2BeLikeChrist Bible Commentary - Luke Chapter 19
Commentary - Luke Chapter 19
Luke 19:1-2
Luk 19:1 He entered Jericho and was passing through.
Luk 19:2 And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich.
Jewish Tax Collectors in the 1st Century:
The Jews hated the tax collectors.
This was true for the obvious reason (nobody likes giving their money to the government or seeing the IRS show up at their door).
But it was also true because these tax collectors were considered sell-outs. They were Jews who worked for the ruling Romans (Jews hated the Romans).
In addition, tax collectors were notorious for being thieves.
It was common for them to demand more taxes than the people actually owed so they could skim the excess off the top.
The Romans might issue a tax of 5 dollars.
The tax collector would tell his fellow Jews the Romans wanted 7 dollars.
He would collect the money, give 5 dollars to Rome, and keep the extra 2 dollars for himself.
You may recall, Matthew (Levi), one of the 12 Apostles, had a career in tax collecting (see Matthew 9:9).
In Jericho, Jesus met a man named Zacchaeus who was a “chief tax collector” and very rich.
Luke 19:3-4
Luk 19:3 And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature.
Luk 19:4 So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way.
Zacchaeus wanted to see Jesus as He passed through town, but the large crowds were preventing Him.
It didn’t help that he was a rather short man.
To overcome his height deficiency, he decided to climb into a sycamore tree to get a view.
(Sycamore trees in Tel Aviv)
Luke 19:5-7
Luk 19:5 And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.”
Luk 19:6 So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully.
Luk 19:7 And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.”
When Jesus walked by Zacchaeus’ perch, He looked up and told Zacchaeus He was headed to his house.
This couldn’t have been anything less than shocking to Zacchaeus.
There is no indication he had ever met Jesus.
How did Jesus know his name?
Why did Jesus choose Zacchaeus’ house of all places? Especially considering his profession?
Even though he must have been shocked, he came down from his tree and joyfully agreed to host Jesus.
Zacchaeus was joyful but the onlooking crowd grumbled.
Zacchaeus may have been one of the most disliked people in town.
“Why would Jesus want to stay with him?”
There were probably hundreds of “godlier” people in Jericho who would have loved to have Jesus as their guest.
Luke 19:8
Luk 19:8 And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.”
It seems Zacchaeus must have heard Jesus preach or heard of Jesus’ preaching because upon meeting him, he immediately told Jesus the changes he was going to make in his life.
I don’t believe there was any self-righteousness in his comments.
This was a man who recognized his own sinfulness and was committed to repentance.
Zacchaeus told Jesus he would sell half his stuff and give it to the poor and would repay anyone he had defrauded 4 times over.
He must have felt guilty about his wealth and how he had acquired it.
Before meeting Jesus, he stored up his treasures on earth.
After meeting Jesus, he stored up his treasures in heaven.
The transition should look the same in every Christian’s life.
APPLICATION:
Repentance should be accompanied by action to make past wrongs right, if possible.
Zacchaeus had the means to pay back anyone he had defrauded, and he resolved to do it.
Luke 19:9-10
Luk 19:9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham.
Luk 19:10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
Jesus told Zacchaeus that salvation had come to his house that day.
It is implied He was also speaking to the surrounding crowd.
Jesus reminded the crowd who Zacchaeus was.
Remember, they grumbled when Jesus said He was going to Zacchaeus’ house.
But Jesus told the crowd Zacchaeus was a son of Abraham.
He was a Jew. He was one of them.
Jesus came to save lost people (verse 10), of who Zacchaeus was one, along with all of his fellow Jews.
Jesus was doing exactly what He had come to earth to do in reaching out to Zacchaeus.
The rest of the Jews needed to recognize they needed Jesus just as much as Zacchaeus.
The scene here is very similar to the scene in Matthew 9 when Jesus called Matthew to follow Him.
Matthew was a tax collector.
After Jesus called him to follow Him, he invited Jesus to his house where other tax collectors had gathered.
The Pharisees grumbled because Jesus was spending time with sinners.
Jesus responded to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick… For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:12-13).
APPLICATION:
A person shouldn’t be afraid to come to Christ because they are a sinner. Jesus came to earth for sinners and He welcomes them.
Christians should never look down on sinners who are searching for Jesus. We can’t forget we need Jesus’ grace to save us just as much as someone who is not yet a Christian.
Luke 19:11
Luk 19:11 As they heard these things, he proceeded to tell a parable, because he was near to Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately.
Verses 12-27 record another of Jesus’ parables, the parable about the 10 minas.
Verse 11 gives us some insight as to why He told the parable.
1. Because he was near Jerusalem (the place He would soon be crucified).
2. Because some of the people supposed the “Kingdom of God was to appear immediately.”
What is meant by this?
The Bible talks about the Kingdom of Heaven in at least two senses.
In one sense, the Kingdom of God arrived after the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus and people are invited to become a part of it today.
Col 1:13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,
It was in this sense that Jesus promised His Apostles, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power” (Mark 9:1).
In another sense, the Kingdom of God will not appear in its “full power” until Jesus returns at the end of time.
On that day, God will defeat Satan once and for all.
Sin and death will be removed.
The wicked will be judged.
God will reign supreme and all His enemies will be thrown down.
The righteous will be honored and will reign with Him.
2 Timothy 2:11-12a The saying is trustworthy, for: If we have died with Him, we will also live with Him; if we endure, we will also reign with Him;
The New Testament talks about the Kingdom of God in these two senses, but it seems the Jews of Jericho had something else in mind.
Its possible some of the Jews had the second sense in mind.
They thought the end of time was upon them.
That the world was going to end, and people were going to be judged in the very near future. Just as soon as Jesus accomplished His work.
Some of the Jews were probably thinking the Kingdom of God was about to appear in some kind of earthly sense.
That Jesus was just about to be crowned king of the world.
That He was going to do something in Jerusalem that would reveal Him as the true Messiah and the people would lift Him up as their King.
He would reign, conquering their enemies, and ushering in a new era of Jewish prosperity.
If this was the way the people were thinking, you can see why great crowds of people were following Him.
They wanted to be honored when Jesus ascended the throne.
Keep in mind, the parable we are about to read was spoken to address these ideas.
As we read, ask yourself:
What was Jesus trying to communicate to the people?
Was Jesus affirming the people’s belief that the end of time was right around the corner? Or that an earthly Kingdom was on the immediate horizon?
Or did Jesus tell this parable to let the people know they were mistaken?
We will work our way through the parable piece-by-piece to make sure we comprehend and then we will discuss the meaning at the end.
Luke 19:12-13
Luk 19:12 He said therefore, “A nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and then return.
Luk 19:13 Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Engage in business until I come.’
A nobleman was preparing to make a trip to another country.
He was to become the King of the country he was visiting.
In preparation, he called 10 of his servants and gave them each a mina.
A mina was a measurement of weight to establish monetary value.
Most historical sources estimate the weight to be approximately 1-1.25 pounds.
(Mina of Antiochus IV Epiphanes)
(Mina of Antioch)
The value depended on the substance.
A mina of silver would have been worth less than a mina of gold.
The parable doesn’t specify the kind of mina the servants received.
The nobleman told the servants to “engage in business” until his return.
He wanted them to manage the money, investing it in whatever way they deemed best, in order to make him a profit.
Luke 19:14
Luk 19:14 But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’
The nobleman departed from his servants and went into the far country to claim his kingdom.
But the people of the kingdom hated him.
They didn’t want him to become their king.
They even sent a delegation of men to express their disapproval.
Luke 19:15-21
Luk 19:15 When he returned, having received the kingdom, he ordered these servants to whom he had given the money to be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by doing business.
Luk 19:16 The first came before him, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made ten minas more.’
Luk 19:17 And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.’
Luk 19:18 And the second came, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made five minas.’
Luk 19:19 And he said to him, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’
Luk 19:20 Then another came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your mina, which I kept laid away in a handkerchief;
Luk 19:21 for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man. You take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.’
Notice, even though the people of the country hated the nobleman, he was still successful at acquiring the kingdom.
When he had received the kingdom, he decided to return home to check on the progress of his servants.
Three servants were asked to give account of their money management.
1. The first servant had managed to multiply the nobleman’s money 10 times.
The nobleman commended him.
For his faithfulness, the nobleman gave him authority over 10 cities.
2. The second servant had managed to multiply the nobleman’s money 5 times.
He was also commended.
For his faithfulness, the nobleman gave him authority over 5 cities.
3. The third servant hadn’t done anything with his master’s money.
He was afraid of the nobleman’s temperament.
The servant saw him as an ambitious, hard-driving, and “severe” man.
He feared how his master would respond if he lost the money.
He seemed to think his master expected too much. (“you… reap what you did not sow”).
In a way, the servant was blaming his master for his inactivity.
The servant knew he didn’t do what the master told him to do but hoped he would be safe in the fact that, although he didn’t make any increase, he also didn’t lose any of the money.
Luke 19:22-25
Luk 19:22 He said to him, ‘I will condemn you with your own words, you wicked servant! You knew that I was a severe man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow?
Luk 19:23 Why then did you not put my money in the bank, and at my coming I might have collected it with interest?’
Luk 19:24 And he said to those who stood by, ‘Take the mina from him, and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’
Luk 19:25 And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten minas!’
The servants plan didn’t work. The nobleman wasn’t pleased with his servant just because he hadn’t lost any money.
In fact, the nobleman was very angry at him!
He used the servant’s own words to show how foolish his actions were.
The servant thought his master was severe, hard-driving, and expected too much.
If that was true, the logical next step wouldn’t have been to keep his mina wrapped in a handkerchief.
If all of those attributes of his master were accurate, he should have known his master would never accept his lack of effort.
The servant should have at least put the money in the bank and allowed it to earn a bit of interest.
The nobleman was so unhappy with his servant he took his singular mina and gave it to the servant who had 10 minas.
Luke 19:26
Luk 19:26 ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
Jesus used a very similar phrase in Luke 8:18.
Who is the “one who has?”
I understand this to be a person who “has” a mind prepared to accept the responsibilities of the Kingdom.
Their lives then show fruit through the practice of their duty.
One who “has” such a mind and life will be used and honored by God (“more will be given”).
Who is the “one who has not?”
In contrast, this would be a person whose mind and heart are closed off to the acceptance and practice of the responsibilities of a servant of the Lord.
This person’s heart is not good ground for growth.
The work the Lord could have accomplished through them and the subsequent reward will be given to a more faithful servant.
Luke 19:27
Luk 19:27 But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slaughter them before me.’”
After dealing with his unfaithful servant, the nobleman turned his attention to those who opposed his kingship.
What was to be done with them?
He commanded them to be brought to him and slaughtered in front of him.
MEANING OF THE PARABLE:
The parable, as I best understand it, was meant to teach the people Jesus would be departing for a time.
Remember, they thought the Kingdom was going to appear immediately.
Jesus was telling them their assumptions were mistaken. It wasn’t going to happen the way they imagined it.
The nobleman represented Jesus.
He was going into a “far country” to become a king.
The use of a “far country” indicated the nobleman would be gone a while.
In the same way, Jesus was going to be gone a while.
He was going to be retuning to heaven after His death where He would be glorified on the throne.
Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world” (John 18:36).
God raised Jesus from the dead and “seated him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come” (Ephesians 1:20-21).
Jesus was headed to heaven to sit on the throne, to become a king.
The image of a nobleman going to a far country to receive a kingdom might be a bit strange to modern readers, but this image would have been familiar to the people of the 1st Century.
When Herod the Great died, his son Archelaus wanted to succeed him on the throne. (Herod the Great ruled Judea at the time of Jesus’ birth).
In order to receive that position, He had to be confirmed by Augustus, the Roman Emperor.
Augustus lived in a far country, Rome, which was over 1,000 miles away.
Archelaus made the trip in order to “receive a kingdom.”
Keep this story about Archelaus in mind because we are going to come back to it in a second.
The nobleman (Jesus) was going to a far country (heaven) to become a king.
Before leaving, the nobleman called his servants and entrusted them with a mission.
In a similar way, Jesus was entrusting His disciples with a mission while He was gone.
This mission is probably best summarized using the “Great Commission” text.
Mat 28:18-20 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Jesus’ disciples weren’t sent out to make money, instead they were sent to make more disciples.
To bear fruit and invite other souls to join the Kingdom of God.
Jesus distributes talents and abilities to each of His disciples, and trusts them to use them to the best of their ability.
After speaking with his servants, the nobleman departed to the far country.
After accomplishing his work and giving His disciples their instructions, Jesus was going to go back to heaven.
During this period, His disciples were supposed to be working.
We are still in this period presently.
Jesus hasn’t returned yet, and we are supposed to be doing the work He gave us.
Verse 14 tells us the citizens of the nobleman’s kingdom hated him and didn’t want him to be their ruler.
Let’s return to our story about Archelaus.
When Archelaus went to Rome to receive his kingdom, the Jews, who hated him, sent a delegation to oppose him.
They tried to convince Augustus that Archelaus wasn’t the man he wanted to be ruling Judaea.
Through this parable, Jesus was teaching the Jews that the people who were supposed to be the citizens of the Messiah’s kingdom (the Jews, the sons of Abraham) were actually going to oppose the reign of their King.
There are two ideas about who these hateful citizens were meant to represent.
1. Some think this is a specific picture of the Jews who violently opposed the early church and their preaching about the Kingdom of God.
They tried to convince their fellow Jews that Jesus wasn’t a king, wasn’t the Messiah, and wasn’t someone they needed to follow.
The Pharisees, scribes, Sadducees, and lawyers were already trying to oppose Jesus, and they would continue even after He ascended to heaven.
The Apostle Paul fit into the category of the “hateful citizens” before his conversion.
History suggests delegations of Jews were sent all over the world to try to stop the preaching of the Kingdom.
2. Others think the “hateful citizens” were meant to represent anyone who was going to oppose the message of Christ.
No doubt, the Kingdom and its King have been resisted by both Jewish and non-Jewish force.
This would include enemies of every generation, not just the early opposition of the 1st Century.
In verse 15, the nobleman returned to his servants.
I think this a picture of the end of time.
At Jesus’ second coming Jesus will evaluate the work of those who claimed to be his servants and judge those who opposed Him.
Notice, even though the citizens of the kingdom opposed the nobleman’s rule, he still became king.
“When he returned, having received the kingdom…” (verse 15).
Jesus has plenty of enemies and people who hate Him, but none of those enemies will keep Him from reigning.
The nobleman called His servants to him and assessed how they had used what had been entrusted to them (the mina).
Jesus will assess the work of those who claim to be his servants.
He will reward those who used what He gave them to the best of their ability for His glory.
His displeasure will fall on those who were slothful in His business.
He won’t be please with those whose actions didn’t make sense in light of who they knew their master to be.
APPLICATION:
There are many people who go into a church building on Sunday morning and sing about God as their King, read about the judgement of God, hear sermons about their responsibility as servants of God, but whose lives seem to be unaffected by any of that knowledge.
They know who their Master is, but their lives are a contradiction to what they know.
We don’t want to stand before Jesus at the end of time and have Him use the words we spoke in worship against us in our condemnation.
“I will condemn you with your own words, you wicked servant” (verse 22).
APPLICATION:
The servant knew he didn’t do what the master told him to do but hoped he would be safe in the fact that, although he didn’t make any increase, he also didn’t lose any of the money.
Many people (professing Christians) will meet God on the final day and use the same defense. “I know I didn’t use what was given to me to advance the Kingdom as well as I should have but…”
I never did it any harm!
I didn’t do anything immoral.
I wasn’t involved in any gross sins.
I attended Church.
I didn’t do violence to anyone.
In light of this parable, do you think the Lord is going to be pleased with that answer?
APPLICATION:
God gives every disciple talents/abilities/blessings and tells us to invest them in whatever way we deem best to grow His Kingdom.
Notice, the nobleman didn’t give his servants detailed instructions on how they were supposed to invest every cent of their mina.
He trusted them to do something useful with what he gave them.
In many ways, that is true of modern Christians.
Each of us has been given something by God, but God didn’t write down detailed instructions for every person about how they are supposed to use their specific gifts at every point in their lives.
In some ways, He turns that over to us.
We have been entrusted with blessings and we are supposed to go out and use them the best we know how to glorify our God.
APPLICATION:
Jesus isn’t pleased with inactivity because of fear.
Doing what God asks us to do can definitely be scary.
But we can’t allow fear to paralyze us.
The nobleman was angry at his servant because he didn’t even try.
This is where faith becomes very important.
We have to trust that if we are doing our best with what God has delegated to us, He will be there to help us in our efforts.
That knowledge will help us overcome paralysis and will help us resolve to do the things that seem scary.
Finally, lets discuss verse 27.
The nobleman commanded all of the citizens who opposed his reign to be brought before him and slaughtered.
This was anything but a gentle rebuke to those who resisted Jesus as King.
On the final day, those who rejected Jesus and the growth of His Kingdom will be destroyed.
Rom 6:23a For the wages of sin is death…
2Th 1:9 They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might,
Luke 19:28-34
Luk 19:28 And when he had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.
Luk 19:29 When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples,
Luk 19:30 saying, “Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here.
Luk 19:31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’”
Luk 19:32 So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them.
Luk 19:33 And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?”
Luk 19:34 And they said, “The Lord has need of it.”
It is important to recognize that the events we are about to read about took place at the beginning of the last week of Jesus’ life.
And the events of the next few chapters all take place in Jesus’ last week.
After leaving Jericho, Jesus made his way west to Bethany, Bethphage, and the Mount of Olives.
The Mount of Olives was just outside the east wall of Jerusalem.
Jesus told two of His disciples to go into the village and find Him a colt.
But not just any colt.
They would find a specific colt, one on which no one had ever ridden, tied up and waiting for them.
If anyone asked them why they were taking the colt, they were to respond, “The Lord has need of it.”
This was exactly what happened.
The disciples went to the village.
Found a colt tied up.
The owner asked them why they were taking it.
They told him the Lord needed it.
The owner accepted the answer and the disciples brought it to Jesus.
What is a colt?
Colt: Male donkey under 4 years old.
Filly: Female donkey under 4 years old.
Foal: Baby male or female donkey under 1 year old.
Gelding: Castrated male donkey.
Stallion: Uncastrated male donkey.
Yearling: Male or female donkey between 1 and 2 years old.
The colt had already been providentially prepared by God.
Jesus planned to use the donkey to enter the city of Jerusalem in an event commonly referred to as the Triumphal Entry.
The people would recognize Him as their Savior.
He was going to be welcomed like a King.
Luke 19:35-40
Luk 19:35 And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it.
Luk 19:36 And as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road.
Luk 19:37 As he was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen,
Luk 19:38 saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
Luk 19:39 And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.”
Luk 19:40 He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”
The disciples put Jesus on the colt, and He rode along the road towards the city of Jerusalem.
Matthew’s gospel informs us this was done to fulfill prophecy.
Mat 21:4-5 This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”
I don’t know about you, but when I think about a King, I typically envision him riding a mighty steed, not a donkey.
Why did Jesus choose a donkey?
Because Jesus wasn’t a king like most kings!
The prophecy cited here is from Zechariah 9:9.
Jesus entered the city knowing He would receive a king’s welcome but without the personal pride of other kings.
Christ was entering their city as a king, but a king clothed in humility.
He was their King, but He would also play the lowly role of being their sacrifice.
The voices that glorified Him as He entered the city would soon curse Him as He was led out of the city to His death.
It is interesting to contrast Jesus’ first appearance on a donkey in Jerusalem to His appearance on a white horse in the book of Revelation.
If we look back to the story of Jehu in 2 Kings 9:13 it reveals the practice of laying clothing on the ground was something done for royalty.
Others laid palm branches on the ground (Matthew 21:8). This is where the name “Palm Sunday” comes from.
As He got closer to Jerusalem the crowds got larger and larger.
They were shouting praises to God.
Matthew 21 tells us they were shouting the term “Hosanna.”
If my research is correct, the word translated “hosanna” comes from the Hebrew term “Hoshia-na” (yasha’na), meaning “please save.”
Although originally a cry for help, the people now used the phrase as a statement of praise for help arriving.
Psa 118:25-26 - Save (yasha) us (‘na), we pray, O LORD! O LORD, we pray, give us success! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We bless you from the house of the LORD.
Mat 21:9 - And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”
We already know the Jews associated the term “Son of David” with the Messiah.
In this scene, the people appear to have connected the dots. Their prayer of “save us” was being answered by the One who came in the name of the LORD, Jesus, who was the Son of David!
Why did Luke leave out the “hosanna” detail?
Probably because he was writing mainly to Gentiles.
This point would mean a lot more to a Jewish audience than to a Gentile one.
Luke records the people shouting, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
The people saw Christ as the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophets, and this infuriated the Pharisees.
They told Jesus He ought to make His disciples stop.
But He told them the stones would cry out praises if He hushed the people.
Luke 19:41-44
Luk 19:41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it,
Luk 19:42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.
Luk 19:43 For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side
Luk 19:44 and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
Matthew’s gospel reveals there is a bit of a time break between verses 40 and 41.
This didn’t occur immediately after the triumphal entry, but it does make sense for Luke to include it here.
Jesus had just been welcomed like a King, but He knew the fickle heart of the people.
That same week they were going to approve of His crucifixion.
That approval would be the climax of generations of Jewish rebellion against God.
And even after Jesus resurrected from the dead, the majority of Jews would continue to resist His message.
There were some Jews who repented following the resurrection (see Acts 2).
But, as Paul discusses in the book of Romans, the majority did not.
In many cases, they were not just indifferent to the gospel, but hostile to it.
This hostility would eventually push God’s patience to the breaking point.
Matthew’s gospel gives us a picture of God’s wrath as if it were a liquid filling up a cup (Mat 23:32).
The more the Jews vexed God, the more wrath filled the cup.
Eventually the cup was going to overflow and tip over and God’s wrath would be poured out on the Jewish nation.
In verse 42, Jesus said, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.”
Jerusalem means “city of peace.”
But the people who lived there didn’t have any idea how to make peace with God or man.
The next 40 years would be some of the least peaceful in their history.
In verses 43 and 44, Jesus prophesied about the violence that would befall the city.
About 35 years after Jesus went back to heaven, the city of Jerusalem was surrounded and destroyed by the Romans.
We will discuss this in greater detail in chapter 21.
God was going to use the Roman army to punish the Jews for their continual disobedience.
Jesus’ compassion stands out to me in this text.
Jesus wept for people who were preparing to kill Him.
He was sad they were choosing the wrong path.
He didn’t find any joy in the fact that they were going to be destroyed by Rome in a violent siege.
Jesus didn’t/doesn’t enjoy punishing wicked people.
Eze 33:11 Say to them, As I live, declares the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel?
Jesus wants everyone to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4).
Also, notice Jesus’ ability to accomplish His will even through human rebellion.
Jesus wanted those Jews to repent.
But He knew they wouldn’t.
So, He used their stubborn hearts to accomplish what He came to earth to do, to be the sacrifice for the world’s sins.
Luke 19:45-46
Luk 19:45 And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold,
Luk 19:46 saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”
Jesus entered the city of Jerusalem like a king, but instead of going to a palace, He went to the Temple.
And in a scene that probably shocked much of the adoring crowd, Jesus, in righteous anger, upended the tables of the Temple market (Matthew 21:12).
As mentioned earlier, a lot of the Jews thought Jesus was about to set up an earthly Jewish kingdom and free them from Roman oppression.
But instead of marching to the Roman garrisons and demanding freedom, Jesus directed His anger at His own people.
Jesus was enraged at His fellow Jews who oppressed worshippers at the Temple.
He was disgusted by their extortion and greed.
Let’s ask a question… Should the Jews have been shocked that the Messiah acted this way?
Should they have been shocked that a messenger from God took issue with the sinful culture of their nation?
Did the God of the Old Testament just pat the Jews on the back and tell them they were doing a great job?
What about the prophets?
Did the prophets spend their time telling the Jews how well they were doing?
Answer: No!
If the Jews knew anything about the God they claimed to serve they would have known He had been verbally flipping tables for generations.
Only a person who didn’t know the God of the kings and prophets of old would believe God would come to the earth and not correct the Jews first-and-foremost.
Let’s ask another question… Why was Jesus so angry?
Matthew tells us there were moneychangers and salesmen in the Temple complex.
But why did that incite Jesus to anger?
Didn’t people need those services?
What was the big deal?
Wasn’t Jesus going a bit overboard here?
In order to understand a little better, I did some research into the ancient Temple and its practices.
The Three Temples:
(1) Without going into too much Temple history… The original Temple built by Solomon was no longer standing. It had been destroyed when the Babylonians conquered Judah.
(2) Upon returning from Babylonian captivity, the Jews built a new Temple, but it didn’t compare to the glory of the first.
(3) In order to win the favor of the Jews, Herod the Great greatly “improved” the existing Temple to once again put it on the map as an architectural wonder.
But Herod, with the help of the Jewish elite, had turned the new and “improved” Temple into a money-making machine, which was not its intended purpose!
The Temple made money a few different ways:
(1) Temple Tax
A half-shekel (about a day’s wage) was collected annually from most Jewish men for the upkeep of the Temple.
Estimating the total:
Let’s use modern numbers and say every man made $10/hour.
Every man worked 8 hours a day.
Approximately 3 million taxpayers around the world.
= $240,000,000.
This tax was collected throughout the Roman Empire and shipped via armed guards back to Jerusalem.
Note the words of Titus the Roman general (and later emperor) in a speech to the Jews just before the fall of Jerusalem:
"We [Romans] have given you leave to gather up that tribute which is paid to God [the Temple tax], with such other gifts that are dedicated to him: nor have we called those that carried these donations to account, nor prohibited them; till at length you became richer than we ourselves, even when you were our enemies" (Josephus, Wars, VI.6,2).
(2) Money Changers
The Temple tax was not paid in common money, it was only paid with the Tyrian shekel (from the region of Tyre).
The Tyrian shekel bore the image of Melkart, their equivalent of Baal.
Most people weren’t coming through Tyre so they had to get their money changed.
Apparently, there was a bit of extortion going on during the changing process, which was making a few Jews rich, but would have been a hardship on poorer worshippers.
(3) Animals sales
Jews sold animals used for sacrifice to fellow Jews in the Temple complex.
Why was this a profitable business?
If you remember the Old Testament commands about sacrifices, the animals couldn’t be blemished.
Consider the concerns of a Jewish family that had to travel a long distance to sacrifice in Jerusalem:
If they brought an animal from home, there would be a risk the animal would be “blemished” in some way along the journey.
Bringing live animals (especially something as large as a lamb) would slow down the family’s travel.
Even Jesus had to travel 75+ miles to get to Jerusalem for the feast.
It would have been much easier to travel light and buy an animal in Jerusalem.
Who wants to haul a sheep around for several hundred miles?
In addition, it was the corrupt priests who were responsible for inspecting the animals for blemishes, which would have been an opportunity to make a little extra profit…
So, you can kind of see this playing out… People would come to the Temple, they would pay to get their money changed, then they would have to pay a high price to buy an animal with that money, and then they would be required to give their half-shekel tax… triple dipping.
Ancient historian Josephus called Annas the high priest “a great hoarder up of money.”
In the 1st Century, the position of High Priest was a position acquired through bribery.
The priestly line from the Old Testament no longer existed.
Josephus (Antiq. 14.105-109) reported that in 54 B.C. the Roman general Crassus raided the Temple, taking cash reserves weighing about 2000 talents (about 176,000 pounds) (roughly 3.5 billion dollars in today’s money).
Keep this in mind when you read the rest of the New Testament and the gospels.
Jesus was going around telling people they wouldn’t need to worship at the Temple any longer (women at the well, John 4).
Paul would later preach that we (disciples) are the Temple of God.
Why were the Jewish elite so bent on discrediting Paul?
Was it because they really cared about the souls of their Jewish friends?
No! Paul was directly attacking their money making ability with this new Christian teaching.
In the Old Testament, we read about how the people had become so corrupt they started moving idols into the Temple.
Were the Jewish elite of the 1st Century any better? They brought their idolatries and worship of money into the Temple complex.
Imagine how hard it would have been for a poor person to come up with enough money to worship God at the Temple.
The Jewish elite were making it hard for people to worship God.
That was why Jesus was so angry.
God’s house had been turned into a den of robbers.
Luke 19:47-48
Luk 19:47 And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him,
Luk 19:48 but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.
How did the people respond to the Temple cleansing?
The Jewish leaders hated Jesus and plotted to kill Him.
But the common people listened to His preaching intently.
The other gospel accounts tell us the Jewish leaders were hesitant to take any action against Jesus, because the Feast of Passover was that week, and they didn’t want to stir up the large crowds of people.
