Jesus Speaking about John - Luke 7:24

Luke the beloved physician wrote how Jesus said, “ blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me”, and in chapter seven and verse twenty-four of his book Luke shared, “when the messengers of John were departed, he began to speak unto the people concerning John” where we read:

And when the messengers of John were departed, he began to speak unto the people concerning John, What went you out into the wilderness for to see? A reed shaken with the wind?

The verse reads, “And when the messengers of John were departed, he began to speak unto the people concerning John, ...” Luke began with the words, “and when” or “and at the time and moment” “the messengers” which means “the men who were envoys” “of John” or “belonging to John the Baptist whose name means Jehovah is a gracious giver” “were departed” which means “and left and went forth from Jesus”, “he began to speak” or “Jesus initiated and started to teach, affirm, maintain and direct His words” “unto the people” which means “toward the crowd of people who were gathered around Him” “concerning John” or “about John the Baptist”. Luke shared how Jesus waited until the men sent by John left Him until He “began” to share about John with the crowd.

The verse goes on to say, “... What went you out into the wilderness for to see? A reed shaken with the wind?” Luke continued with the words, “what went you out into the wilderness” which means “who did the people in the crowd emit and emanate toward the solitary, lonely, desolate and uninhabited place” “for to see” or “to observe, behold, look upon and view attentively”? “A reed” which refers to “a measuring rod or staff” “shaken with the wind” or “put in motion, agitated or made to totter by winds or storms”? Luke shared how Jesus questioned the multitude of people as to who they traveled into the “desert place” to observe, and then He answered His question with another question concerning a “reed” being agitated and moved by the “wind”.

When we think through Luke's words in this verse, we see how Jesus asked these rhetorical questions because He knew the answer to them. The multitude of people went to the “desert place” to observe John, and he was anything but a “tottering reed” in the “wind”. John the Baptist was the fore-runner to Jesus Himself, and God used John's message to prepare the people to receive their Messiah Jesus. Though Jesus did not allow John's messengers to hear what He said about him, Jesus was to validate John and his efforts in the Kingdom of God. God knows every person, and He knows their position in His Kingdom. He wants everyone to be with Him through a relationship with His Son Jesus, and when it seems that He does not affirm the work His children and servants have done, perhaps He is telling others about the works which never go unnoticed by Him.

Next time Luke shares how Jesus asks, “what went you out to see? A man clothed in soft raiment?”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".