Luke 4:18
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Study Note
Study Note
'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor' — Jesus's reading of Isaiah 61:1–2 in the Nazareth synagogue and his declaration 'today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing' (verse 21) is Luke's programmatic statement of Jesus's messianic mission. The five infinitive phrases — proclaim good news, liberty to captives, sight to the blind, liberty to the oppressed, proclaim the year of the Lord's favor — define the scope of kingdom activity as comprehensively restorative: economic, physical, social, and eschatological. Jesus stops his reading before the 'day of vengeance' clause of Isaiah 61:2, a deliberate omission that distinguishes the first coming's agenda of grace from the judgment that belongs to eschatological consummation. The verse has been foundational for liberation theologies and for holistic mission theologies that integrate proclamation with advocacy for the vulnerable.
Other Translations
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 are bruised,
`The Spirit of the Lord <FI>is<Fi> upon me, Because He did anoint me; To proclaim good news to the poor, Sent me to heal the broken of heart, To proclaim to captives deliverance, And to blind receiving of sight, To send away the bruised with deliverance,
The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because I am marked out by him to give good news to the poor; he has sent me to make well those who are broken-hearted; to say that the prisoners will be let go, and the blind will see, and to make the wounded free from their chains,
Cross References
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise …
Because thine heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou heardest his words against this place, …
The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against his anointed, …
Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.
The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite …
Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy …
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
To hear the groaning of the prisoner; to loose those that are appointed to death;
Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron;
For he hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron in sunder.