And beginning with Moses and all the ProphetsThis phrase indicates that Jesus started His explanation with the writings attributed to Moses, which include the first five books of the Old Testament, known as the Torah or Pentateuch. These books lay the foundation for the Jewish faith and contain the Law, which is central to understanding the covenant relationship between God and His people. The mention of "all the Prophets" refers to the subsequent books of the Old Testament, which include both the Major and Minor Prophets. These texts contain numerous prophecies and teachings that point to the coming of the Messiah. Jesus' use of these scriptures underscores the continuity and fulfillment of the Old Testament in His life and mission.
He explained to them
The act of explaining suggests that Jesus provided a detailed interpretation or exposition of the Scriptures. This implies that the disciples needed guidance to understand the deeper meanings and connections within the texts. The Greek word used here for "explained" can also mean "interpreted," indicating that Jesus was revealing the true significance of the Scriptures in light of His life, death, and resurrection. This moment is crucial as it highlights the necessity of divine revelation and understanding to fully grasp the message of the Bible.
what was written in all the Scriptures
This phrase emphasizes the comprehensive nature of Jesus' teaching. "All the Scriptures" suggests that the entire Old Testament bears witness to Him, not just isolated passages. This holistic approach to the Scriptures reveals that the message of Christ is woven throughout the biblical narrative, from Genesis to Malachi. It underscores the unity and coherence of the Bible as a testimony to God's redemptive plan through Jesus Christ.
about Himself
The focus of Jesus' explanation is on how the Scriptures testify about Him. This indicates that the central theme of the Bible is the revelation of Jesus as the Messiah. The Old Testament contains numerous types, shadows, and prophecies that point to Christ. For example, the sacrificial system, the Passover lamb, and the suffering servant in Isaiah all prefigure aspects of Jesus' life and work. By interpreting these texts, Jesus reveals that He is the fulfillment of God's promises and the culmination of the biblical story.
Persons / Places / Events
1.
Jesus ChristThe resurrected Lord who is explaining the Scriptures to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus.
2.
MosesRepresents the Law, the first five books of the Old Testament, which contain prophecies and types pointing to Christ.
3.
The ProphetsRefers to the writings of the Old Testament prophets who foretold the coming of the Messiah.
4.
The Disciples on the Road to EmmausTwo followers of Jesus who were traveling from Jerusalem to Emmaus and were initially unaware that they were speaking with the risen Christ.
5.
EmmausA village about seven miles from Jerusalem, where the encounter between Jesus and the two disciples took place.
Teaching Points
Christ-Centered InterpretationJesus is the fulfillment of the entire Old Testament. As believers, we should read the Scriptures with a focus on how they reveal Christ.
The Importance of ScriptureJesus used the Scriptures to reveal Himself. This underscores the importance of knowing and understanding the Bible as the foundation of our faith.
The Role of ProphecyProphecies in the Old Testament are not just historical predictions but are vital for understanding God's redemptive plan through Jesus.
Spiritual Insight and UnderstandingJust as Jesus opened the disciples' eyes to understand the Scriptures, we should pray for spiritual insight to comprehend God's Word.
The Journey of FaithThe road to Emmaus symbolizes our own journey of faith, where Jesus walks with us, revealing Himself through the Scriptures.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1.What is the meaning of Luke 24:27?
2.How does Luke 24:27 enhance our understanding of Old Testament prophecies about Jesus?
3.What methods can we use to see Christ in all Scriptures?
4.How can Luke 24:27 inspire our daily Bible study practices?
5.How does Jesus' teaching in Luke 24:27 deepen our faith in Scripture?
6.How can we apply Jesus' approach in Luke 24:27 to evangelism today?
7.How does Luke 24:27 affirm the Old Testament's relevance to understanding Jesus' mission?
8.Why is Jesus' explanation of Scripture in Luke 24:27 significant for Christian theology?
9.Does Luke 24:27 suggest that all Old Testament prophecies point to Jesus?
10.What are the top 10 Lessons from Luke 24?
11.What defines narrative theology?
12.What is the main theme of The Chosen?
13.What is the purpose of the Walk to Emmaus?
14.How do Christocentric and Christotelic interpretations differ?What Does Luke 24:27 Mean
And beginningThe risen Jesus took the initiative on the Emmaus road (Luke 24:15-17). “And beginning” tells us He was not giving random comments but launching a purposeful lesson.
• The disciples’ hearts were “slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken” (Luke 24:25-26), so Jesus started at the very start to rebuild their understanding.
•Acts 1:1-3 adds that after His resurrection He spent forty days “speaking about the kingdom of God,” showing this was the first of many careful explanations.
with Moses“Moses” stands for the Pentateuch, the first five books. Jesus traced the redemptive thread that points straight to Him.
•Genesis 3:15—The promised Seed who would crush the serpent.
•Genesis 22:7-14—Isaac’s substitute ram foreshadowing the Substitute Lamb.
•Exodus 12:1-14—The Passover lamb whose blood delivered Israel, fulfilled in “Christ, our Passover lamb” (1 Corinthians 5:7).
•Numbers 21:8-9—The bronze serpent lifted up, echoed inJohn 3:14-15.
•Deuteronomy 18:15—“The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me,” fulfilled inActs 3:22-23.
Each example shows that Moses was not merely writing history; he was preparing us for Christ.
and all the ProphetsJesus did not cherry-pick favorite passages; He swept through the prophetic books.
•Isaiah 53 paints the suffering Servant who “was pierced for our transgressions,” unmistakably fulfilled at the cross (1 Peter 2:24).
•Jeremiah 31:31-34 promises a new covenant inaugurated in Jesus’ blood (Luke 22:20).
•Ezekiel 34:23 foretells one Shepherd, “My servant David,” realized inJohn 10:11.
•Daniel 7:13-14 pictures the Son of Man receiving everlasting dominion—language Jesus applied to Himself (Matthew 26:64).
•Micah 5:2 locates Messiah’s birth in Bethlehem, confirmed inMatthew 2:1-6.
•Zechariah 12:10 speaks of Israel looking on “the One they have pierced,” echoed inJohn 19:37.
Together the prophets form a mosaic that becomes a single portrait when Jesus steps into view.
He explained to themThe word translated “explained” carries the idea of opening up or unfolding. Jesus did not merely quote Scriptures; He connected the dots.
•Luke 24:32 records the disciples’ reaction: “Were not our hearts burning within us while He talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”
•Acts 8:35 shows Philip following the same pattern: “Beginning with this Scripture he proclaimed the good news about Jesus.”
•Acts 17:2-3 has Paul “reasoning from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead,” mirroring Jesus’ method.
The risen Lord set the standard for every future teacher: Scripture first, explanation second, always pointing to Him.
what was written in all the ScripturesJesus treated the entire canon as a unified witness.
•John 5:39—“You pore over the Scriptures because you presume that in them you possess eternal life. These are the very words that testify about Me.”
•2 Timothy 3:15—The sacred writings “are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”
Every book—from Genesis to Malachi—carries a vein of gospel gold. Jesus mined it for His companions, showing that the Bible is not a collage of disconnected religious sayings but a single, Spirit-breathed narrative.
about HimselfThe destination of Jesus’ survey was Himself—His person and His work.
•Luke 24:46-47 summarizes His message: “The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and in His name repentance and forgiveness of sins will be proclaimed to all nations.”
•John 1:45 captures the same discovery: “We have found the One Moses wrote about in the Law, and the prophets also wrote about—Jesus of Nazareth.”
•1 Peter 1:10-12 reveals that the prophets themselves were “searching intently” to understand the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.
By centering the Scriptures on Himself, Jesus showed that He is both the Author and the main character of redemption’s story.
summaryLuke 24:27 records the first Bible study of the risen Christ. He began at Genesis, moved through each prophetic promise, unfolded the storyline, and showed that every page points to Him. The verse teaches that the whole Bible is a unified, trustworthy revelation culminating in Jesus—His sufferings, His resurrection, and the salvation He now offers to all who believe.
(27)
Beginning at Moses and all the prophets.--Better,
from Moses. Here, then, if not before, there was a full "opening of the Scriptures" on all that pertained to the work and office of the Christ, and it is, at least, a legitimate inference to believe that we find the echoes of the great lesson thus given in all, or most, of the interpretations of Messianic prophecies in the written or spoken teaching of the Apostles. From the great first gospel of
Genesis 3:15, to the last utterance of the last of the Prophets announcing the coming of Elijah (
Malachi 4:5), with special stress, doubtless, on prophecies, such as those of Psalms 16, 22, Isaiah 53, that spoke of sufferings and of death as belonging to the perfect picture of the Servant of the Lord, and the ideal King, the unfolding of the divine purpose was now made clear to those who before had been "slow of heart to believe."
Verse 27. -
And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the thingsconcerning himself. The three divisions, the Pentateuch (Moses), the prophets, and all the Scriptures, cover the whole Old Testament received then in the same words as we possess them now. The Lord's proofs of what he asserted he drew from the whole series of writings, rapidly glancing over the long many-coloured roll called the Old Testament. "Jesus had before him a grand field, from the Protevangelium, the first great Gospel of Genesis, down to Malachi. In studying the Scriptures for himself, he had found himself in them everywhere (
John 5:39, 40)' (Godet).
The things concerning himself. The Scriptures which the Lord probably referred to specially were the promise to Eve (
Genesis 3:15); the promise to Abraham (
Genesis 22:18); the Paschal lamb (
Exodus 12.); the scapegoat (
Leviticus 16:1-34); the brazen serpent (
Numbers 21:9); the greater Prophet (
Deuteronomy 18:15); the star and sceptre (
Numbers 24:17); the smitten rock (
Numbers 20:11;
1 Corinthians 10:4), etc.; Immanuel (
Isaiah 7:14); "Unto us a Child is born," etc. (
Isaiah 9:6, 7); the good Shepherd (
Isaiah 40:10, 11); the meek Sufferer (
Isaiah 50:6); he who bore our griefs (
Isaiah 53:4, 5); the Branch (
Jeremiah 23:5;
Jeremiah 33:14, 15); the Heir of David (
Ezekiel 34:23); the Ruler from Bethlehem (
Micah 5:2); the Branch (
Zechariah 6:12); the lowly King (
Zechariah 9:9); the pierced Victim (
Zechariah 12:10); the smitten Shepherd (
Zechariah 13:7); the messenger of the covenant (
Malachi 3:1); the Sun of Righteousness (
Malachi 4:2); and no doubt many other passages. Dr. Davison, in his book on prophecy, pp. 266-287, shows that there is not one of the prophets without some distinct reference to Christ, except Nahum, Jonah (who was himself a type and prophetic sign), and Habakkuk, who, however, uses the memorable words quoted in
Romans 1:17. To these we must add references to several of the psalms, notably to the sixteenth and twenty-second, where sufferings and death are spoken of as Belonging to the perfect picture of the Servant of the Lord and the ideal King. His hearers would know well how strangely the agony of Calvary was foreshadowed in those vivid word-pictures he called before their memories in the course of that six-mile walk from Jerusalem to Emmaus.
Parallel Commentaries ...
Greek
Andκαὶ(kai)Conjunction
Strong's 2532:And, even, also, namely.beginningἀρξάμενος(arxamenos)Verb - Aorist Participle Middle - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 756:To begin. Middle voice of archo; to commence.withἀπὸ(apo)Preposition
Strong's 575:From, away from. A primary particle; 'off, ' i.e. Away, in various senses.MosesΜωϋσέως(Mōuseōs)Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 3475:Or Moses, or Mouses of Hebrew origin; Moseus, Moses, or Mouses, the Hebrew lawgiver.andκαὶ(kai)Conjunction
Strong's 2532:And, even, also, namely.allπάντων(pantōn)Adjective - Genitive Masculine Plural
Strong's 3956:All, the whole, every kind of. Including all the forms of declension; apparently a primary word; all, any, every, the whole.theτῶν(tōn)Article - Genitive Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.Prophets,προφητῶν(prophētōn)Noun - Genitive Masculine Plural
Strong's 4396:From a compound of pro and phemi; a foreteller; by analogy, an inspired speaker; by extension, a poet.He explainedδιερμήνευσεν(diermēneusen)Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1329:To translate, interpret, explain. From dia and hermeneuo; to explain thoroughly, by implication, to translate.to themαὐτοῖς(autois)Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Dative Masculine 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 846:He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.what [ was written ]τὰ(ta)Article - Accusative Neuter Plural
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.inἐν(en)Preposition
Strong's 1722:In, on, among. A primary preposition denoting position, and instrumentality, i.e. A relation of rest; 'in, ' at, on, by, etc.allπάσαις(pasais)Adjective - Dative Feminine Plural
Strong's 3956:All, the whole, every kind of. Including all the forms of declension; apparently a primary word; all, any, every, the whole.theταῖς(tais)Article - Dative Feminine Plural
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.Scripturesγραφαῖς(graphais)Noun - Dative Feminine Plural
Strong's 1124:(a) a writing, (b) a passage of scripture; plur: the scriptures. A document, i.e. Holy Writ.aboutπερὶ(peri)Preposition
Strong's 4012:From the base of peran; properly, through, i.e. Around; figuratively with respect to; used in various applications, of place, cause or time.Himself.ἑαυτοῦ(heautou)Reflexive Pronoun - Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1438:Himself, herself, itself.
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NT Gospels: Luke 24:27 Beginning from Moses and from all (Luke Lu Lk) 
