While studying for my Kingdom series, I kept reading about Jesus “walking through” angry crowds or “concealing” Himself.  Using the parallel function in the Bible Gateway app it was easy to look at several different translations and paraphrases at one time.  I am amazed at how this habit of Jesus is handled in them.  Some could have a possible explanation, while others don’t! I will give the verse/story, the Strong’s Concordance number, and the Greek word with a simple translation. John is the writer who has the most references to Jesus “hiding” Himself.  With that said I will start with the one in Luke. (I am using the NIV.)

• Luke 4: 30 – #1330 dierchomai – to pass through. Jesus was at Nazareth teaching the morning lesson. (This could also be Matthew 13:53. Luke seems to group things differently, so I will go with Matthew for chronology.  For my study, this starts Jesus’ third block of teaching.). He makes the town’s people mad and they are going to throw Him off the “brow of the hill”.  He “passed through” an angry crowd intent on hurting/killing Him. Really!  They just let Him pass!  Okay, I am not sure what He did, but something powerful quelled/confused the mob.  I find it hard to believe they just “lost” Him on their own.
• John 7: 10 – #2927 kruptos – secret, hidden. Jesus’ brothers are giving Him a bad time because they do not believe He is the Christ.  So, Jesus goes to the Feast of Tabernacles in secret.  This one does not need a miracle to explain how this happened.  A good hoodie would have worked.  But it is hard to imagine that no one recognized Him until He went to the Temple to teach. There was no one trying to kill or harm Him in this story.
• John 8: 59 – #2928 krupto – to conceal.  Jesus is at the Feast in John 7.  He is teaching and answering questions.  The crowd does not like His statements about Himself and His relationship to the Father.  They are going to stone Jesus! How do you lose track of someone you are trying to kill?  I just feel that since it was not His time to die Jesus did a miracle and concealed Himself.
• John 10: 39 – #1831- exerchomai – escape, go out. Jesus is at the Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah).  He is again being questioned by a crowd and they don’t like His answers.  Doing miracles in the Father’s name was not enough proof as to who He was!  So, He escapes!  Again, this could a simple “He outruns them” but that sounds weak, or He punched His way out, no that is weak also.  He was in the Temple, with people everywhere, and was being questioned by what should have been a crowd.  How do you escape that scenario without a miracle? I have a feeling that harming Him was on their minds!
• John 12: 36 – #2928 – to conceal. This is Monday of Holy Week. Jesus is telling the crowd how He is to die.  A voice came from Heaven to comfort Jesus and challenge the Jews.  His statement in verse 36 surely made them mad!  But He had not shared His last meal with the disciples, so He was not ready to be taken, prisoner.  This could be a natural “hiding” Himself and I would not argue or try to defend a miracle here.

I know this is not one of the traditional “Seven Miracles” and there is no foreshadowing of this type of miracle (That I could think of!).  Really, I think it may be too far out there for many people’s comfort zone. Jesus was not ready to die!  He picked the time and the place – Passover and Jerusalem.  He was in control, not the crowds!  I know that my observations will not change the number of miracles, but if I get a chance to teach it I will add them to the list:-}

These are the Seven Miracles, I copied them from a previous post.  (Click the blue link to see the post.)

·  Turning water into wine in Cana (2:1-11)

·  Healing an official’s son in Capernaum (4:46-54)

·  Healing an invalid at the Pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem (5:1-18)

·  Feeding the 5,000 near the Sea of Galilee (6:5-14)

·  Walking on the water of the Sea of Galilee (6:16-21)

·  Healing a blind man in Jerusalem (9:1-7)

·  Raising dead Lazarus in Bethany (11:1-45)

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