“Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures to-day and to-morrow and the third day I am perfected.” Thus Jesus declared that his time and task were divinely allotted; no king could shorten the time till the task was done. When his work was complete, then in his death and resurrection the glory and grace and power of Jesus would be made perfect. “Nevertheless I must go on my way.” Jesus was to leave Galilee and Perea, the realm of Herod, not because he feared the king, but in fulfillment of his task which would take him to Jerusalem. The explicit reference to Jerusalem was made in a tone of solemn irony, “For it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem;” that city had a monopoly in murdering prophets; it would be quite improper for Jesus to be killed in any other place.
However, the reference to Jerusalem led Jesus to pronounce a lament of touching pathos over the city he truly loved. He saw that his rejection and death would hasten the destruction of the city. He saw its doom already hovering over it like a bird of prey. He gladly would have given his divine salvation and protection, but his people would not accept him. Now they would be left to their own defense, that is to say, to the ruin which he alone could have averted. Henceforth they would not see him in his saving power until as a suffering and repentant nation they would finally welcome his return as that of their true Saviour and Lord. How Jesus always yearns to bless and to deliver, and how often he is spurned and rejected by those who need him the most!
1 And it came to pass, when he went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees on a sabbath to eat bread, that they were watching him. 2 And behold, there was before him a certain man that had the dropsy. 3 And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath, or not? 4 But they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go. 5 And he said unto them, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a well, and will not straightway draw him up on a sabbath day? 6 And they could not answer again unto these things.
7 And he spake a parable unto those that were bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief seats; saying unto them, 8 When thou art bidden of any man to a marriage feast, sit not down in the chief seat; lest haply a more honorable man than thou be bidden of him, 9 and he that bade thee and him shall come and say to thee, Give this man place; and then thou shalt begin with shame to take the lowest place. 10 But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest place; that when he that hath bidden thee cometh, he may say to thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have glory in the presence of all that sit at meat with thee. 11 For everyone that exalteth himself shall be humbled; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.