Luke 13:31-35 Foxes and Chickens
Good morning! Turn with me in your Bibles to Luke 13. This morning we are going to look at verses 31-35 and that’s on page 873 in the pew Bibles.
Our text for this morning is a curious one. In one short paragraph Jesus references foxes and chickens but uses those pictures in very different directions.
During these verses Jesus and the disciples are in the region of Galilee, which was ruled by Herod, and are making their way towards Jerusalem preaching, healing, and casting out demons. This interaction between Jesus and these Pharisees gives us a wonderful picture into the heart of Jesus.
31 At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” 32 And he said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. 33 Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’ 34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! 35 Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”
Let’s pray.
There is some debate as to whether or not these Pharisees actually came to warn Jesus about the danger of Herod, or if they were just trying to scare Him off. But because Jesus knows all things, including the hearts of men, I think that His response to the Pharisees tells us that this group of Pharisees was sincere in warning Him about Herod.
31 At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” 32 And he said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course.
Go tell that fox… Jesus wouldn’t have sent the Pharisees back to Herod if they didn’t come from Herod as messengers. Jesus was a constant threat to the power and influence of all the rulers of His day religious or otherwise. The more popular Jesus got among the people, the more of a threat he was perceived to be by those in power.
I love Jesus’ response to them and to Herod, “go tell that fox…”
What do we know about foxes? They’re sneaky, they are sly, they look like dogs but act like cats, they aren’t to be trusted! That’s exactly what Jesus was saying about Herod, he was sneaky, sly, and manipulative, he was not to be trusted.
And in Jesus’ response to him He was also showing that Herod was not to be feared.
“Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course.
Jesus is saying, “I am going to continue to do what I have been doing here in Galilee until my work is done here. I am going to cast out demons and perform cures today, I am going to cast out demons and perform cures tomorrow, and the day after that I will complete my work in Galilee.
There is no veiled reference to His resurrection on the third day here, it was just a definite marker of time. Jesus knew His mission and He was going to carry it out whether Herod wanted Him dead or not.
Jesus knew His mission and he knew that Herod was powerless to stop it.
“Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. 33 Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’
Jesus uses a little holy irony here, he couldn’t possibly be killed by Herod in Galilee because prophets die in Jerusalem. And while it is true that not every prophet died in Jerusalem the holy city holds a monopoly on killing and mistreating prophets. Jesus, the greatest of all prophets knew that He was headed for Jerusalem to be killed so he had no fear of Herod there in Galilee.
He had no fear of Herod because Herod had no power to interrupt Jesus’ ministry and Jesus remained faithful to His mission from the Father until it was accomplished.
So we get to see a little of Jesus’ confidence and confident trust in the Father and his plan but also we get to see His compassion for the people.
34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! 35 Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”
Here is Jesus’ heartbroken lament over the people of the city of Jerusalem, and in truth, over all people who reject Him.
How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!
Jesus would gather all under the comfort and protection of His loving and tender wings, there all can find peace and provision and salvation, but not all are willing.
Too often people are content with their own way, or their own effort to prove themselves good enough, or are unwilling to admit their need for saving or forgiving, or are depending on their own sense of religion. Jesus longs to gather all under the shadow of His wings.
Those that have been turned off by organized religion. Those that are counting on their connection to Abraham or their devotion to Moses. Those that are too proud to admit that they have ever done anything to offend God.
Matthew Henry wrote, “Christ’s willingness aggravates sinners’ unwillingness, and leaves blood on their own heads.”
Jesus longs to gather them under His wings but they are unwilling. And to them He said,
35 Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”
Jesus often spoke about the desolation of Jerusalem and how the Temple itself would be destroyed, and in 70 AD, it was. Jerusalem has no king, no more prophets, no more Ark of the Covenant, no more Temple, no more sacrifices. The house is left desolate but God has still not rejected His people.
At first glance verse 35 might sound like Jesus was saying that they won’t see Him until the triumphal entry when Jesus rode into the city of Jerusalem on the foal of a donkey with all the palm branches on the road and people shouting: Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord!
RC Sproul wrote, “The rest of the prophecy Jesus utters in verse 35 is perhaps a short-term prediction. It may be that Jesus was saying, ‘You are not going to see me, Jerusalem, until I enter the city on Palm Sunday, not that long away. Then the crowds will come out and sing, “Hosanna!” and say, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” ’ Most commentators, however, do not think that is what Jesus had in view here, but rather he was speaking eschatologically of the last days, of the consummation of his kingdom, when he would return to this world in clouds of glory. And those who would be saying, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord’, would be saying it too late. At the last judgment those who have been cut off from the kingdom of God, will try to feign belief and hypocritically declare their allegiance to Jesus. It will be too late, however, for they have already resisted the call to discipleship that Jesus had given on this earth.”
So what is our takeaway from this?
Jesus gives us a wonderful, confident, passionate pattern to follow.
Here He reminds us that God’s plan will not be thwarted, not by Herod, not by anybody. And if God’s plan will not be thwarted, we can be confident to exercise our part in that plan, to be Jesus’ witness to the very ends of the earth, preaching the gospel to every creature.
Jesus remained faithful in the face of opposition. Herod and the Pharisees threatened His life but Jesus stayed faithful to the mission that the Father had given to Him. We have been given a mission too, to be Christ’s witnesses to the ends of the earth, preaching the gospel to every creature. We need to remain faithful in the face of opposition to that mission.
Jesus longs to gather in the lost together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and though not everyone will be willing, He still uses us to give that invitation to come to Him in faith to find forgiveness, salvation, protection, and tender watch-care.
Praise Him for His glorious grace!
Amen.
