Words of Blessing and Woe - Lectionary Reflection for Epiphany 6C (Luke 6)

Luke 6:17-26 New Revised Standard Version

¹⁷ He came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon. ¹⁸ They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. ¹⁹ And all in the crowd were trying to touch him, for power came out from him and healed all of them.

²⁰ Then he looked up at his disciples and said:

“Blessed are you who are poor,

    for yours is the kingdom of God.

²¹ “Blessed are you who are hungry now,

    for you will be filled.

“Blessed are you who weep now,

    for you will laugh.

²² “Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. ²³ Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.

²⁴ “But woe to you who are rich,

    for you have received your consolation.

²⁵ “Woe to you who are full now,

    for you will be hungry.

“Woe to you who are laughing now,

    for you will mourn and weep.

²⁶ “Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.

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                Jesus was known for his preaching and his healing ministry. The gospels record stories about the nature of Jesus’ ministry. He seems to be rather popular with the people since large crowds gathered to hear him preach/teach. But many were interested in the other part of his ministry, the healing ministry. The reading for the Sixth Sunday after Epiphany invites us to join with the crowd to hear a portion of Jesus’ message.  While Matthew has the Sermon on the Mount, Luke has the Sermon on the Plain. In both sermons, Jesus offers words of blessing (beatitudes) and woe. While there is overlap between the two sermons, they aren’t quite the same. Not only is the location different, but the way things are expressed is different. It’s quite possible that both Matthew and Luke record messages that Jesus commonly preached in some form or another. For this Sunday, the focus is on a sermon recorded by Luke that takes place on a level place (plain).

                The reading opens with Jesus coming down to a level place with his disciples. If we step back a few verses, we will hear that Jesus had gone to a mountain to pray. After he did this, he called his followers, his disciples, together, and he chose from among them twelve men whom he called apostles (Lk 6:12-16). As Jesus and his apostles, along with his disciples (the larger group that had been following him), a great crowd gathered on the level place. They came from across the region. Luke tells us that they came from Judea, Jerusalem, and even from Tyre and Sidon on the coast. Interestingly, Luke doesn’t mention Galilee—but Luke assumes we know that if the people were coming from those places, they would be coming from nearer where they had gathered in Galilee.  They’ve gathered both to hear him preach and to experience healing of disease and unclean spirits. Interestingly Luke tells us that everyone wanted to touch him. As they did this “power came out from him and healed all of them” (Lk 6:19).

                These opening verses set the stage for the message that Jesus delivers to the crowd. The sermon begins in verse 20 and extends to the end of the chapter (Lk 6:49). When Jesus finishes the sermon, he enters Capernaum (Lk 7:1). The reading for this week focuses on a portion of that sermon, one that speaks of blessings and woes (warnings). Matthew and Luke have blessings (nine in Matthew, while Luke has four) but Luke balances his blessings with four woes. Wes Avram suggests that while Matthew’s beatitudes offer words of wisdom, Luke’s words are more cautionary. “This is heard in the parallel oppositions of blessings and woes, which recall the same kinds of distinctions made by the Hebrew prophets.” The creators of the Revised Common Lectionary reinforce this through the choice of Jeremiah17:5-10 as the First Reading [Connections, p. 250]. 

                While Matthew’s version of the Beatitudes is better known they tend to be interpreted in more spiritual ways, while Luke’s four blessings and four woes address more earthly concerns. In fact, in Luke’s version, Jesus turns the traditional view of divine blessing on its head. While the poor receive a word of blessing, the rich and powerful are offered a warning. So, to the poor belongs the kingdom of God. The hungry will be filled. Those who weep will laugh. If people hate and revile you, well you will be blessed. So rejoice in God’s blessings.  Yes, rejoice because your reward will be great in heaven (well some blessings come now, but some will await heaven). Keith Errickson offers this theological interpretation of the message, suggesting that Jesus “radically challenges the dominant tradition of what God’s presence and blessings looks like.” Thus, in Luke’s portrayal of Jesus’ message, “Jesus not only connects his ministry with the marginalized, but also paints an unexpected picture of who God is.” Here’s the important point, when it comes to the nature of God, “Gone is the image of the God of strength and power who identifies with the influential, who blesses the privileged, and whose presence is signaled by riches and political strength” [Feasting on the Gospels: Luke, 1:160]. Thus, this is not the God of Christian Nationalism.   

                Now come the woes (warnings). While the blessings are in the present tense, these warnings are cast in a future tense. Jesus begins his words of warning by warning those who are rich that they have already received their consolation. This is as good as it gets. If you’re full now, well hunger is coming your way. If you laugh now, you will be mourning and weeping before too long. If people speak well of you now, remember that’s what the ancestors said about false prophets. You don’t want to be counted among the false prophets. As I read these woes, Jesus’ parable of Lazarus and the rich man comes to mind (Lk16:19-30). That parable features a reversal of fortunes, and that is what Jesus is promising here. Though for Luke, the promises of the kingdom have real-world implications. Luke’s Jesus isn’t just envisioning a heavenly kingdom, but a reign of God on earth (as in heaven).  

                The rather radical message we hear in Luke’s recording of the sermon on the plain can be both encouraging and something of a challenge, depending on whether you live on the margins or you live in the big house. It does comfort the afflicted and afflicts the comfortable. That’s not necessarily a popular vision for our times. It probably won’t make many friends in certain circles. We can understand why those to whom the woes were directed put Jesus on a cross. Overall, we may prefer a more spiritualized version of the sermon, one that focuses on material blessings in this life and a heavenly reward in the next, all without requiring much of us in return. When we hear a difficult word, it is good to remember that we live in the context of God’s grace. However, it is important to remember as well that cheap grace is not what Jesus offers.