3rd Week in Lent, Monday – 8th March 2021 – Lk 4,24-30
Upholding downward mobility
Jesus replied to the crowd by stating a deep rooted principle in human affairs: great men are not appreciated in their own neighbourhood. He then cited two widespread incidents in the OT where prophets of God were not appreciated by the people of Israel and so were sent to Gentiles. Imagine the impact of Jesus’ words on Jewish minds. The Jews placed widows (women), Gentiles, and lepers at the bottom of the social scale. But here Jesus deliberately placed all three above unbelieving Jews. What He was saying was that OT history was about to repeat itself. In spite of His miracles, He would be rejected not only by the city of Nazareth but by the nation of Israel. Then He would turn to the Gentiles, widows and lepers, just as Elijah and Elisha had done. The people of Nazareth understood exactly what He meant. They were infuriated by the mere suggestion of favour being shown to the marginalized.
