What does it mean to proclaim liberty to the captives (Isaiah 61:1)?

In Isaiah it is the opening of the prison to them that are bound, so that the bonds are not only untied, but the doors of the prison are opened. The Spirit's interpretation for us is the setting at liberty those that are bruised. Legion was not only Satan's captive; he was also bruised and crushed under the heel of his oppressor. This is how the devil treats his captives; he binds them, imprisons them, and crushes them. But the Lord came to undo the work of the devil, and He gives a thorough release to those who truly own His Lordship.

(1) This part begins with a foreshadow at Nazareth of what is soon to be fulfilled in Israel's history. The Lord is seen in the place where He was brought, up and according to His custom He enters the synagogue on the sabbath day. There He stands up to read, and the book of Isaiah being given Him, He opens at the sixty-first chapter, and applies the words of the Man anointed with the Spirit of Jehovah to Himself. It is clear how accordant with the character of Luke the quotation is. It is the "Mediator between God and man; the Man Christ Jesus" (1 Tim. 2:5), whose voice is heard here; and it is as come up out of Jordan; where He has pledged Himself to a baptism to death far different, that the Spirit has come upon Him for His work. He declares here in the first words of His ministry, as Luke gives it to us, the purport of that anointing. The preaching of glad tidings to the poor comes first, and gives character to all the rest. When man is in the place of need he can receive the gospel. When he is consciously a sinner, captive to the sin which he cannot, when he will, renounce, the gospel brings him release. The blind receive their sight. Those bruised in fetters liberty. It is in fact "the acceptable year of the Lord"; the jubilee of God; fuller and more blessed than the law ever proclaimed in Israel.

“to preach deliverance to the captives”

The Lord Jesus preached a Gospel of “great salvation,” a Gospel that delivered men from the power of sin, the bondage of Satan, and the fear of death. When speaking to the Jews, the Lord said, “If ye continue in my word…the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). Their reply, “We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man,” declared how insensible they were to their condition. On account of their sins, the nation had been led captive by the Assyrians and by Nebuchadnezzar; and even at that time, though in the land that God had given them, they were under the yoke of Rome. But they were under a more grievous bondage, even as the Lord said, “Whosoever commits sin is the servant of sin;” but He had come to preach deliverance to the captives, so said to them, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”

All men are in captivity to sin and Satan until they are set free by the Son of God. The Jews said to the Lord, "We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man." The Lord's answer was, "Whoever committeth sin is the servant of sin … If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed" (John 8:31-36). In spite of all their religious zeal, they were servants of sin, in captivity to sin and Satan.

The captives are sinners undelivered, their chains are chains of sin and Satan holds them in his power. Many there are who dream of freedom, and boast loudly of their liberty, who are enslaved, and do not know the joy of true deliverance, Many feel the bitterness of their bondage, and cry to Him who sets the captives free; and, blessed be His name, they do not cry in vain, for "whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Rom. 10:13.)

The former is indicated by the very words themselves. To "bind" some one means to take away his liberty. To "loose" him means to give him back his liberty. Through sin man became Satan's slave, bound by the fetters of sin. By faith and regeneration he is set free from that terrible bondage and becomes in the liberty wherewith Christ makes us free, the willing and cheerful servant of God and Christ. The natural man is spiritually and bodily a prisoner, bound by Satan. God in His wisdom may permit Satan even outwardly to make manifest the terribleness of those bonds, as in the case of the demoniac and of the lunatic (Matt. 17:15-21), and of that daughter of Abraham who had been bound eighteen years.

Whether the Lord came to Nazareth again before or after this Jerusalem visit we cannot say, for Luke is not interested in fixing the time of events, but in their moral significance and order. In the Lord's home city He entered the synagogue and stood up to read the Word of God. It is not said that He asked for the book of Isaiah, but this was handed to Him, certainly by divine guidance. He opened the book to Chapter 61:1-2, a most lovely prophecy of the Messiah (vs.17-19). It was in Judea that the Spirit of God had publicly come upon Him, anointing Him for the marvelous service of grace: now when He returned it was the perfect time to read this Scripture. He was first to preach the gospel to the poor, and "the common people heard Him gladly." He manifestly came for the help of those in need, not to seek the patronage of the rich. The broken hearted, the captives, the blind, those who were bruised -- these were the subjects of His gracious ministry. The bruised speak of those suffering under oppression.

Nor are we to forget to whom He brings such glad tidings. Isaiah says, “to the meek”; to bind up “the broken-hearted,” to proclaim liberty “to the captives,” and the opening of the prison “to them that are bound.” Again, the Holy Spirit sets the truth in Luke; but, as we have noticed before, not in the literal words. There we read it is “to the poor,” for such “the meek” were in the condition of things which then obtained in sinful Israel. Jesus Himself was “meek,” and He was also “poor.” Giving of sight to “the blind” is added in Luke, for this Preacher is also the Servant upon whom the Spirit is put in Isaiah 42—the Covenant and the Light; given “to open the blind eyes, to bring forth the prisoners” (v. 7). What a confirmation this small addition is of Isaiah’s authorship of chapters 41 to 66, for it was from the book of Isaiah that the Anointed Preacher read that day; and He “unrolled the book” till He came to the second part. It is that part which has “the meek” specially in view; the first part showing the outward and political position more, the second the inward and moral.

The Lord Jesus at the beginning of His ministry entered into the synagogue at Nazareth, and on the prophecy by Isaiah being handed to Him read from Isaiah 61, the passage, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord " — leaving off in the middle of a sentence, for the next words are, "and the day of vengeance of our God" Luke 4:18-19; Isa. 61:1-2. The Lord added, "This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears." The vengeance will be executed for the deliverance of Israel in a coming day; but when our Lord spoke there was the fullest grace for his hearers: it was the acceptable year of Jehovah. There may be an allusion to the year of Jubilee (type of the millennium) when servants were liberated, debts cancelled, and when family possessions were restored to their original owners. But the grace vouchsafed by the Lord brought lasting blessings for their souls.

What force and beauty, therefore, can we see in those emancipating words, "Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness." "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach the gospel; he has sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised." (Luke 4:18) The glad tidings of the gospel announce full deliverance from every yoke of bondage. Peace and liberty are the boons which that gospel bestows on all who believe it, as God has declared it.