WOE-IMPENDING WRATH OF GOD
Luke
10:13-16
Luke
10:13-14 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty
works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a
great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it shall be more
tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you.
Susan: Chorazin
and Bethsaida were near neighbors to Capernaum, Jesus’s base of operations.
They had been given the privilege and honor of witnessing miracles performed by
Jesus, but apparently had rejected or in the least been indifferent to His
message. That was a dangerous place to be as Jesus pronounced “woe” upon them.
To be indifferent is to be “lukewarm” causing Jesus vomit:
Revelation
3:14-16 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things
saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of
God; I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert
cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I
will spue thee out of my mouth
Susie: Jesus
said it would be worse for the people of Chorazin and Bethsaida than for Tyre
and Sidon on Judgment Day. The people of Tyre and Sidon had rejoiced over the
destruction and captivity of Judah and Israel, and Ezekiel prophesied their
utter destruction in Ezekiel 26-28. However, Jesus said that if they had seen
His miracles, they would have repented immediately.
Luke
10:15 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to
hell.
Susie: Capernaum
in Jesus’s day was a beautiful, prosperous city situation high on a hill,
perhaps even described as “heavenly.”
Susan: It was
a city that may have viewed themselves as more highly esteemed by any other due
to the fact that Jesus utilized it as His main base of operations.
Susie: Jesus
had performed numerous healings, exorcisms, and other miracles in Capernaum.
Matthew
11:23 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down
to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done
in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
Susan: There is no record of the people of Capernaum
rejecting Jesus, they did not demonstrate proper reverence for the blessings
that God had bestowed upon them. Instead they were indifferent and possibly
arrogant, thinking more highly of themselves than they should. Therefore, Jesus
declared that they would be catapulted down to hell.
Susie: Capernaum was laid completely to waste by
the Romans and does not exist today. Jesus may have been referring to this or
to the fact that the non-repentant people in Capernaum who did not place their
trust in Him as Messiah and Savior would be sent to hell in the final judgment.
Luke
10:16 He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me;
and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me.
Susie: Jesus
gave the examples of cities in which He had ministered to drive home to the
seventy disciples that their message was serious, and there were serious
consequences for those cities who rejected them.
Susan: Those
who rejected or refused to welcome the seventy disciples were in effect
rejecting Jesus Himself and the Father who sent Him. Anyone who refuses to
believe the Gospel preached by Jesus’s ministers is refusing to believe Jesus
and ultimately refusing to believe God the Father.
Ponder
this and Apply it: There are serious consequences to rejecting
Jesus. Heaven is real, but Hell is equally real. Those who never turn to Jesus,
never trust Him for deliverance from sin into relationship with God, will not enter
Heaven and eternal joy in Jesus’s presence. Is there someone to whom you need
to witness today? We do not know who the Holy Spirit is drawing, but we are
clearly told to share the Good News with everyone. The results are left to God,
but the commandment is to go and tell others.
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