Luke 4:39
and He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. And she got up at once and began to serve them.
And standing over her
This phrase indicates Jesus' physical presence and authority. The Greek word for "standing" is "epistás," which implies a position of oversight and readiness to act. In the cultural context of the time, standing over someone could signify a protective or authoritative stance. Jesus' presence here is not passive; it is active and intentional, demonstrating His readiness to intervene in the situation.

He rebuked the fever
The word "rebuked" comes from the Greek "epitimaó," which means to admonish or charge sharply. This is the same word used when Jesus rebukes the storm in Luke 8:24, showing His authority over nature and illness alike. The fever is personified, suggesting that Jesus is addressing it as a force that must submit to His command. This highlights His divine authority over all creation, including sickness.

and it left her
The immediate departure of the fever signifies the power and effectiveness of Jesus' command. The Greek word "aphíēmi" is used here, meaning to send away or let go. This illustrates the complete and instantaneous healing that Jesus provides. In a broader theological context, it reflects the liberation that Jesus brings from all forms of bondage, whether physical, spiritual, or emotional.

And she got up at once
The phrase "at once" underscores the immediacy of the healing. The Greek word "parachrēma" is used, which means instantly or immediately. This immediate response is a testament to the completeness of Jesus' healing power. It also reflects the transformative impact of an encounter with Christ, where change is not only possible but immediate.

and began to serve them
The act of serving is significant, as it demonstrates gratitude and restoration to her community role. The Greek word "diakoneó" is used, which means to minister or serve. This service is not just a return to normalcy but an expression of worship and thankfulness. In the broader scriptural context, it reflects the call for all believers to serve others as a response to the grace and healing they have received from Christ.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Jesus Christ
The central figure in this passage, demonstrating His divine authority and compassion by healing Simon Peter's mother-in-law.

2. Simon's Mother-in-law
The woman who was suffering from a high fever and was healed by Jesus. Her immediate response was to serve, showing gratitude and restoration.

3. Simon's House
The setting of this event, indicating a personal and intimate environment where Jesus performed the miracle.

4. The Fever
Represents the illness that afflicted Simon's mother-in-law, which Jesus rebuked, showcasing His power over physical ailments.

5. The Disciples and Others Present
Witnesses to the miracle, their presence underscores the communal aspect of Jesus' ministry and the spread of His fame.
Teaching Points
Authority of Jesus
Jesus' ability to rebuke the fever demonstrates His authority over sickness and the physical world. Believers can trust in His power to intervene in their lives.

Immediate Response to Healing
Simon's mother-in-law's immediate service after being healed illustrates the appropriate response to God's work in our lives—gratitude and service.

Faith in Action
The disciples' faith in bringing Jesus to the sick woman shows the importance of interceding for others and trusting in Jesus' power to heal.

Community and Witness
The presence of others during the healing highlights the role of community in witnessing and sharing the works of God, encouraging believers to testify about God's interventions.

Spiritual and Physical Healing
This passage reminds us that Jesus cares for both our spiritual and physical well-being, and we should seek Him for holistic healing.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does Jesus' authority over sickness in Luke 4:39 encourage you in your personal struggles or illnesses?

2. In what ways can you, like Simon's mother-in-law, serve others as a response to God's work in your life?

3. How do the parallel accounts in Matthew and Mark enhance your understanding of this miracle?

4. What role does community play in witnessing and sharing the miracles of God, as seen in this passage?

5. How can you apply the principles of faith and intercession from this passage to your prayer life, especially in praying for others' healing?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Matthew 8:14-15 and Mark 1:29-31
These parallel accounts provide additional context and details about the healing of Simon's mother-in-law, emphasizing the immediacy and completeness of her recovery.

Psalm 103:2-3
Highlights God's benefits, including healing, which connects to Jesus' role as the divine healer.

Acts 9:40-41
Peter, who witnessed this miracle, later performs a similar act of healing, showing the continuation of Jesus' healing ministry through His apostles.

James 5:14-15
Encourages prayer and faith for healing, reflecting the power of God to heal as demonstrated by Jesus.
Our Lord's Labors At CapernaumR.M. Edgar Luke 4:31-44
A Sympathetic PhysicianBaxendale's AnecdotesLuke 4:38-39
All May Minister for GodC. H. Spurgeon.Luke 4:38-39
Blessed Results of SicknessF. W. Robertson.Luke 4:38-39
Sickness Produces SeriousnessLuke 4:38-39
Simon's HouseC. H. Spurgeon.Luke 4:38-39
Simon's Wife's MotherJ. Parker, D. D.Luke 4:38-39
The Ministry of GratitudeC. H. Spurgeon.Luke 4:38-39
People
Elias, Elijah, Eliseus, Elisha, Esaias, Isaiah, Jesus, Joseph, Naaman, Simon
Places
Capernaum, Galilee, Jerusalem, Jordan River, Judea, Nazareth, Sidon, Wilderness of Judea, Zarephath
Topics
Care, Disease, Fever, Forthwith, Got, Immediately, Ministered, Ministering, Needs, Orders, Presently, Rebuked, Risen, Rose, Served, Sharp, Standing, Stood, Straight, Wait, Waited
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Luke 4:39

     2351   Christ, miracles
     5977   waiting

Luke 4:38-39

     2012   Christ, authority
     6682   mediation
     8447   hospitality, examples

Luke 4:38-40

     7430   Sabbath, in NT

Luke 4:38-41

     6704   peace, divine NT

Luke 4:39-40

     5333   healing

Library
Preaching at Nazareth
'And He began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled In your ears.'--LUKE iv. 21. This first appearance of our Lord, in His public work at Nazareth, the home of His childhood, was preceded, as we learn from John's Gospel, by a somewhat extended ministry in Jerusalem. In the course of it, He cast the money-changers out of the Temple, did many miracles, had His conversation with Nicodemus, and on His return towards Galilee met the woman of Samaria at the well. The report of these things,
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions Of Holy Scripture

The Temptation
4 And Jesus, being full of the Holy Ghost, returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, 2. Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days He did eat nothing: and when they were ended, He afterward hungered. 3. And the devil said unto Him, If Thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread, 4. And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. 5. And the devil, taking Him up into an high
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions Of Holy Scripture

The Temptation of Christ
Matthew 4:1-11 -- "Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered. And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a
George Whitefield—Selected Sermons of George Whitefield

Private Prayer, and Public Worship.
"And, as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day."--ST. LUKE iv. 16. "He went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there He prayed."--ST. MARK i. 35. These two texts set before us our Saviour's habit in regard to public and private spiritual exercise; and they suggest to us the question, What have we, on our part, to say of these two elements in our own life? These texts, we bear in mind, represent not something casual or intermittent in the life of our Lord. They
John Percival—Sermons at Rugby

Salvation by Faith
"By grace are ye saved through faith." Eph. 2:8. 1. All the blessings which God hath bestowed upon man are of his mere grace, bounty, or favour; his free, undeserved favour; favour altogether undeserved; man having no claim to the least of his mercies. It was free grace that "formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into him a living soul," and stamped on that soul the image of God, and "put all things under his feet." The same free grace continues to us, at this day, life, and breath,
John Wesley—Sermons on Several Occasions

Massillon -- the Small Number of the Elect
Jean Baptiste Massillon was born in 1663, at Hyères, in Provence, France. He first attracted notice as a pulpit orator by his funeral sermons as the Archbishop of Vienne, which led to his preferment from his class of theology at Meaux to the presidency of the Seminary of Magloire at Paris. His conferences at Paris showed remarkable spiritual insight and knowledge of the human heart. He was a favorite preacher of Louis XIV and Louis XV, and after being appointed bishop of Clermont in 1719 he
Grenville Kleiser—The world's great sermons, Volume 3

Jesus Sets Out from Judæa for Galilee.
Subdivision C. Arrival in Galilee. ^C Luke IV. 14; ^D John IV. 43-45. ^d 43 And after the two days [the two days spent among the Samaritans at Sychar] he went forth from thence [from Samaria] into Galilee. ^c 14 And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee [Power of the Spirit here means its manifest use to perform miracles, rather than its presence, influence or direction. Jesus was always under the influence and direction of the Spirit, but did not previously perform miracles]: ^d
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Divine Healing.
The thirty-fifth chapter of Isaiah is a prophecy beautifully extolling the glories and virtues of Christ's redemptive works. "The desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose." "It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God.... Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the
Charles Ebert Orr—The Gospel Day

The Synagogue at Nazareth - Synagogue-Worship and Arrangements.
The stay in Cana, though we have no means of determining its length, was probably of only short duration. Perhaps the Sabbath of the same week already found Jesus in the Synagogue of Nazareth. We will not seek irreverently to lift the veil of sacred silence, which here, as elsewhere, the Gospel-narratives have laid over the Sanctuary of His inner Life. That silence is itself theopneustic, of Divine breathing and inspiration; it is more eloquent than any eloquence, a guarantee of the truthfulness
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

His Training.
WITH the exception of these few but significant hints, the youth of Jesus, and the preparation for his public ministry, are enshrined in mysterious silence. But we know the outward condition and circumstances under which he grew up; and these furnish no explanation for the astounding results, without the admission of the supernatural and divine element in his life. He grew up among a people seldom and only contemptuously named by the ancient classics, and subjected at the time to the yoke of a foreign
Philip Schaff—The Person of Christ

Standing with the People
We have found two simple and axiomatic social principles in the fundamental convictions of Jesus: The sacredness of life and personality, and the spiritual solidarity of men. Now confront a mind mastered by these convictions with the actual conditions of society, with the contempt for life and the denial of social obligation existing, and how will he react? How will he see the duty of the strong, and his own duty? DAILY READINGS First Day: The Social Platform of Jesus And he came to Nazareth, where
Walter Rauschenbusch—The Social Principles of Jesus

Christ the Deliverer.
"And he [Jesus] came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up; and he entered, as his custom was, into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And he opened the book, and found the place where it was written, The spirit of the Lord is upon me, Because he anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor: He hath sent me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovering of sight to the blind, To set at liberty them that
Frank G. Allen—Autobiography of Frank G. Allen, Minister of the Gospel

Quotations from the Old Testament in the New.
1. As it respects inspiration, and consequent infallible authority, the quotations of the New Testament stand on a level with the rest of the apostolic writings. The Saviour's promise was: "When he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth;" literally, "into all the truth," that is, as immediately explained, all the truth pertaining to the Redeemer's person and work. When, therefore, after the fulfilment of this promise, Peter and the other apostles expounded to their brethren
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

From his Commission to Reside Abroad in 1820 to his Removal to Germany in 1822
In 1822 John Yeardley went to reside in Germany. As his residence abroad constituted one of the most remarkable turns in his life, and exercised a powerful influence on the rest of his career, we shall develop as fully as we are able the motives by which he was induced to leave his native country. By means of his Diary we can trace the early appearance and growth, if not the origin, of the strong Christian sympathy he ever afterwards manifested with seeking souls in the nations on the continent of
John Yeardley—Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the Gospel

Whether in Christ There were the Gifts?
Objection 1: It would seem that the gifts were not in Christ. For, as is commonly said, the gifts are given to help the virtues. But what is perfect in itself does not need an exterior help. Therefore, since the virtues of Christ were perfect, it seems there were no gifts in Him. Objection 2: Further, to give and to receive gifts would not seem to belong to the same; since to give pertains to one who has, and to receive pertains to one who has not. But it belongs to Christ to give gifts according
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

It is the Final Court of Appeal.
It is not a question of what I think, or of what any one else thinks--it is, What saith the Scriptures? It is not a matter of what any church or creed teaches--it is, What teaches the Bible? God has spoken, and that ends the matter: "Forever, O Lord, Thy Word is settled in heaven." Therefore, it is for me to bow to His authority, to submit to His Word, to cease all quibbling and cry, "Speak, Lord, for Thy servant heareth." Because the Bible is God's Word, it is the final court of appeal in all things
Arthur W. Pink—The Divine Inspiration of the Bible

Epistle xiii. To Serenus, Bishop of Massilia (Marseilles) .
To Serenus, Bishop of Massilia (Marseilles) [128] . Gregory to Serenus, &c. The beginning of thy letter so showed thee to have in thee the good will that befits a priest as to cause us increased joy in thy Fraternity. But its conclusion was so at variance with its commencement that such an epistle might be attributed, not to one, but to different, minds. Nay, from thy very doubts about the epistle which we sent to thee it appears how inconsiderate thou art. For, hadst thou paid diligent attention
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great

Book x. On Numbers
In truth, we interpret, however briefly, these numbers of perfect names. The mystical account of these examples makes them more honored among the blessed. I. This number refers to the unity of the divinity; in the Pentatuch: hear, O Israel, the Lord your God is one. [Deut. 6:4] II. [This number refers] to the two testaments; in Kings: and He made in Dabir two cherubim in the measure of 10 cubits. [III(I) Kings 6:23] III. [This number refers] to the Trinity; in the epistle of John: three are those
St. Eucherius of Lyons—The Formulae of St. Eucherius of Lyons

The Doctrine of the Scriptures.
I. NAMES AND TITLES. 1. THE BIBLE. 2. THE TESTAMENTS. 3. THE SCRIPTURES. 4. THE WORD OF GOD. II. INSPIRATION. 1. DEFINITION. 2. DISTINCTIONS. a) Revelation. b) Illumination. c) Reporting. 3. VIEWS: a) Natural Inspiration. b) Christian Illumination. c) Dynamic Theory. d) Concept Theory. e) Verbal Inspiration. f) Partial Inspiration. g) Plenary Inspiration. 4. THE CLAIMS OF THE SCRIPTURES THEMSELVES: a) The Old Testament. b) The New Testament. 5. THE CHARACTER (OR DEGREES) OF INSPIRATION. a) Actual
Rev. William Evans—The Great Doctrines of the Bible

The Cornish Tinners
Saturday, September 3.--I rode to the Three-cornered Down (so called), nine or ten miles east of St. Ives, where we found two or three hundred tinners, who had been some time waiting for us. They all appeared quite pleased and unconcerned; and many of them ran after us to Gwennap (two miles east), where their number was quickly increased to four or five hundred. I had much comfort here in applying these words, "He hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor" [Luke 4:18]. One who lived near
John Wesley—The Journal of John Wesley

Wesley Begins Field-Preaching
1739. March 15.--During my stay [in London] I was fully employed, between our own society in Fetter Lane and many others where I was continually desired to expound; I had no thought of leaving London, when I received, after several others, a letter from Mr. Whitefield and another from Mr. Seward entreating me, in the most pressing manner, to come to Bristol without delay. This I was not at all forward to do. Wednesday, 28.--My journey was proposed to our society in Fetter Lane. But my brother Charles
John Wesley—The Journal of John Wesley

The Redeemer's Return is Necessitated by the Present Exaltation of Satan.
One of the greatest mysteries in all God's creation is the Devil. For any reliable information concerning him we are shut up to the Holy Scriptures. It is in God's Word alone that we can learn anything about his origin, his personality, his fall, his sphere of operations, and his approaching doom. One thing which is there taught us about the great Adversary of God and man, and which observation and experience fully confirms, is, that he is a being possessing mighty power. It would appear, from a
Arthur W. Pink—The Redeemer's Return

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