Bible Study series: Luke 7:24-35. John was a great prophet, but the least in the kingdom was greater than he. He was a transitional figure.
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In the next link to the original chapter, I comment more and offer the Greek text. At the bottom you will find a “Summary and Conclusion” section geared toward discipleship. Check it out!
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Let’s begin.
Scripture: Luke 7:24-35
24 After the messengers of John left, he began to speak to the crowds about John. “What did you go out to the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 25 But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Look! The ones who are in splendid clothes and luxury are in palaces! 26 But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and greater than a prophet! 27 This is the one of whom it was written,
‘Look! I send my messenger before you,
Who shall prepare your path ahead of you!’ [Mal. 3:1]
28 I tell you that no one among those born of women is greater than John. But the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he!” 29 And all the people who heard, even the tax collectors, declared that God is just, since they had been baptized by the baptism of John. 30 But the Pharisees and the legal experts rejected the purpose of God for themselves, since they were not baptized by him.
31 “To what will I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? 32 They are like children in the marketplace sitting and calling to one another, who say,
‘We played the pipe for you, and you did not dance!
We sang a funeral dirge, and you did not weep!’
33 For John the Baptist had come neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon!’ 34 The Son of Man came eating and drinking wine, and you say, ‘Look! a man who is a glutton and wine drinker, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ 35 And wisdom is vindicated by all of her children.” (Luke 7:24-35)
Comments:
24-27:
Jesus asks a series of question to the crowds. Did you go out to the Jordan River to look at reed plants swaying in the wind? In other words, did you just go on a nature walk, just to see reeds in the wind? No, of course you didn’t. That would have been ridiculous, and I know you did not.
Alternatively, the question could mean that John was more than a reed shaken by the wind. He had firm convictions. But that moves us from plant life to humanity in the next verses. The leap may be too far, so it is best to interpret this question as his asking about an absurd nature tour (Bock, p. 670).
But you decide which interpretation is better.
Then Jesus asked a related question. Did you go all the way out to the Jordan River to find a man looking aristocratic, dressed in fine clothes? If you did, then you were being absurd. No, you did not go out there expecting a rich man, because they live in king’s palaces. I know you did not go out there for that reason. It was a rhetorical question.
“look!” (in vv. 25 and 27): see my comments at v. 12.
“send”: see v. 20 for deeper comments.
But why did you go out there, then? To see a prophet? Now we’re getting warmer. Yes, but he was more than a prophet. Then Jesus quoted a verse from Malachi, which foretold the spirit of Elijah would come and prepare the way.
(No, this is not reincarnation, because in no way would a spirit wait that long to be reborn into the world. The Bible says that when a man dies, he faces judgment; he is not reborn (Heb. 9:27). So please don’t use the Bible to justify a belief in reincarnation, which the Bible does not support.
Please see my post on Hinduism:
Ten Big Differences between Christianity and Other Religions
But this is a digression. Let’s move on.
In any case, John fulfilled biblical prophecy, along the same pattern that Jesus was in the process of fulfilling his Messianic prophecies. John pointed to Jesus, and so did his ministry.
“Luke links John and Jesus in Luke 1-2. There are only two periods for Luke: promise and fulfillment. John simply serves as the bridge from one era to the another. Thus, Jesus describes John as great” (Bock p. 672).
28-30:
“kingdom of God”: What is it? As noted in other verses that mention the kingdom in this commentary, the kingdom is God’s power, authority, rule, reign and sovereignty. He exerts all those things over all the universe but more specifically over the lives of people. It is his invisible realm, and throughout the Gospels Jesus is explaining and demonstrating what it looks like before their very eyes and ears. It is gradually being manifested from the realm of faith to the visible realm, but it is not political in the human sense. It is a secret kingdom because it does not enter humanity with trumpets blaring and full power and glory. This grand display will happen when Jesus comes back. In his first coming, it woos people to surrender to it. We can enter God’s kingdom by being born again (John 3:3, 5), by repenting (Matt. 4:17; Mark 1:5), by having the faith of children (Matt. 18:4; Mark 10:14-15), by being transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the Son whom God loves (Col. 1:13), and by seeing their own poverty and need for the kingdom (Matt. 5:3; Luke 6:20; Jas. 2:5).
It also includes the Great Reversal in Luke 1:51-53, where Mary said that Jesus and his kingdom were bringing it to the world. The powerful and people of high status are to be brought low, while the humble and those of low status are to be raised up. It also fulfills the reversal in 2:34, where Simeon prophesied that Jesus was appointed for the rising and falling of many. It is the right-side-up kingdom, but upside-down from a worldly perspective. Jesus would cause the fall of the mighty and the rise of the needy, and the rich would be lowered, and the poor raised up. It is the down elevator and up elevator. Those at the top will take the down elevator, and those at the bottom will take the up elevator.
Here it is the already and not-yet. The kingdom has already come in part at his First Coming, but not yet with full manifestation and glory and power until his Second Coming.
Bible Basics about the Kingdom of God
Questions and Answers about Kingdom of God
Basic Definition of Kingdom of God
1 Introducing the Kingdom of God (begin a ten-part series)
Jesus is the transition from John, who is the greatest man born of women to his new kingdom. John was part of the old order, the old covenant. In contrast, the least one—literally “the smallest”—in the new kingdom is greater than he. People who are reborn, spiritually, into the kingdom and greater than John, who was the greatest born of women. This movement from one dispensation to the next does not exclude John from the kingdom, because all the prophets will be in the kingdom (Luke 13:28).
In v. 29, “even the tax collectors”: you can learn more about them at this link:
Quick Reference to Jewish Groups in Gospels and Acts
The verb is used when God justifies the sinner when he repents and puts his faith in Christ. That direction goes from God (subject) to man (object). Here, however, the verb goes from man (subject) to God (object). People proclaim or acknowledge or declare that God is just. We describe who he really is. He calls us what we grow into.
Why did the people proclaim him to be just or righteous? Because the people, even tax collectors, were baptized by John. They were insightful enough to see what God was doing. They were humble enough to go out to the Jordan and surrender to God and John’s baptism.
In contrast, the Pharisees and experts in the law were too good for John. They could not see what God was doing through him.
Something about them, follows:
“Pharisees”:
Quick Reference to Jewish Groups in Gospels and Acts
Both groups were the Watchdogs of Theology and Behavior (cf. Garland, p. 243). The problem which Jesus had with them can be summed up in Eccl. 7:16: “Be not overly righteous.” He did not quote that verse, but to him they were much too enamored with the finer points of the law, while neglecting its spirit (Luke 11:37-52; Matt. 23:1-36). Instead, he quoted this verse from Hos. 6:6: “Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matt. 9:13; 12:7, ESV). Overdoing righteousness damages one’s relationship with God and others.
It is a sad fact that people—even extra-spiritual ones—can miss God’s purpose or will for them. They are too smart for their own good.
“purpose”: it is the noun boulē (pronounced boo-lay), and BDAG, a thick Greek lexicon, defines the term thus: (1) “that which one thinks about as possibility for action, plan, purpose, intention”; (2) “that which one decides, resolution, decision”; (3) it can even be a council that takes up proposals and deliberates, council meeting. Here it is the first definition.
31-34:
This pericope or section uses the old-fashioned simile. This is similar to or like that. (Note that the word simile is related to similar.) To who or what will Jesus compare the people of his generation?
In v. 33, “has a demon”: the Greek really does read “has.” “Demonized” is not the only verb to express a demonic attack (see Mark 3:22, 30; 7:25; 9:17; Luke 4:33; 7:33; 8:27; Acts 8:7; 16:16; 19:13). But I see no substantive difference between the two verbs and are used interchangeably in Luke 8:27, 36. What is more relevant is the soul of the person being attacked and how deep the attack goes because the person gives the demon access.
“generation”: it has a pejorative sense, as seen in Deut. 1:35; 32:5, 20). Like the generation of ancient Israelites, this generation is faithless and crooked (Luke 9:41 and evil (11:29-32; see Acts 2:40); but worse “it is destined to be damned for all the innocent blood that has been shed (11:50-51) and to reject the Son of Man (17:25)” (Garland, comment on 7:31).
These people are like children who try out two styles of music, the celebration and the dirge (a slow, solemn, mournful piece of music). In no case does anyone respond in the way the children expected and even demanded.
“look!”: see my comments at v. 12.
Now who are the children who play and who are the unresponsive?
Three interpretations (Bock, p. 681) :
First, when the Pharisees and legal experts play their two tunes, the people don’t respond. They don’t weep or dance, or they do so at the wrong times. The problem with this interpretation is that the next verses about Jesus’s celebratory lifestyle and John’s austere lifestyle seem out of place, too abrupt, as it jumps from one idea to the next.
Second, the unresponsive are Jesus and John. When the children (Pharisees and legal experts) played the sad song, Jesus did not mourn but partied with food and wine, with sinners and tax collectors, for the purpose calling them to repentance (Luke 5:32). The Pharisees and legal experts accused him of being a partier, too relaxed. When they played the happy song, John did not dance, but he maintained his ascetic life. They blindly claimed he had a demon, not knowing what they were talking about. Neither John nor Jesus listened to either tune, but the tune of the Spirit. The Pharisees and the legal experts just wanted control. John and Jesus slipped out of their grasp. The religious leaders never had them in the first place.
Third, Jesus played the joyful tune, but the people (this generation) did not respond. Then John played the sad song, but the people did not respond to him either. John lived the ascetic life, and people rejected him. Jesus lived a joyous life, eating and drinking, but the people rejected him, as well.
Bock is right (as usual):
Thus the speakers in 7:32 cannot be Jesus with his supporters and John with his supporters. Rather, the Jewish leadership is complaining that John and Jesus do not follow their desires. From the leaders’ perspective, God’s messengers [John and Jesus] are at fault for not listening to them. The leaders do not wish to enter the game unless it is played according to their rules. This generation is like children who will play only if they can make the rules. Thus, the third view is preferred to the second, because the complainers picture rejection (7:30), not just lack of cooperation. The irony is strong in the parable. It is the desire of the leaders to dictate and not listen to God’s messengers. (pp. 681-82)
Liefeld and Pao offer this interpretation, which makes sense (to me): “The obdurate opposition to each of God’s messengers is described as childish fickleness (v. 32, cf. their earlier attempt to play John against Jesus, 5:33). The children’s words are those annoyed leaders who want their friends to play ‘grownup’ and, when the leaders play cheerful or sad music, pretend that they are at a celebration, such as a wedding, or at a funeral. They became petulant when their friends refuse to play. Jesus and John, when in confrontation with the Jewish leaders, refused to ‘play their game’ and so are the object of their taunts” (comments on v. 32).
But you can decide.
See the commentators in the parallel passage in Matt. 11:2-19. Their comments are excellent:
“These people find John too sociable with the right people, and Jesus too sociable with the wrong people” (Garland, comment on 7:35, citing Alexander Findlay’s commentary on Luke). Alternative version: John is too austere and Jesus is not austere enough.
“wine drinker”: it can be translated as “drunkard.” Associating with sinners like them could get him stoned in certain circumstances (Deut. 21:20-21). Those verses in the old law speak of a rebellious son who hangs out with gluttons and drunkards. The remedy is to stone him to death.
Note: if you used to be a drug user or alcoholic before you were saved, then God will call you to be a John the Baptist. No more alcohol or other chemicals! Be austere. However, if you have been beat down by oppressive legalism as you grew up in a strict church, then God may call you to enjoy your life, though without intoxication. Either way, let your Spirit-filled, Bible-inspired conscience be your guide.
“tax collectors”: see v. 29 for more comments.
“sinners”:
Bible Basics about Sin: Word Studies
Human Sin: Original and Our Committed Sin
Do you fail to conform to certain standards? Maybe you did break the demands of moral and religious law. Pray and repent, and God will accept you.
“Son of Man”: it both means the powerful, divine Son of man (Dan. 7:13-14) and the human son of man—Ezekiel himself—in the book of Ezekiel (numerous references). Jesus was and still is in heaven both divine and human. It can be rightly translated as “Son of Humanity.
4. Titles of Jesus: The Son of Man
35:
This refers back to vv. 29-30, and John’s baptism and the purpose of God. The people were baptized, but the religious leaders did not see the need for it, certainly not from the likes of John, the scruffy, nonconformist prophet. However, wisdom is justified by the results. What has God’s wisdom produced? The disciples and demands of Pharisees and legal experts, or the disciples and teaching of John and Jesus? The answer is obvious. The parallel verse in Matthew has “wisdom is proven right by her deeds” (NIV). Whether deeds or children, the results are what matter.
“wisdom”: Let’s define it broadly. BDAG is considered the authoritative Greek lexicon, and it translates the noun sophia (pronounced soh-fee-ah and used 51 times) as “the capacity to understand and function accordingly—wisdom.”
So biblical wisdom is very practical. It is not like the wisdom of the Greek philosophers, which was very abstract. But let’s not make too much of the differences. In the classical Greek lexicon, sophia can also mean: “skill in handcraft and art … knowledge of, acquaintance with a thing … sound judgment, intelligence, practical wisdom.” In a bad sense it can mean “cunning, shrewdness, craft” (Liddell and Scott).
“vindicated”: it is the same verb as in v. 29. See my comments there. Here it could be translated as “proven right.” Either one is fine.
Liefeld and Pao: “The concluding saying probably means that those who respond to wisdom prove its correctness. These ‘children’ of wisdom may point to the common people and sinners who responded to Jesus’ message (cf. v. 29), and the irony noted as the sinners are now considered to be the wise ones. In light of its immediate context, however, ‘children’ points ultimately to Jesus and John the Baptist” (comment on v. 35).
GrowApp for Luke 7:24-35
1. When have you missed God’s purpose for your life? How did God redeem you and set you on his new (and better) path?
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11. Eyewitness Testimony in Luke’s Gospel
3. Church Fathers and Luke’s Gospel
2. Archaeology and the Synoptic Gospels
1. The Historical Reliability of the Gospels: Introduction to Series
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