9 Well upon hearing these things Jesus marveled at him, and turning to the crowd following Him, He said, “I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith!”[c] 10 When those who were sent returned to the house they found that the slave who had been sick was well.
16 Fear took hold of all, and they began glorifying God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and, “God has visited His people!” 17 And this report about Him went throughout Judea, as well as all the surrounding region.[f]
29 (When all the people, including the tax collectors, heard this, they declared God to be just, having been baptized with John's baptism. 30 But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the counsel of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.)[m]
39 Now as the Pharisee who had invited Him observed this, he was saying to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him, including what sort of woman she is—because she is a sinner!”[s] 40 So Jesus reacted by saying to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he said, “Teacher, say on.” 41 “A certain creditor had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 And when they had no way to repay, he freely forgave them both. Now tell me, which of them will love him more?” 43 So Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one to whom he forgave more.” And He said to him, “You have judged correctly.”
44 Then He turned toward the woman and said to Simon: “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head. 45 You gave me no kiss, but she has not stopped kissing my feet since the time I came in. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with perfume. 47 For this reason, I say to you, her many sins have been forgiven, because she loved much; but to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.”
48 Then He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” 49 The other recliners began to say within themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” 50 Then He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go into peace.”[t]
<- Luke 6Luke 8 ->- a This event is not the same as that recorded in Matthew 8:5-13. For a discussion please see the Appendix: “Did the centurion leave his house?”.
- b He was part of a chain of command, with people both above and beneath him. Whereas he had military authority, he understood that Jesus had spiritual authority—all He had to do was speak. So how about us?
- c If Jesus were here today, He could say the same thing about almost all churches.
- d She needed compassion; her situation was desperate, with no means of support.
- e Jesus was always specific when He brought someone back from the dead, so as not to empty the graveyard.
- f Nain is in Galilee, but besides the surrounding region the report of this particular miracle made it to Judea as well.
- g John was puzzled and disillusioned. If Jesus was the Messiah, why was he, John, in prison? Why didn't Jesus set up His Kingdom and deliver John? Everyone was looking for the Messianic Kingdom to be set up forthwith (see 19:11).
- h “The poor are evangelized”—what the poor (and everyone else) need most is salvation and a new life, not a free distribution of wealth.
- i Jesus was not meeting John's expectations, and the same thing happens to us, from time to time, but we had better keep the proper perspective.
- j See Malachi 3:1.
- k Perhaps 14% of the Greek manuscripts omit “prophet”, to be followed by most modern versions, but the difference in meaning is significant. Jesus did not say, ‘no greater person’.
- l I find this statement to be puzzling; is John not part of the Kingdom? If John is not, then none of the OT saints is either.
- m John's baptism was based on repentance, but self-righteous people would consider that they did not need it.
- n In other words, the Pharisees were not children of ‘wisdom’.
- o This was not a friendly invitation.
- p He was reclining on a ‘couch’ with His head in toward the table, so His feet were ‘available’.
- q To do all of this she would have to be kneeling. She started by standing, and probably waited a minute to see if anyone would object.
- r This is a moving picture. She was ashamed and distressed, because of what she was, but she desperately wanted to change, and she saw in Jesus the way out.
- s Evidently the woman was well known to the locals.
- t That is what the Text says, ‘into’ not ‘in’—from then on her life would be different, one characterized by peace. She got what she so desperately wanted.