March 15th, 2025

We are continuing to make our way through the season of Lent. This Sunday’s title is The Second Sunday in Lent. The Gospel Reading for this Sunday is Luke 13:31-35, and the statement is made within that text that Herod wants to kill Jesus, and you might say that Jesus has a very unique response for Herod. And even though the reading for the next week is at the beginning of that thirteenth chapter, it deals with Pontius Pilate, and so, in essence, we are getting closer to the events of Holy Week and the phrase from the Apostles’ Creed, that Jesus ‘suffered under Pontius Pilate’.

This year, in the writings of this website, we are also going through the Gospel according to Luke, and the entire account is in the process of being laid out, a small section at a time, in the order that was laid out by the writer. And this is done although there is no guarantee that the order is a chronological one.

This account has some significant differences from both the Gospel according to Matthew and the Gospel according to Mark. In the Gospel Readings during Lent, the difficulties that Jesus encounters throughout his ministry are laid out in all the Gospel Readings in one way or another, progressing toward Jerusalem and Palm Sunday. And each account is unique in some way.

In the last two writings of this website, the text under scrutiny was the unique sermon of Jesus on the plain. What follows below is what comes after the sermon, and it’s given in an extremely literal translation. Jesus hinted at having some authority in that sermon by calling God both the ‘Most High’ and ‘Father’ near the middle of the sermon (see Luke 6:35-36). Now he is going to show his authority in other ways.

If this is your first encounter with the writings of this website, please note that the hyphens are designed to give the reader an idea of how many words in English are from the one word in the Greek, the language of the New Testament. And some of the translations of the words are designed to show how similar the Greek language is to the English. But the order and the immense variety of the words may make the reading of the text somewhat difficult. After all, Luke was a doctor, and some doctors are good at using rarely used words. Also looking at this text in another translation or a study bible will, in all likelihood, be helpful. What follows is Luke 7:1-17:

When  he-filled  all  the  words,  his,  into  the  hearing  of-the  people,  he-came-into,  into  Capernaum.  Now  of-an-arch-of-a-hundred,  a-certain-one,  a-slave,  bad  having,  he-was-about  to-die,  who  was  to-him,  precious.  Now  having-heard  about  the  Jesus,  he-sent-out  toward  him  presbyters  of-the  Jews,  questioning  him  that,  having-come,  he-might-save-thoroughly  the  slave,  his.  Now  the-ones  having-happened-along  toward  the  Jesus,  they-were-exhorting  him  diligently,  saying,  “Worthy  he-is  for-whom  you-should-have-along,  this.  For  he-agapes  the  nation,  ours,  and  the  synagogue  he,  he-built  for-us.”  Now  the  Jesus  was-traveling  with  them.

Now  already  he,  not  macro  being-away  from  the  house,  he-sent  friends,  the  arch-of-a-hundred,  saying  to-him,  “Lord,  not  do-skin;  for  not  worthy,  I-am,  that  under  the  roof,  my,  you-should-come-into;  therefore  not-now  myself  I-am-worthy,  toward  you,  to-come;  but-on-the-contrary,  say  with-a-word,  and  let-be-cured,  the  child  of-me.  For  also  I,  a-man,  I-am  under  authority  being-ordered,  having  under  myself  soldiers,  and  I-am-saying  to-this,  ‘Go,’  and  he-goes,  and  to-another,  ‘Come,’  and  he-comes,  and  to-the  slave,  my,  ‘Do  this,’  and  he-does.”

Now  having-heard  these-things,  the  Jesus  marveled  at-him,  and  having-turned,  to-the-ones  following  him,  a-crowd,  he-said,  “I-am-saying  to-you,  not-now  in  the  Israel,  such  faith  I-found.”  And  having-returned  into  the  house,  the-ones  having-been-sent,  they-found  the  slave  hygienic.

And  it-happened  in  the  next,  he-traveled  into  a-city  being-called  Nain,  and  they-traveled-with  him,  the  disciples,  his,  and  a-crowd,  great.  Now  as  he-drew-near  to-the  gate  of-the  city,  and  look,  he-was-being-cared-for-out,  having-died,  an-only-born  son  to-the  mother,  his,  and  this-one  was  a-widow,  and  a-crowd  of-the  city,  a-sufficient-one,  was  with  her.  And  having-seen  her,  the  Lord,  his-intestines-moved  over  her,  and  he-said  to-her,  “Not  do-weep.”  And  having-come-toward,  he-touched  the  open-coffin,  now  the-ones  sustaining,  they-stood.  And  he-said,  “Youth,  to-you  I-am-saying,  ‘Arise.’  And  he-sat-up,  the  dead-man,  and  he-began  to-talk.  And  he-gave  him  to-the  mother,  his. 

Now  it-took,  fear,  all.  And  they-glorified  the  God  saying,  “A  prophet,  a-great-one,  was-raised  in  us,”  and  “He-has-looked-upon  the  God,  the  people,  his.”  And  it-came-out,  the  word,  this,  in  whole,  the  Judea,  about  him,  and  all  the  surrounding-region.

Much could be said about these words. Much HAS been said about them. Again, a study bible or other translations will probably be helpful.
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Given the different ideas as to how the four gospel accounts came together, it may be helpful to note that this is the first time that the word ‘Lord’ appears in the text, where it could have simply said ‘Jesus’. Since this will happen again in this account, more will be given at a later time—God willing of course.