakable purpose: no human wrath can derail His redemptive mission. |
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