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On that very day some Pharisees came, saying to Him, "Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You." And He said to them, "Go and tell that fox, 'Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.' Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow, and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her. How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate, and assuredly, I say to you, you shall not see Me until the time comes when you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'"
- Luke 13:31-35
In yesterday's reading, Jesus teaching, and He asked, "What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden and it grew and became a large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches." And again He said, "To what shall I liken the kingdom of God? It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened." And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. Then one said to Him, "Lord, are there few who are saved?" And He said to them, "Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open for us,' and He will answer and say to you, 'I do not know you, where you are from,' then you will begin to say, 'We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.' But He will say, 'I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.' There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God. And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last."
On that very day some Pharisees came, saying to Him, "Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You." My study bible tells us that "this warning of some Pharisees may well be sincere, or it could be a cunning way to get Jesus to Judea so they could enforce their authority against Him. Herod Antipas imprisoned and beheaded John the Baptist." Herod was the ruler of Galilee; Jerusalem is in Judea, governed by Pontius Pilate.
And He said to them, "Go and tell that fox, 'Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.'" A note tells us that "Jesus does not mince words in calling Herod fox for his sly craftiness. Perfected refers to the completion of Jesus' mission through His Passion and Resurrection in Jerusalem. He has nothing to fear from Herod." This word for "perfected" in Greek has the meaning of perfected, but its root is "finish" or "fulfilled," meaning "to the end," "complete." Nothing will jeopardize Jesus' mission.
"Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow, and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem." My study bible tells us, "Jerusalem, the center of religious authority, often was the site of the judgment and persecution of God's prophets. Jesus speaks with prophetic irony here."
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her. How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!" Of this verse my study bible says, "Jesus' tender lament and judgment over unrepentant Jerusalem show He loves His adversaries as we are to love ours." It's a statement about rejection, and yet a willing love on Jesus' part, a longing to care for those who are His children.
"See! Your house is left to you desolate, and assuredly, I say to you, you shall not see Me until the time comes when you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'" My study bible says that "the time referred to is Palm Sunday, when Jesus will be acclaimed at His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem."
There is such a deep lament here in Jesus' words about Jerusalem. The implication is that He's been watching over Jerusalem for many years, for centuries -- that is, over the Jerusalem that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her. Who has sent them? Was it Christ who wanted so often to gather Jerusalem's children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, they they were not willing? This is the implication in the verses. And desolate the city is left, and all Christ does is lament! Our choices are important; they may have devastating effects upon our lives, and yet it is our freedom that is the most absolute part of ourselves. Christ Himself does not interfere with this, but rather implores with love, and repeatedly sends prophets and saints, and those who tell us of God's word. The welcome, "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!" is the one that will be shouted upon His welcome to Jerusalem, at the beginning of Holy Week, the start of His Passion, and death and Resurrection. This welcome is the welcome of the Messiah, and yet it is the end of His mission into this world. Those who would be His children now are those by adoption. In chapter 8, Luke tells us that Jesus teaches, "My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it." So we may become children by adoption, through faith. Jesus' life, teaching, Passion, death and Resurrection are for this: that those who would be gathered under His wings may come from everywhere, simply by faith. Let us remember His great grace, this gift that reaches to all of us. Are we willing?
