RSV ~ Luke 5 Notes

Lk 5:1 | ISB Notes

lake of Gennesaret: Also called the Sea of Galilee (Mt 4:18) or the Sea of Tiberias (Jn 6:1).

Lk 5:5 | ISB Notes

at your word: Though exhausted from a night of unsuccessful fishing, Peter places his faith in Christ, despite the apparent odds against catching anything.

Lk 5:8 | ISB Notes

I am a sinful man: Peter’s imperfections seem magnified to him in the presence of divine holiness (Gen 18:27; Is 6:5; CCC 208).

Lk 5:10 | ISB Notes

James and John: Zebedee’s sons enjoy a close relationship with Jesus (8:51; 9:28).

you will be catching men: Peter’s occupation points to his future mission, when Christ will send him and the other apostles to preach the gospel (Mt 28:18-20; Jn 21:15-17). Peter himself will play a leading role among the Twelve (22:31, 32; Acts 1:15-20; 2:14-40; 15:7-11).

Lk 5:11 | ISB Notes

they left everything: Luke’s Gospel stresses that Christian discipleship demands a loose attachment to worldly possessions and a willingness to part with them if necessary (5:28; 12:33; 14:33; 18:22).

Lk 5:12 | ISB Notes

leprosy: An infectious skin disease that was damaging at several levels. (1) Physically, the disease could be painful and sometimes fatal. (2) Socially, the Law required lepers to be quarantined outside of Israelite society (Lev 13:45-46). (3) Religiously, lepers were ritually unclean and thus unable to participate in worship (Lev 13:3, 8). The combined weight of these burdens was extreme, and nothing would be more welcome than healing and cleansing.

Lk 5:13 | ISB Notes

touched him: It was unthinkable for a Jew to touch a leprous outcast.

Jesus nevertheless crosses this boundary and reverses the expected outcome: instead of contracting ritual uncleanness himself, he cleanses the leper of his ailment by the very act of touching him. This shows that Jesus brings into the world a new form of holiness that overpowers even defilement and disease. See note on Mt 8:1-9:38.

Lk 5:14 | ISB Notes

as Moses commanded: The Law required lepers to be examined by a Levitical priest (Lev 14:1-9). Once a healing was verified, the former leper would offer a sacrifice tailored to his financial situation (Lev 14:10-32). This procedure restored him to full covenant participation in Israel. See note on Mt 8:4.

Lk 5:16 | ISB Notes

he withdrew: Jesus does not want people to think he is merely a wonder-worker. See note on Mk 1:44.

prayed: Solitary prayer is part of Jesus’ teaching (Mt 6:5-6) and constant practice (9:18; Mk 1:35) (CCC 2602). .

• Morally (St. Gregory Nazianzen): Christ serves as a model for both the active and the contemplative life, since we see in his example both the dignity of labor and the higher duty of laying aside work for prayer.

Lk 5:17 | ISB Notes

Pharisees: Members of a Jewish renewal movement in Pales

tine, stringent in their obedience to the Law and c

oncern for legal purity. They are often the accusers and enemies of Jesus (5:30; 6:2, 7; 11:37-54; 16:14). See topical essay: Who Are the Pharisees? at Mk 2. teachers of the law: Also called “scribes” (Mt 9:3; Mk 2:6).

Lk 5:21 | ISB Notes

forgive sins: Jerusalem’s Temple and priesthood were the official channels of forgiveness under the Old Covenant. Jesus challenges this s

ystem, offering reconciliation with God by his own authority and on his own terms. This is part of his mission to inaugurate the New Covenant (Jer 31:31-34). God only: A doctrine implicit in the OT (Ps 103:2-3; Is 43:25) that hints at Jesus’ divine authority to remit sins (Eph 1:7; 1 Jn 1:7; CCC 1441).

Lk 5:24 | ISB Notes

I say to you, rise: The skepticism of the crowd moves Jesus to demonstrate his authority. It is because sickness is often linked with sin that Jesus can display his forgiving power through a physical healing (Ps 107:17; Is 33:24). The outward miracle thus manifests the inward cleansing of the man’s soul.

Lk 5:26 | ISB Notes

they glorified God: Luke often notes t

his reaction to Jesus’ work (7:16; 13:13; 17:15; 18:43; 23:47).

Lk 5:27 | ISB Notes

tax collector: An occupation despised by many Jews. See note on Mk 2:14. Levi: Also named “Matthew” (6:15; Mt 9:9).

Lk 5:31 | ISB Notes

a physician: A familiar analogy used by Jewish and Hellenistic teachers. For Jesus, it explains his ministry of extending mercy to outcasts (CCC 1503). those who are sick: Jesus’ table-fellowship scandalized certain Jews, such as the Pharisees. Enjoying the company of those c

onsidered “unclean” implies that God opens the doors of mercy to everyone, pious and sinners alike (Mt 5:43-48; CCC 545, 588).

Lk 5:32 | ISB Notes

not … to call the righteous: Jesus did not come to perpetuate Old Covenant standards of righteousness, which were designed to separate Israel from the sins and uncleanness of their Gentile neighbors (Lev 20:26). Jesus brings a new standard of righteousness that tears down the wall that barricades Israel from other nations, as he stretches the boundaries of God’s covenant family to include everyone in need of mercy, even tax collectors and sinners. See note on Mt 5:20.

Lk 5:33 | ISB Notes

yours eat and drink: Fasting in the company of Jesus would be as insulting as fasting at a wedding feast. It would nevertheless become important after his departure (5:35; Mt 6:16-18).

Lk 5:35 | ISB Notes

the bridegroom: Yahweh was the divine husband of Old Covenant Israel (Is 54:5; Jer 3:20; Hos 2:14-20). Jesus now assumes this role as the divine spouse of the Church (Mt 25:1-13; Eph 5:25; Rev 19:7-9).

Lk 5:36-39 | ISB Notes

Just as new garments and wine are incompatible with old garments and wineskins, so God’s New Covenant cannot coexist with the Old. See note on Mk 2:21-22.

• Allegorically (St. Augustine, De Quaest. Evang. 2, 18): the old wineskins signify the disciples, who would more easily burst than contain Jesus’ heavenly teaching. Only after Pentecost do they become new skins, enabled by the Spirit to store in themselves a greater fullness of grace and truth.