Prior to this Jesus has sent out the 72 disciples out on mission and they have just returned. They are all in good spirits as even the demons are subject to them in Jesus’ name. Jesus has said in response to them the curious line “I saw Satan fall like lightning from Heaven” and pronounced that he has given them authority over the enemy and tread upon scorpions and serpents, that all spirits are subject to them and they should rejoice for their names are now written in Heaven. Todays readings follows this passage.
21 In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; yea, Father, for such was thy gracious will.
Luke the Evangelist tells us that Jesus’ following words come at the “same hour” as the disciples rejoicing so what he is about to say is in reference to their victory over the evil spirits. Jesus “rejoiced in the Holy Spirit”. The word for “rejoiced” is a rare one, only appearing one other time in Luke’s Gospel. It is the Greek word agalliaō, its only other appearance is in Mary’s Magnificat where she says “and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior”. In Jesus’ case he is rejoicing in the third person of the trinity, the Holy Spirit. All three persons of the trinity are highlighted very clearly in these passages.
Jesus then thanks his “Father, Lord of Heaven and earth”. It is important to note that this language that Jesus uses, is not “normal” for Second Temple Judaism, or any type of Judaism really. The personal relationship that Jesus speaks of when he refers to God is exclusive to the Christian context. He is thanking his Father for “hiding these things from the wise” and revealing them to “babes”. What is it that Jesus is referring to? Considering the previous passages it appears to be that of exorcism and healing that the disciples sent out on mission had accomplished.
Second Temple Judaism was no stranger to exorcisms although many only associate it with Christianity. In the Dead Sea Scrolls of the Essene Community at Qumran there were The Songs of the Sage (4Q510–511) they describe hymns to drive away evil spirits. These texts associate exorcism with praising God, emphasizing the power of spoken or sung words sanctified by divine authority (Dimant, 1984). Josephus the Jewish Historian recounts a first-century Jewish exorcist named Eleazar who performed an exorcism before Emperor Vespasian. Eleazar used a ring with a root prescribed by King Solomon, reciting incantations and invoking the name of Solomon to draw out the demon (Antiquities 8.45-49).
All of these methods seem rather hard to learn and acquire, requiring decades of study and of course the financial resources for ancient sacred objects. The disciples in their simplicity of obedience to Jesus’ authority are able to do even more than the learned and wise of their time with none of the material or intellectual resources that people like the Pharisees, Priests and Scribes had.
Jesus then says at the end of the verse that it was the Fathers will that this be the case. This is the common theme throughout the prophets of God’s reversal of expectations. That his strength is actually found in weakness.
22 All things have been delivered to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
Jesus then takes this small scale acknowledgement of the divine to a grander theological scale, speaking to a crowd. He says all things have been delivered to him by his Father. This is inheritance language and is parallel with many verses in John’s Gospel.
He tells his audience that no one knows who the Son is fully except the Father, and no one knows who the Father is fully except the Son and that the Son has the authority to choose who receives these revelations. This speaks to the communion of the Holy Trinity. The intimate relationship of Persons in the Godhead. The Son gets to choose who gets to be included in that intimacy. This is very deep theology. The Son is the method through which people get to partake in the Communion of the Trinity itself.
23 Then turning to the disciples he said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see what you see!
Jesus now turns from the crowds to tell his disciples something privately. He says their eyes are blessed because of what they are seeing and experiencing. Makarioi is the Greek word used for “blessed”. This term conveys more than just happiness; it denotes divine favor or a state of being in God’s grace. It’s used frequently in beatitudes (e.g., Matthew 5:3-11) to indicate spiritual privilege and fulfillment. Jesus emphasizes the disciples’ unique privilege of witnessing the fulfillment of the Messianic promises. Their “seeing” is not just visual but participatory, involving understanding and experiencing the inbreaking of God’s kingdom.
24 For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”
After tell the disciples they are blessed, Jesus explains why. He says many prophets and kings desired to see what they are seeing fulfilled among them but but did not see, many wanted to hear for they are hearing in Jesus’ day but did not hear. The prophets and kings, standing within the various Old Covenant promises (e.g., Abrahamic, Mosaic, and Davidic covenants), longed for the Messianic age. These covenants were promissory, always pointing forward to their fulfillment in Jesus’ life, ministry, and sacrifice.
Moses and Elijah, representing the Law and the Prophets, each had profound yet incomplete encounters with God. In Exodus 33:22, Moses is placed in the cleft of the rock as God’s glory passes by. He could not see God’s face but only His “back”—a partial revelation. And again in 1 Kings 19:11-13, Elijah experiences God’s presence not in wind, earthquake, or fire, but in a “gentle whisper” while hiding in a cave. Like Moses, Elijah’s experience of God is limited, pointing to the need for a more complete manifestation.
Jesus’ statement contrasts the limited glimpses and hearings of God’s plan experienced by Moses, Elijah, and other prophets with the full revelation given to the disciples. In Christ, the disciples are witnessing the fulfillment of what the Old Covenant hinted at through shadows and types.
The Word has been promised to the prophets and kings and now it has been made flesh and tabernacled among them, uniting heaven and earth and the sons of Adam once again the opportunity to have their names written in Heaven as Sons of God.
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