Lesson

#10
On the Road to Jerusalem
(9: 51 11: 54)

On the Road to Jerusalem

In Lesson #9 we saw Jesus scale his ministry, sending out his inner circle of
twelve to teach and to preach, giving them power and authority over demons, and
the ability to heal. Meanwhile, Jesus landed on Herod AnCpas radar, causing
Herod to ask who Jesus is, and we learnin a brief menConthat Herod had
beheaded John the BapCst. Johns murderthe catalyst in Mark, galvanizing
Jesus and driving him relentlessly to the crosshas only passing menCon here in
Luke.
Although Luke draws directly from Mark for his source material in Lesson #9, Luke
edits out the drama and tension we witnessed in Mark, and we felt a decided
calm, with Jesus in full control of events. In Lesson #9 Herod asked, Who . . . is
this about whom I hear such things (9: 9), and the remainder of the chapter
answered Herods quesCon with Peters confession of faith, [You are] the
Messiah of God (9: 20), an answer validated at the TransguraCon by the voice
God himself saying, This is my chosen Son; listen to him (9: 35).

On the Road to Jerusalem

In Lesson #10 we enter the 2nd Phase of Jesus public ministry, as he

and his disciples head south toward Jerusalem and the cross. En route,
Jesus sends ahead 72 disciples, an advance team for his 100-mile
journey. FascinaCon with Jesusand opposiCon to himconCnues to
increase, and the crowds following him conCnue to grow.
Along the way Jesus reproaches Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum for
their unbelief, while at the same Cme, Luke pointedly includes stories of
Jesus elevaCng marginalized people: the good Samaritan over the
priests and Levites, Mary over Martha; and those who oppose him say
it is by the power of Beelzebub, the prince of demons, he drives out
demons, while others demand a sign validaCng his words and acCons.

On the Road to Jerusalem

In Luke, Jesus public ministry consists

of three phases:
1. The Galilean ministry (3: 23 9: 50)
2. The Journey to Jerusalem (9: 51 19: 27)
3. The Jerusalem ministry (19: 28 23: 56)

As we enter Lesson #10 we begin

Phase #2, the Journey to Jerusalem.

On the Road to Jerusalem

In a brilliant structural move, Luke frames the

Journey to Jerusalem in a sequence that spans 9:
51 - 10: 24.
The frame begins with an opening vignebe of
rejecCon by the people of a Samaritan town, a
rejecCon that foreshadows Jesus complete
rejecCon by Jerusalems religious leaders, who
demand Jesus crucixion and death (9: 51-62).
Ader the rejecCon vignebe Jesus sends out 72 of
his followersan advance team, as it wereto
every town and place he intended to visit on his
100-mile journey to Jerusalem (10: 1). Then in 10:
17-22 the 72 return, having completed their work.
Beginning with 10: 25 and extending through 19:
27, Luke then presents a series of vignebes,
parables and teachings that take place within the
opening framework.

On the Road to Jerusalem

Heres what it looks like:

Prelude

Opening rejecCon vignebe (9: 51-62)

sent
out (10: 1-16)
72
Series of 34 vignebes, parables and
teachings while on the journey to
Jerusalem (10: 25 19: 27)

72 return (10: 17-24)

On the Road to Jerusalem

Prelude: Opening Rejection Vignette

9: 51-62
When the days for his being taken up were fulfilled,
he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem, and
he sent messengers ahead of him. On the way they
entered a Samaritan village to prepare for his reception
there, but they would not welcome him because the
destination of his journey was Jerusalem. When the
disciples James and John saw this they asked, Lord, do
you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume
them? Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they
journeyed to another village.
(9: 51-56)

Sacred Time, Part 2

When the days for his being taken up were

fulfilled, he resolutely determined to journey to
Jerusalem, and he sent messengers ahead of
him (9: 51-52a).
In Luke, Jesus knows fully from the start who he is and
what his mission entails. His being taken up, recalls
Moses and Elijah speaking of Jesus exodus at the
Transfiguration (9: 51).
he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem is
literally he resolutely set his face toward Jerusalem, a
powerful image that recalls Isaiah saying: I have set my
face like flint, knowing that I shall not be put to
shame (Isaiah 50: 7).

Sacred Time, Part 2

On the way they entered a Samaritan village to

prepare for his reception there, but they would not
welcome him because the destination of his journey
was Jerusalem. (9: 52b-53).
The Samaritans had a long, acrimonious history
with the traditional Jews of Judea and Jerusalem.
This rejection by the people of the Samaritan
village sets up a stunning reversal in the parable
of the Good Samaritan that Luke cleverly places in
10: 29-37.

Sacred Time, Part 2

When the disciples James and John saw this they

asked, Lord, do you want us to call down fire from
heaven to consume them? Jesus turned and
rebuked them, and they journeyed to another
village. (9: 54-55).
Calling down fire from heaven to consume them
recalls Elijah calling down fire from heaven in his
duel with the prophets of Baal at Mt. Carmel (1
Kings 18).
Jesus response recalls his advice to the disciples
about towns that reject them: shake the dust
from your feet and move on (9: 5).

Sacred Time, Part 2

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As they were proceeding on their journey someone said to

him,
1.

2.

3.

I will follow you wherever you go.

Jesus answered him, Foxes have dens and birds of the
sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to
rest his head.
[Lord] let me go first and bury my father.
But he answered him, Let the dead bury their dead, but
you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.
I will follow you Lord, but first let me say farewell to
my family at home.
[To him] Jesus said, No one who sets a hand to the
plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for
the kingdom of God.
(9: 57-62)

Sacred Time, Part 2

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 After being rejected by the people of the

Samaritan town, Luke presents three quick
statements by those who accept Jesus and would
like to follow him; Jesus answers all three in turn,
emphasizing the cost of discipleship.
In all three responses Jesus uses hyperbole to
underscore the total commitment required of
discipleship, echoing Jesus instructions to his twelve
disciples when he sent them out: take nothing on
the journey, neither walking stick, nor sack, nor
food, nor money, and let no one take a second
tunic (9: 3). Just do it!

Sacred Time, Part 2

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With the Prelude completed, Luke

sets the frame for the journey to
Jerusalem by sending out an
advance team of 72 to every town
and place he intended to visit (10: 1).
Our Catholic Study Bible notes that some
manuscripts read 70, while others read 72. The
Greek is eJbdouhvkonta duvo [70, 2]. A scribal error
would tend to drop of duvo, not add it, suggesCng
that 72 is the correct reading. In addiCon, 72 is
the number of people in Jacobs family who live
with Joseph in Egypt (70, plus Josephs two sons,
Ephraim and Manasseh, Exodus 1: 5), a nice
counterbalance to the menCon of Jesus exodus
in 9: 31.

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Jesus then issues the 72 the same command

he gave to the twelve:
Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like
lambs among wolves [reiteraWng the cost of
discipleship]. Carry no money bag, no sack, no
sandals; and greet no one along the way . . . and
so on. Whatever town you enter and they do not
receive you, go out into the streets and say, The
dust of your town that clings to our feet, even that
we shake o against you. Yet know this: the
kingdom of God is at hand. I tell you, it will be
more tolerable for Sodom on that day than for
that town (10: 3-16).

As Luke provided three examples of disciples

who wanted to follow Jesus (9: 57-62), so
does he insert here three examples of towns
that rejected Jesus: Chorizin, Bethsaida and
Capernaum.
On the Road to Jerusalem

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Chorazin !

" Bethsaida

Capernaum !

On the Road to Jerusalem

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Remains of the 4th century synagogue at Chorizin.

The early Church father, Eusebius, wriCng at the end of the 4th century, says that Chorizin
was destroyed by earthquake, in fulllment of Jesus curse upon it.

Prelude to Ministry

16

The city gate of Bethsaida.

Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Prelude to Ministry

17

Entrance to the archaeological site of Capernaum.

Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Prelude to Ministry

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Immediately following Jesus sending

out the 72 (10: 1-16), they return (10:
17-24), creaCng a gap that is lled
by the 34 vignebes, parables and
teachings of 10: 25 19: 27.
The seventy [-two] returned rejoicing, and said,
Lord, even the demons are subject to us because
of your name. Jesus said, I have observed Satan
fall like lightning from the sky. Behold, I have
given you the power to tread upon serpents and
scorpions and upon the full force of the enemy and
nothing will harm you . . .. All things have been
handed over to me by my father. No one knows
who the Son is except the Father, and who the
Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the
Son wishes to reveal him.





(10: 17-19, 22)

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When the 72 return Luke gives us a clear, deniCve

picture of who Jesus is: the Son of God, who reveals the
Father to those he chooses.
Jesus also says: I have observed Satan fall like
lightening from the sky (10: 18).
When did this happen?
We can read this as an oblique reference to the symbolic
fall of Satan, as the Kingdom of God gains a foothold in
the world. Or, we can read it as a direct allusion to
Isaiah 14: 12How you have fallen from the heavens, O
Morning Star, son of the dawn and Ezekiel 28: 17I
cast you to the ground, I made you a spectacle in the
sight of kings. Both have contextual references, Isaiah
to Babylon and Ezekiel to the king of Tyre, but both have
been tradiConally applied to the great War in Heaven
and the expulsion of Satan and his rebel angels.
If that is Lukes meaningand I think it isthen, Luke
places Jesus as a witness to Satans fall, an event that
occurs prior to the opening chapter of Genesis.

On the Road to Jerusalem

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Gustave Dor. Satans Fall for John Miltons Paradise Lost (engraving), 1866.
On the Road to Jerusalem

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Wow! If thats true, then

Luke presents a very high
Christological view of
Jesus.
Not me.

Thats fancy talk

for who Jesus is.

On the Road to Jerusalem

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Yes, indeed! And that high view of

Christ is reinforced at the end of
Lukes framing, when Jesus says:
Blessed are the eyes that see what you see.




For I say to you, many prophets and kings
desired to see what you see, but did not see
it, and to hear what you hear, but did not
hear it.

On the Road to Jerusalem

(10: 23-24)

23

With Lukes framing complete, we

now turn to the gap created by the
72 leaving and then returning, a gap
that is lled by 34 vignebes, parables
and teachings, the rst 4 of which we
shall address in this lesson:
1. What must I do to inherit eternal
life? (10: 25-42)
2. Prayer (11: 1-13)
3. Unclean spirits (11: 14-36)
4. RejecCon by the Pharisees and Scribes
(11: 37-53)

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Capernaum!

Scythopolis !
[Beit Shean]

Jericho !
Jerusalem !

!Fording point at
Scythopolis

!Fording point at
Jericho

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Leaving the Sea of Galilee

Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

On the Road to Jerusalem

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Walking past the Lower Jordan River as it exits the Sea of Galilee.
Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

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Ford the Jordan River at Scythopolis, crossing to the east bank of the Jordan.
Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

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East Bank

(Jordan of today)

Pilgrim Route
Jordan River

West Bank

(Israel of today)
Follow the pilgrim road south, along the east side of the Jordan River to Jericho.
Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

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Ford back to the west side of the Jordan River at Jericho.

Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

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From Jericho the 17-mile Roman Road ascends 3,400 feet in elevaCon to Jerusalem.
Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Infancy NarraFve, Part 2

31

The road clings to the southern wall of the Wadi Qelt, with a precipitous verCcal drop on the right.
Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Infancy NarraFve, Part 2

32

Near the top, the 4th-century St. Georges monastery clings to the northern wall.
Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Infancy NarraFve, Part 2

33

Bethany, home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus, is 1.5 miles east of Jerusalem on the
south-eastern slope of the Mount of Olives.
Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Infancy NarraFve, Part 2

34

Dome of the Rock !

(Temple in Jesus Day)

" Eastern Plasorm Wall !

Walking down the Palm Sunday road, the path that Jesus later walks as he enters
Jerusalem to the cheers of the crowd.
Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Infancy NarraFve, Part 2

35

The Temple in Jesus day, as he would have seen it from the Mt. of Olives.
(1.50 scale model of 1st-century Jerusalem, Israel Museum.)
Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Infancy NarraFve, Part 2

36

But Luke pays libleif anyabenCon to

the geography of the journey to
Jerusalem, for he begins with a young
man asking a quesCon: Teacher, what
must I do to inherit eternal life? (10: 25).
Jesus responds by saying: You shall love
the Lord, your God, with all your heart,
with all your being, with all your strength,
and with all your mind, and your
neighbor as yourself (10: 27). To which
the young man asks: And who is my
neighbor? prompCng Jesus to tell the
parable of the Good Samaritan, a story
that takes place on the old Roman road,
up from Jericho to Jerusalem.

On the Road to Jerusalem

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Capernaum!

Scythopolis !
[Beit Shean]

Jericho !
Jerusalem !

!Fording point at
Scythopolis

!Fording point at
Jericho

Good Samaritan story

takes place here.
On the Road to Jerusalem

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Maybe Luke didnt know the

geography of PalesCne, or care
about it. Ader all, he was from
Asia Minor. We already saw him
skirCng around the geography in
Peters confession of faith and
Not mthe
e. TransguraCon.

Sounds right to
me!

On the Road to Jerusalem

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When we get to Acts,

however, Luke will be very
precise about the geography
of Pauls three missionary
journeys. Luke travelled with
Paul, and it was territory he
Not me. knew well.
Youve convinced
me!

On the Road to Jerusalem

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Aim Morot. Le bon Samaritan (oil on canvas), 1880.

PeCt Palais, Paris.
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Ader the parable of the Good Samaritan

Luke turns to the story of Mary and
Martha, illustraCng two ways of loving
the Lord, your God, with all your heart,
with all your being, with all your strength,
and with all your mind, and your
neighbor as yourself.
NoCce that in both illustraCons Jesus
elevates marginalized people: the good
Samaritan over the priests and Levites;
Mary over Marthaboth women.

On the Road to Jerusalem

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Diego Velzquez. Christ in the House of Mary and Martha (oil on canvas), 1618.
NaConal Gallery, London.
On the Road to Jerusalem

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Lukes 2nd teaching turns to prayer,

drawing heavily from Mabhews
Sermon on the Mount (Mabhew
5-7).
NoCce that Luke begins with
geographic ambiguity: He was
praying in a certain place . . . (11:
1).

On the Road to Jerusalem

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Carl Heinrich Bloch. Sermon on the Mount (oil on copper), 1877.

Museum of NaConal History at Frederiksborg Castle, Hillerd, Denmark.
On the Road to Jerusalem

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Lukes 3rd teaching addresses

unclean spirits (11: 14-36).
NoCce that this secCon highlights
the dichotomy between:
1. Jesus and demons (14-26)
2. blessings and curses (27-28)
3. belief and unbelief (29-32)
4. light and dark (33-36).

On the Road to Jerusalem

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Guido Reni. Archangel Michael [defeats Satan] (oil on canvas), c. 1636.

Santa Maria della Concezione, Rome.
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And nally, in Lukes 4th teaching

Jesus is rejected by the Pharisees
and Scribes (11: 37-54). Here, Luke
draws heavily from Mabhew 23,
Mabhews woe to you chapter,
which immediately precedes his
Olivet Discourse, spoken in
Jerusalem on Thursday of Holy
Week.

On the Road to Jerusalem

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James Tissot. Woe unto You, Scribes and Pharisees

(opaque watercolor over graphite on gray wove paper), c. 1886-1894.
Brooklyn Museum, New York.
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1. When Jesus and his disciples begin their journey to

Jerusalem, why does Luke not organize the journey in
linear progression, along the standard pilgrimage
route?
2. How do we know that Luke uses the Mission of the
72 as a framing device for his journey to Jerusalem?
3. When the young man asks Jesus, What must I do to
inherit eternal life? Jesus refers to Deuteronomy 6:
5-9 (love the Lord, your God . . .) and LeviCcus 19: 18
(love your neighbor as yourself) for his answer.
Who is your neighbor?
4. What is Jesus main point concerning prayer?
5. Why do the Pharisees and Scribes oppose Jesus?

On the Road to Jerusalem

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Copyright 2015 by William C. Creasy

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