And it came to pass on the second sabbath after the first, that he went through the corn fields; and his disciples plucked the ears of corn, and did eat, rubbing them in their hands.
LUKE 6:1KJVWhat does Luke 6:1 mean?
Luke 6:1 describes a time when Jesus and his disciples were walking through grain fields on a Sabbath day, and the disciples picked some heads of grain, rubbed them in their hands, and ate them. This sets up a situation where the disciples’ actions on the Sabbath would soon be questioned by others.
In this verse, Luke is narrating an event from Jesus’ ministry. Jesus is with his disciples, and they are traveling through fields on the Sabbath—a day set aside in Jewish law for rest. The disciples’ act of picking and eating grain was allowed by the law as long as it was not harvesting for profit, but doing so on the Sabbath would have raised questions about what counted as “work.” This verse introduces a moment that leads to a discussion about Sabbath observance.
The Greek behind Luke 6:1
- σάββατον (sabbaton, transliterated "sabbath"): This word means the Sabbath, the Jewish day of rest. Luke specifically notes the timing to highlight the religious context and the controversy that follows.
- διαπορεύεσθαι (diaporeuesthai, "went through"): This word carries the sense of traveling through or passing through, showing that Jesus and his disciples were on the move, not settled in one place.
- τίλλειν (tillein, "plucked"): This word means to pick or pluck, used here for the disciples’ action of taking grain. It is a simple act, but its mention is important because it is what will be challenged as Sabbath “work.”
- ψώχοντες (psōchontes, "rubbing"): This word means rubbing, as in rubbing the grain between their hands to remove the husks. The detail shows the ordinary, practical way people ate grain in the field, but it also sets up the later debate about what counts as labor.
Why Luke 6:1 matters
- Luke 6:1 sets the stage for a conflict about Sabbath rules, which becomes a key issue in Jesus’ interactions with religious leaders.
- The verse clarifies that the disciples were not stealing; Jewish law allowed travelers to pick grain by hand from someone else’s field for immediate eating.
- The details about the disciples’ actions help readers understand the cultural and religious expectations of the time, making the coming discussion about the Sabbath more understandable.