Luke 13:14 Commentary and Bible Study

This healing has taken place in the synagogue, in front of all the officials who are there – called ‘adversaries’ in the plural in verse 17 – who think it is their business to regulate religious matters. The ruler of the synagogue speaks for them all. He is indignant, angry, high and mighty, feeling he has the right to rebuke the Lord and the people. He searches for some grounds on which to charge Christ with a fault, and all he can think of is a legalistic complaint that actually reveals how little he understood about the law of God, or the purpose of the Sabbath. The Pharisees focused on outwards compliance to the law, because it was something which they thought they could achieve, and which would earn them a reputation for holiness with the people. How far from the mark are the ideas of the formalist about what really pleases God. He tells the people not to bring their sick on the Sabbath, but he gives the strong impression that he did not really want them to bring their sick on any other day either. What a terrible impression he leaves in the minds of the people by saying this! By saying this he represents God as one who does not care about their sorrows and heartaches, but only about adherence to the outward form of religion which they are there to police.