The most comprehensive commentary on this subject may be found in the Matthew section, Matt. 4:1-11.
“The King James Version records
that after his baptism Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness ‘to be tempted of the devil. And when he had fasted forty
days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.’ (Matt. 4:1Matt. 4:2Matt. 4:1-2.)
”The Joseph Smith Translation gives a different view: ‘Then
Jesus was led up of the Spirit, into the wilderness, to be with God. And
when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, and had communed with God,
he was afterwards an hungered, and was left to be tempted of the devil.’ ([Joseph
Smith Translation of the Bible]. The Holy Scriptures: Inspired Version.
Independence, Mo.: Herald Publishing House, 1970 Matt.
4:1Matt. 4:2Matt. 4:1-2.)
”Furthermore, the account given by Luke states that Jesus was ‘forty days tempted of the devil’ (Luke 4:2Luke 4:2). The Joseph Smith Translation corrects
this by saying, ‘And after forty days, the devil
came unto him, to tempt him’ ([Joseph Smith Translation of the
Bible]. The Holy Scriptures: Inspired Version. Independence, Mo.: Herald
Publishing House, 1970 Luke 4:2Luke 4:2).
”The King James Version further states in both Matthew and Luke that ‘the devil taketh’ Jesus to a high mountain and
also to a ‘pinnacle of the temple.’ However,
according to the Joseph Smith Translation, it was not the devil but ‘the Spirit’ who transported Jesus to these
places, after which the devil then appeared to him. (Compare King James Version
Matt. 4:5Matt. 4:6Matt. 4:7Matt. 4:8Matt. 4:5-8
and Luke 4:5Luke 4:6Luke 4:7Luke 4:8Luke 4:9Luke
4:5-9 with [Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible]. The Holy Scriptures:
Inspired Version. Independence, Mo.: Herald Publishing House, 1970 Matt. 4:5Matt. 4:6Matt. 4:7Matt. 4:8Matt. 4:5-8 and Luke 4:5Luke 4:6Luke 4:7Luke 4:8Luke 4:9Luke 4:5-9.)
”Thus the Joseph Smith Translation contributes in three ways toward a
better understanding of Jesus' experience in the wilderness. First, his purpose
for going there was not to seek out the devil, but to commune with God; second,
he was not tempted for the forty days, but after the forty days were
over; and third, it was the Spirit of God, not the devil, who conveyed Jesus to
the mountain and the pinnacle. The Joseph Smith Translation account is also
more reasonable than that of the King James Version, for one would not fast and
seek solitude in order to be tempted of the devil, but would do so to commune
with God.” (Robert J. Matthews, Behold the Messiah [Salt Lake City:
Bookcraft, 1994], 188.)
“…we are confronted by two opposing
concepts of dominion that have always divided the human race. From the
beginning men have been asked to choose between them. Thus the Clementine
Recognitions tell us that Abel's claim to dominion was challenged by Cain, that
Noah was challenged by the giants (the 'Watchers’ of Enoch's day), Abraham by
Pharaoh, Isaac by the Philistines, Jacob by Esau, Moses by the magicians of
Egypt, Christ by the adversary in person, Simon Peter by Simon Magus, the
apostles by the whole world, and finally, in the last days, Christ by the
anti-Christ again. In each case the challenger argued from a position of
strength and promised ‘all the kingdoms of the
world’ with all their power and glory to those who would worship and
follow him, while the other offered the kingdom of heaven hereafter to those
who worship the Lord and serve him only. ("Luke
4:5"Luke 4:6"Luke 4:7"Luke 4:8Luke 4:5-8.)” (Nibley on
the Timely and the Timeless [Provo: BYU Religious Studies Center, 1978], 86
- 87.)
Neal A. Maxwell
“Perhaps the adversary hoped Jesus
would actually consider a mortal Messiahship in which He could commence His
reign at once. Perhaps the adversary hoped Jesus would reflect on how, by so
doing, He could accomplish so much good, fulfilling the very type of
Messiahship that, by the way, the Jews were confidently expecting.
“Satan obviously hoped Jesus would take second place, so Satan could have that preeminence once refused him. The rebel made his new bid for ascendancy, but, again, he was dispatched!” (Even As I Am [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1982], 75.)
“Your weakest point will be the point at which the Devil tries to tempt you, will try to win you, and if you have made it weak before you have undertaken to serve the Lord, he will add to that weakness. Resist him and you will gain in strength. He will tempt you in another point. Resist him and he becomes weaker and you become stronger, until you can say, no matter what your surroundings may be, ‘Get thee behind me Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.’ (Luke 4:8.)” (Conference Report, October 1959, General Priesthood Meeting 88.)
“The only power I know of that will bind Satan, or
render him powerless, is righteous living….When you have resisted a temptation
until it no longer becomes a temptation, then to that extent, Satan has lost
his power over you, and as long as you do not yield to him, to that degree he
is bound.
“11700For instance, if you have learned to pay tithing until it is no burden or no real temptation anymore, then to that extent you have bound Satan. The same is true in keeping the Word of Wisdom or living the laws of chastity, or the other laws of the gospel. Satan becomes powerless to you in that field.
“11700Then step by step, you may bind Satan now; you don't have to wait for the millennial reign.” (Conference Report, April 1970, Afternoon Meeting 142.)
“Willing obedience provides lasting protection against Satan’s alluring and tantalizing temptations. Jesus is our perfect example of obedience. Learn to do as He did when Satan tempted Him in the wilderness. Even though He was weakened by fasting, His answer was quick and firm: ‘Get thee behind me, Satan.’ Elder Neal A. Maxwell said this of the Savior’s example in resisting temptation: ‘Jesus noticed the tremendous temptations that came to Him, but He did not process and reprocess them. Instead, He rejected them promptly. If we entertain temptations, soon they begin entertaining us!’ When Satan comes calling, cast him out as quickly as possible. Do not let temptation even begin to entertain you.” (“Live in Obedience,” Ensign, May 1994, 40)
Hugh B. Brown
“I wish all of us could do what Jesus did. Some of us say, ‘Get thee behind me, Satan,’ but when we are struggling with some weakness, we turn right around and face him and expect him to stay behind us. By that I mean that we tempt ourselves by overestimating our strength.” (The Abundant Life [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1965], 292.)
“I heard a story in regard to a brother in Farmington a few years ago. The question of gathering the poor saints from England came up in an evening meeting.
“The brother had two cows, and he donated one for the purpose mentioned. In going home a spirit of darkness said unto him: ‘You have been very foolish. You have given away one of the two cows you possessed, while Brother so-and-so, a much wealthier man than you, has only given five dollars.
“’Now, you have done a wrong thing, a foolish thing.’ And thus was this brother tempted until he turned around and said, as though addressing himself to Satan: ‘If you don’t cease tempting me, I will go back to the bishop and give him the other one.’” (Church News, 15 January 1977, 16 as taken from Latter-day Commentary on the New Testament: The Four Gospels, by Pinegar, Bassett, and Earl, p. 43-44)
Howard W. Hunter
“In power and dignity, Jesus
commanded, ‘Get thee hence, Satan: for it is
written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.’ ("Matt. 4:10Matt. 4:10.) Anguished and defeated,
Satan turned and went away. ‘And when the devil had
ended all the temptation,’ Luke adds, ‘he
departed from him for a season.’ ("Luke 4:13Luke
4:13.) Matthew tells us that ‘angels came and
ministered unto him.’ ("Matt. 4:11Matt.
4:11.)
“As with Jesus, so with us, relief comes and miracles are enjoyed after the trial and temptation of our faith. There is, of course, running through all of these temptations, Satan's insidious suggestion that Jesus was not the Son of God, the doubt implied in the tempter's repeated use of the word if. ‘If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.’ ("Matt. 4:3Matt. 4:3.) ‘If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down.’ ("Matt. 4:6Matt. 4:6.) These, of course, foreshadowed that final, desperate temptation which would come three years later: ‘If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross.’ ("Matt. 27:40Matt. 27:40.) But Jesus patiently withstood that ploy also, knowing that in due time every knee would bow and every tongue confess.
“It was not necessary then, or ever, for Jesus to satisfy the curiosity of men, least of all unholy men. As victory in every encounter came to Jesus, so the pathos and tragedy of Lucifer's life is even more obvious: first, bold and taunting and tempting; then pleading and weak and desperate; and finally—ultimately—simply banished.
“The question for us now is, Will we succeed? Will we resist? Will we wear the victor's crown? Satan may have lost Jesus, but he does not believe he has lost us. He continues to tempt, taunt, and plead for our loyalty. We should take strength for this battle from the fact that Christ was victorious not as a God but as a man.” (Howard W. Hunter, That We Might Have Joy [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1994], 35.)
“This victory over the devil and his wiles, this
triumph over the cravings of the flesh, the harassing doubts of the mind, the
suggested reaching out for fame and material wealth, were great but not final
successes in the struggle between Jesus, the embodied God, and Satan, the
fallen angel of light. That Christ was subject to temptation during the period
of His association with the apostles He expressly affirmed. (Luke 22:28) That
His temptations extended even to the agony in Gethsemane will appear as we
proceed with this study. It is not given to the rest of us, nor was it given to
Jesus, to meet the foe, to fight and overcome in a single encounter, once for
all time. The strife between the immortal spirit and the flesh, between the
offspring of God on the one hand, the world and the devil on the other, is
persistent through life.” (Jesus the Christ, 125)
It is no coincidence that the power of the Spirit rested on Jesus as he began his ministry. His preparation has been immaculate. He has done all the right things to invite the Spirit into his life. He has kept the commandments of God. He has just communed with God for forty days. He has just fasted and prayed and meditated upon his assignment. He has accepted his calling. Finally, he has ‘quenched all the fiery darts of the wicked’ one. In all this, he has been the great Exemplar, for certainly we will also be blessed with ‘the power of the Spirit’ if we can follow this same pattern.
Luke 4:18 The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me
The
title of Christ literally means “the anointed one.” We might ask, “what
was Jesus anointed with?” Or, “who performed this anointing?” The answer comes
from Peter, ‘God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the
Holy Ghost and with power’ (Acts 10:38). Therefore, when Isaiah declares,
‘the spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath
anointed me,’ it means just what it says: Jesus was filled with the
Spirit because he was anointed by the Father. Our own anointings symbolize this
same outpouring of the Spirit. The pure olive oil is anointed in priesthood
administrations to symbolize the sanctification of the Spirit.
“As an illustration, when the young
Benjamite, Saul, was anointed Israel's king, Samuel ‘took
a vial of oil, and poured it upon his head,’ with the attendant promise
that ‘the Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee,’
and that Saul would be ‘turned into another man’ (1
Samuel 10:1, 6). In the anointing of David we read: ‘Samuel
took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the
Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward’ (1 Samuel
16:13)…’The oil with which the priests were anointed was understood by the
ancients to represent the necessity of those on the Lord's errand being filled
with his Spirit. More directly, the idea of anointing and the concept of
sanctification are consistently associated in the scriptures with the reception
of the Holy Ghost (Alma 13:12; 3 Nephi 27:20). The Holy Ghost is the
Sanctifier.’” (Joseph Fielding McConkie, Gospel Symbolism [Salt Lake
City: Bookcraft, 1999], 115.)
Luke 4:18 he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor
Beyond
his poetic eloquence, the words of Isaiah convey great meaning in very few
words. His prophecies can have both temporal and spiritual applications. The
spiritual application of this verse is a classic example. We know that Christ
intended to preach the gospel to the rich as well as the poor. Perhaps, more
appropriately, the Master was anointed to preach the gospel to the poor in
spirit. In an attempt to apply a more spiritual meaning, we might take the
liberty to render this verse as follows:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he hath
anointed me
To preach the gospel to the poor in spirit;
He hath sent me to heal those with a broken heart
and contrite spirit
To preach deliverance to the captives in spirit
prison
And recovering of sight to the spiritually
blind,
To set at liberty them that are bruised and
battered in spiritual bondage.
Such
a rendering emphasizes Christ’s atoning mission rather than the political deliverance
that the rabbinical interpretation implies.
Jeffrey R. Holland
“Perhaps no more beautiful passages have ever been
written about the Savior's atonement and crucifixion than those written by
Isaiah. We have already noted the first three verses of the 61st chapter of
Isaiah, the passages with which Christ announced his Messiahship to what must
surely have been a startled synagogue in the tranquil village of Nazareth.
Those verses would rank among the most moving and meaningful ever written,
particularly in light of their true Messianic meaning and the use that the
Savior himself made of them.” (Christ and the New Covenant: The Messianic
Message of the Book of Mormon [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1997],
89.)
Luke 4:18 he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted
J. Reuben Clark, Jr.
“When the Savior came upon the earth he had two
great missions; one was to work out the Messiahship, the atonement for the
fall, and…the other was the work which he did among his brethren and sisters in
the flesh by way of relieving their sufferings…He left as a heritage to those
two great things—work for the relief of the ills and the suffering of humanity,
and the teaching of spiritual truths which should bring us back into the
presence of our Heavenly Father.” (Conference Report, Apr. 1937, 22 as taken
from Latter-day Commentary on the New Testament: The Four Gospels, by
Pinegar, Bassett, and Earl, p. 66)
Bruce C. Hafen
“Atonement/By thus referring so broadly to the bruised and brokenhearted, the Savior pointed toward his eventual Atonement as the healing power not only for sin but also for carelessness, inadequacy, and the entire range of mortal bitterness. The Atonement is not just for sinners.
“Atonement/I believe there is in the Church
today a compelling need for us to teach and understand the Atonement more fully
than we do…after all we can do, the Atonement can fill that which is empty,
straighten our bent parts, and make strong that which is weak.
“The Savior's victory can compensate not only for our sins but also for our inadequacies; not only for our deliberate mistakes but also for our sins committed in ignorance, our errors of judgment, and our unavoidable imperfections. Our ultimate aspiration is more than being forgiven of sin—we seek to become holy, endowed affirmatively with Christlike attributes, at one with him, like him. Divine grace is the only source that can finally fulfill that aspiration, after all we can do.” (The Broken Heart: Applying the Atonement to Life's Experiences [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1989], 1, 20)
“The Lord has promised to heal our broken hearts and ‘to set at liberty them that are bruised’ (Luke 4:18); to give power to the faint, to heal the wounded soul, and to turn our weakness into strength (see Isa. 40:29; Jacob 2:8; Ether 12:27); to take upon Him our pains and sicknesses, to blot out our transgressions if we repent, and loose the bands of death (see Alma 7:11–13). He promised that if we will build our lives upon His rock, the devil will have no power over us (see Hel. 5:12). And He has vowed that He will never leave us or forsake us (see Heb. 13:5). There is simply no mortal equivalent. Not in terms of commitment, power, or love. He is our only chance.
“Our responsibility is to learn to draw upon the power of the Atonement. Otherwise we walk through mortality relying solely on our own strength. And to do that is to invite the frustration of failure and to refuse the most resplendent gift in time or eternity. ‘For what doth it profit a man if a gift is bestowed … and he receive not the gift?’ (D&C 88:33). My brother and I would have been foolish to not seek or accept our father’s help when we were stranded. Likewise, the Lord is our advocate, and He ‘knoweth the weakness of man and how to succor them who are tempted’ (D&C 62:1). In other words, He knows how to succor all of us. But we activate the power of the Atonement in our lives. We do this by first believing in Him, by repenting, by obeying His commandments, by partaking of sacred ordinances and keeping covenants, and by seeking after Him in fasting and prayer, in the scriptures, and in the temple.” (“Our Only Chance,” Ensign, May 1999, 67)
“He read these verses, which describe His own mission. Among other things, His mission, He tells us, was to liberate the captives and to open their prison doors. This part of His mission He did not fulfill while living in the flesh, so far as we have any account, but we have an account that He fulfilled it afterwards. Peter tells us that He preached to the spirits in prison—those that Job speaks of when he says that they should be brought forth out of the pit and out of their prison. Jesus went and opened their prison doors; He led captivity captive; He brought joy to the many millions that were waiting in prison, for His coming, who were there because at one time they had rejected the Gospel. They belonged to the antediluvians, and when Noah preached the Gospel to them they rejected him; hence they had a long time to wait, but finally the joyful tidings came to their prison house. Jesus went and preached the Gospel to them, and salvation was offered to them once more. They had learned by sad experience what it meant to reject the Gospel.” (Conference Report, October 1900, Second Day—Morning Session 25.)
“Here then we have an account of
our Savior preaching to the spirits in prison, to spirits that had been
imprisoned from the days of Noah. And what did he preach to them? That they
were to stay there? Certainly not. Let his own declaration testify: ‘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’ ["#Luke 4:18Luke
4:18]. Isaiah has it, ‘to bring out the prisoners
from the prison, and them that sit in darkness from the prison house’ ["#Isa. 42:7Isa. 42:7]. It is very evident from this
that he not only went to preach to them but to deliver, or bring them out of
the prison house.” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 219)
“This doctrine that the Lord will
free the prisoners from their prison, that he will deliver them from the depths
of their dungeon, and that they will come forth from the pit and be free—free
from the sorrow of sin, free from the chains of hell, free from that spiritual
death which is to be dead as pertaining to the things of righteousness—all this
is part of the glorious doctrine of salvation for the dead, and it includes the
fact that our Lord ministered personally to the spirits in prison.
“The doctrine of salvation for the dead is that all who die without a knowledge of the gospel, without a knowledge of Christ and his atoning sacrifice, without having the opportunity to believe and obey in this life and thereby qualify for celestial salvation—the doctrine of salvation for the dead is that all such, if they would have received the gospel with all of their hearts, had it been available to them, all such shall hear and believe and obey in the spirit world and thereby become heirs of the celestial kingdom of heaven. Gospel ordinances—baptisms, endowments, marriages, sealings—will be performed for them vicariously by those yet in mortality.” (The Promised Messiah: The First Coming of Christ [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1978], 240.)
“The next phrase, ‘and recovering of sight to the blind,’ also contains a highly significant word. Jesus did
not talk about giving sight to the blind, but about recovering
sight to the blind. These are people who once saw but now are blinded. I
suspect that the blinding could come from many kinds of darkness—sin, guilt,
shame, low self-esteem, ignorance, and so on. It doesn't really matter what the
cause of darkness is if a person cannot see. But in all cases Christ provides
the illumination to help us see again.” (Gerald N. Lund, Jesus Christ, Key
to the Plan of Salvation [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1991], 23.)
Luke 4:21 This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears
Let’s
take a moment to imagine this scene. Jesus had lived in Nazareth most of his
life. As Nazareth is a small town, there was probably only one synagogue for
him to attend. We might imagine that he dutifully attended this very synagogue
with his family. They sat together as the Torah and Talmud were read and
discussed. As the oldest son, he probably helped Mary with controlling his
younger siblings. Jesus would have drawn no more attention to himself than any
other member of the synagogue. His presence was not commanding. He did not
participate in scriptural commentary. He just sat quietly, waiting ‘upon the Lord for the time of his ministry to come’
(JST Matt 3:24).
What
incredible patience! Over the many years of worship service, Jesus must have
heard many Messianic prophecies. Likely, he came to the gradual realization
that they were speaking of a mission that he was to perform. What was going
through his mind as he first listened to the story of Moses and the burning
bush? Did this story seem too familiar? Gradually, he realized that it was he
that spoke to Moses on Sinai! What an incredible realization! Undoubtedly, he
knew the scriptures better than the rabbis. He could neither be taught by them,
nor needed he ‘that any man should teach him’
(JST Matt. 3:25). How frustrating it must have been for him to sit there over
the years, listening to the uninspired and shortsighted interpretations of his
synagogue! How easy it would have been for him to stand up and declare the
meaning of the scriptures. How easy it would have been for him to give new
meaning to the Old Law. Yet, with the patience of Job, he waited upon the Lord.
He had plenty of time to think of what scripture he would use to introduce his
ministry. Finally, he could begin to preach. His first message is to tell them
what he has known for decades—that this unassuming son of Mary was in fact the
unequalled Son of God.
James E. Talmage
“[Jesus]…as was His custom, attended the synagog
service on the Sabbath day. Many times as a boy and man He had sat in that
house of worship, listening to the reading of the law and the prophets and to
the commentaries or Targums relating thereto, as delivered by appointed
readers; but now, as a recognized teacher of legal age He was eligible to take
the reader's place. On this occasion He stood up to read, when the service had
reached the stage at which extracts from the prophetical books were to be read
to the congregation. The minister in charge handed Him the roll, or book, of
Isaiah; He turned to the part known to us as the beginning of the sixty-first
chapter, and read: ‘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.’ Handing the book to the
minister, He sat down. It was allowable for the reader in the service of the
Jewish synagog to make comments in explanation of what had been read; but to do
so he must sit. When Jesus took His seat the people knew that He was about to
expound the text, and ‘the eyes of all them that
were in the synagogue were fastened on him.’ The scripture He had quoted
was one recognized by all classes as specifically referring to the Messiah, for
whose coming the nation waited. The first sentence of our Lord's commentary was
startling; it involved no labored analysis, no scholastic interpretation, but a
direct and unambiguous application: ‘This day is
this scripture fulfilled in your ears.’” (Jesus the Christ, 167.)
Luke 4:22 Is not this Joseph’s son?
Neal A. Maxwell
“They were truly impressed. Yet
they asked, ‘Is not this Joseph's son?’
“Mark's writings, too, indicate how impressed His own people were as Jesus spoke to them in their own country. They marveled at His wisdom and His works. No doubt they had heard of His miracles. ("mark 6:1"mark 6:2"mark 6:3"mark 6:4"mark 6:5"mark 6:6Mark 6:1-6.) Matthew says they were astonished at His ‘wisdom and these mighty works’ ("matt. 13:53"matt. 13:54"matt. 13:55"matt. 13:56"matt. 13:57"matt. 13:58Matthew 13:53-58).
“Yet all of this was discounted or dismissed by some because in their view, after all, ‘Jesus was Joseph the carpenter's son.’
“In His sermon in one synagogue, Jesus boldly declared His Lordship. He was rejected, and some of the people even tried to throw Him off the brow of a hill…Familiarity got in the way of their recognizing Jesus' divinity.
“Instead of truly assessing Him, they used labels—’the carpenter's son’—to classify Him. Past proximity caused townsfolk and kinsmen alike to regard Him with indifference.
“In addition to the problems caused
by familiarity and proximity, something else was present. Though subtle, this
insight must not escape us. There was apparently no objection to Jesus' Sermon
on the Mount. However, the Sermon at Capernaum (John 6) caused a violent
reaction. Why? Because in the sermon at Capernaum, Jesus declared His Lordship!
The more declarative He was, the more restive His audience and the more
attrition among His followers. The more specific His message, the more
difficult He was to follow.” (Sermons Not Spoken [Salt Lake City:
Bookcraft, 1985], 41-43.)
Luke 4:23 Physician, heal thyself
Bruce R. McConkie
“A common rabbinnical proverb, which as used here
seems to mean: 'You have performed miracles in Cana and Capernaum, but none
here, and yet you are a native of Nazareth. Why can't we see a sign, some great
exhibition of your purported power? Don't you know that charity begins at home,
that unless the physician heals himself of his own diseases we cannot believe
he has power to heal others?'” (Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 3
vols. [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1965-1973], 1: 162.)
Luke 4:24-28 No prophet is accepted in his own country
Noah
was laughed to scorn by riotous crowds. Abraham was rejected by his idolatrous
father in Ur of the Chaldees. Moses was not accepted in the court of Pharaoh.
Lehi was threatened with his life. Joseph had no support in Palmyra. And Jesus
was almost murdered in Nazareth. The list could be made much longer, but the
pattern is clear—those too close to the prophets, either in time or in space,
cannot see them for what they are. Prophets appear too much like ordinary men.
They have brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers. There is nothing about
them to suggest divine approval. They have new and unpopular ideas. So it was
with Jesus.
The
examples of rejected prophets which the Master uses are the stories of Elias
(or Elijah) and Eliseus (or Elisha). Luke’s rendition of this story is most
fitting. As the gospel writer who is most concerned with the salvation of the
Gentiles, he alone includes this story of Jesus. The message is that the chosen
people had rejected these two prophets. Elijah had to go to a gentile of
Sarepta to find faith sufficient to sustain him through the famine. Elisha
could have healed many lepers in Israel, but only the gentile from Syria had
the faith to be healed. What a slam! The town folk of Nazareth had been
insulted and they knew it. Jesus was declaring the glaring truth—that if he
were to preach in Sarepta or Syria, among the Gentiles, he would be accepted,
but among the Jews in Nazareth, there was no hope. Hence, ‘when they heard these things, [they] were filled with wrath.’
Luke 4:28 they in the synagogue when they heard these things, were filled with wrath
Theodore M. Burton
“Thus Jesus Christ was rejected by the people because he told them what saving work he would do for the captives then confined to a spiritual prison and for those who had been bruised in their souls through iniquity. Instead of rejoicing in this liberation, the people hated Jesus for being so presumptuous as to tell them that he had been anointed to open the prison doors. Even his very life was threatened. Nevertheless, he continued to preach this doctrine even more clearly, in the hopes that people would understand him and the importance of the work he had been called to do.” (Conference Report, October 1970, Afternoon Meeting 34.)
Luke 4:30 he passing through the midst of them went his way
Bruce R. McConkie
“How he escaped the wrath and
murderous designs of the Nazarene mob is not recorded. Luke says simply: ‘But he passing through the midst of them went his way.’
‘Perhaps His silence, perhaps the calm nobleness of His bearing, perhaps the
dauntless innocence of His gaze overawed them. Apart from anything
supernatural, there seems to have been in the presence of Jesus a spell of
mystery and majesty which even His most ruthless and hardened enemies
acknowledged, and before which they involuntarily bowed. It was to this that He
owed His escape when the maddened Jews in the Temple took up stones to stone
Him; it was this that made the bold and bigoted officers of the Sanhedrin unable
to arrest Him as He taught in public during the Feast of Tabernacles at
Jerusalem; it was this that made the armed band of His enemies, at His mere
look, fall before Him to the ground in the Garden of Gethsemane. Suddenly,
quietly, He asserted His freedom, waved aside His captors, and overawing them
by His simple glance, passed through their midst unharmed. Similar events have
occurred in history, and continue still to occur. There is something in
defenseless and yet dauntless dignity that calms even the fury of a mob.’
(Farrar, p. 175)” (The Mortal Messiah: From Bethlehem to Calvary, 4
vols. [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1979-1981], 2: 27.)
Luke 4:34 Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus
of Nazareth?
“We are amazed that everywhere he went the forces of evil went before him and that they knew him from the beginning, even if mortals did not. At the same time that some people were saying, ‘Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know?’ (John 6:42), the devils were calling out, ‘Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? [We] know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God’ (Luke 4:34).
“We stand all amazed as these forces of evil were cast out and defeated, even as the lame were made to walk, the blind to see, the deaf to hear, the infirm to stand. Indeed we are all amazed at every movement and moment—as every generation from Adam to the end of the world must be.” (“I Stand All Amazed,” Ensign, Aug. 1986, 68)