Luke 7:22

‘And he answered and said to them, “Go and tell John the things which you have seen and heard; the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good tidings preached to them.”

And then He turned to John's disciples and told them to go to John and tell them what they had seen and heard. ‘Tell him that the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the skin diseased are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up and the poor have the Good News preached to them.' All this was in fulfilment of Isaiah 29:18; Isaiah 35:5; Isaiah 61:1, to which is added that the skin diseased are cleansed (as with Elisha - 2 Kings 7) and the dead are raised (as with Elijah (1 Kings 17) and Elisha (2 Kings 4) and compare Isaiah 26:19 where the raising of the dead is an eschatological sign.

The message was threefold, firstly that One was here Who paralleled and even eclipsed Elijah and Elisha, secondly that the eschatological signs were being fulfilled, and thirdly, through deafening silence, that the time of judgment was not yet. God was at work in His own time. He was not in a hurry. He was gathering the wheat into the barn. The judgment could wait until the harvest was gathered in.

‘The blind receive their sight (Luke 4:18; Luke 14:13; Luke 14:21; Luke 18:35; Mark 8:22; Matthew 9:27; Matthew 12:22; Matthew 21:14), the lame walk (Luke 5:17; Luke 14:13; Luke 14:21; Matthew 15:30; Matthew 21:14; John 5:3; Acts 3:1), the lepers are cleansed (Luke 5:12; Luke 17:11), and the deaf/dumb hear (Luke 11:14; Mark 7:31; Matthew 9:32), the dead are raised up (Luke 7:11; Luke 8:40; John 11), the poor have good tidings preached to them (Luke 4:18; Luke 6:20; Luke 14:13; Luke 14:21).” Note that what is placed last draws attention to His central purpose. He is hear to proclaim Good News, gathering the wheat into the barn (Luke 3:17). The judgment will follow in due time.

‘The poor have the good news preached to them.' No one had any time for the poor. The Romans trampled on them, the Greeks despised them, the priests and Levites passed them by. But God had time for them. It was the Anointed Prophet from God Who would proclaim the Good news to the poor (Isaiah 61:1). It was the good shepherd who would attend to the poor of the flock (Zechariah 11:7; Zechariah 11:11), the shepherd who would be smitten (Zechariah 13:7). For they were God's special concern (Isaiah 25:4; Isaiah 41:17).