Lukechapter 8
56 verses · Luke · about AD 62 · The Gospels
Soon afterward, Jesus traveled from one town and village to another, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with Him,
Introduction
Luke, The Gospels, Luke Overview.
Luke writes this chapter about how the word of God is heard and what it does. It begins with the women who paid for the work out of their own means. Then Jesus teaches a large crowd through a picture drawn from sowing a field. Listen for the different kinds of ground and for the warning to pay attention to how you listen. The second half moves across the lake and back again, through a storm, a graveyard and a crowded street. Read it as a chapter about hearing and about who Jesus is.
Context
- Who
- A Greek reader who would notice who was paying for all this
- What
- The women who supported Jesus, the parable of the sower, the sayings on the lamp and on his true family, the calming of the storm, the healing of the man with a legion of demons, and the healing of two daughters.
- Where
- The towns and villages of Galilee, the Sea of Galilee, the region of the Gerasenes on its eastern shore, and Capernaum.
- When
- The Galilean ministry, about AD 29.
- Why
- To teach how the word of God must be heard and to show the authority of Jesus over nature, demons, disease and death.
Historical context
Luke alone names the women who funded the work, and one name is politically striking: Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod Antipas's household manager. A senior official's wife in the tetrarch's own administration was supporting this movement out of her own means. Wealthy women acting as patrons of a teacher or a cult was a recognised pattern in the Greco-Roman world; that they travelled with the group was not.
Show the rest of the historical context, 3 more paragraphs
Mary called Magdalene is introduced here as one of them, out of whom seven demons had gone. Luke says nothing linking her to the unnamed woman of the previous chapter, and the popular identification of the two is a later tradition, not something the text states.
The lake crossing runs into the squalls that country is known for, cold air spilling from the heights onto water nearly seven hundred feet below sea level, kicking up dangerous waves fast.
The far shore is Gentile territory, which is why a herd of pigs was grazing there. The man lived among the rock-cut tombs, and the name the spirits give is a Roman army formation of some five to six thousand men. Back on the Jewish side, Jairus holds a real office, ruler of the synagogue, responsible for the building and the ordering of worship, a title known from inscriptions across the empire.
Significance
The lamp saying in this chapter, nothing hidden that will not be made known, was addressed to a movement that still looked small and obscure. Luke's reader is told the concealment is temporary.
Show the rest of the significance, 1 more paragraph
And the chapter's cast made the point Luke keeps making. A Gentile madman, a woman whose bleeding had made her untouchable for twelve years, a twelve-year-old girl, and the women bankrolling the whole enterprise. Theophilus is watching a kingdom staffed by people his society did not count.
The heads below are this chapter's scenes. The numbered points under each are its verses.
The Women Who Supported the Ministry
Luke 8:1-3
Jesus traveled from one town and village to another: Luke alone names women in the traveling company, Mary called Magdalene, Joanna the wife of Herod’s household manager Chuza, and Susanna. These women were ministering to them out of their own means, a thread Luke resumes at the cross and tomb.
Luke 8:1
“What he preached: He showed the glad tidings of the kingdom of God, that it was now to be set up among them. Tidings of the kingdom of God are glad tidings, and those Jesus Christ came to bring; to tell the children of men that God was willing to take all those under his protection that were willing to return to their allegiance.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Mary called Magdalene: Luke names the women who travelled with Jesus and the Twelve, and each had been healed by Him. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown read Magdalene as from Magdala. They warn against confusing her with the sinful woman of Luke 7:37.
Luke 8:2
“Out of whom went seven devils - Who had been possessed in a most extraordinary manner; probably a case of inveterate lunacy, brought on by the influence of evil spirits. The number seven may here express the superlative degree. Mary Magdalene is commonly thought to have been a prostitute before she came to the knowledge of Christ, and then to have been a remarkable penitent. So historians and painters represent her: but neither from this passage, nor from any other of the New Testament, can such a supposition be legitimately drawn.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:2
"Oh, the depth of the riches" (Ro 11:33) --of this poverty of His! Mary Magdalene--that is, probably, of Magdala (on which see Mt 15:39; see on Mr 8:10). went--rather, "had gone." seven devils-- (Mr 16:9). It is a great wrong to this honored woman to identify her with the once profligate woman of Lu 7:37, and to call all such penitents Magdalenes.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
ministering to them out of their own means: Joanna's husband Chuza managed the household of Herod, so the circle around Jesus reached into the ruler's own court. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown say she too had been healed. Augustine took these women as the pattern for apostles supplied by women of holy life.
Luke 8:3
“And Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward,.... Joanna, or Juchan, as the Syriac version calls her, was a name, among the Jews, for a woman, as Jochanan, or John, was for a man. In the Talmud (e) we read of one Jochani, or Joanni, the daughter of Retibi, the same name with this. Her husband's name was Chuza.”
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:3
“Herod’s steward - Herod Antipas, who reigned in Galilee. He was a son of Herod the Great. The word “steward” means one who has charge of the domestic affairs of a family, to provide for it. This office was generally held by a “slave” who was esteemed the most faithful, and was often conferred as a reward of fidelity. Ministered - Gave for his support. Of their substance - Their property; their possessions.”
Luke 8:3
“She had been his wife (so some), but was now a widow, and left in good circumstances. If she was now his wife, we have reason to think that her husband, though preferred in Herod's court, had received the gospel, and was very willing that his wife should be both a hearer of Christ and a contributor to him. There were many of them that ministered to Christ of their substance.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
The Sower and the Four Soils
Luke 8:4-8
a large crowd was gathering: Jesus tells of seed falling on four soils, and the image is Galilean farming, where seed was scattered before plowing. The four soils are four conditions a single field might hold.
Luke 8:4
The Sower, He says, went out to "sow his seed, and so forth." Concerning whom then did He thus speak? Evidently concerning Himself. For He verily is the Sower of all that is good, and we are His husbandry: and by Him and from Him is the whole harvest of spiritual fruits. And this He taught us when saying, "Without Me ye can do nothing."
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Commentary on Luke, Homily 41patristic
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:4
“Nor did he excuse himself from going to the cities with this, that there were some from the cities that came to him; for, though there were, yet the most had not zeal enough to bring them to him, and therefore such is his wonderful condescension that he will go to them; for he is found of those that sought him not, Isa. lxv.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Theophylact observes that the seed is said to fall along the path, so the loss lies with the ground and the sower is blameless. Matthew Henry reads the trampling as hearers who shut their ears and tread the word underfoot. The birds finish what the feet began.
Luke 8:5
“THIS parable is recorded by Matthew, Mark and Luke. It is a very important one and, therefore, it is very carefully preserved for us. Matthew puts it, "When he sowed, some seeds fell by the wayside, and the fowls came, and devoured them up." Notice that the sower is always spoken of as a solitary man. In the harvest field, there is a great company and they sing and shout together in harmony, but the sower goes forth alone. Our Savior was the great Sower—"THE SOWER went forth to sow," unaccompanied.”
Charles Spurgeon · written before 1892 · The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 2843: “The Seed by the Wayside” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition)Particular Baptist
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:5
“A sower went out to sow his seed,.... By whom Jesus Christ is chiefly designed; though it is true of every preacher of the Gospel: who goes forth, being sent by Christ, with the precious seed of the word: for the phrase, "his seed", which only Luke has, best agrees with Christ, he being the proprietor and subject of it.”
Luke 8:5
“For every way side is in some measure dry and uncultivated, because it is trodden down by all men, and no seed gains moisture on it. So the divine warning reaches not the unteachable heart, that it should bring forth the praise of virtue. These then are the ways frequented by unclean spirits.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Some fell on rocky ground: Bede identifies the rocky ground as a hard heart that the plough of true faith has never broken. Cyril of Alexandria applies it to people whose faith consists only in words and has no root. The seedling rises quickly and dies as quickly.
Luke 8:6
“There are again some who bear faith about them, as if it consisted in the nakedness of words; their faith is without root, of whom it is added, And some fell upon a rock, and as soon as it sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Other seed fell among thorns: Gill describes ground that already held the roots of thorns, which grew faster than the seed and choked it. Eusebius names the thorns as covetousness, the desire of pleasure and worldly cares. Jesus gives the same reading in verse 14.
Luke 8:7
“And some fell among thorns,.... On ground which had within it the roots of thorns and briars; and design such hearers who have their hearts filled with worldly cares, and sensual lusts and pleasures: and the thorns sprang up with it; and grew faster than that: and choked it; as the above things do the word, and make it useless and unprofitable; so that though it took place for a while, and was professed, yet process of time was neglected and dropped; and, as Mark says, "it yielded no fruit"; at least that came to perfection.”
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:7
“For who would ever have believed me if I had wished to interpret thorns as riches, especially since the former prick while the latter delight? And yet they are thorns, because they tear the mind with the prickings of their thoughts, and when they drag it all the way to sin, they cause it to bleed as if by an inflicted wound. These, in this passage, as another evangelist attests, the Lord calls not simply riches, but deceitful riches, and rightly so.”
Gregory the Dialogist · written before 604 · Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 15patristic
The good soil yields a hundredfold, and Jesus then calls aloud to the crowd. Gregory the Dialogist notes that everyone present had bodily ears, so the call seeks the ears of the heart. Basil says hearing here means understanding.
Luke 8:8
“What should we say concerning this: "He who has ears to hear, let him hear"? It is evident that some possess ears better able to hear the words of God. What does he say to those who do not have those ears? "Hear, you deaf, and, you blind, behold." All such expressions are used in reference to the inner man.”
Basil of Caesarea · written before 379 · Homily on Psalm 33.13patristic
Luke 8:9-10
His disciples asked Him what this parable meant: Jesus names two audiences: the mysteries of the kingdom are given to the disciples, while to others He speaks in parables. The words though seeing, they may not see come from Isaiah's own commission, so one teaching sifts its hearers.
Luke 8:9
“And his disciples asked him,.... That is, as Mark says, "when he was alone"; after the multitude were departed, and they were by themselves, it may be in some house with other disciples: saying, what might this parable be? what is the sense and meaning of it? According to Matthew, they asked why he spake in parables to the people; and to such a question the following words are a proper answer.”
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:9
The word of the Savior, so to speak, is constantly hidden. The blessed psalmist has also brought him before us saying, "I will open my mouth in parables." See what he spoke in olden times happened. "A large multitude was assembled round him of people from all Judea, and he spoke to them in parables."
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Commentary on Luke, Homily 41patristic
the mysteries of the kingdom of God: The disciples receive the meaning of the parables, and the crowd receives the story alone. Theophylact says Christ veiled the mysteries from those unworthy of them, sparing them greater harm. Gregory of Nazianzus says the gift goes to the willing.
Luke 8:10
“And he said, unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God,.... The doctrines of the Gospel, which to have spiritual knowledge is a special and peculiar gift of God.”
4 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:10
“But to those who are unworthy of such mysteries, they are obscurely spoken. Hence it follows, But to the rest in parables, that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand. For they think they see, but see not, and hear indeed, but do not understand. For this reason Christ hides this from them, lest they should beget a greater prejudice against them, if after they had known the mysteries of Christ, they despised them. For he who understands and afterwards despises, shall be more severely punished.”
Theophylact of Ohrid · written before 1107 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Luke 8:10
“But our Lord told them the reason why He spake to the multitudes in parables, as follows, And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of God.”
Eusebius of Caesarea · written before 339 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Luke 8:10
“Rightly then do they hear in parables, who having closed the senses of their heart, care not to know the truth, forgetful of what the Lord told them. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. Who in truth deign to receive the word which they hear with no faith, with no understanding, at least with no attempt to test the value of it.”
Bede · written before 735 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Luke 8:10
“Happy are we, and for ever indebted to free grace, if the same thing that is a parable to others, with which they are only amused, is a plain truth to us, by which we are enlightened and governed, and into the mould of which we are delivered.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Cross references
Luke 8:10
- QuotingIsaiah 6:9“And He replied: “Go and tell this people, ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’”
'that seeing they might not see' (parables rationale)
Luke 8:11-15
The seed is the word of God: Jesus explains that the seed is the word of God and the four soils are four responses to it. Only those with a noble and good heart cling to it and by persevering produce a crop, correcting anyone who expects an instant harvest.
Luke 8:11
“Now the parable is this, &c. "Or this is the sense of the parable", as the Arabic version renders it: "the seed is the word of God", the Gospel, as preached by Christ, his apostles, and faithful ministers, which has God for its author, is concerning the grace of God, and is what he blesses, and makes effectual to answer any good purpose.”
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Luke 8:11
“The seed is the Word of God. Those on the way are they who have heard. Afterwards, the devil comes and takes away the Word from their heart, that they may not believe and be saved. We see in a moment that the hardness of the ground causes the seed on the pathways to be snatched away. A pathway always is hard and untilled, because it is exposed to every one's feet. It does not admit any seed into it, but it lies rather upon the surface, ready for any birds that will to snatch it away.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Commentary on Luke, Homily 41patristic
Luke 8:11
“The reading of the holy Gospel which you have just heard, dearest brothers, does not need exposition, but exhortation. For human frailty does not presume to examine what Truth itself has expounded. But there is something you ought carefully to consider in this very exposition of the Lord: that if we were to tell you that the seed signifies the word, the field the world, the birds demons, the thorns riches, your mind would perhaps hesitate to believe us.”
Gregory the Dialogist · written before 604 · Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 15patristic
the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts: Cyril of Alexandria explains that a path is hard, trodden by every foot, so the seed lies on top and the birds snatch it. The devil's aim is to stop belief. Matthew Henry says the word saves only when it is mixed with faith.
Luke 8:12
“Now He says, that there are three reasons why men destroy the seed implanted in their hearts. For some destroy the seed that is hid in them by lightly giving heed to those that wish to deceive, of whom He adds, Those by the way side are they that hear: then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts.”
Eusebius of Caesarea · written before 339 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:12
“Those by the way side - Bishop Pearce thinks that Luke by οἱ here means σποροι, the seeds, though he acknowledges that he has never found such a word as σποροι in the plural number signifying seeds.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
They believe for a season: Their joy is real while it lasts. Gregory the Dialogist says many begin good work and abandon it once adversity wearies them, lacking the roots of perseverance. Matthew Henry adds that the testing may come from the world's smiles or its frowns.
Luke 8:13
“For when they enter the Church they gladly wait on the divine mysteries, but with infirmity of purpose. But when they leave the Church they forget the sacred discipline, and as long as Christians are undisturbed, their faith is lasting; but when persecution harasses, their heart fails them, for their faith was without root.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
the worries, riches, and pleasures of this life: The thorn hearers go on their way, and the choking happens slowly as life proceeds. Gregory the Dialogist notes that the Lord joins cares and pleasures to riches, and all three strangle the throat of the mind. Their fruit never ripens.
Luke 8:14
"Those that fell among the thorns are they who have heard, and go, and are choked by cares and wealth and pleasures of the world, and yield no fruit." The Savior scatters the seed that acquired a firm hold in the souls that received it. It already shot up and just began to be visible when worldly cares choke it and it dries up, being overgrown by empty occupations. The prophet Jeremiah said, "It becomes a handful, that can produce no meal."
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Commentary on Luke, Homily 41patristic
a noble and good heart: Bede notes that the good soil differs from all three kinds of bad ground. Gregory the Dialogist says good ground bears fruit through patience, since good works count for little unless evils are borne calmly. The crop comes by persevering.
Luke 8:15
“This good seed is worthy of admiration. Rich and well-productive land brings forth fruit a hundredfold. They say that the best soils sometimes under cultivation produce a hundredfold, so this is a mark of every fertile and productive spot. One of the holy prophets said from the mouth of God, "And all nations shall congratulate you, because you are a desirable land." When the divine word falls upon a pure mind skillful in cleansing itself from things hurtful, it fixes its root deeply and shoots up like an ear of corn.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Commentary on Luke, Homily 41patristic
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:15
“With patience - Rather, with perseverance. The Greek word ὑπομονη, which our translators render patience, properly signifies here, and in Rom 2:7, perseverance. The good ground, because it is good, strong and vigorous, continues to bear: bad or poor ground cannot produce a good crop, and besides it is very soon exhausted. The persons called the good ground in the text are filled with the power and influence of God, and therefore continue to bring forth fruit; i.e. they persevere in righteousness.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Nothing Hidden That Will Not Be Known
Luke 8:16-18
No one lights a lamp: Pay attention, therefore, to how you listen closes the discourse begun at the parable and names hearing as the deciding act. Whoever has will be given more, the law the four soils already picture.
Luke 8:16
Scripture does not say this about a tangible lamp but about a comprehensible one. One does not "light" the lamp and conceal it "with a vessel" or put it "under a bed, but on the lamp stand" within himself. The vessels of the house are the powers of the soul. The bed is the body. "Those who go in" are those who hear the teacher.…He calls the holy church a "lamp stand."
Origen of Alexandria · written before 253 · Fragments on Luke 120, 122patristic
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:16
“These verses form a practical application of the famous parable of the sower. They are intended to nail and clench in our minds — the mighty lessons which that parable contains. They deserve the especial attention of all true-hearted hearers of the Gospel of Christ. We learn, firstly, from these verses — that spiritual knowledge ought to be diligently used. Our Lord tells us that spiritual knowledge is like a lighted candle — utterly useless, when covered with a bushel, or put under a bed.”
there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed: The saying follows the lamp on its stand in verse 16, so the hidden things are the truths the disciples now hold in private. Eusebius reads it this way: much was spoken in parables, yet the whole matter would be revealed. Chrysostom hears a call to live in plain view.
Luke 8:17
“I am, moreover, astonished when he says that "a candle is not usually hidden," who had hidden himself-a greater and more needful light-during so long a time; and when he promises that "everything shall be brought out of its secrecy and made manifest," who hitherto has kept his god in obscurity, waiting (I suppose) until Marcion be born.”
Tertullian · written before 220 · Against Marcion Book IVpatristic
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:17
“For nothing is secret, etc. - Whatever I teach you in private, ye shall teach publicly; and ye shall illustrate and explain every parable now delivered to the people.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Pay attention, therefore, to how you listen: The warning follows the parable, so the way a person listens decides what he keeps. Adam Clarke explains that what he thinks he has is held in appearance only. Whoever listens well will be given more.
Luke 8:18
“Even that which he seemeth to have - Or rather, even what he hath. Ὁ δοκει εχειν, rendered by our common version, what he seemeth to have, seems to me to contradict itself. Let us examine this subject a little. 1. To seem to have a thing, is only to have it in appearance, and not in reality; but what is possessed in appearance only can only be taken away in appearance; therefore on the one side there is no gain, and on the other side no loss. On this ground, the text speaks just nothing.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:18
“He that hath gifts, and does good with them, shall have more; he that buries his talent shall lose it. From him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath, so it is in Mark; that which he seemeth to have, so it is in Luke. Note, The grace that is lost was but seeming grace, was never true.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Luke 8:18
“He, however, was teaching them that it was the ears of the heart which were necessary; and with these the Creator had said that they would not hear. Therefore it is that He adds by His Christ, "Take heed how ye hear," and hear not,-meaning, of course, with the hearing of the heart, not of the ear.”
Tertullian · written before 220 · Against Marcion Book IVpatristic
Luke 8:19-21
Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see Him: When His family cannot reach Him, Jesus makes hearing and doing outrank the nearest natural tie. The good soil of the parable and the true family of this saying are the same people under two figures.
Luke 8:19
“Christ is pleased to own those as his nearest and dearest relations that hear the word of God and do it; they are to him more than his mother and brethren. Christ's Power over the Winds; Christ's Power over the Devils.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
His mother and brothers are standing outside, unable to get to Him because of the crowd of verse 19. Theophylact records a reading in which critics brought the message to mock His humble birth. Gill notes that the versions differ on who spoke.
Luke 8:20
“And it was told him by certain, which said,.... The phrase, "which said", is omitted in the Vulgate Latin version, and in Beza's most ancient copy. The Syriac, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions only read, "and they said unto him"; and the Persic version renders it, "a certain person said"; some one person, as in Mat 12:47 thy mother, and thy brethren, stand without, desiring to see thee; and to speak with thee, as in Mat 12:47. See Gill on Mat 12:47.”
The answer ties the family scene to the parable of the sower, where the good soil hears and keeps the word. Theophylact says humble birth harms no one who hears the word and does it. Hearing alone saves nobody.
Luke 8:21
“The moral teacher who gives himself an example to others, when about to enjoin upon others, that he who has not left father and mother, is not worthy of the Son of God, first submits Himself to this precept, not that He denies the claims of filial piety, (for it is His own sentence, He that knoweth not his father and mother shall die the death,) but because He knows that He is more bound to obey His Father's mysteries than the feelings of His mother.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Who Is This That Commands the Wind and Water?
Luke 8:22-25
Jesus fell asleep in the boat, an ordinary human weariness. Then He rebuked the wind and the raging waters, and all was calm, an authority creation obeys.
Luke 8:22
“When the disciples saw that all men received help from Christ, it seemed fitting that they themselves also should in turn rejoice in the benefits of Christ. For no one regards that which happens in the person of another equally with that to himself. The Lord therefore exposed the disciples to the sea and the winds, as it follows, Now it came to pass on a certain day that he went into a ship with his disciples; and he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake: and they launched forth.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:22
The event in our Lord's life described in these verses is related three times in the Gospels. Matthew, Mark, and Luke — were all inspired to record it. This circumstance should teach us the importance of the event, and should make us "give the more heed" to the lessons it contains. We see, firstly, in these verses — that our Lord Jesus Christ was really man as well as God. We read that as he sailed over the Lake of Gennesaret in a ship with his disciples, "he fell asleep."
He fell asleep: Ambrose sets this sleep beside the night Jesus spent in prayer and reads it as the calm of power. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown note that the verb means the boat was filling. The danger was real.
Luke 8:23
“There came down a storm of wind - and they - were in jeopardy - This is a parallel passage to that in Jon 1:4. There was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken: the latter clause of which is thus translated by the Septuagint: και το πλοιον εκινδυνευε του συντριβηναι, And the ship was in the utmost danger of being dashed to pieces.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
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Luke 8:23
“We are told above, moreover, that He passed the night in prayer. How then does He here fall asleep in a storm? The security of power is expressed, that while all were afraid, He alone lay fearless; but He lay asleep in the body, while in the mind he was in the mystery of divinity. For nothing happens without the Word.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Augustine compares the cry in Matthew and Mark and finds the same alarm in all three Gospels. Ephrem says the One who slept woke and put the sea to sleep. The calm came at once.
Luke 8:24
“You must remember that no one can pass from the course of this life without temptations, for temptation is the trial of faith. We are therefore subject to the storms of spiritual wickedness, but as watchful sailors we must awake the Pilot, who does not obey but commands the winds, who although He now no longer sleeps in the sleep of His own body, yet let us beware, lest through the sleep of our bodies He is to us asleep and at rest.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:24
“When our dangers are over, it becomes us to take to ourselves the shame of our own fears and to give to Christ the glory of his power. When Christ had turned the storm into a calm, then were they glad because they were quiet, Ps. cvii. And then, (1.) Christ gives them a rebuke for their inordinate fear: Where is your faith?”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
The question asks where their faith was while the boat was being swamped. Matthew Henry notes that the disciples who feared the storm now fear the One who commands the winds and the water. The man of verse 28 answers who He is.
Luke 8:25
“Where is your faith? - Ye have a power to believe, and yet do not exercise it! Depend on God. Ye have little faith, (Mat 8:26), because you do not use the grace which I have already given you. Many are looking for more faith without using that which they have. It is as possible to hide this talent as any other.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:25
“There is also much in this for the admiration and improvement of those who hear. Creation is obedient to whatever Christ chooses to command. What excuse can help us if we do not submit to do the same? What excuse can deliver from the fire and condemnation one who is disobedient and not easily led? He sets up, so to speak, the neck of his haughty mind against Christ's commands, and his heart is impossible to soften.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Commentary on Luke, Homily 43patristic
Legion Sent Into the Swine
Luke 8:26-29
they sailed to the region of the Gerasenes: In the region of the Gerasenes, across the lake from Galilee, a demon-possessed man cried out, Son of the Most High God. On Gentile ground the demons name Jesus rightly before any human confession in the chapter.
Luke 8:26
“And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes,.... In Mat 8:28 it is called the country of the Gergesenes; see Gill on Mat 8:28 as it is here, in the Arabic and Ethiopic versions; and "of the Gerasenes", in the Vulgate Latin; but the Syriac and Persic versions read, "of the Gadarenes", as in Mar 5:1. See Gill on Mar 5:1. which is over against Galilee: from whence the ship launched, and Christ and his disciples came.”
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:26
“The well-known narrative which we have now read, is carefully recorded by all of the first three Gospel-writers. It is a striking instance of our Lord's complete dominion over the evil prince of this world. We see the great enemy of our souls for once completely vanquished — the "strong man" foiled by One stronger than he — and the lion spoiled of his prey. Let us mark, first, in this passage — the miserable condition of those over whom the devil reigns. The picture brought before us is a frightful one.”
he stayed in the tombs: Ambrose notes that Matthew tells of two such men in this region, while Luke describes one. Luke adds that he had long gone without clothing and lived among the dead. Verse 35 reverses each detail.
Luke 8:27
“A certain man - See the case of this demoniac considered at large, on the parallel places, Mat 8:28-34 (note); Mark 5:1-20 (note). In India deranged persons walk at liberty through the streets and country in all manner of dresses; sometimes entirely naked; and often perish while strolling from place to place. It is the same in Ireland, as there are no public asylums either there or in India for insane people.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:27
“They either were, or at least would be thought to be, a legion, formidable as an army with banners; and now, at least, to be, what the twentieth legion of the Roman army, which was long quartered at Chester, was styled, legio victrix --a victorious legion.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Luke 8:27
“Now although the number of those healed by Christ is different in Luke and Matthew, yet the mystery is one and the same. For as he who had a devil is the figure of the Gentile people, the two also in like manner take the figure of the Gentiles. For whereas Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japhet; the family of Shem only was called to the possession of God, and from the other two the people of different nations were descended.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Son of the Most High God?: Hilary of Poitiers argues from this cry that even the demons knew Him as Son of God. Cyril of Alexandria sees fear and boldness mixed in it, a bold question and a begging plea. The man falls down before Jesus.
Luke 8:28
“Mark here the combination of fear with boldness and great desperation, for it is a sign of devilish despair to speak out boldly, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? but of fear when they pray, I beseech thee not to cast me out. But if thou knowest Him to be the Son of God most high, thou confessest Him to be the God of heaven and earth, and of all things that are contained in them.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:28
“Jesus, thou Son of God most high - The words Jesus and God are both omitted here by several MSS. I think it is very likely that the demons mentioned neither. They were constrained in a summary way to acknowledge his power; but it is probable they did not pronounce names which were of such dreadful import to themselves. The words which they spoke on the occasion seem to have been these, What is it to thee and me, O Son of the most high? See the note on Mat 8:29.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Luke 8:28
“IF we understand these words to be the exclamation of the evil spirit which tormented this poor demonian, they are very natural words and one can very readily understand them, for the Presence of Christ is such a great torment to the Prince of Evil, that he might well cry out, "Are you come to torment us before our time?" If we would put Satan to rout we have only to preach the Lord Jesus in the power of the Spirit, for this is the Hell of devils.”
bound with chains and shackles: Jesus had already commanded the unclean spirit to come out, which explains the cry of verse 28. Bonaventure says the plea availed little, being forced. Bede reads the chains and shackles as the harsh laws of the Gentiles, which restrain sins.
Luke 8:29
“Note, Those that are ungovernable by any other thereby show that they are under Satan's government; and this is the language of those that are so, even concerning God and Christ, their best friends, that would not either bind them from or bind them to any thing but for their own good: Let us break their bands in sunder.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Luke 8:30-33
Asked his name, the man answered Legion, Rome's word for a military unit, with its weight of numberless, disciplined hostility. The herd drowned in the lake, visible proof that the demons had truly left the man.
Luke 8:30
“And Jesus asked him, saying, what is thy name?.... This question was put, not out of ignorance in Christ, but for the sake of those that were with him; and partly, that the miserable condition of this man might be the more known; and partly, that his own power might be the more manifest in the dispossession: and he said, legion, because many devils were entered into him; See Gill on Mar 5:9.”
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:30
“Christ asked him and commanded him to tell what his name was. He said, "Legion," because many devils had entered him. Did Christ ask this because he did not know it, and like one of us, wished to learn something that had escaped him? Is it not perfectly absurd for us to say or imagine any thing like this? Being God, he knows all things and searches the hearts and inner parts.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Commentary on Luke, Homily 44patristic
go into the Abyss: The demons fear the Abyss more than leaving the man. Bede says they knew from the words of the prophets that the coming of the Lord would send them there in the end. Wesley glosses the Abyss as the bottomless pit.
Luke 8:31
“And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep - In the Chaldaic philosophy, mention is made of certain material demons, who are permitted to wander about on the earth, and are horribly afraid of being sent into abysses and subterranean places.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
a large herd of pigs was feeding: Augustine reconciles Mark and Luke on where the pigs fed, since a herd of two thousand stood partly on the hillside and partly near it. Bonaventure notes the demons had no power even over animals without permission. Jesus grants it.
Luke 8:32
“And there was there an herd of many swine,.... About two thousand, Mar 5:13, Feeding on the mountain; See Gill on Mar 5:11. And they besought him that he would suffer them to enter into them; which they could not do, without his leave: and he suffered them: See Gill on Mar 5:12, Mar 5:13.”
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:32
“People are the authors of their own tribulation. If someone did not live like a swine, the devil would never have received power over him. If he did receive power, it would be power not to destroy but to test him. After the Lord's coming, the devil could already not corrupt the good, so perhaps he now does not seek the destruction of all people but only of the fickle. A mugger does not lie in wait for armed men but for the defenseless.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Commentary on Lukepatristic
Luke 8:32
“No sooner had the devils leave than they entered into the swine; and no sooner had they entered into them than the herd ran violently down a steep place into the lake, and were drowned. For it is a miracle of mercy if those whom Satan possesses are not brought to destruction and perdition.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake: Athanasius draws the lesson that spirits with no power over swine have far less over people made in the image of God. Ambrose adds that people bring their own trouble, for the devil gains power only over one who lives like a swine. The whole herd drowned.
Luke 8:33
“But the Lord granted them permission, that this might be among other things to us an occasion of benefit, and the confidence of our safety. It follows, And he suffered them. We must therefore consider that the evil spirits are hostile to those which are subject to them, and this will be evident from their sending down the swine violently into the waters and choking them; as it follows, Then went the devils out of the man and entered into the swine, and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the lake, and were choked.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:33
“Then went the devils out of the man,.... Being obliged by the power of Christ, sore against their wills, having had possession of him a long time: and entered into the swine; possessed them: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the lake; that is of Gennesaret; or the sea, as the Syriac and Persic versions read; that is, the sea of Galilee, the same with the former: and were choked; in the waters, and died, as the Ethiopic version adds.”
Luke 8:33
“Then went the devils out of the man, and entered into the swine - Some critics and commentators would have us to understand all this of the man himself, who, they say, was a most outrageous maniac; and that, being permitted by our Lord, he ran after the swine, and drove them all down a precipice into the sea! This is solemn trifling indeed; or, at least, trifling with solemn things. It is impossible to read over the account, as given here by Luke, and admit this mode of explanation.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Luke 8:34-37
those tending the pigs: The people found the man sitting at Jesus’ feet, clothed and in his right mind, yet great fear had taken hold of them. They asked Jesus to depart, and deliverance seen firsthand was refused when its cost looked too high.
Luke 8:34
“When those who kept the herd saw this they fled. For neither the teachers of philosophy nor the chief of the synagogue can bring a cure to perishing mankind. It is Christ alone who takes away the sins of the people.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:34
“They fled, and went and told it - Απελθοντες, They went, is omitted by almost every MS. of repute, and by the best of the ancient versions. Griesbach leaves it out, and with propriety too, as it is not likely that so correct a writer as Luke would say, They fled, and Went and told it.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
sitting at Jesus’ feet, clothed and in his right mind: Each detail reverses verse 27, where he wore no clothing, lived in the tombs and was driven by the demon. Bede compares the people's fear to honouring Jesus while being unwilling to endure Him. The townspeople see him and are afraid.
Luke 8:35
“While he was under the devil's power he was ready to fly in the face of Jesus; but now he sits at his feet, which is a sign that he is come to his right mind.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:35
“For many times it had caught him - Therefore our compassionate Lord made the more haste to cast him out. The abyss - That is, the bottomless pit. To enter into the swine - Not that they were any easier in the swine than out of them.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
reported how the demon-possessed man had been healed: Gill names the witnesses as the disciples, the men of the boat or people nearby. Titus of Bostra says the townspeople learned the matter partly by sight and partly by report. Their report prepares the fear of verse 37.
asked Jesus to depart from them: Theophylact says they feared further loss like the drowned swine. Matthew Henry contrasts them with the healed man, who begged for the company others dreaded. Jesus leaves when asked.
Luke 8:37
“We see in this passage, two requests made to our Lord Jesus Christ. They were widely different one from the other, and were offered by people of widely different character. We see, moreover — how these requests were received by our Lord Jesus Christ. In either case, the request received a most remarkable answer. The whole passage is singularly instructive. Let us observe, in the first place — that the Gadarenes besought our Lord to depart from them, and their request was granted.”
Luke 8:38-39
begged to go with Jesus: The healed man begged to go with Jesus, but He commissioned him instead, Return home and describe how much God has done for you. Where Jesus elsewhere charges the healed to silence, here in Gentile country He charges the opposite.
Luke 8:38
“Now the man out of whom the devils were departed,.... Sensible of the power of Christ, and of the favour he had received from him, was of a quite different mind from his countrymen: and besought him that he might be with him; See Gill on Mar 5:18. But Jesus sent him away; from him, into the country: saying, as follows.”
3 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:38
“For as one who had been tried by experience, he feared, lest perhaps when far from Jesus he should again become the prey of evil spirits. But the Lord shows him, that though He is not present with him, He can protect by His grace, for it follows, But Jesus sent him away, saying, Return to thine own house, and show how great things God hath done for thee. But he said not, "how great things I have done for thee," giving us an example of humility, that we should attribute all our righteousness to God.”
Theophylact of Ohrid · written before 1107 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Luke 8:38
“It says, "The herdsmen saw this and fled." Neither professors of philosophy nor leaders of the synagogue can offer any cure when people perish. Christ alone takes away the sins of the people, provided they do not refuse to submit to healing. He does not want to cure the unwilling and soon abandon the weak for whom it seems that his presence is a burden, like the peoples of the Gerasenes.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Commentary on Lukepatristic
Luke 8:38
“But as He was departing, the man who had been afflicted will not part from his Saviour, for it follows, Now the man out of whom the devils were departed besought him that he might be with him.”
Titus of Bostra · written before 378 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Jesus tells him to report what God has done, and he reports what Jesus has done. Luke sets the two clauses side by side. Theophylact says the Lord showed He could protect the man by grace though absent, so the man could stay among his own people.
Luke 8:39
“Return to thine own house,.... Which very likely was in the city of Gadara, whither he went, and throughout the whole of which he published the account of the dispossession of the devils from him: Mark adds, "to thy friends"; relations, acquaintance, and countrymen: and show how great things God hath done unto thee; for none but God could effect such things, tacitly suggesting to him hereby, that he himself was God.”
Jairus' Daughter and the Woman Who Touched His Garment
Luke 8:40-42
the crowd welcomed Him: Jairus, a synagogue leader, fell at Jesus’ feet because his only daughter, about twelve, was dying. His open plea, while religious leaders elsewhere resist Jesus, shows a father's need overriding caution about his office.
Luke 8:40
“THE Revised Version is, in some places, though not in many, better than the Authorized Version. Our text is one of the few instances in which there is an improvement—"And as Jesus returned, the multitude welcomed Him, for they were all waiting for Him." We have already noted, in our reading, that our Lord had gone where He was not welcomed. He went across the Sea of Galilee to the country of the Gadarenes and there He met with an ill reception and was even entreated by the people to depart out of their coasts.”
Charles Spurgeon · written before 1892 · The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 2593: “A Welcome for Jesus” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition)Particular Baptist
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:40
“Strong faith shall be applauded, and yet weak faith shall not be rejected. In the houses where sickness and death are, it is very desirable to have the presence of Christ. When Christ was going, the people thronged him, some out of curiosity to see him, others out of an affection to him.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Luke 8:40
“Perhaps they witnessed at a distance the sudden calming of the tempest. Here at least they are, watching for His return, and welcoming Him to the shore. The tide of His popularity was now fast rising.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
a synagogue leader named Jairus: Jairus holds rank in the synagogue, yet need brings him to the feet of Jesus. Theophylact says he fell down from pressing need, when he ought to have done so freely. Augustine sets Matthew's feast with tax collectors before this.
Luke 8:41
“But when about to raise the dead, in order to bring faith to the ruler of the synagogue, He first cured the issue of blood. So also a temporal resurrection is celebrated at the Passion of our Lord, that the other might be believed to be eternal. But as he went, the people thronged him. Now mystically Christ had left the synagogue in Gerasa, and Him whom His own received not we strangers receive.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:41
“How much misery and trouble — sin has brought into the world! The passage we have just read affords a melancholy proof of this. First we see a distressed father in bitter anxiety about a dying daughter. Then we see a suffering woman , who has been afflicted twelve years with an incurable disease. And these are things which sin has sown broadcast over the whole earth! These are but examples of what is going on continually on every side.”
his only daughter, who was about twelve: The girl is twelve, and the woman of verse 43 has suffered for twelve years. Ephrem says the woman reasoned that One who could restore a girl of twelve could heal her. Luke joins the two stories as one.
Luke 8:42
“But while the Word of God hastens to this daughter of the ruler that He might save the children of Israel, the holy Church collected from among the Gentiles which was perishing by its falling away into gross crimes, seized first by faith the health prepared for others.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Luke 8:43-48
a woman who had suffered from bleeding for twelve years: Jesus held to His question, Who touched Me, for I know that power has gone out from Me. The healing cost Him, and He named her faith as the instrument, as with the woman of Luke 7:50.
Luke 8:43
“The assembly of the nations is like the woman who spent all her money on physicians. The assembly of nations also lost all the gifts of nature and squandered the inheritance of life. It was holy, shy, pious, ready in faith, and hesitant in modesty, because it is a sign of modesty to recognize the weakness of faith and not to despair of pardon. The shy woman touched the hem, the faithful approached, the pious believed, the wise knew she was healed.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Commentary on Lukepatristic
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:43
“THOUGH I take Luke's statement as a text, I shall constantly refer to the version of the same story which we find in Mark 5:25 to 29. Here we have one of the Lord's bid ones—a case not to be publicly described because of its secret sorrow. We have here a woman of few words and much shamefacedness. Her malady subjected her to grievous penalties according to the ceremonial Law. There is a terrible chapter in the Book of Leviticus concerning such a case as hers.”
Luke 8:43
“The nature of her disease was such that she did not care to make a public complaint of it (it was agreeable to the modesty of her sex to be very shy of speaking of it), and therefore she took this opportunity of coming to Christ in a crowd; and the more people were present the more likely she thought it was that she should be concealed.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
touched the fringe of His cloak: Titus of Bostra praises her faith, since she was weak from years of bleeding and still pressed through a crowd to touch Him in secret. Eusebius reports a bronze statue at Paneas said to honour her. The healing was immediate.
Luke 8:44
“What made that sick woman wish to remain hidden? The law of wise Moses imputed impurity to any woman who was suffering from a flow of blood and everywhere called her unclean. Whoever was unclean could not touch any thing that was holy or approach a holy man. For this reason the woman was careful to remain concealed, for fear that having transgressed the law she should have to bear the punishment which it imposed. When she touched, she was healed immediately and without delay.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Commentary on Luke, Homily 45patristic
Peter answers the question as though any touch counted. Bede says Jesus asked so that the power of the woman's faith might be shown, a faith He knew and had given. Gregory the Dialogist contrasts the crowd that presses on Him with the one who truly touches.
Jesus distinguishes the pressing of the crowd from a touch of faith. Ephrem notes that this detail appears nowhere else in the healings of the Physician. Bonaventure calls it a spiritual touch.
Luke 8:46
“That woman was delivered, being saved from a state of suffering thus bitter and incurable; and thereby we again obtain the firm assurance, that the Emmanuel is very God. How and in what manner? Both from the miraculous event itself, and from the words which with divine dignity He spake. "For, I know, He said, that power has gone forth from Me." But it transcends our degree, or probably that even of the angels, to send forth any power, and that of their own nature, as something that is of themselves.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Commentary on Luke, Homily 45patristic
3 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:46
“And Jesus said, somebody hath touched me,.... Not in a common and accidental way, but with design, and in the strength of faith: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me: for the cure of the person that had touched him, and that not without his knowledge and will; See Gill on Luk 6:19.”
Luke 8:46
“I perceive that virtue - Δυναμιν, Divine or miraculous power. This Divine emanation did not proceed always from Christ, as necessarily as odours do from plants, for then all who touched him must have been equally partakers of it. Of the many that touched him, this woman and none else received this Divine virtue; and why? Because she came in faith. Faith alone attracts and receives the energetic influence of God at all times. There would be more miracles, at least of spiritual healing, were there more faith among those who are called believers.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Luke 8:46
“It was his delight that virtue was gone out of him to do any good, and he did not grudge it to the meanest; they were as welcome to it as to the light and heat of the sun. Nor had he the less virtue in him for the going out of the virtue from him for he is an overflowing fountain.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
she could not escape notice: Her public account cost her modesty, as Jamieson, Fausset and Brown note, yet it gave the crowd her testimony. Matthew Henry says she trembled as she came, and still her faith saved her. The hidden cure is brought to light, as verse 17 said.
Bede notes the past tense: her faith has already healed her. Origen says He first heals her soul by faith and then her body. Go in peace sends her home whole.
Luke 8:48
“But the same cure which the woman obtained by touching Him, our Saviour confirmed by His word; as it follows, And he said unto her, Thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, that is, Be released from thy scourge. And indeed He first heals her soul by faith, then truly her body.”
Origen of Alexandria · written before 253 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:48
“And he said unto her, daughter,.... Instead of frowning upon her, and chiding her for what she had done, he addressed her in a very affable and affectionate manner; bidding her be of good comfort; and not be afraid; this clause is left out in the Vulgate Latin version, as in Mar 5:34 but is in the copies, and other versions: thy faith hath made thee whole, go peace; See Gill on Mat 8:2. See Gill on Mar 5:34. See Gill on Luk 7:50.”
Luke 8:48
“Here is an encouragement to Jairus not to distrust the power of Christ, though his daughter was now dead, and they that brought him the tidings advised him not to give the Master any further trouble about her: Fear not, saith Christ, only believe. Note, Our faith in Christ should be bold and daring, as well as our zeal for him.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Luke 8:49-50
While He was still speaking: Word came that the synagogue leader's daughter was dead, and Jesus met the report with an instruction, Do not be afraid, just believe. The woman just healed stood by as the case in point, a faith just vindicated set before a harder trial.
Luke 8:49
“But still also were the servants of the ruler incredulous with regard to the resurrection, which Jesus had foretold in the Law, fulfilled in the Gospel; therefore say they, Do not trouble him; (Ps. 16.) as if it were impossible for Him to raise the dead.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:49
“The verses we have now read, contain one of the three great instances which the Holy Spirit has thought fit to record of our Lord restoring a dead person to life. The other two instances are those of Lazarus and the widow's son at Nain. There seems no reason to doubt that our Lord raised others beside these three. But these three cases are especially described as patterns of His almighty power. One was a young girl — who had just breathed her last. One was a young man — who was being carried to his burial.”
The news of the death arrives just as the woman is sent away healed. Cyril of Alexandria says Christ is Lord of life and death. Athanasius notes that He asks faith of those who call on Him, showing that He favours those who believe.
Luke 8:50
Jesus did not say just, “Do not be afraid.” He knew very well that fear is part of man’s make-up. He said, “Do not be afraid; only believe.”
Reinhard Bonnke · Faith: The Link with God’s Power (CfaN Bible study series)Pentecostal-evangelical
Luke 8:51-56
He did not allow anyone to go in with Him: The mourners laughed at Him, knowing that she was dead, a witness against any claim she had fainted. He took her by the hand, and her spirit returned.
Luke 8:51
“And when he came into the house,.... Of the ruler of the synagogue; he suffered no man to go in: to the room, where the dead body lay: save Peter, James and John; not one of the multitude that followed him, nor any of the disciples, but these three; who were his favourite ones, and were a sufficient number to be witnesses of the miracle: and the father and mother of the maiden; these also were admitted.”
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:51
“But that this point is true, that that number which is called five, which agrees in no respect with their argument, and does not harmonize with their system, nor is suitable for a typical manifestation of the things in the Pleroma, [yet has a wide prevalence,] will be proved as follows from the Scriptures. ... Again, five men are said to have been with the Lord when He obtained testimony from the Father,-namely, Peter, and James, and John, and Moses, and Elias.”
Irenaeus · written before 202 · Against Heresies (Book II, Chapter 24)patristic
Wesley explains that her soul was parted from the body for a short time only, so the parting is better called sleep. Ambrose notes that the widow's son was raised before a crowd, while here only a few witnesses enter. Everyone else is weeping and mourning.
Luke 8:52
“Not only her relations and friends, and the servants of the house, but the mourning women, that were hired on this occasion, and employed for this purpose: but he said, weep not; neither in show, as the mourning women did, nor in reality, as the friends of the deceased: she is not dead, but sleepeth; See Gill on Mat 9:24. See Gill on Mar 5:39.”
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:52
“What shall I say about the daughter of the ruler of the synagogue, at whose death the people were mourning and the flute players were playing their music? In the belief that she was indeed dead, solemn funeral services were being performed. The spirit returned immediately at the voice of the Lord, she arose with revived body, and she partook of food to furnish proof that she was alive.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · On the Death of Satyrus 2.82patristic
Luke 8:52
“She is not dead but sleepeth - Her soul is not separated finally from the body; and this short separation is rather to be called sleep than death.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
they laughed at Him: The laughter comes from people certain of the death, which leaves no doubt that she had died. Bede says they preferred mocking to believing and so were shut outside the miracle. Gill includes the pipers and mourning women.
Bede compares Luke's wording with the Aramaic form of the same command in Mark. Cyril of Alexandria calls the manner worthy of God: a touch of the hand and a word. Only the parents and three apostles see it.
Luke 8:54
“And he put them all out,.... Of the room, where the maiden lay, all the mourners and pipers; all excepting the parents of the child, and his three disciples, This clause is left out in the Vulgate Latin, and Ethiopic versions; nor was it in two of Beza's ancient copies, and in two of Stephens's; but in the rest, and in the other versions: and took hereby the hand, and called, saying; in the Syriac language, "Talitha cumi", as in Mar 5:41 Maid, arise; See Gill on Mar 5:41.”
2 more voices on this verse
Luke 8:54
“Now the Lord taking hold of the hand of the maid, cured her. Blessed is he whom wisdom takes by the hand, that she may bring him into her secret places, and command to be given him to eat. For the bread of heaven is the word of God. Hence comes also that wisdom which has filled its altars with the food of the body and blood of God. Come, she says, eat my bread, and drink the wine which I have mixed for you. (Prov. 9:5.)”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Catena Aurea by Aquinaspatristic
Luke 8:54
“They were unworthy to be the witnesses of this work of wonder; they who in the midst of their mourning were so merrily disposed as to laugh at him for what he said would, it may be, have found something to laugh at in what he did, and therefore are justly shut out.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
He directed that she be given something to eat: Ambrose reads the meal as evidence of life, so that people believe the truth and suppose no apparition. Her spirit returns and she rises at once. Chrysostom says the touch of the hand was meant to lead to belief in the resurrection.
Luke 8:55
“Thus the hand of Christ's grace goes along with the calls of his word, to make them effectual. Here that is expressed which was only implied in the other evangelists, that her spirit came again; her soul returned again to animate her body.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
1 more voice on this verse
Luke 8:55
“And he commanded to give her meat - Though she was raised to life by a miracle, she was not to be preserved by a miracle. Nature is God’s great instrument, and he delights to work by it; nor will he do any thing by his sovereign power, in the way of miracle, that can be effected by his ordinary providence. Again, God will have us be workers together with him: he provides food for us, but he does not eat for us; we eat for ourselves, and are thus nourished on the bounty that God has provided.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
ordered them not to tell anyone: Bede contrasts the widow's son, raised outside the town gate before a crowd, with this girl raised inside the house. An ancient Greek writer in the Catena says Jesus showed Himself the giver of good things without seeking praise. Her parents are astounded.
Luke 8:56
“And her parents were astonished,.... At the miracle that was wrought, to see their child restored to life; to see her arise, walk, and eat, being in perfect health and strength, and no disorder attending her; but he charged them that they should tell no man what was done.”
How this psalm is built
The form: A parable of four soils followed by the Lord's own explanation, as Bede classes it.
The patterns in this chapter
| Device | What it does | Where to see it |
|---|---|---|
| The parable and its explanation | Verses 5 to 8 tell of seed falling on four kinds of ground, and verses 11 to 15 explain each one in the same order: the path, the rock, the thorns and the good soil. Bede notes that the Lord explained this parable himself. The sayings that follow on the lamp in verses 16 to 18 and on his true family in verses 19 to 21 both return to the same subject, hearing the word and keeping it.Bede, On the Gospel of Luke, on Luke 8:4. | Luke 8:5, Luke 8:11, Luke 8:15, Luke 8:18, Luke 8:21 |
How this chapter is built
1 more paragraph on the patterns
The chapter has two halves. Verses 1 to 21 are teaching about hearing. The parable of the four soils stands in verses 4 to 8 and its explanation in verses 11 to 15. The lamp follows, and then the family who hear the word and carry it out. Verses 22 to 56 are four works of power, over the storm, the legion, the long illness and the death of a girl, with the last two told as one story. Bede notes that the Lord explained the parable himself (On the Gospel of Luke, on Luke 8:4).
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Sources for this chapter
The summary
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.
The form and classifications
Bede, On the Gospel of Luke, on Luke 8:4.
The exposition
Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Gospels; Alexander Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture, Luke; Ambrose, Exposition of the Gospel of Luke; Ambrose of Milan; Ancient Greek Expositor, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Athanasius of Alexandria, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Augustine of Hippo; Basil of Caesarea, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Bede, On the Gospel of Luke; Bonaventure, Commentary on Luke, Chapter 8; Cyril of Alexandria; Ephrem the Syrian; Eusebius of Caesarea, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Gregory of Nazianzus, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Gregory the Dialogist; Hilary of Poitiers, ON THE TRINITY 6.49; J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels, Luke; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Calvin, Commentary on a Harmony of the Evangelists; John Chrysostom, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; John Gill; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Origen of Alexandria, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Theophylact of Ohrid, Catena Aurea by Aquinas and Titus of Bostra, Catena Aurea by Aquinas.