JESUS IS LORD OF THE SABBATH

Passage: Luke 6:1-11

Key verse: 6:5

NIV

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath(A)

6 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and his disciples began to pick some heads of grain, rub them in their hands and eat the kernels.(B) 2 Some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”(C)

3 Jesus answered them, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry?(D) 4 He entered the house of God, and taking the consecrated bread, he ate what is lawful only for priests to eat.(E) And he also gave some to his companions.” 5 Then Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man(F) is Lord of the Sabbath.”

6 On another Sabbath(G) he went into the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was shriveled. 7 The Pharisees and the teachers of the law were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely(H) to see if he would heal on the Sabbath.(I) 8 But Jesus knew what they were thinking(J) and said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Get up and stand in front of everyone.” So he got up and stood there.

9 Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?”

10 He looked around at them all, and then said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so, and his hand was completely restored. 11 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were furious(K) and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus.

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Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath

6 (A)On a Sabbath,[a] while he was going through the grainfields, his disciples (B)plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. 2 But some of the Pharisees said, (C)“Why are you doing (D)what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?” 3 And Jesus answered them, (E)“Have you not read (F)what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: 4 how he entered the house of God and took and ate (G)the bread of the Presence, (H)which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those with him?” 5 And he said to them, (I)“The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”

A Man with a Withered Hand

6 On another Sabbath, (J)he entered the synagogue (K)and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was withered. 7 And the scribes and the Pharisees (L)watched him, to see whether he would heal on the Sabbath, (M)so that they might find a reason to accuse him. 8 But (N)he knew their thoughts, and he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come and stand here.” And he rose and stood there. 9 And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, (O)is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to destroy it?” 10 And (P)after looking around at them all he said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” And (Q)he did so, and his hand was restored. 11 But they were filled with (R)fury and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.

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Footnotes
  1. Luke 6:1 Some manuscripts On the second first Sabbath (that is, on the second Sabbath after the first)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway

First, 'Is it lawful on the Sabbath?' (1-5). One Sabbath, the disciples picked and ate grain as they walked through grain fields. Picking and eating grain from a field was lawful (Dt. 23:25). However, the Pharisees categorized picking and rubbing grain as work and therefore, unlawful on the Sabbath. Jesus pointed to David and his companions. In great need, they once ate bread meant only for the priests but were not condemned. Likewise, Jesus did not condemn his disciples but saw their actions as lawful. Jesus has authority to do so because he is Lord of the Sabbath. Second, doing good on the Sabbath (6-11). On another Sabbath, Jesus was teaching in a synagogue where there was a man with a shriveled hand. The religious officials watched Jesus closely to see if he would heal this man. Jesus asked them all whether it was lawful to do good or evil, to save or destroy life on the Sabbath. God does good and saves life regardless of the day of the week. Jesus healed the man which angered the religious leaders.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, you are Lord of the Sabbath. Help me not to be legalistic but to do good and save life every day, especially on the Sabbath.

One Word: Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath