31 At that time some Pharisees came to Jesus and said, “Go away from here! Herod wants to kill you!”
32 Jesus said to them, “Go tell that fox Herod, ‘Today and tomorrow I am forcing demons out and healing people. Then, on the third day, I will reach my goal.’ 33 Yet I must be on my way today and tomorrow and the next day. Surely it cannot be right for a prophet to be killed anywhere except in Jerusalem.
34 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone to death those who are sent to you. Many times I wanted to gather your people as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not let me. 35 Now your house is left completely empty. I tell you, you will not see me until that time when you will say, ‘God bless the One who comes in the name of the Lord.’”
Read Luke 13:31-35 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!
In our passage for this entry, a portion of it stands out in my mind that makes me curious about Jewish/Israelite history. Right before Jesus begins reflecting on how Jerusalem has stoned all God’s messengers that were sent to it, He says, “Surely it cannot be right for a prophet to be killed anywhere except in Jerusalem.” (v. 33b)
This statement is interesting because it makes me curious how many of God’s prophets were killed “in Jerusalem”. Jesus shared in an earlier parable about a vineyard owner and some evil tenants killing all the servants of the owner, and in one regard, this parable was prophetic about what was coming up that Passover weekend.
With this parable in mind, I wonder if in Jesus’ statement, “Jerusalem” does not mean the city itself, but simply at the hands of the Jewish religious leaders. Within the city of Jerusalem was God’s temple, and this made the city the symbolic center of Jewish worship. Jews at that time (as well as throughout history up to and including today) traveled to Jerusalem at set holy days, and the Passover was one of those special occasions where Jews would make the journey. Jerusalem was, at the very least, the spiritual capital of the nation.
And technically speaking, Jesus was not killed “in” Jerusalem, but on a hill right outside the city’s walls.
If we understand Jesus’ statement to be that it isn’t right for a prophet to be killed except at the hands of the high priest and the other religious leaders living in the spiritual capitol, then this makes Jesus’ statement have another layer of meaning. Sure, it can mean the city itself on the surface, but digging down a layer or two, it could also mean at the hands of God’s chosen people.
It would not be right for any of God’s prophets to be killed by anyone except by God’s people they were sent to.
In this respect, I see in Jesus statement a theme that focuses in on human nature. Too often we are prone to reject the people/ideas/things that can help us the most, while stubbornly trying to keep the status quo or looking for only things that line up with how we already think. Jesus was rejected by the people He came to save/help/heal, and in this regard, He is like the dozens of prophets before Him who tried to point the people back to God and most of who were really only paid attention to after their deaths.
This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!
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