Luke 13:31-35 (NRSV)
Read Luke 13:31-35 on biblegateway.com
Verse 31At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, "Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you." Verse 32He said to them, "Go and tell that fox for me, 'Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. Verse 33Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.' Verse 34Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! Verse 35See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, 'Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.'"
Devotion
In a number of ways, this week’s gospel reading somberly reminds us that, in our Lenten journey, we are following Jesus on the way to the cross. The Pharisees—almost gleefully?—nag Jesus with the reminder of the specter of Herod, who is out to get him. But Jesus sidesteps their baiting, stirring the pot with a message to that “fox” that he’s just going to keep on doing what he’s doing—by the way, twice making a veiled reference to “three days” and to the likelihood of a prophet being “killed outside Jerusalem.”
No wonder that the pressure of coming events should lead Jesus to a lament over Jerusalem and the failure of trust in the promises of God that will mark the unwillingness of God’s children to be gathered under the wings of God’s love.
Certainly, the question looms for us as to where our Lenten journey will take us with this Jesus. Will it lead us to join in the hoped-for benediction, “Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord?”
Prayer
O God of Promise, as we journey toward the cross, help us to ponder the journey of our own hearts with this Jesus, and to have confidence that our Lord is leading us on a journey from fear to faith and trust in your promises. Amen.
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