So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound -- think of it -- for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?

 

 Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.  And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up.  But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, "Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity."  And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.  But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, "There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day."  The Lord then answered him and said, "Hypocrite!  Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it?  So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound -- think of it -- for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?"  And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him. 

 

- Luke 13:10–17 

 

Yesterday we read that were present at that season some who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.  Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish."  He also spoke this parable:  "A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none.  Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, 'Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none.  Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?'  But he answered and said to him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.  And if it bears fruit, well.  But if not, after that you can cut it down.'"

 

 Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.  And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up.  But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, "Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity."  And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.  But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, "There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day."  The Lord then answered him and said, "Hypocrite!  Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it?  So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound -- think of it -- for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?"  And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.  Jesus makes an extraordinary remark when addressing the crowd regarding the woman's eighteen years of suffering.  He says to them, "Think of it."   My study bible comments that the patristic tradition sees this command as directing us to a spiritual meaning for the eighteen years.  It says that as the Greek expression is literally translated "ten and eight years," both St. Ambrose and Theophylact see ten as representing the Ten Commandments and eight as representing grace, for the day of Resurrection is often called the "eighth day."  Thus humanity is lifted up by faith in Christ, who fulfills both law and grace.  This is surely borne out in the action of this story itself, in which grace fulfills the healing of a daughter of Abraham and in the rejoicing of the multitude.

 

In Luke's Gospel, we can read the consistent revelation of grace on the part of Jesus Christ.  In today's reading, it's quite remarkable that all Christ's adversaries were put to shame.  In the general context of the Gospel, that would have something to do with the fact that all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.  During Holy Week events, we're told by Luke that the leaders wouldn't speak openly against John the Baptist for fear of the crowds (Luke 20:1-8).  So, we are given to understand that the leadership does care about their standing among the people, at least out in the open, giving us a picture which modern people can understand as highly political; in fact, reminding us of politicians.  These same leaders will also stir up the crowds to clamor for Jesus' death on Good Friday, no doubt well-planted with rumors and exhortations and their own supporters in the crowd.  Again, we have a familiar picture to modern people of political machination, even of large numbers of people, and the legacy for an entire nation.  But here in today's reading, Jesus' expression of grace manifesting before all in the healing of this suffering woman is on display, and nothing can stop it.  This is the graciousness of God that breaks through by revelation.  Jesus makes it clear that the insistence upon ownership of the laws of Moses by these religious leaders and their legalistic interpretation in such a harsh way is, in fact, not what the law calls for, and does not reflect the gracious and merciful God of Abraham, of whom this suffering woman is a daughter.   Jesus, in fact, gives us so much psychology, as He shows quite clearly through His actions how the hard-hearted may indeed thwart even the word of God to act in harsh injustice, like denying this woman healing on the Sabbath.  Jesus emphasizes her suffering when He tells them "think of it" -- that they must first comprehend eighteen years of suffering.  It's as if she is bent over with punishment, a sentence of eighteen years by Satan who seeks to enslave and imprison human beings -- and Christ comes as Liberator, Deliverer, Savior to release her from her imprisonment and torture.  The image comes to mind of punishments of the time, of "stripes" or whipping, and beatings:  things which would cause one to be bent over in pain.  Jesus speaks of the common practice of releasing an animal from its own binding and confinement be led to necessary water on the Sabbath in order to restore health.   And so, by comparison, what about this daughter of Abraham who is bound and confined by Satan?  The people rejoice and glorify God, as Christ's adversaries -- inadvertently or not -- were helping the adversary by opposing Christ.  Over the course of the past several readings, Jesus has made reference to the importance of first and foremost our reconciliation with God, the One who has power not only to kill but to cast into hell (see this reading and the subsequent readings).  Here in today's reading, Jesus openly calls the suffering of this woman a binding of Satan; that in her suffering she has been bound like a hostage or prisoner.  It is subtle reminder, again, that to be reconciled to God in the heart before all things is to be in communion with the One who can release us from the bonds of the "strong man"  because God is the stronger (see Luke 11:14-23).   It is the revelation of Christ that is at once both grace and the stronger power who overcomes the adversary (Satan), and who is here to help to liberate human beings.  This is the true inheritance of the daughter of Abraham, the fulfillment of the Law in the coming of the Christ (or Messiah).  Our gracious Lord shares all the attributes of power but works through grace and is characterized by love and mercy.  What are the bonds you need to break?  How do you need to be liberated?  It is only this power that can release us from the ruler of this world, who causes pain for human beings.  In fact, one name for the evil or the devil in Greek is poneros/πονηρός, the root of which is literally "pain" but can also mean toilsome labor.  In the original text, it is this one from whom we pray to be delivered in the Lord's prayer (in Luke 11:4).  Christ' reveals God's splendid power and grace in today's reading, and the people understand and rejoice.  This is the glory of God, and we should never accept anything or anything who would limit that understanding of the One who loves us so that He came to our world, as one of us, to show us.

So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound -- think of it -- for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?

 Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.  And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up.  But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, "Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity."  And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.  But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, "There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day."  The Lord then answered him and said, "Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it?  So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound -- think of it -- for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?"  And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.

- Luke 13:10-17

Yesterday we read that there were present at that season some who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.  And He answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.  Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish."  He also spoke this parable:  "A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none.  Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, 'Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none.  Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?'  But he answered and said to him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.  And if it bears fruit, well.  But if not, after that you can cut it down.'" 

 Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.  And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up.  But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, "Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity."  And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.  But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, "There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day."  The Lord then answered him and said, "Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it?  So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound -- think of it -- for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?"  And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.   Patristic commentators see this woman as bent down in her infirmity -- an oppression of evil from which she needs to be released.  Jesus Himself says that Satan has bound her.  We note the pattern of healing; it's similar to the casting out of demons in Luke's Gospel:  when Jesus heals her, her immediate response is to glorify God.  In His reply to the ruler of the synagogue, Jesus commands,  "Think of it," referring to the eighteen years this woman has been bound.  My study bible says that patristic commentators see this command as directing us to a spiritual meaning for the eighteen years.  The Greek expression here is literally translated "ten and eight years."  Both St. Ambrose and Theophylact see ten as representing the Ten Commandments and eight as representing grace, as the day of Resurrection is often called the "eighth day."  Therefore humanity is lifted up by faith in Christ, who fulfills both law and grace.

I find it notable that the woman is bent over for her infirmity, and that it has oppressed her for such a long time.   Jesus gives us language that gives us an understanding of oppression and binding.  As Deliverer, Jesus is the one that frees us from those who would bind us, liberates captives from captors, unlooses bonds.  She receives, in effect, her freedom from Christ.  Not only that, but her upright position as a result also gives us an image of what she is freed for.  The word in Greek translated as "made straight" is ἀνωρθώθη/anorthothe, which literally means "made straight [or upright] again."  In other words, she is restored to her proper position.  It's noteworthy also that the root of this word is "orthos" from which comes the word "orthodox," the theological term for "correct belief."  There is a connection between this sense of being made straight and a moral or virtuous meaning of "straightforward" or "upright."   As her immediate response is to glorify God, we understand that her freedom is to become the one whom God has created her to be.  She is now unbound by Christ, freed after eighteen years -- the time it takes for full maturity -- to live as fully as she is meant to live.   Like Peter's mother-in-law after her healing by Christ (Luke 4:38-39), she is restored to her place, upright.  In Scripture, to be bound may also be a metaphor for sin that locks us into place, stagnant, and burdened with ties to things that keep us stuck.  Let us also make note of the fact that this is another story of a woman in Luke; her life, afflicted as it has been for so long, quite possibly makes her someone easily overlooked by others.  But Jesus teaches us the importance and potential in each life through His care.   Jesus challenges the narrative regarding what the Sabbath is for, and invites us to consider what full healing means.  He opens our eyes to possibilities we might not have considered for ourselves, even as He is here to liberate our "stuck thinking" so that we, too, may be restored.  What burdens and bindings have you got to lose?  Why wait any longer?  "It's never too late" is another strong part of the healing and restoring message in today's text!  The eighth day is the new day of the Kingdom, the eternal day of Resurrection, in all ways that we need it.

Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity

 Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.  And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up.  But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, "Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity."  And He laid His hands on her and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.  But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, "There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day."  The Lord then answered him and said, "Hypocrite!  Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it?  So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound -- think of it -- for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?"  And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.

- Luke 13:10-17

We were told in yesterday's reading that here were present at that season some who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.  Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish."  He also spoke this parable:  "A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none.  Then he said to the keeper of the vineyard, 'Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none.  Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?  But he answered and said to him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.  And if it bears fruit, well.  But if not, after that you can cut it down.'"  See The fig tree.

Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.  And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up.  But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, "Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity."  And He laid His hands on her and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.  Let us take a good look at this woman:  a binding, an infirmity and affliction for eighteen years.  Jesus calls her out of the crowd, seemingly  No one has prayed or asked Him to help her, but He spots the woman and calls her to Him.  He lays His hands on her, a healing by touch.  Immediately she is straight and glorifies God.  It is similar to the story with the healing of Peter's mother-in-law:  she was immediately up and about her work.  When this woman is able to be upright, straight, she is in her "right place" and glorifying God.  

 But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, "There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day."  The Lord then answered him and said, "Hypocrite!  Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it?  So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound -- think of it -- for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?"  My study bible tells us, "Acts of help toward others on the Sabbath were considered work and were forbidden, except in life-threatening situations.  Jesus notes that if animals needing water were cared for on the Sabbath, certainly a woman of Israel could be delivered from Satan's bondage on the Sabbath."  Jesus teaches us what kind of Liberator He is.  In the reading from this past Saturday, Jesus was accused of casting out demons by the power of demons.  He taught then, "When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace.  But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters."  He spoke as the "Stronger Man" and in His role as liberator He expresses here what that means; it is ultimately to heal.  The woman "standing straight" is a clear symbol for correction, restoration, the "right way."

And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.  Here the multitudes respond appropriately; everyone can see the sense of what He does and says.  As often happens in His confrontations with the leadership, the common people are pleased to see His victories.

What do we make of this story in today's reading?  It is quite unusual.  This woman doesn't ask for help, doesn't come up from behind Him as the woman who touched the hem of His garment.  She's not a public sort of figure as was the widow of Nain who mourned her son.  No friend brings her to Jesus.  But instead, He is in the synagogue and picks her out of the crowd, because of the intensity of her affliction.  She is literally bent over and cannot be straight; but in redeeming her from her affliction which bends her over, Jesus restores her position in the temple, and she glorifies God.  This is a great and powerful metaphor for healing, on all levels that we can receive it.  As Liberator -- and the language in this story is very much a "liberating" kind of talk -- Jesus is here to free us from what afflicts us.  Our reconciliation and salvation -- our restoration -- are found in His healing.  I read an interesting article lately on the nature of the Persons of God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit).  It said that we know God not by "what" God is -- for we can't know that, this is a mystery beyond our understanding and capability.  Rather, through grace such as the healing witnessed here, we know "how" God is.  We see in this gift of this story what God is "like" -- because we see how Christ is in the world:  His liberation is one of mercy, of a desire to heal and to restore, to take away affliction, and to give us capabilities in turn to be "like Him."  His liberating mission is to relieve us from what binds us, in all sorts of ways.  This is "how" Jesus walks in the world, in the revelation of God to us through His incarnation as a human being, and this is "how" we know what it is for us to grow in God-likeness, to be "like Him."  Let us remember that healing and liberation are synonymous, and that His plea here is for a kind of mercy that people know, but that abstract concepts and rules can get in the way of.  Does it make sense that farm animals are cared for in a way that expresses their value, but that human beings are not?  Let us remember the Liberator and what He teaches us; from His "how" we learn "how" we are to be too.