35  Joy at the Seventy’s Return  (Luke 10:17–24)

The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.” At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, “I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight. All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” Turning to the disciples, He said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see, for I say to you, that many prophets and kings wished to see the things which you see, and did not see them, and to hear the things which you hear, and did not hear them.” (10:17–24)

When they consider God and His attributes, most people think of characteristics like holiness, sovereignty, omniscience, omnipresence, immutability, justice, wrath, love, grace, and mercy. Rarely considered, however, is God’s joy In 1 Chronicles 16:27 David said of Him, “Strength and joy are in His place.”The prophet Zephaniah declared to Israel, “The Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy” (Zeph. 3:17). Jeremiah records God’s promise to Israel, “I will rejoice over them to do them good and will faithfully plant them in this land with all My heart and with all My soul” (Jer. 32:41), while in Isaiah 62:5 God said to His people that in the future, “As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so your God will rejoice over you” (cf.65:19; Deut. 30:9).

God’s joy is the ultimate purpose for which all His attributes function; it is the all-glorious displaying of them that brings Him the fullest joy God’s attributes ensure not only His eternal joy, but also that of all the inhabitants of heaven. There “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain” (Rev. 21:4). The dominant reality of heaven is unmixed joy forever, which is why the Lord said that those who enter heaven “enter into the joy of [their] master” (Matt. 25:21) and Jude gave the benediction, “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy” (Jude 24).

It is true that the Lord Jesus Christ was, in the familiar words of Isaiah’s prophecy, a “man of sorrows and acquainted with grief” (Isa. 53:3). He wept at the grave of Lazarus (John 11:35; cf. vv. 33, 38) and over the city of Jerusalem (Luke 19:41). In Gethsemane He “began to be grieved and distressed” (Matt. 26:37) and said to Peter, James, and John, “My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death” (v. 38). Reflecting on that experience, the writer of Hebrews said of Him, “In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death” (Heb. 5:7). The unfathomable sorrow the Savior experienced on the cross was expressed when He cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken Me?” (Matt.27:46).

But while the Bible says much about Christ’s sorrow and grief, this passage is the only one that pictures Him rejoicing during His life on earth. It is a unique treasure, providing insight into the joy experienced by the Man of Sorrows. It comes at a critical transition in our Lord’s earthly ministry. The early days of amazement, wonder, and fascination with His miraculous power and authoritative teaching were coming to an end. He was facing increasing apathy and indifference, which would soon turn to rejection and opposition leading to His murder. Christ’s Galilean ministry, which had lasted a little more than a year, was over. He had done many miracles throughout the region, demonstrating Hisdivine power over disease, death, demons, and nature. He had proclaimed the gospel of the kingdom, the message of forgiveness and salvation, and had sent the Twelve out to do the same. Yet the Galileans had provided a meager response to Christ’s monumental ministry among them; when He returned to Galilee after His resurrection, only 500 believers met Him there (cf. 1Cor 15:6). But as this passage reveals, Jesus rejoiced despite circumstances that were disappointing from a human perspective; the Man of Sorrows was at the same time the God of joy.

Like Jesus, believers are to be joyful no matter what the circumstances. In Philippians 4:4 Paul wrote, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice!” (cf. 3:1; 1 Thess. 5:16). Despite his appalling situation, Paul nevertheless could write from prison, “I rejoiced in the Lord greatly” (Phil. 4:10). His joy was constant, imperturbable, and unaffected by circumstances (cf. vv. 11, 12), because it was rooted not in the vagaries of those circumstances, but in the unchanging reality of God’s faithfulness. Believers rejoice because of God’s goodness (Ex. 18:9; 2 Chron. 7:10), salvation (1 Sam. 2:1; Hab. 3:18), love (Pss. 13:5; 31:7), strength (Ps. 21:1), word (Ps. 119:14, 162), and truth (1 Cor. 13:6).

The successful completion of their ministry prompted both the seventy and Jesus to rejoice. This passage reveals three reasons for the seventy’s joy followed by three reasons for the Savior’s joy

REASONS FOR THE SEVENTY’S JOY

The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.” (10:17–20)

The seventy had obeyed Christ’s call to self-denial (9:23–24) and in return they received full and complete joy As noted above, there were three reasons for that joy: divine power over Satan’s kingdom, divine protection from Satan’s kingdom, and divine preservation in God’s kingdom.

DIVINE POWER OVER SATAN’S KINGDOM

The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. (10:17–18)

When the seventy returned to Jesus after completing their evangelistic mission, they immediately gave the first reason for their joy, saying to Him, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” All of the angels were originally created holy but Satan, corrupted by pride and desiring to be equal with God, chose not to submit to Him. Joined by one third of the angels (Rev. 12:4), Satan led an unsuccessful rebellion against God. The Bible describes him as the ruler of this world (John 12:31), the prince of the power of the air (Eph. 2:2), the god of this world (2 Cor. 4:4), a murderer and the father of lies (John 8:44), a deceiver (Rev. 12:9), the accuser of believers (Rev. 12:10), and the evil one (1 John 5:19). The choice of the demons, the angels who followed Satan, is irrevocable; they are unredeemable and one day will be cast into the lake of fire (Matt. 25:41) along with their leader (Rev. 20:10). Like Satan, they are the enemies of God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, and God’s people. They deceive unbelievers (2 Cor. 4:4), and use false teachers to spread demonic doctrines that twist and pervert the Scriptures (1 Tim. 4:1).

The demons’ activity reached its zenith during Christ’s earthly ministry as they desperately but futilely fought to keep Him from “destroy[ing] the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8). They failed, and through His death and resurrection Jesus disarmed and defeated them (Eph. 1:20–21; Col. 2:15; 1 Peter 3:22). The task of evangelism is to deliver souls from the clutches of Satan through the power of Christ. It is a rescue operation against the forces of hell, invading the domain of darkness (Col. 1:13) and freeing lost souls held captive under the deceiving influence of Satan and his demon hosts (2 Cor. 4:4).

The Jewish people believed in the existence of Satan and the demons. They understood that Messiah would have to defeat Satan’s kingdom before He could establish His own (cf.Gen. 3:15). Thus, anyone claiming to be the Messiah would have to demonstrate his power over Satan and the demonic realm—which Jesus did especially at His temptation and repeatedly by casting out demons (4:33–35, 41; 8:2, 27–33).

As He had earlier done with the apostles (9:1), Jesus delegated His power over Satan and the demons to the seventy. Whether the seventy had the added authority to cast out demons like the apostles did, or it was the Spirit’s power through their gospel preaching that delivered those who responded in saving faith is not clear. In any case, the demons were subject to them in the name of Christ. There is no human power that can defeat them, as some phony exorcists at Ephesus found out the hard way. When they tried to invoke the name of Jesus as if it were a magical incantation, the demon scornfully replied, “I recognize Jesus, and I know about Paul, but who are you?” (Acts 19:15). He then used the man he inhabited to administer a severe beating to the would-be exorcists (v. 16). But the seventy had ministered in the power of Christ, and were overwhelmed with joy by the great reality that through their preaching souls were freed from Satan’s domain.

In response to the seventy’s joyous exclamation, Jesus said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning.” Commentators have offered various interpretations of what the Lord meant by this saying. Some argue that it refers to Satan’s original fall (Isa. 14:12), but that incident has nothing to do with the immediate context. Others have suggested several other possibilities: that Christ had in mind His vanquishing of Satan at His temptation; or that He referred to Satan’s subjection to Him by virtue of His own ministry of casting out demons; or the crushing of Satan’s head at the cross, or Satan’s future sentencing to the lake of fire. But the imperfect tense of the verb translated I was watching suggests a continual process rather than a one-time event such as those offerings. Although they were truly triumphs of Christ over Satan, the vivid imagery of lightning, which repeatedly flashes brilliantly and then is gone, suggests a different explanation. The picture here is of Jesus rejoicing as He observed Satan’s kingdom being destroyed one rescued soul at a time through the seventy’s evangelistic ministry That would continue to be true throughout all the history of the church as God and the holy angels rejoice every time one lost and damned soul is recovered from Satan’s domain (cf. Luke 15:7, 10).

DIVINE PROTECTION FROM SATAN’S KINGDOM

Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you. (10:19)

Demons strongly resist when believers invade Satan’s kingdom and attempt to snatch brands from the fire (Jude 23). They would like to thwart the work of God by destroying those faithful witnesses who proclaim the gospel and halting their work. But the seventy, and by extension all who faithfully evangelize the lost, need not fear the opposition of the forces of hell. Behold introduces an important or startling truth: I have given you, Jesus promised, authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you. The perfect tense of the verb translated I have given indicates a past action with continuing effects. The Lord has permanently given believers authority, or power, over Satan and the demons, depictedmetaphorically here as serpents (cf. Rev 12:9; 20:2) and scorpions (Rev. 9:3, 5, 10).

Not by their own power or wisdom, but because believers are in Christ (Rom.8:1; 1 Cor. 1:30; 2 Cor.5:17; 1 Peter 5:14), they triumph over the forces of hell through Him. They need not fear Satan and the demons, since “the God of peace will soon crush Satan under [their] feet” (Rom. 16:20), “the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect [them] from the evil one” (2 Thess. 3:3), and “greater is He who is in [them] than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

DIVINE PRESERVATION IN GOD’S KINGDOM

Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven. (10:20)

Satan may, if God permits, bring trials into our lives as he did to Job (Job 1:6–12; 2:1–7), Peter (Luke 22:31), and Paul (2 Cor. 12:7). But he can never take away our salvation or separate us from God’s love (John 10:27–29; Rom. 8:28–39; Jude 24–25). The cause for that confidence lies in the final reason for the seventy’s rejoicing.

Although they rejoiced in the power over and protection from Satan’s kingdom of darkness the Lord had granted them, there was a far more significant reason for the seventy to rejoice. Jesus exhorted them not to rejoice merely because the spirits were subject to them, but rather that their names are recorded in heaven. They would not only experience God’s power and protection in this life, but also His blessing forever.

The wondrous reality that the seventy were genuine disciples was the supreme cause of their joy Success in evangelism and power over Satan’s kingdom are for this life only Believers’ knowledge that their names are recorded in heaven, never to be blotted out (cf. Dan. 12:1; Phil.4:3; Rev. 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12, 15;21:27), far surpasses all earthly joys.

REASONS FOR THE SAVIOR’S JOY

At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, “I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight. All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” Turning to the disciples, He said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see, for I say to you, that many prophets and kings wished to see the things which you see, and did not see them, and to hear the things which you hear, and did not hear them.” (10:21–24)

Three realities at that very time of the seventy’s return prompted Jesus to rejoice greatly (lit., “overflow with joy”) in the Holy Spirit (i.e., in keeping with His person, purpose, and power): the sovereign pleasure of the Father, the supreme power of the Son, and the surpassing privilege of the saints.

THE SOVEREIGN PLEASURE OF THE FATHER

“I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight. (10:21b)

What produced the ultimate joy for Jesus was the satisfaction of God. The Lord expressed that joy here in the form of a prayer of praise and adoration, the passion of which is evident from the phrases O Father, and Yes, Father. By calling God His Father, Jesus was claiming to share His essence. John 5:18 records that “for this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.” So that there can be no question as to whom He was referring, Jesus identified His Father as the Lord of heaven and earth (cf.Acts 17:24)—a traditionally Jewish designation of the supreme and only God of the universe (cf.Gen. 14:19, 22; Ezra 5:11; Isa. 66:1).

Jesus rejoiced that God’s sovereignty meant that He always did what was well-pleasing in [His] sight. Eudokia (well-pleasing) refers to what brings God perfectly satisfying pleasure. Despite the opposition and rejection Jesus had encountered, His mission was not a failure; it was unfolding exactly the way the Father planned it. The Lord found joy in the reality that His Father, who rules the universe, does exactly what He purposes and plans to do for His holy joy

The central reality for which Jesus praised His Father was that He had hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and … revealed them to infants. The antecedent of these things is the revelation of everything concerning Jesus, including His deity, messiahship, the miracles He performed, the gospel, the kingdom—in short, all the features of Christ’s life, ministry, and mission. The Father had sovereignly determined to whom those truths should be revealed, and from whom they should be hidden, and operated within that determination to reveal to the elect what was otherwise not discernable through human wisdom or intelligence.

Jesus rejoiced that His Father had not devised a plan of salvation that only the wise and intelligent could comprehend. Salvation is not restricted to the spiritual elite, the worldly wise and the intelligent, such as the well-educated scribes and Pharisees of Jesus’ day, or those claiming elevated, esoteric, secret knowledge, like the Gnostics and the followers of the mystery religions. God has hidden spiritual truth so that it is not discoverable by the most elevated human wisdom apart from His self-revelation in Scripture and regenerating work of the Holy Spirit in minds:

That is a critical portion of Scripture where the wisest of the world are fools and the fools of the world made wise because they are “chosen” and “by His doing” brought into Christ (cf.James 3:15–18).

The contrast is not between being educated and being uneducated, but between being able and unable. In contrast to the notion that these profound truths are only for the elevated elite, Jesus’ chose infants as an illustration of those who understood. As noted in the exposition of 9:47 in chapter 31 of this volume, young children have nothing to boast of; they have not yet achieved anything in life, they are not educated, and they have no exposure to the world’s wisdom or knowledge. Only those who humbly admit their inability to know God in their own wisdom and knowledge apart from His revelation of Himself can be saved. Jesus was pleased with that truth because it gives all glory to God (cf. 1 Cor. 1:29, 31). Salvation belongs not to the intelligent, wise, proud, conceited, and boastful (1 Cor. 2:14), but rather to those who are admittedly ignorant and foolish, humble, broken, and contrite (Isa.57:15;66:2).

THE SUPREME POWER OF THE SON

All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. (10:22)

Jesus rejoiced not only in God’s sovereign plan, but also in His role in that plan. In the perfect harmony of the Trinity, all things—every circumstance in the universe, whether in heaven, earth, or hell, involving angels, men, or demons—have been handed over to Jesus by His Father (Matt. 28:18; John 3:35; 13:3; 17:2). The Father’s sovereign purpose set the plan of redemption in motion, and He has given the Son supreme power to bring that purpose to pass through the instrumentality of the Holy Spirit.

In keeping with the Father’s sovereign design, no one knows who the Son is except the Father. No one would know who the Son is if the Father, who along with the Holy Spirit, has perfect knowledge of the Son, had not chosen to reveal Him by sending Him into the world. Conversely, no one knows who the Father is except the Son. Because of that Jesus alone can reveal Him. In John 1:18 the apostle John wrote, “No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.” Jesus is “the Word [who] became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” (v. 14); “the Son of God [who] has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true” (1 John 5:20). Jesus Himself said to Philip, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say ‘Show us the Father’?” (John 14:9).

As noted above, spiritual truth is not discernible through unaided human reason. Therefore only those to whom the Son wills to reveal Him can come to know the Father. It is clear in the Bible that God predetermined before the foundation of the world those who would be saved and to whom He would reveal Himself. Jesus said in John 6:44, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him,” and then repeated it: “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father” (v. 65; cf. v. 37). Anticipating the objection based on a human sense of justice corrupted by the fall, Paul writes,

To those who would protest, “Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?”(v. 19), the apostle answers,

Writing to the Corinthians, Paul expressed the practical outworking of God’s sovereignty in evangelism: “I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth” (1 Cor.3:6–7).

Apart from God’s sovereign choice and regenerating power, no one would be saved. There is no capacity in fallen, sinful human beingsto see the light of the gospel and believe savingly on their own. Those who are dead in their trespasses and sins (Eph. 2:1, 5), blinded by Satan (2 Cor. 4:4), unable to understand spiritual truth (1 Cor. 2:14) and unable to please God (Rom. 8:8) cannot save themselves.

But while the Bible clearly and unambiguously teaches God’s sovereignty in salvation, it also proclaims human responsibility. In the same context in which He declared that no one can come to Him unless drawn by the Father, Jesus said, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out” (John 6:37). Matthew 11:28 records the Lord’s invitation, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” Isaiah 55:1 records an Old Testament invitation to salvation: “Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.”The familiar words of John 3:16 express the universal nature of God’s invitation to salvation: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”The great doctrine of election is always balanced by God’s universal call to responsible sinners to repent and believe the gospel.

THE SURPASSING PRIVILEGE OF THE SAINTS

Turning to the disciples, He said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see, for I say to you, that many prophets and kings wished to see the things which you see, and did not see them, and to hear the things which you hear, and did not hear them.” (10:23–24)

Turning to the disciples after praising the Father, Jesus addressed them privately. What He was about to say applied only to His genuine followers; the Twelve, the seventy, and the other true believers. The Lord rejoiced greatly over the truth that had been revealed to them, finding joy in their joy over such blessed privilege.

That blessed joy was not only for those whom Jesus addressed that day, but for all who would believe in Him, as the phrase the eyes which see the things you see indicates. The things they were privileged to see and understand include the great truths that the Messiah had come, the salvation of God had been revealed, the work of redemption accomplished, the promised kingdom offered, all the Old Testament prophecies, promises, and covenants fulfilled in Christ, who would make the final offering for sin. Satan had met his conqueror, demons were completely dominated, disease vanquished, nature submissive, death defeated through Christ, and forgiveness and eternal life granted to all who believe.

The little flock (Luke 12:32) of genuine followers were blessed to see it all and enabled to understand it by the Holy Spirit. They were the humble, broken, contrite, self-denying, cross-bearing, obedient ones, chosen by the Father, to whom the Son revealed Himself through the Holy Spirit. The blessings they received are available to all who accept the Savior’s invitation, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28).

Just how privileged believers are to have the knowledge they have been granted is evident from the closing statement of the Lord’s discourse: “Many prophets and kings wished to see the things which you see, and did not see them, and to hear the things which you hear, and did not hear them.” Even the most prominent of the Old Testament saints were not blessed with the knowledge given to believers under the New Covenant:

The Old Testament heroes of faith, including Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets, “died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance” (Heb. 11:13). Although they “gained approval through their faith, [they] did not receive what was promised, because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect” (vv. 39–40). New Covenant believers have been granted the privilege of knowing the mysteries of the kingdom of God—the New Testament revelation of all the things kept secret in the Old Testament. That privilege, granted by God’s sovereign pleasure, brought joy to Jesus and the seventy, and should bring joy to all believers.