Luke 24:13-16 13And behold, two of them on that same day were going to a village about seven miles from Jerusalem, to which is named Emmaus, 14and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. 15And it happened while they were talking and discussing together, and drawing near Jesus himself was going along with them, 16but their eyes were being prevented from recognizing him.
The next story is unique to Luke’s account. The story has four parts (verses 13-16, 17-27, 28-32, 33-35). The first part gives the setting and situation for the rest of the story. The story is quite long and takes up most of chapter 24. The detail and focus given to the story suggest that it was important to Luke because it shows something important about Jesus’ identity and discipleship, which are two major themes in this Gospel.
Two disciples who had received the report of the women of the empty tomb were going to the village called Emmaus. The purpose of this trip is not stated, but verse 27 suggests that this may have been their home or at least where they had stayed with relatives during the Passover. The two disciples were part of the “all the rest” of verse 9. Not all of Jesus’ disciples were from Galilee although the core twelve apostles were. This event took place on the day of Jesus’ resurrection. Jesus intentionally sought out these two disciples to reveal himself to.
Sixty stadia are equal to about seven miles, which would take the average person several hours to walk. That is a long walk for modern people, but people back then walked everywhere. For a special occasion like Passover, such a journey to Jerusalem would have been normal. Mentioning the distance also adds verification to the divine miracle of Jesus’ resurrection. His body had been severely injured and crippled from the beating and crucifixion to the point of not being able to walk. But this story shows someone walking normally for multiple miles.
The two disciples were walking on the road, probably returning home, mentally and verbally processing all the things that had taken place. They are examples of what the rest of the disciples were doing at that time. Some people like to talk things out while others are more contemplative and private in their thoughts. These two appear to be the kind of verbalize their thoughts. There was a lot to take in. They later mention in verses 20-24 the types of things they were talking about. There were the greatest highs with Jesus’ miracles and teachings, and also the greatest lows with his arrest, trial, beating, crucifixion, and now the news of an empty tomb.
The first surprise of this story comes with the two disciples not recognizing Jesus. Jesus intentionally came up to them to teach them deeper truths about his death and resurrection. He helped them piece together the giant puzzle before them. People can know the facts and story, as many do today, but they need God’s help to help this knowledge become faith. The disciples did not recognize Jesus because their eyes were kept close to his identity. The verb were being prevented (ekratounto) is imperfect tense passive voice indicated that something was continually keeping them from recognizing Jesus. Luke does not state what was preventing them from knowing this was Jesus. It could have been their own doubts and uncertainties, but something of this significance implies that it was God, making this a divine passive. They needed to understand the story before they could believe. Sometimes faith comes from hearing and understanding (Romans 10:17).
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