Luke

9:37-45

The mission of the Messiah, 1:5-9:50

6. The children of the messiah, 9:1-50

v] Healing an epileptic boy

Three of Jesus' disciples have just experienced the wonder and grandeur of his transfiguration, but now they descend to the real word of sin and death, a world lost apart from Christ. Here Jesus must again face the stupidity and unbelief, not only of the crowds, but even his own disciples. The disciples have failed to heal an epileptic boy and so Jesus takes charge, lays hold of the evil powers, heals the boy and so leaves the crowd astonished at the divine majesty evident in his ministry.

In the messianic age, faith is the essential element for entry into the kingdom of God.

i] Context: See 9:1-9. The healing of the epileptic boy is the fifth episode of The kingdom dawns in the children of Messiah, 9:1-50, a section which reveals something of the disciple's part in the inauguration / realisation of Messiah's kingdom. The section closes with the healing of the epileptic boy and Jesus' teaching on the meaning of greatness, and serves to conclude Jesus' Galilean mission, 9:50.

ii] Structure: The healing of the epileptic boy:

iii] Interpretation:

iv] Synoptics:

v] Exposition: A simple exposition of this passage may be found in the linked pew-level Sermon Notes.

The healing of the epileptic boy, v37-45: i] Setting, v37: The mountain (as with the wilderness) is a place of revelation and communion with God. Yet, like Moses, Jesus must come down to an earthly reality of superficial faith and rejection.

egeneto de "-" - but/and it happened, came about. Transitional, indicating a step in the narrative; See egeneto, 1:8.

th/ exhV hJmera/ (a) dat. "the next day" - on the following day. Dative of time.

katelqontwn (katercomai) aor. part. "when [they] came down" - [them] having come down. The genitive participle and its genitive subject autwn forms a genitive absolute construction, temporal, as NIV. A similar construction is found in Mark. It is when Jesus comes down from the mountain that he is confronted by a questioning crowd which includes an embarrassed group of disciples.

apo + gen. "from" - from [the mountain]. Expressing separation; "away from."

autw/ dat. pro. "[met] him" - [a large crowd met with] him. A dative of direct object after the sun prefix verb "to meet with."

ii] A father asks Jesus to heal his son, v38-40: A crowd had just gathered around a desperate father who had looked to Jesus' disciples to drive an evil spirit out of his child, but who had failed. Jesus joins the crowd and the father again pleads for help. Luke makes no comment about the quality of the father's faith; he has asked for healing, both from the disciples and now Jesus, so he obviously believes that Jesus is able to help, at least at a practical level. Note that although the child's condition is described in terms of epilepsy, the gospel tradition views the problem as demonic.

kai idou "-" - and behold. Indicating a point of note; See kai idou, 1:31.

apo + gen. "from" - [a man] from [the crowd]. The preposition here serves as a partitive genitive ie., it identifies a particular part of the "crowd", so "a man in the crowd", NEB.

ebohsen (boaw) aor. "called out" - cried out, shouted out. This is a passionate appeal, made loudly to gain attention.

legwn (legw) pres. part. "-" - saying. Attendant circumstance participle expressing action accompanying the verb "to cry out", redundant, introducing direct speech; Culy suggests adverbial, expressing manner; see legwn, 4:35.

sou gen. pro. "[I beg] you" - [teacher, i ask, beg] you. Genitive of direct object after the verb "I beg."

epibleyai (epiblepw) aor. inf. "to look [at]" - to look on with care, attentiveness [upon the son of me]. The infinitive introduces an object clause / dependent statement of indirect speech, expressing the content of the request; "I ask that you take a look at my son." The sense is "take an interest in", "have regard for", possibly "look with compassion upon", Nolland, although we do still often say "take a look at." Note the idiomatic repetition of the epi prefix.

oJti "for" - because. Introducing a causal clause explaining why Jesus should take a look at his son.

moi dat. pro. "my" - [he is only, unique] to me. Dative of possession. A statement particular to Luke, serving to underline the father's distress.

kai idou "-" - and look, behold, pay attention. Emphatic interjection, as v38.

pneuma (a atoV) "a spirit" - a power, spirit. Nominative subject of the verb "to take." An evil spirit, a demonic power, an unclean spirit, but of course, this may just be the way a first century person would describe a neurological condition, here epilepsy.

lambanei (lambanw) pres. "seizes" - takes hold of [him]. The present tense is possibly used to underline the continuing nature of the condition.

exaifnhV adv. "suddenly" - [and] immediately, suddenly. Temporal adverb expressing momentary action in time.

krazei (krazw) pres. "screams" - he cries out, shouts out. Either the boy, or the spirit through the boy.

meta + gen. "-" - [and tears apart, pulls to and fro, convulses him] with [foam from the mouth]. Expressing association. "Foam" is used in a negative sense with seizures. A hapax legomenon.

mogiV adv. "it scarcely ever" - [and] hardly, scarcely (with toil and pain). It hardly ever both leaves / withdraws from him or stops bruising / wearing out / destroying him. Underlining the continuing, possibly regular, nature of the condition. Rather than the NIV "destroying", a literal "bruising" may be intended.

apo + gen. "leaves him" - [departs] from [him]. Expressing separation; "away from."

suntribon (suntribw) pres. part. "destroying [him]" - mauling, crushing, breaking, bruising [him]. Attendant circumstance participle expressing action accompanying the verb "departs"; "it rarely departs from him and mauls him". "It is only with a struggle that it leaves him, and it is wearing him out", TNT.

edehqhn (deomai) aor. "I begged" - i besought, asked. Luke emphasises the urgency of the Father's request.

twn maqhtwn (hV ou) gen. "disciples" - the disciples [of you]. A genitive of direct object after the verb "I begged."

iJna + subj. "to" - that [they might cast out it]. Introducing an object clause / dependent statement of indirect speech, expressing what they "asked / begged".

kai "but" - and. Here contrastive, as NIV.

ouk hdunhqhsan (dunamai) aor. pas. "they could not" - they were not able, they were unable. The negated aorist implies a specific attempt to do something which failed; the disciples tried to help the boy, but failed. "They were not able to do what I asked." Mark's "they were not strong enough" is clarified by Matthew's "they could not heal him" and Luke's "they were not able." Note that both Matthew (little faith) and Mark (no effective prayer of faith) provide a reason for this failure, but Luke lets Jesus make the point, "You unbelieving and perverse generation", but who are the unbelieving ones? With respect to the disciples, they had both the authority and the power to perform the healing, cf., 9:1. Some commentators make the point that the disciples failure serves to highlight the greater power of the Master (eg., Fitzmyer), but it is more likely that their failure serves to highlight the importance of faith.

iii] A rebuke from Jesus, v41: Jesus now rebukes their lack of faith, but who is he rebuking? In the end, the crowd's response is superficial, they are only "amazed", so they certainly fit the bill, but nothing is implied, with respect to their lack of faith, as far as this healing is concerned - the crowd is not a party to the healing. Nothing is stated about the father of the child, other than he asks for healing, which is not necessarily a request driven by faith (contra Green who suggests that "his faith apparently persists despite his son's condition"). Yet, what about the disciples? They obviously come short in the faith department because they have the power and authority to deal with such problems. Luke stays well clear of Mark's answer to the problem, Mk.9:20, and also Matthew answer, an answer which muddies the water somewhat (the problem is "little faith", but "faith as a grain of mustard seed" moves mountains). The problem is serious, because in the end, faith is the means of entering the kingdom.

apokriqeiV (apokrinomai) aor. pas. part. "[Jesus] replied" - [but/and,] having answered [jesus said]. Attendant circumstance participle expressing action accompanying the main verb "said", virtually redundant. A common expression; See apokriqeiV, 1:19.

apistoV adj "unbelieving" - [o] disbelieving, lacking faith. Attributive adjective limiting "generation".

diestrammenh (diastrefw) perf. mid./pas. part. "perverse " - having been perverted, depraved [generation]. The participle serves as an adjective, attributive, limiting "generation". Mark has "O faithless generation", but both Luke and Matthew add "perverse", probably in alignment with Deuteronomy 32:5, 20. "Perverse / twisted" gives weight to "faithless". The TEV has "people", but this implies the allusion is to all those gathered on this occasion, so Bock, Marshall, .... (Plummer actually excludes the disciples), but it is more likely that the allusion applies to the disciples, the new Israel, so Nolland.

eJwV pote + fut. "how long" - until when. Introducing a interrogative temporal clause, future time; "How much longer."

proV + acc. "with" - [will i be] toward. A positional sense (at / with, rather than movement toward) is surely intended, although the preposition would then be followed by a dative.

anexomai (anecomai) fut. "put up with" - [and] will i endure. "How long must I be patient with you?" Israel's failure to rely on God's promises, particularly during the wilderness journey, prompts a similar divine exasperation / weariness. Jesus may be speaking from the divine perspective, but also from the perspective of the one faithful Israelite, Christ, who must carry his brother's little faith.

uJmwn gen. pro. "you" - you. [bring the son of you here]. A genitive of direct object after the verb "put up with."

iv] Jesus heals the boy, v42: Jesus "rebukes" the evil spirit, confronting it as a personal influence rather than an inanimate thing. In typical fashion, the dark powers don't give up without a fight.

prosercomenou (prosercomai) gen. pres. part. "while [the boy] was coming" - [but/and still he] approaching. The genitive participle and its genitive subject autou, "he", presumably the boy, forms a genitive absolute construction, temporal, as NIV; "while the son was still coming." The temporal adverb eti, "still", expresses "while still in the act of approaching." It is possible that the attack is prompted by the boy's coming to Jesus, although this may just be another regular convulsion.

errhxen (rJhssw) aor. "threw [him] to the ground" - [the demon] broke, tore, burst out, threw down [him]. The meaning "throw down" is best. The boy falls to the ground and has a convulsion.

epetimhsen (epitimaw) aor. "rebuked" - [but/and jesus] rebuked. Probably in the sense of "checked". Jesus' words are instantaneously effective.

tw/ pneumati tw/ akaqartw/ dat. "the impure spirit" - the unclean spirit. Dative of direct object after the epi prefix verb "to rebuke."

iasato (iaomai) aor. "healed" - [and] healed [the child]. Jesus "cured" the boy. Luke normally uses this word of a physical healing rather than an exorcism. This may well indicate that Luke understands the ailment more in terms of a physical complaint than demon possession.

tw/ patri (hr roV) dat. "to [his] father" - [and he returned him] to the father [of him]. Dative of indirect object.

v] The response of the crowd, v43: Amazement is a pre-faith response and tends to be the typical reaction of a crowd to a miracle performed by Jesus. Ultimately, when confronted by Jesus' words and works, people move from amazement to either faith and following, or disbelieve and opposition. As illustrated in the parable of the Sower / Seeds, time will tell. Note how Luke's brevity, when compared with Mark, serves to place the disciples' failure alongside Jesus' "glorious" success. Their failure, as the "faithless and perverse generation", serves to remind all those who would follow Jesus that a believer's promised participation in the new age of the kingdom depends on their day-by-day (kaq hJmeran, 9.23) faith in the suffering Son of Man.

exeplhssonto (ekplhssw) imperf. "they were [all] amazed" - [but/and, all] were amazed, astonished. Who? Probably not the disciples - they have seen it all before.

epi + dat. "at" - upon. Here with a causal sense; "because of."

th/ magaleiothti (hV) dat. "the greatness" - the majesty, magnificence, greatness. Another word for "glory", hinting at divine glory.

tou qeou (oV) gen. "of God" - of god. The genitive is adjectival, possibly possessive, although Culy opts for verbal, subjective. "God's greatness and majesty in Jesus' activity", Stein.

qaumazontwn (qaumazw) gen. pres. part. "while [everyone] was marvelling" - [but/and all = everyone] wondering, marvelling. The genitive participle with its genitive subject "all / everyone", forms a genitive absolute construction, temporal, as NIV. The present tense is likely to express durative action here. The typical response of crowds ("everyone") is to marvel at, be amazed at, Jesus' mighty works ("everything he was doing"), although Luke does not feature this response as clearly as Mark does.

epi + dat. "at [all]" - at [all = everything]. Here probably taking a causal sense; "because of all that he was doing (imperf. = durative)."

oi|V dat. pro. "that [Jesus did]" - which [he was doing. and he said to the disciples of him]. Dative by attraction.

vi] Jesus' 2nd. passion prediction, v44: While the crowd is buzzing with amazement, Jesus addresses the disciples, that "faithless and perverse generation", and reminds them to refocus their faith on the suffering Son of Man. This serves as Jesus' second passion prediction, the first followed Peter's confession, 9:18-22. This time Jesus uses the phrase "betrayed into the hands of men", whereas before he used the terms "suffer", "rejected", and "killed". "Betrayed", or probably better, "handed over", is the inevitable consequence of the divine plan of salvation. Also, this time Jesus does not mention being raised from the dead on the third day. He does again use the enigmatic title "Son of Man" for the glorious, but suffering messiah.

eiV + acc."[listen carefully to what I am about to tell you]" - [you put] into [the ears of you these words]. Spatial, expressing the direction of the action and arrival at. The expression is idiomatic; "I want what I am about to say to you really to sink into your minds", Barclay. Possibly, but unlikely, Jesus is asking his disciples to consider the statement of the crowd concerning the greatness of God evident in his ministry, ie., "take a moment to reflect on what they are saying about me." Bock suggests that the phrase parallels "he who has ears to hear, let him hear", and this surely refers to what follows, as NIV.

gar "-" - for. The intended sense is unclear. Nolland thinks the clause is "elliptical: the clause that follows both explains the solemnity of Jesus introduction and is what he has intended to introduce"; "for I want you to know that the Son of Man .....". Bock and Marshall think gar is epexegetic / appositional of touV logouV toutouV, "these words"; "namely that the Son of Man ....." Although, Culy argues that if this is what Luke intended, he would have used iJna + subj., or oJti, or an infinitive. Culy thinks that gar is causal, but that touV logouV toutouV refers to what the crowd is saying. We are probably best to follow Thompson who argues that Jesus is telling the disciples that rather than listening to the crowd, even though what they say is true, they should listen to what he has to say, the touV logouV toutouV, "these words", Jesus words concerning the suffering Son of Man, "because (causal) the Son of Man is about to be delivered ........"

paradidosqai (paradidwmi) pas. inf. "to be betrayed" - [the son of man is about] to be delivered over, given over, handed over. The infinitive is complementary, completing the sense of the verb "is about." Possibly "betrayed", but if the "delivered over" is referring to the divine plan of salvation, then either the passive sense "handed over", or the active sense of "taken into custody", along with "must be / it is necessary", may be a better rendering.

anqrwpwn (oV) gen. "of men" - [into hands] of men. The genitive is adjectival, possessive. The phrase illustrates human power and is negative rather than positive, therefore, the sense may be "[hand over to] the authorities" or even "the mob."

viii] The disciples are confused, v45: The disciples understandably cannot comprehend how the messiah could possibly be humiliated. For them, the messiah comes to reign; he is David's son. It's all a bit beyond them and they are just too embarrassed to ask Jesus to explain himself. Faith and knowledge go hand in hand, so, was the disciples' lack of knowledge the cause of their failure in faith to progress the healing of the boy?

de "but" - but/and [they were not understanding this word]. Transitional, here to a contrasting point.

kai "-" - and. Here probably epexegetic, introducing an explanation of their lack of understanding.

h\n parakekalummenon (parakaluptw) perf. pas. pat. "it was hidden" - it had been hidden. The perfect participle with the imperfect verb to-be forms a periphrastic pluperfect construction, probably serving to emphasise the durative nature of their lack of understanding. Any understanding of Jesus' necessary humiliation is concealed from the disciples. Circumstances, rather than divine intervention, is the likely reason. A humiliated messiah is beyond their comprehension and so it is only after Jesus' death and resurrection that they understand why the Son of Man must suffer. Some commentators suggest a Satanic blinding is responsible.

ap (apo) + gen. "from" - from [them]. Expressing separation; "away from."

iJna + subj. "so that" - that [they might not understand it]. This construction usually forms a final clause expressing purpose, so Marshall, but sometimes consecutive, expressing result, so Bock, or at least a hypothetical result. An understanding of Jesus humiliation is hidden from the disciples so, as a result, they are not able to understand the meaning of Jesus' prediction. Their lack of perception hindered them from understanding God's plan of salvation in the humiliation of the Son of Man.

efobounto (fobew) imperf. pas. "they were afraid" - [and] they were afraid. Matthew has the disciples filled with grief, hinting that the disciples do understand that Jesus is predicting his death, but unable to understand why God's messiah should be overwhelmed by the forces of evil. Therefore, "ashamed to ask" may be a better rendering.

erwthsai (erwtew) aor. inf. "to ask" - to ask [him]. The infinitive is complementary, completing the sense of the verb "to be afraid"; "They did not dare to ask"

peri + gen. "about [it]" - concerning [this word]. Expressing reference; "concerning".

Luke Introduction

Exposition

Exegetical Commentaries

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