t Jesus impressed the people by his
authoritative teaching and cures. After the raising of the widow's son at
Nain the popular feeling found a more definite declaration,--"a great
prophet has risen up among us." The cure of a demoniac in Capernaum raised
the further incredulous query, "Can this be the Son of David?" The notion
that he might be the Messiah seems to have gained acceptance more and more
as Jesus' popularity grew, for at the time of the feeding of the
multitudes the enthusiasm burst into a flame of determination to force him
to undertake the work for which he was so eminently fitted, but from which
for some inexplicable reason he seemed to shrink (John vi. 15).

128. Parallel with the growth of popular enthusiasm, and in part because
of it, the religious leaders early assumed and consistently maintained an
attitude of opposition. The gospels connect the critics of Jesus now and
again with the Pharisees of the capital--the Galilean Pharisees being
represented as more or less friendly. At the first appearance of Jesus in
Capernaum even the Sabbath cure in the synagogue passed unchallenged; but
on the return from his first excursion to other towns, Jesus found critics
in his audience (Luke connects them directly with Jerusalem). From time to
time such censors as these objected to the forgiveness by Jesus of the
sins of the paralytic (Mark ii. 6, 7), criticised his social relations
with outcasts like the publicans (Mark ii. 16), took offence at his
carelessness of the Sabbath tradition in his instruction of his disciples
(Mark ii. 24), and sought to turn the tide of rising popular enthusiasm by
ascribing his power to cure to a league with the devil (Mark iii. 22).
Baffled in one charge, they would turn to another, until, after the
feeding of the multitudes, Jesus showed his complete disregard of all they
held most dear, replying to a criticism of his disciples for carelessness
of the ritual of hand-washing by an authoritative setting aside of the
whole body of their traditions, as well as of the Levitical ceremonial of
clean and unclean meats (Mark vii. 1-23).

129. The wonder is, not that popular enthusiasm for Jesus was great, but
that it was so hesitating in its judgment about him. The province which
provided a following to Judas of Galilee a generation earlier than the
public ministry of Jesus, and which under John of Gischala furnished the
chief support to the revolt against Rome a generation later, could h