Luke 4 · The Lantern

The Temptation of Jesus

Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness

By and by the Lord Himself consecrated His own baptism (and, in His own, that of all) by fasts; having (the power) to make "loaves out of stones," say, to make Jordan flow with wine perchance, if He had been such a "glutton and toper.

God said in times past, My Spirit shall not always abide in men, for that they are flesh. (Gen. 6:3. Vulg.) But now that we have been enriched with the gift of regeneration by water and the Spirit, we are become partakers of the Divine nature by participation of the Holy Spirit.

(Severus.) But if we order our lives according to our own will, how was He led about unwillingly? Those words then, He was led by the Spirit, have some meaning of this kind: He led of His own accord that kind of life, that He might present an opportunity to the tempter.

forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate no thing in those days, and when they were ending he was hungry.

Then the devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, speak to this stone that it may become bread.”

And through the Word Himself who had been made visible and palpable, was the Father shown forth, although all did not equally believe in Him; but all saw the Father in the Son: for the Father is the invisible of the Son, but the Son the visible of the Father. And for this reason all spake with Christ when He was present [upon earth], and they named Him God.

So, look at the arms of Christ with which he conquered for you, not for himself. For he who showed that stones could, through his majesty, be changed into bread by the transformation into a different nature, teaches that you must do nothing at the devil's behalf nor for the purpose of manifesting virtue.

After he described the occasion of the temptation, here he describes the manner of tempting, and this according to a threefold motive. Now the motive to sin is a changeable good, which exists in a threefold difference: either it is inferior, and this belongs to the flesh; or exterior, and this belongs to the world; or interior, and this is the excellence of the mind.

And Jesus answered to him, “It has been written that ‘Not on bread alone will the man live.’”

Through them, to wit, had "the heart of the People been made thick, lest they should see with the eyes, and hear with the ears, and understand with a heart" obstructed by the "fats" of which He had expressly forbidden the eating, teaching man not to be studious of the stomach.

Or, our earthly body is nourished by earthly food, but the reasonable soul is strengthened by the Divine Word, to the right ordering of the spirit.

But against this malicious and proud temptation stands the response of God, humble and discreet, because it conceals his Divinity and avoids carnality; whence it is added: And Jesus answered him: It is written, that man does not live by bread alone: Wisdom sixteen: "It is not the fruits of the earth that nourish men, but your word preserves those who believe in you." But by eve…

And having led him up, he showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.

Both the Son of God and the Antichrist have a zeal for reigning. But the Antichrist desires to reign in order to kill those whom he has subjected to himself; Christ reigns for this purpose, that he may save. And each one of us, if he is faithful, is ruled by Christ through the word, wisdom, justice, truth.

(Hom. 6. in Ev.) What marvel that He permitted Himself to be led by the devil into the mountains, who even endured to be crucified in His own body?

Here the second temptation is described, concerning which two things are to be noted. The first is the diabolical suggestion, and the second is the Lord's response. Concerning the devil's suggestion, note the leading, the showing, the promising, the persuading.

And the devil said to him, “To you will I give all this authority and the glory of it, for to me myself it has been delivered, and to whom I shall wish I give it.

For he himself confesses that to adore him, and to do his will, is to fall from the glory of God. And in what thing either pleasant or good can that man who has fallen participate? Or what else can such a person hope for or expect, except death? For death is next neighbour to him who has fallen. Hence also it follows that he will not give what he has promised.

[Daniel 4:4] "I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and prospering in my palace." The narrative is clear indeed and requires but little interpretation.

The promise is made to him as if to one who is in need, although his is "the world and its fullness." On account of which is added: And he said to him: I will give you all this power and their glory, etc., so that you may have the dominion of power and the proclamation of praise, as though he were promising something great, although the power and glory of the world are as nothi…

You yourself therefore, if you shall worship before me, everything will be yours.”

The devil therefore says to the Lord: You have come for this, to fight against me and to take from my dominion those whom I now hold subject. I do not wish you to contend, I do not wish you to strive, lest you have any trouble in the struggle. There is one thing that I beg: "falling down, adore me", and receive all the kingdom that I hold.

"All these things I will give you, if you fall down and worship me." By the same means by which the ancient enemy overthrew the first man through avarice—for he tempted him through the advancement of avarice when he said: Knowing good and evil—by those same means he was overcome when he tempted the second man.

Fourth, the persuasion is made as if to one who desires, when nevertheless he himself "gives to all abundantly," James 1. Whence he says: If you therefore, falling down, will worship before me, etc.

And Jesus answering said to him, “It has been written: ‘The Lord your God you will worship, and him only you will serve.’”

He Himself, when tempted by the devil, demonstrated who it is that presides over and is the originator of temptation. This passage He confirms by subsequent ones, saying, "Pray that ye be not tempted; " yet they were tempted, (as they showed) by de-setting their Lord, because they had given way rather to sleep than prayer.

Consider how great is the patience of God, and how great is our impatience. If we are provoked by injuries or some harm, moved by fury, we either avenge ourselves as much as we can, or we threaten what we cannot do. Behold, the Lord endured the adversity of the devil, and answered him with nothing but words of gentleness.

Here after the diabolical suggestion he subjoins the dominical response, which through the testimony of Sacred Scripture refutes the diabolical persuasion, when he says: It is written: Thou shalt adore the Lord thy God. This, I say, is written in Deuteronomy 6.

Then he led him to Jerusalem, and set him upon the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, “If you are Son of God, cast yourself down from here;

for it has been written that ‘To his angels he will give orders concerning you, to guard you;’

Whence knowest thou, Satan, that those things are written? Hast thou read the Prophets, or the oracles of God? Thou hast read them indeed, but not that thyself mightest be the better for the reading, but that from the mere letter thou mightest slay them who are friends to the letter. (2 Cor.

He tempts through vainglory when he says: "If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down from hence." By the same means by which the ancient enemy tempted our first parent through vainglory when he said "You shall be as gods," so he now tempts the second Adam: but by the same means by which he boasted of having conquered the first man, he is conquered by the second man.

As for the dispelling of fear, he adds: For it is written, that He has given His angels charge over you: this is written in the Psalm. He therefore cites Scripture because he saw that Christ always defended Himself through Scripture.

and that ‘In their hands will they bear you, otherwise you may strike your foot against a stone.’”

And Jesus answering said to him that, “It has been said: ‘You will not test the Lord your God.’”

But John, who had commenced his Gospel from God, saying, In the beginning was the Word, did not describe the temptation of the Lord, because God can not be tempted, of whom he wrote. But because in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke the human generations are given, and in Mark it is man who is tempted, therefore Matthew, Luke, and Mark have described the temptation of the Lord.

God gives not help to those who tempt Him, but to those who believe on Him. Christ therefore did not show His miracles to them that tempted Him, but said to them, An evil generation seeketh a sign, and no sign shall be given to them. (Mat. 12:39.)

Here after the pestilential persuasion, he adds the Lord's response, brief and efficacious, when he says: Jesus answering said to him: It is said, namely in Deuteronomy six: You shall not tempt the Lord your God: and Sirach eighteen: "Do not be as a man who tempts God." Whence the children of Israel are rebuked, in Numbers fourteen, to whom the Lord says: "They have tempted Me…

And having finished every temptation, the devil departed from him until an opportune time.

Jesus Begins His Ministry

And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee; and a report went out concerning him into all the surrounding region.

For you will not be able to affirm that "son" to be David rather than Christ; or the "bounds of the earth" to have been promised rather to David, who reigned within the single (country of) Judea, than to Christ, who has already taken captive the whole orb with the faith of His gospel; as He says through Isaiah: "Behold, I have given Thee for a covenant of my family, for a light…

Now He performed miracles not from any external power, and from having as it were the acquired grace of the Holy Spirit, as other saints, but rather as being by nature the Son of God, and partaking of all things which are the Father's, He exercises as by His own power and operation that grace which is of the Holy Spirit.

The Evangelist showed above the authority of the doctrine of Christ from the merit of life: here secondly he shows it from the testimony of Scripture. He therefore introduces first the testimony as authentic for the instruction of believers: secondly, the authentic testimony for the confutation of detractors.

And he himself was teaching in their synagogues, being glorified by all.

But you must not think that they only were happy, and that you are deprived of Christ's teaching. For now also throughout the world He teaches through His instruments, and is now more glorified by all men, than at that time when those only in one province were gathered together.

And because wisdom belongs to teaching, but power to works, both are joined here, as it follows, And he taught in the synagogue. Synagogue, which is a Greek word, is rendered in Latin congregatio.

As to the certainty of doctrine, it is added: And he taught in their synagogues, not in secret, as do men who have suspect doctrine; John chapter eighteen: "I have spoken openly to the world; I always taught in the synagogue and in the temple, where all the Jews come together, and in secret I have said nothing." On the contrary, the wisdom of heretics is called "earthly, sensua…

The Rejection at Nazareth

And he came to Nazareth, where he was raised; and he entered, according to that being customary to him on the day of the Sabbaths, into the synagogue, and stood up to read.

And there was given to him the scroll of the prophet Isaiah; and having unrolled the scroll he found the place where it was written:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because of which he has anointed me to evangelise to the poor; he has sent me to proclaim deliverance to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to send forth the oppressed in deliverance,

Hear now also the Son's utterances respecting the Father: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He hath anointed me to preach the gospel unto men." He speaks of Himself likewise to the Father in the Psalm: "Forsake me not until I have declared the might of Thine arm to all the generation that is to come.

(non occ.) Or, He came to heal the broken hearted, i. e. to afford a remedy to those that have their heart broken by Satan through sin, because beyond all other things sin lays prostrate the human heart.

1. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me. He has sent me to bring glad tidings to the meek, to heal the contrite of heart, and to preach release to the captives and opening to those who are shut up.

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

But all these things were mentioned first, in order that after the recovery of sight from blindness, after deliverance from captivity, after being healed of divers wounds, we might come to the acceptable year of the Lord. As it follows, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

What does preaching the acceptable year of the Lord mean? It signifies the joyful tidings of his own advent, that the time of the Lord—yes, the Son—had arrived. For that was the acceptable year in which Christ was crucified on our behalf, because we then were made acceptable to God the Father as the fruit borne by him.

Finally, the rewarder is indicated through the judgment of retribution, in which there is made a universal conferral of good upon the good. On account of which he says: To preach the acceptable year of the Lord, namely to the good, concerning which in the Psalm: "You shall bless the crown of the year of your goodness," etc.

And having rolled up the scroll, having delivered it to the attendant, he sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed upon him.

O Christ, even in Thy novelties Thou art old! Accordingly, when Peter, who had been an eye-witness of the miracle, and had compared it with the ancient precedents, and had discovered in them prophetic intimations of what should one day come to pass, answered (as the mouthpiece of them all) the Lord's inquiry, "Whom say ye that I am?

These words having been read to the assembled people, all eyes focused on Jesus, wondering perhaps how he could read without having been taught. The Israelites used to say that the prophecies concerning Christ were fulfilled, either in the persons of some of their more glorious kings or at least in the holy prophets.

Here in the fourth place, after the congruity in the testimony has been described, the belief among the people is noted. To express this, there is indicated maturity in the teacher, eagerness to hear in the people standing by, truth in the instruction, and belief in those instructed.

Then he began to say to them that, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

And all were bearing witness to him, and they were marveling at the words of the grace which are proceeding out of his mouth; and they were saying, “Surely this is the son of Joseph?”

Come, now, if you have read in the utterance of the prophet in the Psalms, "God hath reigned from the tree," I wait to hear what you understand thereby; for fear you may perhaps think some carpenter-king is signified, and not Christ, who has reigned from that time onward when he overcame the death which ensued from His passion of "the tree.

But what prevents Him from filling men with awe, though He were the Son as was supposed of Joseph? Do you not see the divine miracles, Satan already prostrate, men released from their sickness?

To denote the belief in the attending multitude, there is added: And all bore witness to him; all, that is, some from among all, bore witness to his holiness and innocence: Job twenty-nine: "The ear that heard me blessed me, and the eye that saw me bore witness to me." And since they could not express his grace in words, therefore there is added: And they wondered at the words…

And he said to them, “Surely you will say to me this proverb: ‘Physician, heal yourself! As much as we have heard has been done in Capernaum, perform also here in your hometown.’”

Then he said, “Amen I say to you that no prophet is acceptable in his hometown.

And yet even at Nazareth He is not remarked as having preached anything new, whilst in another verse He is said to have been rejected by reason of a simple proverb.

As if He says, You wish me to work many miracles among you, in whose country I have been brought up, but I am aware of a very common failing in the minds of many. To a certain extent it always happens, that even the very best things are despised when they fall to a man's lot, not scantily, but ever at his will. So it happens also with respect to men.

Here, after the reproaches of the detractors, prophetic examples are added, confuting the detractors. For their full confutation, a general proverb is first set forth; second, a special example in Elijah, the most eminent of the Prophets; third, in Elisha, his disciple. The first is for admonishing, the second for confuting, the third for confirming.

Now in truth I say to you, there were many widows in the days of Elijah in Israel, when the heaven was shut up for three years and six months, when there was a great famine upon all the land;

Hence to what he had said — "no prophet is accepted in his own homeland" — he adds another thing also: "for in truth I say to you, that there were many widows in the days of Elijah in Israel, when heaven was shut up for three years and six months".

He himself, an earthly angel, a heavenly man, who had neither house, nor food, nor clothing like others, carries the keys of the heavens on his tongue. And this is what follows, When the heaven was shut. But as soon as he had closed the heavens and made the earth barren, hunger reigned and bodies wasted away, as it follows, when there was a famine through the land.

He adds a special example in Elijah, the most distinguished of the Prophets, when he says: In truth I say to you: John 17: "Your word is truth." He spoke in truth, whom they ought to have believed, and yet they did not believe; whence that passage in John 8: "If I speak the truth, why do you not believe me?" and that passage in Job 6: "Why have you detracted from the words of t…

and to none of them was Elijah sent, except only to Zarephath of Sidon, to a woman, a widow.

(Hom. in div.) Every widowed soul, bereft of virtue and divine knowledge, as soon as she receives the divine word, knowing her own failings, learns to nourish it with the bread of virtue, and to water the teaching of virtue from the fountain of life.

Sidonia signifies a vain pursuit, Sarepta fire, or scarcity of bread. By all which things the Gentiles are signified, who, given up to vain pursuits, (following gain and worldly business,) were suffering from the flames of fleshly lusts, and the want of spiritual bread, until Elias, (i. e.

And although they were in such great necessity, it is added: And to none of them was Elijah sent, to relieve them by a miracle from the want of famine, so that the word of the Psalm might be verified in them: "Hungering and thirsting, their soul fainted within them." But he relieved a foreign woman, whence he adds: Except to Sarepta of Sidon, to a widow woman, according to what…

And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, except only Naaman the Syrian.”

For when the sons of the prophets were cutting "wood" with axes on the bank of the river Jordan, the iron flew off and sank in the stream; and so, on Elisha the prophet's coming up, the sons of the prophets beg of him to extract from the stream the iron which had sunk.

Now in a mystery the people pollute the Church, that another people might succeed, gathered together from foreigners, leprous indeed at first before it is baptized in the mystical stream, but which after the sacrament of baptism, washed from the stains of body and soul, begins to be a virgin without spot or wrinkle.

Another example for the confirmation of the aforesaid concerning Elisha is introduced, when he says: And many lepers were in Israel under Elisha the prophet: whence in 4 Kings 7 it is said that in the time of Elisha "four leprous men were near the gate of Samaria," and many others in similar necessity.

And all in the synagogue were filled with anger, hearing these things;

It can not be wondered at that they lost their salvation who cast the Saviour out of their city. But the Lord who taught His Apostles by the example of Himself to be all things to all men, neither repels the willing, nor chooses the unwilling; neither struggles against those who cast Him out, nor refuses to hear those who supplicate Him.

And they were all filled with wrath in the synagogue upon hearing these things, and they rose up and drove Him out of the city. Indeed, the sacrileges of the Jews, which the Lord had foretold long before through the prophet, saying: "They repay me evil for good" (Psalm 35), He teaches in the Gospel to have been completed.

After the confutation of the detractors has been described, there is here subjoined the evasion of the persecutors. This part has two sections. In the first is described the persecution of the malicious; in the second, the evasion of the persecutors.

and having risen up, they cast him out of the city and led him unto the brow of the hill upon which their town had been built, in order to throw him over.

And yet even at Nazareth He is not remarked as having preached anything new, whilst in another verse He is said to have been rejected by reason of a simple proverb.

Worse are the Jewish disciples than their master the Devil. For he says, Cast thyself down; they actually attempt to cast Him down. But Jesus having suddenly changed His mind, or seized with astonishment, went away, since He still reserves for them a place of repentance. Hence it follows, He passing through the midst of them went his way.

He intimates, however, the violence of action, when he adds: And they rose up and cast him out of the city, as though a blasphemer; for so it was commanded: Leviticus twenty-four: "Bring forth the blasphemer outside the camp, and let all the people stone him." And so that parable of Matthew twenty-one is verified, in which it is said that the tenants "cast the son of the househ…

But he himself, having passed through the midst of them, was going away.

Jesus speaks about the sacrileges of the Jews, which the Lord had foretold long ago through the prophet. These sacrileges were predicted in the verse of a psalm which declares that he would suffer when in the body. It says, "They repaid me with evil things for good." These are fulfilled in the Gospel.

The hour of His Passion had not yet come, which was to be on the preparation of the Passover, nor had He yet come to the place of His Passion, which not at Nazareth, but at Jerusalem, was prefigured by the blood of the victims; nor had He chosen this kind of death, of whom it was prophesied that He should be crucified by the world.

Here is noted the evasion of the persecutors perfect, because it was without detention, without impulsion, without portation, whence they could not do violence to him, neither by dragging, nor by pushing, nor by carrying.

Jesus Expels an Unclean Spirit

And he went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And he was teaching them on the Sabbaths;

Neither indignation at their treatment, nor displeasure at their wickedness, caused our Lord to abandon Judæa, but unmindful of His injuries, and remembering mercy, at one time by teaching, at another by healing, He softens the hearts of this unbelieving people, as it is said, And he went down to Capernaum.

And he went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the Sabbath. Behold the mercy of the Lord the Savior: neither moved by indignation, nor offended by wickedness, nor violated by injury, he does not abandon Judea; rather, forgetting the injury, but mindful of mercy, sometimes teaching, sometimes liberating, sometimes healing, he soothes the hearts of the faith…

After he showed the doctrine of Christ to be authentic from the merit of his life and the testimony of Scripture, here he now shows it from a miracle of power, so that in the mouth of three witnesses the firm testimony of authority may stand. This part has three sections.

and they were astonished at his teaching, for his message was with authority.

And in the synagogue was a man having a spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out in a loud voice,

In the same passage, "the spirit of an unclean devil" exclaims: "What have we to do with Thee, Thou Jesus? Art Thou come to destroy us? I know Thee who Thou art, the Holy One of God." I do not here raise the question whether this appellation was suitable to one who ought not to be called Christ, unless he were sent by the Creator.

And in the synagogue there was a man having an unclean demon. Rightly in the synagogue was the man who had the unclean spirit, because he had lost the Holy Spirit. For the devil had entered where Christ had left. As even now some say they are Jews and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.

After the communication of Christ's teaching, there follows here its authentication through the power of a miracle. This admirable power is shown in Christ teaching in a threefold manner: first, with respect to the male sex; second, with respect to the female sex; third, with respect to every sex and age.

“Ha! What to us and to you, Jesus of Nazareth? Are you come to destroy us? I know you, who you are — the Holy One of God.”

But it is no longer open to me even to interpret the princes and powers of this world as the Creator's, since the apostle imputes ignorance to them, whereas even the devil according to our Gospel recognised Jesus in the temptation, and, according to the record which is common to both (Marcionites and ourselves) the evil spirit knew that Jesus was the Holy One of God, and that J…

The devil wished also to disturb the order of things, and to deprive the Apostles of their dignity, and to incline the many to obey Him.

Whence this very fear compelled him to confess the truth, namely, that Christ was the destroyer of demons and the sanctifier of men. On account of the first, it is added: Saying: Let be, what have we to do with you, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us?

And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come forth out of him!” And the demon, having thrown him into the midst, came out from him, having hurt him in nothing.

And astonishment came upon all, and they were speaking to one another, saying, “What is this word, for with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out?”

And the report concerning him was spreading into every place of the surrounding region.

Jesus Heals at Peter’s House

Then having risen up out of the synagogue, he entered into the house of Simon. Then the mother-in-law of Simon was oppressed with a great fever, and they appealed to him for her.

Luke having first introduced a man delivered from an evil spirit, goes on to relate the healing of a woman. For our Lord had come to heal each sex, and he ought first to be healed who was first created. Hence it is said, And he arose out of the synagogue, and entered into Simon's house.

Now see how Christ abides in the house of a poor man, suffering poverty of His own will for our sakes, that we might learn to visit the poor, and despise not the destitute and needy. It follows: And Simon's wife's mother was taken with a great fever: and they besought him for her. Let us therefore receive Jesus.

After the miraculous healing of the male sex from a demon, there follows here the miraculous healing of the female sex from a fever: which is described by the Evangelist in this order. First is noted the distress of the fever itself; second, the aid of intercession; third, the remedy of healing; fourth, the sign of perfect liberation.

And having stood over her, he rebuked the fever, and it left her; then immediately, having arisen, she was serving them.

Here Luke speaks figuratively, as of a command given to a sensible being, saying, that the fever was commanded, and neglected not the work of Him who commanded it. Hence it follows: And she arose, and ministered unto them.

And immediately she rose and served them. It is natural for those recovering from fever, as health begins, to feel faint and sense the discomfort of their illness, but the health granted by the Lord's command returns fully at once. Not only does it return entirely, but it comes with such strength that she immediately serves those who had aided her.

As for the remedy of healing, it is added: And standing over her, he commanded the fever, and it left her. He commands, moreover, as lord and king, as in Ecclesiastes five: "Moreover, the king of the whole earth commands the one who serves"; and because "no word is impossible for him," therefore "he spoke, and it was done." Whence at his command the fever departed, according to…

Now when the sun is setting, all, as many as had any ailing with various diseases, brought them to him; and he, having laid the hands on each one of them, was healing them.

His successor was Ebion, not agreeing with Cerinthus in every point; in that he affirms the world to have been made by God, not by angels; and because it is written, "No disciple above his master, nor servant above his lord, " sets forth likewise the law as binding, of course for the purpose of excluding the gospel and vindicating Judaism.

When the sun was setting, all those who had sick people with various diseases brought them to him. And he, laying hands on each of them, cured them. The setting of the sun signifies the passion and death of the one who said: "As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." And as the sun sets, more demoniacs than before, more sick are healed.

Here after the healing of the male and the female sex is subjoined the universal healing with respect to every sex, age, and infirmity. In which the admirable power of Christ is manifested from four things, namely, from the variety of diseases, from the ease of the healings, from the confession of the demons, from the restraining of the unclean spirits.

Now demons also were going out from many, shouting out and saying that, “You yourself are the Son of God.” And rebuking them, he was not allowing them to speak, because they knew him to be the Christ.

Accordingly, wicked spirits (just in the manner of our former example) used to go forth with a testimony, exclaiming, "Thou art the Son of God," -of what God, is clear enough from the case itself.

He would not permit the unclean demons to confess Him; for it was not fitting for them to usurp the glory of the Apostolic office, nor with impure tongue to talk of the mystery of Christ. Yea!

Third, the confession of the demons is added, when it is added: And demons went out from many, crying out, namely from pain and fear and astonishment, Isaiah sixty-five: "You shall cry out from pain of heart and howl from anguish of spirit." But their crying was in vain: Psalm: "They cried out, and there was none to save them." Or crying out, on account of the public proclamati…

Jesus Preaches in Judea

Now when daybreak is arriving, having gone out, he went into a solitary place; and the crowds were seeking him, and they came up to him and were detaining him from going from them.

"He departed, and went into a desert place." This was, indeed, the Creator's customary region. It was proper that the Word should there appear in body, where before he had appeared in a cloud. To the gospel also was suitable that condition of place which had once been prophesied for the law.

But when the day came, he went out to a deserted place, and the crowds sought him, and came to him. If the death of the Lord is expressed by the setting sun, why is not his resurrection indicated by the returning day? The light revealed by which he is sought by the crowds of believers, found in the desert of the nations, is detained, lest he go away.

(Victor Antiochenus.) He went also into the desert, as Mark says, and prayed; not that he needed prayer, but as an example to us of good works.

But he said to them that, “Also to the other towns it behooves me to evangelise the kingdom of God, because for this have I been sent forth.”

And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.