he entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, as he usually did. He stood up to read, and they handed him
the book of the prophet Isaiah. Jesus then unrolled the scroll and found the place where it is written:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. He has anointed me, to bring good news to the poor; to proclaim liberty
to captives; and new sight to the blind; to free the oppressed; and to announce the Lord’s year of mercy.”
Jesus then rolled up the scroll, gave it to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue
were fixed on him. Then he said to them, “Today, these prophetic words come true, even as you listen.”
All agreed with him, and were lost in wonder, while he spoke of the grace of God. Nevertheless they asked,
“Who is this but Joseph’s Son?”
Reflection:
Jesus declares his mission, quoting Isaiah. The audience
is enthralled, but not for long. Soon there is a change in
response. If we read further, we know that the audience rose
up seething in anger, wanting to hurl him off the cliff. Why?
Because Jesus did the unthinkable. The verse in Isaiah ends
thus: “to announce the Lord’s year of mercy and the day of his
vengeance.” Jesus breaks the sentence, stops at mercy, closes
the book. For Jews who have suffered cycles of slavery, humiliation,
and death at the hands of their enemies, experience of redemption
must coincide with vengeance on enemies. This link is simply
unbreakable. We are no different. We experience peace when
our enemies perish. We have closure only when revenge is meted
out. Not for Jesus. For him, mercy is the last word, period.
© Copyright Bible Diary 2021