The Faith of an Outsider
But those at the table began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” Luke 7:49 · Berean Standard Bible
The others at the table whispered to each other, 'Who does He think He is, forgiving sins?' The question hung in the air.
They were asking the right question. The answer — if they could accept it — would change everything.
The dinner guests question Jesus' authority among themselves.
That question still echoes today: who is Jesus? A teacher? A prophet? Or something more? The answer you give to that question determines everything about your life.
The dinner guests react: tis houtos estin hos kai hamartias aphiēsin ("Who is this who even forgives sins?") — the same question raised in Luke 5:21. The christological question remains open, pressing the reader toward a decision.
Luke ends the episode with the question hanging unanswered, forcing both the original audience and the reader to grapple with Jesus' identity. Only God forgives sins — so who is this?
The dinner guests murmur among themselves about Jesus' audacious claim to forgive sins.
The chapter closes with the defining question of Luke's Gospel: who is Jesus? His actions — forgiving sins, commanding demons, raising the dead — point to only one answer, but Luke leaves the reader to draw the conclusion.
47Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven, for she has loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.”
48Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
49But those at the table began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”
50And Jesus told the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
Read all of Luke 7 — A Roman centurion's faith astonishes Jesus, a widow's dead son is raised, and a sinful woman's tears become an act of worship.
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