College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
Luke 24:13-32
Butler's Comments
SECTION 2
The Emmaus Conversation (Luke 24:13-32)
13 That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, 14and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. 15While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. 16But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. 17And he said to them, What is this conversation which you are holding with each other as you walk? And they stood still, looking sad. 18Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days? 19And he said to them, What things? And they said to him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. 21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since this happened. 22Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning 23and did not find his body; and they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. 24Some of those who were with us went to the tomb, and found it just as the women had said; but him they did not see. 25And he said to them, O foolish men, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory? 27And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.
28 So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He appeared to be going further, 29but they constrained him, saying, Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent. So he went in to stay with them. 30When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them. 31And their eyes were opened and they recognized him; and he vanished out of their sight. 32They said to each other, Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the scriptures?
Luke 24:13-24 Dark Despondency: Luke gives a very condensed account of the first day (Sunday) of the resurrection. He mentions the empty tomb, two appearances of Jesus, and then, omitting all the intervening thirty-nine days, describes the ascension (Luke 24:44-53; Acts 1:6-11). But Luke's account is of great significance. He was a physician. All his scientific training would have prejudiced him against a bodily resurrection. The two appearances he records are uniquely suited to supply evidence to this physician (and any other scientist) of the reality of a phenomenon outside his human experience! Luke traced all things accurately. He has the facts. Here they are:
d. Sunday afternoon (that very day.) (Mark 16:12; Luke 24:13-35): Fourth appearance: Two disciples of Jesus had left Jerusalem and were headed for the little village of Emmaus. Emmaus may be derived from an Aramaic name meaning, bath or wells; it was about seven miles northwest of Jerusalem. One of the disciples was named Cleopas. Lightfoot believes Cleopas to be Alpheus, the father of the apostle James (cf. Matthew 10:3). It is not the same person as Clopas, the husband of Mary (John 19:25), in Greek the two names are spelled differentlyKleopas and Klopa, respectively. Some think the other disciple might have been Luke, but that is highly improbable; other commentators think it may have been the wife of Cleopas. We do not know.
These two disciples were walking along the dusty road sermonizing to one another. Luke uses the Greek word homilein to describe their conversationit is the word from which we get the English, homiletics, or sermonizing. They were analyzing all the things that had happened in Jerusalem concerning Jesus the last few days. The Greek word suzetein is translated discussing in Luke 24:15, and means debate, argue, reason, dispute. This was not a casual conversation! They were so engrossed in their discussion they did not even notice when Jesus joined them in their journey, nor did they notice who He was. There was nothing miraculous about their eyes being kept from recognizing Him. Jesus certainly had no purpose in keeping them from knowing who He wasin fact, His purpose was to get them to recognize Him. They were depressed. They had no more anticipation of a bodily resurrection than the apostles back in Jerusalem. Jesus asked about their discussion. The Greek literally reads, What are these words (logoi) which you are throwing back and forth (antiballete) toward one another? It was an animated conversation! They stopped and looked out of their eyes sadly (Gr. skuthropos)probably looking toward the ground. Perhaps without even looking up, Clepoas answered, Are you the only stranger (Gr. paroikeis, lit. one who dwells parallel to; or, alien) to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days? They thought it incredible that anyone, even an outsider or a visitor, should not have heard something of what had transpired recently. So they related to this fellow traveler all the information they had, adding their interpretation. Their information was:
a.
Jesus of Nazareth was a prophet; mighty in deed and word before God and all the people.
b.
The chief priests and rulers delivered Jesus up to death by crucifixion.
c.
Three days had gone by since that had taken place.
d.
Some women disciples of Jesus, gone to the tomb, found the body of Jesus gone, reported back that angels told them He was alive.
e.
Other disciples they knew personally had gone to the tomb and found it just as the women had saidempty.
f.
But no one had seen Jesus.
Luke's Greek is interesting as he reports their statement: But (Gr. de) we were hoping that He is the one going to redeem Israel. Yes, and (Gr. alla ge) besides all this, it is now the third day since this happened. Moreover (Gr. alla kai) some women amazed us.. These hesitating, vacillating words imply emotional confusion. We wanted to believe. but then He has been dead three days. but on the other hand we have this incredible story by the women.. They had seen His mighty deeds and heard Him prophesy; they knew what the Old Testament prophets had written about the Messiah; they had heard the accounts of the empty tomb and the angelic announcements; still they did not believe! One of the greatest proofs of the resurrection of Jesus is that none of His followers expected it to happen!
Luke 24:25-32 Delirious Delight: Jesus rebuked them for their absence of understanding (Gr. anoetoi, without comprehension). He told them they were too hesitant (Gr. bradeis)they should believe the facts testified to by the women as the fulfillment of what their prophets predicted and not let their human rationalizations hinder them from faith. Jesus asked the rhetorical question, Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and enter into his glory? He expected them to answer, Yes! But they did not answer. So He began with Moses (the Pentateuch) and went through all the prophets, interpreting to them in all the scriptures (including the books of poetry too) the things concerning Himself. This would involve instruction in all the types and prophecies and symbols in the Old Testament which point directly or indirectly to the Messiah's redemptive suffering (Gr. pathein, pathos). The limitation of space does not permit us here to list all the types and symbolisms of the Messiah's suffering and glorification. We trust the following references to prophecies will suffice to explain Jesus-' exhortation:
The tenth verse of Psalms 96:1-13, according to some ancient Christian scholars, has been corrupted. Jerome, Augustine, Tertullian and others make this charge. Justin Martyr, 100-167 A.D., stated his belief that the Jews, out of hatred for Christ, tampered with the text because it prophesied the establishment of the Messiah's kingdom by means of His suffering and death upon the cross. Our modern versions read: Say unto the peoples: the Lord reigneth. In the version called Italica Antiqua, which was in use during the first centuries of the Church, and also in the Psalterio Romano, the verse is rendered: Say unto the peoples: the Lord reigneth from the tree or a ligno, as it is in the Latin. For the Psalmist to say that the Lord God Himselfthe Almightywas to establish His government in the hearts of men on the basis of a cursed cross was something so horrifying, so unthinkable and so repulsive to the human rationalizations of the Jews they simply refused to accept the idea. The cross of Christ became a stumbling block to the majority of them (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:23).
Jesus did not merely recount all the Old Testament predictions of the Messiah, He interpreted (Gr. diermeneuen, the word from which we get hermeneutics) to them the things concerning Himself. What a lesson that must have been! Beginning with the seed of the woman (Genesis 3:15) He would proceed through the types and shadows of the Mosaic covenant, into the monarchy and David's throne, and concluding with all the prophets, Still mastered by their despondency more than His teaching, they do not yet recognize Him. He has done nothing yet to give them evidence He is Jesus, risen bodily from the dead.
When they drew near to Emmaus Jesus gave some indication that He was going to travel on. Perhaps they were intrigued and deeply interested in what He was saying, perhaps they were simply exercising the importance placed on hospitality to strangers, so they constrained Him to stay with them. So He went in to abide (Gr. meinai) with them. When it came time for the evening meal, they all reclined (Gr. kataklithenai) on their couches about the table and Jesus took the bread and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them. Here, as a guest, Jesus takes the part of the host or the Master of the meal. The Greek phrase would read literally, And it was, in the reclining of Him with them, taking the loaf He blessed, and having broken He gave to them. This was just the way He had acted with them so many times before. As He broke the bread, they may have seen the nail prints in His hands; as He prayed, they may have recognized familiar phrases or urgency of voice. Whatever the evidence they now had, it was enough to make them recognize Him (Gr. epegnosan, fully perceive, discern, recognizefrom the Greek verb, to know). No sooner did they discover it was Jesus, risen bodily from the dead, eating supper with them, than He vanished out of their sight. The Greek phrase is, autos aphantos egeneto, He, non-visible, became. Barnes thinks there was nothing miraculous in this, but He simply withdrew from their presence while they were still stunned by the surprise. On the other hand, it is possible that it was a miraculous disappearance to give them evidence of His glorified state, All the disciples must understand that He is not risen bodily for the purpose of remaining on earth. He told Mary she must not hold onto Him as if to keep Him on earth (cf. our comments, Gospel of John, pg. 426, College Press). Later, He will appear suddenly to the apostles in the room where they had closed all the doors for fear of the Jews (cf. Mark 16:13-14; Luke 24:36-42; John 20:19-20). In His glorified body He was able to appear and disappear, to materialize and dematerialize, to go through closed doors or wallsand why shouldn-'t He if He was earlier able to walk on water, read minds, predict the future, raise the dead, cast out demons and be transfigured to talk with Moses and Elijah!
Whatever happened, it so excited these two disciples, they exclaimed, Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the scriptures? The Greek word for burned is kaiomene and is often used metaphorically of spiritual light (cf. Luke 12:35; John 5:35). Jesus had turned on the light of truth about the Messiah's death and resurrection in their hearts that day. Their gloom was gone. They were no longer despondent and without hope. Now they were filled with faith and joy. They could not contain themselves.