Luke Chapter 4[1]
Yeshua had just completed his Mikva/Baptism
and now was ready to enter into His ministry.
Peggy Pryor In her
Article on Mikva/Immersion says this.
All Kohanim/priests were required to go through an immersion as
part of the consecration/installation ceremony as we have previously seen in
Exodus 29:4, before assuming the duties of the priesthood. A man had to be 30
years of age and a descendent from Aaron. We see that the priestly line of Yeshua/Jesus
came from His mother who was related to Elisheva/Elizabeth a
descendent of Aaron (Luke 1:5). Yeshua/Jesus was not an exception,
before entering into His ministry He had to be immersed, choosing His cousin Yochanan
haMatvil/John the Baptist to be the witness. Not because Yeshua/Jesus
was tomeh/ ritually unclean but because he was making a change of
status to a higher degree of Holiness. It was customary also for anyone going
on a fast to be immersed. In Mathew 4:1-2, it is written:
Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. {2} And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered.
Many
sermons have been preached on this one subject but the simple truth is Yeshua/Jesus had to carry out every
requirement in Torah or He would not have been the perfect Passover lamb that
takes away the sin of the world.
Luk 4:1
Yeshua, full of the
Holy Spirit, returned from the Yarden, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness
Yeshua had the fullness
of the Ruach HaKodesh dwelling within Him and in obedience went into the
wilderness to fast and prepare for His ministry. If Yeshua had to fast, pray and prepare for ministry, shouldn’t
we as well follow His example?
Luk 4:2 for
forty days, being
tempted by the devil.
He ate nothing in those days. Afterward, when they were completed, he was
hungry.
Forty Days: 4 men fasted 40 days:
Moses (Deuteronomy 9:9, 28, 25; 10:10)
Joshua (Exodus 24:13-18; 32: 15-17)
Elijah (1 Kings 19:7-19)
Yeshua (Matthew 4:1-11. Luke 1:1-22
Fasting was done in the
Tenach was a part of prayer and consecration to YHWH. If Yeshua fasted before entering His ministry, fasting and prayer
should be just as much a part of our lives as well as His Talmidim as well?
Jewish New Testament Commentary:
The Adversary. Greek diabolos (usually transliterated “devil”) translates Hebrew satan, “adversary, opponent, rebel.” In Isaiah 14:11–15, between the lines of a taunt against the king of Babylon, can be read the downfall of a creature who was once both powerful and beautiful but who in pride rebelled against God and came to oppose him; Ezekiel 28:11–19 is similar. On the other hand, Job 1–2 is explicit in showing Satan as the opponent of both God and man. In Genesis 3 as the serpent he tempts Adam and Eve to disobey God; equating the Adversary with the serpent is clear from Rv 12:9, which speaks of “that ancient serpent, also known as the Devil and Satan (the Adversary), the deceiver of the whole world.” The satan is a created being, in no way equal to his Creator; yet he is the background source of all sin, evil and opposition to God. The book of Job teaches that the reason why an omnipotent and good God permits such opposition is a mystery, but that God remains in perfect and unthreatened control. This we see most clearly in Job 40–41, where “Behemoth” and “Leviathan” are seen to be stand-ins for the Adversary, because when God challenges Job to deal with them he repents “in dust and ashes” (Job 42:6). Both the Tanakh and the New Testament take for granted the existence of a supernatural realm of good, obedient angels who serve God and evil, rebellious ones (demons) who serve the Adversary. [2]
Yeshua defeats hasatan’s temptations by quoting
the Torah/Gods
teaching and Instructions
Luk 4:3 The
devil said to him, "If
you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread."
Luk 4:4 Yeshua answered him, saying, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.'"
Luk 4:5 The
devil, leading him up on a high mountain, showed him all the kingdoms of the
world in a moment of time.
Luk 4:6 The
devil said to him, "I will give you all this authority, and their glory,
for it has been delivered to me; and I give it to whomever I want.
Luk 4:7 If you therefore will worship
before me, it will all be yours."
Luk 4:8 Yeshua answered him, "Get behind me Hasatan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.'"
Luk 4:9 He
led him to Yerushalayim, and set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to
him, "If you are the
Son of God, cast yourself down from here,
Luk 4:10
for it is written, 'He will give his angels charge concerning you, to guard
you;'
Luk 4:11
and, 'On their hands they will bear you up, lest perhaps you dash your
foot against a stone.'"
Luk 4:12 Yeshua answering, said to him, "It has been said, 'You shall not tempt the Lord your God.'"
Jewish New Testament Commentary:
4–10 The Tanakh, the Old Testament—rendered “Scripture” or “it is written” in most translations. The Hebrew word “Tanakh” is an acronym formed from the first letters of the three parts of the Hebrew Bible:
(1) Torah (“Teaching”)—the Five Books of Moses or Pentateuch (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy).
(2) N<vi<im (“Prophets”)—the historical books (Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings), the three Major Prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel), and the twelve Minor Prophets.
(3) K<tuvim (“Writings”)—Psalms, Proverbs, Job, the “five scrolls” (Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther), Daniel, Ezra-Nehemiah and Chronicles.
If you are the Son of God. Satan presents Yeshua with each of the three categories of temptation named by Yochanan (1 Yn 2:15–17&N): “the desires of the old nature” or “flesh” (Ro 7:5&N)—“If you are the Son of God, order these stones to become bread”; “the desires of the eyes”—the Adversary … showed him all the kingdoms of the world in all their glory, and said to him, “All this I will give you if you will bow down and worship me”; “and the pretensions of life”—the Adversary took him to the holy city, Jerusalem, and set him on the highest point of the Temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “jump!”
Satan was already using the same three kinds of temptations in the Garden of Eden: “When the woman saw that the tree was good for food” (desires of the flesh), “and that it was a delight to the eyes” (desires of the eyes), “and a tree to be desired to make one wise” (pretensions of life), “she took of the fruit and ate” (Genesis 3:6).
The difference is that “the first man” did not resist the
Adversary (Ya 4:7), but “the last man” did (Ro 5:12–21&N; 1C 15:21–22,
45–49&NN; MJ 4:15). Yeshua, showing the power of the Word of God in
resisting the Adversary (Ya 4:7), quotes the Torah in answer to all
three temptations—Deuteronomy 8:3 at v. 4, Deuteronomy 6:16 at v. 7, and
Deuteronomy 6:13 at v. 10. But Satan, “the inventor of the lie” (Yn 8:44), can misuse
Scripture to deceive—Psalm 91:11–12 at v. 6. [3]
Luk 4:13
When the devil had completed every temptation, he departed from him
until another time.
Luk 4:14
Yeshua returned in the power of the Spirit into the Galil, and news
about him spread through all the surrounding area.
Luk 4:15 He
taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.
Yeshua taught IN THEIR SYNAGOGUES
Synagogues: Their Origin,
Structure and Outward Arrangements by Alfred Edersheim
It was a beautiful saying of Rabbi
Jochanan (Jer. Ber. v. 1), that he who prays in his house surrounds and
fortifies it, so to speak, with a wall of iron. Nevertheless, it seems
immediately contradicted by what follows. For it is explained that this only
holds good where a man is alone, but that where there is a community prayer
should be offered in the synagogue. We can readily understand how, after the
destruction of the Temple, and the cessation of its symbolical worship, the
excessive value attached to mere attendance at the synagogue would rapidly grow
in public estimation, till it exceeded all bounds of moderation or reason.
Thus, such Scriptural sayings as Isa_66:20,
Isa_55:6 and Psa_82:1 were applied to it. The Babylon Talmud goes even
farther. There we are told (Ber. 6 a), that the prayer which a man addresses to
God has only its proper effect if offered in the synagogue; that if an
individual, accustomed to frequent every day the synagogue, misses it for once,
God will demand an account of him; that if the Eternal finds fewer than ten
persons there gathered, His anger is kindled, as it is written in Isa_50:2 (Ber. 6 b); that if a person has a
synagogue in his own town, and does not enter it for prayer, he is to be called
an evil neighbour, and provokes exile alike upon himself and his children, as
it is written in Jer_12:4; while, on
the other hand, the practice of early resorting to the synagogue would account
for the longevity of people (Ber. 8 a). Putting aside these extravagances,
there cannot, however, be doubt that, long before the Talmudical period, the
institution of synagogues had spread, not only among the Palestinian, but among
the Jews of the dispersion, and that it was felt a growing necessity, alike
from internal and external causes.
Readers of the New Testament know,
that at the time of our Lord synagogues were dotted all over the land; that in
them "from of old" Moses had been read (Act_15:21);
that they were under the rule of certain authorities, who also exercised
discipline; that the services were definitely regulated, although considerable
liberty obtained, and that part of them consisted in reading the prophets,
which was generally followed by an "exhortation" (Act_13:15) or an address (Luk_4:17). The word "synagogue" is, of
course, of Greek derivation, and means "gathering together"--for
religious purposes. The corresponding Rabbinical terms, "chenisah,"
"cheneseth," etc., "zibbur," "vaad," and
"kahal," may be generally characterised as equivalents.
Luk 4:16 He
came to Natzeret, where he had been brought up. He entered, as was his custom, into the
synagogue on the day of Shabbat, and stood up to read.
Yeshua kept Shabbat and read the Torah portion for that day.
Luk 4:17
The book of the prophet Yeshaiyahu was handed to him. He opened the book,
and found the place where it was written,
Luk 4:18
"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to
preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to
proclaim release to the captives, recovering of sight to the blind, to deliver
those who are crushed,
Luk 4:19
and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord."
Luk 4:20 He
closed the book, gave it back to the shammash, and sat down. The eyes of all in
the synagogue were fastened on him.
Luk 4:21 He
began to tell them, "Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your
hearing."
Jewish New Testament Commentary:
Shabbat. See
Mt 12:1N. He went to the synagogue as usual, like any good Jew. He
stood up to read publicly from a scroll. The custom in the synagogue now is
to read through the Torah
(i.e., the Pentateuch; see Mt 5:17N) each year, with portions of several
chapters read on Monday, Thursday and Shabbat
mornings, ending and beginning over again on Simchat-Torah
(“Rejoicing of the Torah”),
which comes at the end of Sukkot
(Yn 7:2N). At an earlier stage in Jewish history three years were taken to read
through the Torah.
There is a second reading called the haftarah (“conclusion”); it consists in portions from the Prophets and Writings related to the parashat-hashavua> (“[Torah] portion for the week”). While there is uncertainty over exactly what the first-century customs were, it seems clear that if Yeshua was given the scroll of the prophet Yesha‘yahu, he was being offered the haftarah reading. Since there is uncertainty about the practices of the time, it is not clear whether he found the place set by the lectionary for that Shabbat, or the place he himself chose, or the place where the scroll happened to open.
Luk 4:22
All testified about him, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth,
and they said, "Isn't this Yosef's son?"
Luk 4:23 He
said to them, "Doubtless you will tell me this parable, 'Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard
done at Kefar-Nachum, do also here in your hometown.'"
John Gills’ Exposition of The Bible
.... Or "parable"; for
any pithy sentence, or proverbial expression, was, by the Jews, called a
parable:
physician heal thyself; and which was a proverb in use
with the Jews; and which is sometimes expressed thus, Kvpn yoa lyz, "go heal thyself" (m); and sometimes in this form, Ktrgx yoa ayoa, "physician, heal thy
lameness" (n): the meaning of
which is, that a man ought to look at home, and take care of himself, and of
those that belonged to him; and Christ was aware that his townsmen would object
this to him, that if he was the person he was said to be, and could do the
miracles and cures which were ascribed to him, he ought to do something of this
kind at home, among them, who were his townsmen, neighbours, relations, and
acquaintance; that is, heal their sick, lame, blind, leprous, deaf, and dumb:
and that this is the sense of it, is manifest from what follows, (m) Zohar in Exod. fol. 31. 2. (n) Bereshit Rabba, sect. 23. fol. 20. 4.
Luk 4:24 He
said, "Most certainly I tell you, no prophet is acceptable in his
hometown.
Luk 4:25
But truly I tell you, there were many widows in Yisra'el in the days of
Eliyahu, when the sky was shut up three years and six months, when a great famine
came over all the land.
Luk 4:26
Eliyahu was sent to none of them, except to Tzarfat, in the land of
Tzidon, to a woman who was a widow.
Luk 4:27
There were many lepers in Yisra'el in the time of Elisha the prophet,
yet not one of them was cleansed, except Na`aman, the Syrian."
The incident is described in 1 Kings 17:1, 7, 9–24; 18:1. [5]
Luk 4:28
They were all filled with wrath in the synagogue, as they heard these
things.
Luk 4:29
They rose up, threw him out of the city, and led him to the brow of the
hill that their city was built on, that they might throw him off the cliff.
Luk 4:30
But he, passing through the midst of them, went his way.
No one could touch Yeshua before His time. Yeshua came to heal and deliver those who were in bondage under hasatan and He is still doing this today!
Luk 4:31 He
came down to Kefar-Nachum, a city of the Galil. He was teaching them on the day of Shabbat,
Luk 4:32
and they were astonished at his teaching, for his word was with authority.
Luk 4:33 In the synagogue there
was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud
voice,
Luk 4:34
saying, "Ah! what have we to do with you, Yeshua of Natzeret? Have
you come to destroy us? I know you who you are: the Holy One of God!"
Jewish New Testament Commentary:
Demonized
people. Greek daimonizomenoi
is sometimes rendered “demoniacs” or “people possessed by demons.” As noted in
4:1N above, the Bible takes for granted the existence of a spirit-world.
According to the New Testament, demons—also called unclean or evil spirits,
lying spirits, and angels of the devil—can affect people by causing physical
illness, mental aberrations, emotional malaise and moral temptation.
“Demonized” means “affected by demons” in one or more of these ways. Actual
“possession” or “ownership” of a human being by a demon is not taught in the
Bible. [6]
Luk 4:35
Yeshua rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!"
When the demon had thrown him down in their midst, he came out of him, having
done him no harm.
Luk 4:36
Amazement came on all, and they spoke together, one with another,
saying, "What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they
come out!"
Luk 4:37
News about him went out into every place of the surrounding region.
Luk 4:38 He
rose up from the synagogue, and entered into Shim`on's house. Shim`on's
mother-in-law was afflicted with a great fever, and they begged him for her.
Luk 4:39 He stood over her, and rebuked
the fever; and it left her. Immediately she rose up and served them.
Luk
4:40 When the sun was setting, all
those who had any sick with various diseases brought them to him; and he laid
his hands on every one of them, and healed them.
Luk 4:41 Demons also came out from many,
crying out, and saying, "You are the Messiah, the Son of God!"
Rebuking them, he didn't allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the
Messiah.
Luk 4:42
When it was day, he departed and went into an uninhabited place, and the
multitudes looked for him, and came to him, and held on to him, so that he
wouldn't go away from them.
Luk
4:43 But he said to them, "I must
preach the good news of the Kingdom of God to the other cities also. For this
reason I have been sent."
Luk
4:44 He was preaching in the synagogues
of the Galil.
Yeshua taught and preached in the synagogues;
from the Torah, the Kingdom of YHWH. He is the Living Torah. The living Torah walked among Israel giving
them manna from heaven, healing and deliverence, hope in the midst of hopelessness. YHWH in the flesh, walking among His
creation to become the sacrificed Lamb to make atonement for our sins. In this He proved Himself to be Ha
Mashiach, the Messiah that Isreal had been waiting for.
The Kingdom of God/YHWH
Kingdom- Vines Expository of New
Testament Words.
<1,,932,basileia>
is primarily an abstract noun,
denoting "sovereignty, royal power, dominion," e.g., Rev_17:18, translated "(which)
reigneth," lit., "hath a kingdom" (RV marg.); then, by metonymy,
a concrete noun, denoting the territory or people over whom a king rules, e.g.,
Mat_4:8; Mar_3:24.
It is used especially of the "kingdom" of God and of Christ.
"The Kingdom of God is (a)
the sphere of God's rule, Psa_22:28; Psa_145:13; Dan_4:25;
Luk_1:52; Rom_13:1-2.
Since, however, this earth is the scene of universal rebellion against God,
e.g., Luk_4:5-6; 1Jo_5:19; Rev_11:15-18,
the "kingdom" of God is (b) the sphere in which, at any given time,
His rule is acknowledged. God has not relinquished His sovereignty in the face
of rebellion, demoniac and human, but has declared His purpose to establish it,
Dan_2:44; Dan_7:14;
1Co_15:24-25. Meantime, seeking willing
obedience, He gave His law to a nation and appointed kings to administer His
"kingdom" over it, 1Ch_28:5.
Food For Thought:
1. Yeshua fasted. Look up “fasted,
fast, fasting” in your concordance and do a study on the reasons for fasting.
Seek YHWH as to when and how often you should fast. Follow the example set in the Torah and Brit Hadasha.
2. Yeshua spoke the Torah in response to hasatans temptations. Find the verses that Yeshua was quoting in
the Torah and memorize them.
3. Yeshua kept Shabbat-The Feasts of Israel and The Torah. See how many Jewish practices you can find,
that Yeshus kept, in the book of Luke as we continue with this study.
Recommended Reading:
God’s Chosen Fast –Arhtur Wallis
The Hidden Power of Prayer and Fasting- Mahesh Chavda
Fasting for Spiritual Breakthrough-Elmer L. Towns.