Church Fathers Commentary Luke 4:31-37

"And he came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And he was teaching them on the sabbath day: and they were astonished at his teaching; for his word was with authority. And in the synagogue there was a man, that had a spirit of an unclean demon; and he cried out with a loud voice, Ah! what have we to do with thee, Jesus thou Nazarene? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God. And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst, he came out of him, having done him no hurt. And amazement came upon all, and they spake together, one with another, saying, What is this word? for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out. And there went forth a rumor concerning him into every place of the region round about." — Luke 4:31-37 (ASV)

St. Ambrose of Milan: Neither indignation at their treatment nor displeasure at their wickedness caused our Lord to abandon Judea. Instead, unmindful of His injuries and remembering mercy, He softens the hearts of this unbelieving people, sometimes by teaching, other times by healing, as it is said, And he went down to Capernaum.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: Although He knew they were disobedient and hard of heart, He nevertheless visited them, just as a good physician tries to heal those suffering from a mortal disease. He taught them boldly in the synagogues, as Isaiah said, I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth. On the Sabbath day He also disputed with them, because they were at leisure.

They were therefore astonished at the power of His teaching, His virtue, and His authority, as it follows: And they were astonished at his doctrine, for his word was with power. This means His word was not soothing, but rather urged and compelled them to seek salvation.

The Jews supposed Christ to be one of the saints or prophets. But so that they would esteem Him more highly, He went beyond the limits of a prophet. For He did not say, “Thus says the Lord,” but as the Master of the Law, He uttered things that were above the Law, changing the letter into the truth, and the figures into their spiritual meaning.

The Venerable Bede: The word of a teacher has power when he does what he teaches. But a person who contradicts his preaching with his actions is despised.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: He generally mixes the performance of mighty works with His teaching. For those who are not inclined to knowledge by reason are roused by the display of miracles. Hence it follows, And there was in the synagogue a man who had a devil.

St. Ambrose of Milan: The work of divine healing began on the Sabbath, signifying that He started anew where the old creation had ceased. This was to declare from the very beginning that the Son of God was not under the Law, but above the Law. He also rightly began on the Sabbath to show that He is the Creator, who weaves His new works into His old ones and continues what He had previously begun. This is just as a builder, planning to reconstruct a house, begins to pull down the old one not from the foundation but from the roof, applying his hand first to the part where he had previously left off.

Holy men can deliver people from evil spirits through the word of God, but to command the dead to rise again is the work of divine power alone.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: The Jews spoke falsely of Christ’s glory, saying, “He casts out devils by Beelzebub, the prince of the devils.” To refute this charge, when the devils came under His invincible power and could not endure the divine presence, they let out a savage cry, as it follows: And he cried with a loud voice, saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with you...

The Venerable Bede: It is as if the demon said, “Stop troubling me for a while, you who have nothing in common with our plans.”

St. Ambrose of Milan: It should not shock anyone that the devil is mentioned in this book as the first to speak the name of Jesus of Nazareth. For Christ did not receive from him the name that an angel brought down from heaven to the Virgin. The devil has such effrontery that he is the first to use something among people and present it as new to them, so that he might strike them with terror at his power. Hence it follows: For I know you who you are, the Holy One of God.

St. Athanasius of Alexandria: The demon spoke of Him not as a Holy One of God, as if He were like the other saints, but as being uniquely the Holy One, with the addition of the article. For Christ is holy by nature, and it is by partaking of Him that all others are called holy. Furthermore, the demon did not say this as if he truly knew it; he only pretended to know.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: For the demons thought that by this kind of praise they could make Him a lover of vainglory, so that He might be persuaded to stop opposing or destroying them as a grateful response.

St. John Chrysostom: The devil also wished to disturb the proper order of things, to deprive the Apostles of their dignity, and to incline the crowds to obey him.

St. Athanasius of Alexandria: Although the demon confessed the truth, Jesus controlled his tongue, lest along with the truth the demon should also publicize his own wickedness. This should teach us not to pay attention to such beings, even if they speak the truth. For we who know the divine Scriptures must not be taught by the devil, as it follows: And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Be silent...

The Venerable Bede: By God’s permission, the man who was to be delivered from the devil was thrown into their midst, so that the manifestation of the Savior’s power might bring many to the way of salvation, as it says, And when he had thrown him in the midst. This seems to contradict Mark, who says, And the unclean spirit tearing him, and crying with a loud voice, went out of him, unless we understand that Mark, by “tearing him,” meant the same thing Luke did with his words. This way, the phrase that follows, and hurt him not, can be understood to mean that the violent twisting of his limbs and his severe distress did not weaken him, as often happens when demons depart from a person, leaving their limbs mangled. It is right, then, that the people were amazed at such a complete restoration of health, for it follows: And fear came upon all.

Theophylact of Ohrid: It is as if they said, “What is this word by which he commands, ‘Go out,’ and the demon goes out?”

The Venerable Bede: Holy men were able to cast out demons by the word of God, but the Word Himself performs mighty works by His own power.

St. Ambrose of Milan: In a spiritual sense, the man in the synagogue with the unclean spirit represents the Jewish people. Being bound fast in the wiles of the devil, they defiled their boasted physical cleanliness with the pollution of their hearts. And truly, this people had an unclean spirit because they had lost the Holy Spirit, for the devil entered from where Christ had departed.

Theophylact of Ohrid: We must also know that many people today have demons—namely, those who fulfill the desires of demons. For example, a furious person has the demon of anger, and so on for other sins.

The Lord came into the synagogue when the man’s thoughts were collected and then said to the demon dwelling there, Hold your peace. Immediately, the demon, throwing the man into the middle, departed from him. For it is not right for a person to be always angry (which is to be like a brute), nor to be always without anger (which is to be unfeeling). Instead, one must take the middle path and be angry only at what is evil. In this way, the man is symbolically “thrown into the middle” when the unclean spirit departs from him.