Commentary on Luke 13:1-9

Debra J. Mumford

Who is this Jesus? The Jesus we find in Luke 13 is very different from the Jesus we find in other parts of Luke’s gospel. Most often in Luke we find a holistic Jesus who is concerned about the spiritual, emotional, and physical well-being of all.

In Luke 4, Jesus stands up in the synagogue and reads from the prophet Isaiah, highlighting his mission to bring good news to the poor. In his ministry to people like the leper and the paralytic in Luke 5, Jesus very publicly heals their physical maladies. Once healed (or during the healing process), those who had been marginalized and ostracized by their communities are at once restored. Relationships that had been severed are restored. In Luke 9 Jesus feeds 5,000 hungry people while also sharing the good news. While the prophetic Jesus certainly attends to the spiritual needs of the people he encounters, he ministers to them holistically.

However, Jesus’ holistic tendencies are in short supply in this text. We do not know why he gathers with the group who are in his presence. We do know that the death of the Galileans at the hands of Pilate or officials of the Roman government is uppermost in their minds. What exactly happened to the Galileans is uncertain. Historian Josephus proposed at least five possible events that could have been the one referenced.¹ While scholars differ on which, if any, of these events is the one, most agree that the group of Galileans likely died at the hands of the Roman government, perhaps while engaging in some form of resistance.

After the Galileans were killed, Pilate mixed their blood together with blood of animals used in sacrifices. This ritualistic transgression added insult to injury. However, in response to the group’s expressions of concern about the demise of the Galileans, Jesus focuses on issues of piety rather than politics.

This pious Jesus is not concerned with the egregious and frequent misuse of power by the Roman government to keep people in line. Pious Jesus does not take time to verbally acknowledge the grief and sense of loss the people coming to him may be experiencing. Pious Jesus does not acknowledge the suffering experienced by families and close friends of those who were massacred. Rather, pious Jesus seems only concerned with sin and repentance.

After pointing out that his listeners’ sins are no less severe than the sins of the Galileans, Jesus informs them that they could suffer a fate similar to that of the Galileans. Jesus uses this moment to admonish his listeners to repent of their sins. Only through true repentance, Jesus advises them, can they avoid the fate of the Galileans.

How might Jesus’ focus on sin and repentance make them feel? Why does their spiritual leader show no concern about their bodies and their mind? Why does Jesus pay so little regard to their emotions and reactions to the unfortunate and untimely demise of the Galileans? Preachers can take this opportunity to remind themselves of the necessity of communicating a holistic theology, message, and ministry. People need to hear and feel that God is not only concerned with their spirits but also concerned about the well-being of their minds and bodies.

Jesus’ admonition that the sins of the Galileans who had been massacred were not more severe than the sins of those gathered was an important one. For people in a culture prone to believe that suffering of any kind is evidence of sin, being reminded that all people sin is vital for understanding communal identity. When people believe that suffering is a consequence of sin, they are able to ignore systemic sins and the responsibilities of the many for their existence. Though pious Jesus does not take a stand against injustice, he does remind us that suffering is not evidence of a person’s sin.

But just when Jesus seems to be a bit too pious, he tells a parable—the parable of the fig tree. In this parable, pious Jesus extends grace.

Jesus shares the story of a man who is disappointed. Three years after he had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, fully expecting that in due time the tree would bear fruit, there were no figs in sight. The use of the phrase “and still I find none” in relation to the figs indicates that this was not the first time he had visited the tree looking for fruit. He had probably visited the tree expectantly many times, only to be disappointed over and over again. In his frustration he instructs the gardener to cut the tree down.

Undoubtedly, the gardener understands the owner’s frustration. Yet, instead of acquiescing unquestioningly to his wishes, he implores the owner to let the tree live for one more year. He, the gardener, will fertilize and tend to it closely for another year. If the tree does not bear fruit at that time, the owner could cut it down.

When we read this parable along with the words and actions of pious Jesus, we are reminded that though our sins render us eligible for harsh punishment, God at work in the world and in our lives extends to us the gift of grace. Like this tree, we are often given multiple opportunities to do better, to be better, or to do the right thing. The same grace that God extends to us we must also extend to one another. We sin. We repent. And by the grace of God, we are given another chance to be the people God is calling us to be.