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Jesus continues speaking to His disciples about this preparatory excursion. He is sending out 70 or 72 disciples in an advance team, to determine where to go next. They are walking toward Jerusalem for the final time, walking through Samaria. Jesus will stop at a few Samaritan cities and his advance team will tell him where to go and where not to go.

Because Jesus is God, people don’t understand why He is sending out this advance team. “Doesn’t Jesus know where to go and where not to go?” The answer to that question is, “No, Jesus does not know where to go.” “How can that be, isn’t He God?”

Jesus is God, but, in His public ministry (and possibly for His entire life), He has set aside His Deity and has functioned strictly as a man. We know this because He grew in knowledge in His humanity (Luke 2:40, 52). Omniscience (a characteristic of God) does not ever increase or decrease in knowledge. Jesus setting aside His Deity is the Doctrine of Kenosis, which we have covered before. Jesus has set aside His entire essence as God and functions strictly as a man empowered by God the Holy Spirit (which is how we, as Christians, live our lives today). One of the things which Jesus accomplishes in His life is, He provides for us, in the Church Age, an example of the spiritual life in the Church Age. Even though Jesus lived during the Age of Israel (or, some believers like myself believe that His life could be considered a separate dispensation, the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union), Jesus, in His humanity, test-drove the spiritual life. He had the same divine operating assets which God gives us.

Therefore, although Jesus was a prophet and knew some things in advance, prophets do not know everything as God does. A prophet only this or that understanding which God gives him. What a prophet knows is limited to what God reveals to that prophet. So, when it comes to choosing which cities to go to, Jesus is not able to determine whether or not to go to Centerville. Therefore, He is sending out this advance team to make that determination.

What we have been studying is this: Jesus continues speaking of a town where the disciples and their message are rejected.

Luke 10:10–11 If you enter a city and they do not receive you with gladness, but reject the message of the gospel, then simply walk away from there. As you are leaving, walking down their street, heading out of their city, say this to them: ‘Regarding the dust of your city which is adhering to our feet, we will scrape it off before we leave your city, so that we take nothing of your city with us. But, despite your negative volition, know this, that the Kingdom of God came to you and to your city.’ (Kukis paraphrase)

By doing this, the 70 or 72 disciples will determine which cities Jesus will stop at, as they trek toward Jerusalem.

Luke 10:12 I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. (ESV; capitalized)

First of all, what day are we speaking of? The day of the Lord, when Jesus returns. At this point, Jesus is offering the kingdom of God—a legitimate offer, as He is the King—but the rejection of Jesus their King by Israel is pretty solid. Many Samaritans will also reject the King.

When Jesus returns in the 2^nd advent, He will return as the Judge of all mankind. Therefore, He will judge all the inhabitants of such cities as those which will reject Him in Samaria.

This is a fascinating thing for Jesus to say, that it will be more bearable in Sodom than in this city which is rejecting Him now. Perhaps we ought to understand it as hyperbole. The people of Sodom were the most degenerate of that time (but, bear in mind, the Bible does not tell us about every single degenerate city; Sodom was important to point out because because Lot, Abraham’s nephew, chose to live there). See Genesis 18 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) and Genesis 19 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

It turned out that, in the entire city, there were at most 4 righteous people there: Lot, his daughters and his wife. That is, at most. And by righteous, I do not mean spiritually mature, but simply regenerate. They had believed in the God of Abraham. They believed in God as He had revealed Himself to them. As a result, they had imputed righteousness, as per Genesis 15:6, but nothing more. Their spiritual growth was minimal.

Whatever city the 70 evangelists went to would be a city populated by Jewish people or, half-Jewish people, and they should know the gospel. They should know about their Messiah and they should know enough from their Scriptures and from their various ceremonies how to recognize Him. If they still reject Jesus, knowing all of this, then that negative volition is on them. What I mean is, they are responsible for their negative volition.

As I have discussed previously, the people of Israel did not fully understand the Messiah, and the problem was, they were willing to see one aspect of Him, but they rejected everything else about Him that did not fit their perception. So, when Jesus was not a great military leader calling for the throwing off of the oppression of Rome, they did not see Him as the Messiah. For this reason, many Jews rejected Jesus the Messiah; and so did some people in the cities where these evangelists/healers would go.

The thing is, the Messiah was more multifaceted than the people wanted to believe. They wanted to see one particular thing; they wanted that applied to them at that time, where Rome is the ultimate oppressor. Interestingly enough, the scribes and pharisees, who rejected the Lord, will actually ally themselves with the established government of Rome (which government that they wanted Messiah to destroy) in order to execute Jesus. That would be called ironic today (or hypocritical).

The judgment of Jerusalem by Rome will be an horrendous historical event; and throughout history, the Jewish people who have rejected their True God have faced great and massive persecutions. If anyone should recognize the Messiah, it should be the Jews having the Torah of God.

One of the consistent themes in the Bible is, if God gives you truth, then you are responsible for having that truth. Jerusalem had both the Torah and the witness of Jesus and His disciples. When this was rejected, God held them responsible for their negative volition.

Luke 10:12 I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. (ESV; capitalized)

What is particularly difficult is, truth was brought to these cities where the disciples have come. They offer the truth and they offer deliverance from sickness and from demon possession. How horrendous will be the regret of such cities, where it was all right there, brought right to them, and they rejected it.

Not all of Sodom will be judged and cast into the Lake of Fire at the final judgment. Lot and his two daughters and probably his wife will not be judged. But, some of these Samaritan cities will be judged, and there will not be a single convert from this time. It will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for certain Samaritan towns.

Let’s pause for a moment and take a look at this particular incident from the perspective of time. That is, where does it belong in time?

If you recall from Luke 9, there were nine or so incidents found in Matthew, Mark and Luke, all taking place in the same order, not long before the Lord’s final ascent into Jerusalem. These same incidents took place in Matthew 16:13–18:6. However, this incident matches up with Matthew 11:20–24 almost word-for-word. As mentioned previously, Luke appears to cover the public ministry of the Lord chronologically until the end of Luke 9 or Luke 10. Either Matthew is completely out of whack, chronologically speaking, or Luke is.

Luke 10:12 I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. (ESV; capitalized)

These words are spoken with reference to cities in Samaria that will outright reject Jesus and not even want to hear from Him. The overall context is the sending of 70 or 72 disciples into the cities of Samaria in order to determine which cities will give Jesus a hearing.

Now Jesus is teaching about a specific day, which would be the day of judgment, also known as the Day of Christ, also known as the second advent (to be distinguished from the rapture). When Christ returns, there will be cities which reject Him completely. So, what does it mean for such a city to be less bearable than what happened to Sodom, being rained upon by sulfur and fire? The key difference is, in Sodom, God sent angels to deliver the four righteous people of Sodom (Lot and his family). In a city of 100% negative volition, no one will be delivered.

In Matthew 10:15, we read: “Truly, I say to you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town.” (ESV; capitalized)

The overall context for the Matthew passage is the sending out the twelve disciples. There would be some cities which would reject them, and Jesus says this about those cities.

So, we simply have very similar, but different contexts; and the similarity of the contexts makes it appropriate to repeat this short lesson where Jesus pronounces the woes.

We have just studied how this passage in Luke is very similar to a passage in Matthew (it is almost word-for-word), but we recognized that this could be the same message given at different times. The first time Jesus spoke these words is in the book of Matthew. He would be sending out His twelve disciples to evangelize and spread the word of the Kingdom. The second time that Jesus says these words takes place in the book of Luke, the book that we are studying, and this context is the sending out of the 70 or 72 believers who are making a determination of which cities in Samaria will receive the Lord. For those cities that do not receive the Person of Jesus Christ, Jesus says this:

Luke 10:12 I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. (ESV; capitalized)

Twice in this verse we have the onomatopoetic Greek word ouai (οὐαί) [pronounced oo-AH-ee], which means, alas, woe. Strong’s #3759.

R. A. S. Macalister:[Chorazin is a]... place referred to only in the denunciation by Christ (Matt. 11:21, Luke 10:13). It is with probability identified with Kerazeh, north of Tell Hum, where are remains of pillars, walls, etc., of basalt.

ISBE: [Chorazin is a] city whose name appears only in the woe pronounced against it by Christ (Matthew 11:21; Luke 10:13). Its appearance there, however, shows that it must have been a place of some importance, and highly privileged by the ministry of Jesus. It was already deserted in the time of Eusebius, who places it 2 miles from Capernaum (Onomasticon, under the word). We can hardly doubt that it is represented by the extensive ruins of Kerâzeh, on the heights to the north of Tell Hûm. It is utterly desolate: a few carved stones being seen among the heaps. There are traces of a Roman road which connected the ancient city with the great highway between north and south which touched the lake shore at Khān Minyeh.

Since Eusebius lived into the 4^th century and it was completely deserted by his time, the woe pronounced upon it by the Lord had come to pass.

Given this message, Chorazin must have been very negative to the ministry of the Lord, although we have no details, apart from this woe.

It is interesting that this city is right next door to Capernaum, which is mentioned several times in the gospels and generally with a positive response to the gospel. However, Capernaum will also be spoken of negatively by Jesus.

R. A. S. Macalister: Bethsaida [is a]...place on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, whither Christ went after feeding the five thousand (Mark 6:45, cf. Luke 9:10), and where He healed a blind man (Mark 8:22); the home of Philip, Andrew, and Peter (John 1:44; John 12:21). It was denounced by Christ for unbelief (Matt. 11:21, Luke 10:13). The town was advanced by Philip the tetrarch from a village to the dignity of a city, and named Julias, in honour of Cæsar’s daughter. The situation is disputed, and, indeed, authorities differ as to whether or not there were two places of the same name, one east, one west of the Jordan. Et–Tell, on the northern shore of the sea, east of the Jordan, is generally identified with Bethsaida Julias: those who consider that the narrative of the crossings of the Lake (Mark 6:45) requires another site west of the Jordan, seek it usually at ’Ain et–Tabigha near Khan Minyeh. The latest writers, however, seem inclined to regard the hypothetical second Bethsaida as unnecessary (see Sanday, Sacred Sites of the Gospels, p. 41), and to regard et–Tell as the scene of all the incidents recorded about the town.

Many mighty works were apparently done in Bethsaida. They did not respond with positive volition towards God. Some believed in the Lord but many did not, despite the great works.

Luke 10:13c For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon,... (ESV; capitalized)

In context, Jesus is speaking of the cities and towns that reject His evangelists (they are healing in these cities where they go). Who would not want to be healed and hear their message of the kingdom? Apparently some cities would reject them entirely.

Tyre and Sidon are major gentile populated cities. Both are major cities on the coast of Phœnicia (today, this would be Lebanon, north of Israel). At the beginning of His ministry, Jesus focused upon cities populated by Jews. He did not go up to Tyre or to Sidon. At this point in our narrative, Jesus is going to enter into some Samaritan towns.

Gentiles would also respond to the gospel message; and apparently, with greater enthusiasm than the Lord’s Own people. Many gentiles would respond to the evangelization of Paul and the other disciples (Paul primarily went to the gentiles).

Luke 10:13d ...they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. (ESV; capitalized)

Given that so many translations with any commentary generally got this wrong, the key word is the 3^rd person plural, aorist active indicative of metanoéô (μετανοέω) [pronounced meh-tah-noh-EH-oh], which means, to change one’s thinking, to change one’s mind, of a purpose he has formed or of something he has done; to relent, to turn around; to change direction. Strong’s #3340. Because of the poor scholarship in many Christian circles, this is presented over and over again as some sort of an emotional reaction toward sins which we have committed—like strong regret, sadness or repentance. But in truth, this refers to a change of mind, and that change of mind is not directed by default toward sin or sinning. This change of mind would have been directed toward Jesus Christ. He would be the One performing that mighty deeds and healings; and the people would logically change their minds about Him. There is nothing in this context which speaks of sin.

Let me give you a rule of thumb: God does not require any believer or unbeliever to respond emotionally in any particular way to His teaching or His person. When actual emotions are referenced as related to a command, the command is not to succumb to this or that negative emotion. That is, do not allow your sinful emotions to run your life. At the same time, Jesus never tells His audience to feel this or that emotion. When it comes to a positive command, it is all about actions or mental attitude. So when we are commanded by Jesus to love our neighbor (which comes out of the Old Testament), this does not mean that we study and think about someone that we know and don’t like and just wait to drum up some kind of positive emotion toward that person. Jesus never does that. The Bible never does that. Loving our neighbor is a mental attitude, not an emotion.

When God gives us a positive command (do this), it is either about our mental attitude or it is about things which we ought to be doing. God never commands us to feel a certain way. When God gives us a negative command (do not do this), it is about a mental attitude, a change of behavior or to stop being guided by a certain emotion or set of emotions.

The people of these Gentile cities would have responded to the gospel message and to signs performed by Jesus or any of His disciples. However, Jesus would first go to the lost sheep of Israel. They had the Scriptures and they knew about the Messiah. It was up to them to recognize the Messiah and believe in Him. Some did but many did not.

Luke 10:13 "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. (ESV; capitalized)

Dr. Daniel Hill: Jesus tells them that if He had done what He did in these Jewish cities in these Gentile cities they would have repented long ago - WHY? Because the Jews were distracted looking for a king after their own making and rejected their Messiah who came as a lamb and not a lion.

Let me put this in another way. They were making the Messiah in their own image.

The Jews had a blind spot concerning the Messiah. They could see Him as the conquering son of David, but they did not see Him as the suffering servant of Isaiah 53. Nevertheless, the cross must come before the crown. We cannot be made right with God apart from the cross.

Luke 10:14 But it will be more bearable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. (ESV; capitalized)

The Jews should have recognized their Messiah; and there will be great regrets among unbeliever Jews who had the Scriptures as a witness and the Person of Jesus as a parallel witness.

Who could regret more if they have learned about the Messiah all of their lives, and come face to face with the Messiah and yet did not recognize Him? If anyone should be able to recognize the Christ, it ought to be these Jews in the cities that Jesus is talking about.

Luke 10:14 But it will be more bearable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. (ESV; capitalized)

Steve Ellis: Tyre and Sidon were large Phoenician cities on the Mediterranean about 35 and 60 miles, respectively from the Sea of Galilee. These two cities were often the subject of warnings from the prophets because of their worship of Baal (Isa 23; Ezek 26-28; Joel 3:4; Amos 1:9-10; Zech 9:2-4).

Luke 10:13–14 Woe to you Chorazin and Bethsaida. If the great things done among you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, those people would have changed their minds, putting on sackcloth and ashes to represent their repentance. Therefore, the judgment upon Tyre and Sidon will be more bearable for them than it will be for you. (Kukis paraphrase)

Steve Ellis: Chorazin was a village about two and a half miles north of Capernaum and Bethsaida was about three miles east. Both of these towns were in Galilee and both had seen Jesus’ ministry firsthand. They both rejected Him and not repented in regard to their attitude toward Him as the Messiah.

Ellis continues: We draw an important principle from these verses. Punishment on the Day of Judgment takes into account the opportunities one has had (cf. Luke 12:47-48; Matt 12:41; 23:13).

Luke 10:15a And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? (ESV; capitalized)

Capernaum is a city of religious Jews; but they rejected the Lord. Jesus tells the negative people that they will not spent eternity with God; they will not be exalted to the heavens.

Various geographical regions and cities will be represented in heaven; but not many from Capernaum will be there.

Those from Capernaum who have rejected the Lord, they—the population of Capernaum—will descend into the grave; they will spend eternity with the fallen.

Steve Ellis: Jesus describes Capernaum as being brought down to Hades. This is a clear allusion to Isaiah 14:15 and the description of the fall of Satan. Hades is the Greek word for hell and has two compartments: torments (the abode of the unbelieving until the Great White Throne Judgment) and paradise or Abraham’s bosom (the abode of believers of the Old Testament until paradise was transferred to heaven with Christ – Luke 16:19-31; 23:43; Ac 2:27, 31; 2 Cor 12:1-4; Eph 4:8-10). Obviously, Jesus is referring to torments here.

Luke 10:15 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades. (ESV; capitalized)

Luke 10:15 You will not be exalted to the heavens, Capernaum; but you will descend into Hades. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Dr. Daniel Hill: Capernaum, the resting place of Nahum, had more opportunity than any city in which Jesus ministered. More disciples were from there, He spent more time there than any place else during His public ministry, more miracles, more parables, more messages - yet in the end, for the most part they rejected and lost the honor they could have had. This helps us add to the answer to our first question. Where is your significance, your honor? Is it in merely receiving what God has for you or is it in something more, is it in knowing God and His Son in a personal way?

Luke 10:15 You will not be exalted to the heavens, O Capernaum; but rather, you will descend into hell. (Kukis paraphrase)

Steve Ellis: Jesus must have mentioned these cities because of their rejection of the message of those whom Jesus sent. Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum were towns that had already rejected Him. The Gentile cities of Sodom, Tyre and Sidon would not come under as harsh a treatment in the day of judgment as these cities because they had rejected greater revelation than was ever given to Sodom, Tyre, and Sidon.

Luke 10:13–15 Woe to you, Chorazin [and] woe to you, Bethsaida—that if the (mighty) deeds done in Tyre and Sidon that were being done among you (all), long ago, those remaining would have changed their minds, [expressing their repentance] with [the use of] sackcloth and ashes. Therefore, the judgment will be more bearable in Tyre and Sidon than [it will be for] you (all). You will not be exalted to the heavens, Capernaum; but you will descend into Hades. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Jesus speaks of cities with large populations of Jews who have rejected Him as their King and Savior.

V. 16 is related to the disciples going out and giving the message of the gospel and is not necessarily connected to the woe to you passage.

Jesus tells His disciples, “When you go out and speak My words and My message, it is as if I am them speaking these truths.

This is clearly something that Jesus maintains, as He allows mankind to spread His Word. Unlike all other religious leaders, Jesus did not spend an inordinate amount of time teaching. He only taught for 3 or 4 years. That was it. For all other religious leaders, that is a warming up period of time. That is the time that they spend learning their craft and making decisions as to their message.

Any religious figure, one who teaches truth or falsehood, is only remembered in history if he spends his life dedicated to teaching his doctrines (whether these be true or false).

Throughout Israel’s history, there have been many people who were thought to be the Messiah or they presented themselves as the Messiah. I could not name any of these people by name because their ministries were generally short-lived. They were not the Messiah from God; and making such claims almost insured that their proclamations would be over a short period of time.

Jesus tells His followers not to take this rejection personally. They will be rejected; but it is not they themselves who are rejected, it is the Lord Who is being rejected.

Luke 10:16c ...and the one who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me." (ESV; capitalized)

Furthermore, Jesus explains, when a person rejects Jesus, he is rejecting God. None of this is personal; this is all tied to positive or negative attitude toward God.

Luke 10:16 "The one who hears you hears Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me, and the one who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me." (ESV; capitalized)

Let me paraphrase: Therefore, when you witness to someone, and they go off on some sort of tirade, don’t worry about it. Don’t think that you need to go off on a tirade against them. If they insult you, you don’t need to insult them. Again, it is not personal. They are not rejecting you; they are rejecting God.

Steve Ellis: Jesus consoled the men whom He was sending out by revealing that the rejection they would experience was not a rejection of them but of Him. The failure that these men would experience could have easily discouraged them. Jesus knew that the rejection that He had experienced would be experienced by them also. Even though the harvest was plentiful, the response to their ministry was small. Nevertheless, they were expected to be faithful in the execution of their calling.

Luke 10:16 Those who hear the words of truth from you, it is as if I am the One speaking to them; but those who reject you and your message, that one is actually rejecting Me. Furthermore, the man who rejects Me rejects God Who sent Me.” (Kukis paraphrase)

Dr. Daniel Hill: So not be shocked by rejection, if anyone rejects the Gospel you give remember that you are the messenger. The true rejection is not of the messenger but the message and the message is of a Savior Jesus Christ and the Creator, God the Father. They rejected Him didn’t they?

This general sentiment is repeated a number of times in the gospels, in several different contexts: Luke 9:48 Matthew 10:40 18:5 Mark 9:37 John 12:44, 48 13:20.

It is interesting that Luke places this verse right here. Logically, I would have placed it when He was sending out the 70 or 72. It would have been directly related to that. On the other hand, Jesus may have been preparing His current followers for the return of the 70 or 72 man point team.

The 70 or 72 disciples who were sent out both to evangelize and speak of the kingdom to come have returned. These men are very jazzed from this excursion.

There is not a great deal discussed about the various cities and how they responded; but there are 35 pairs of men who went to at least 35 cities and villages. Obviously, those cannot all be discussed. God the Holy Spirit also limited the length of each gospel, as that is just common sense. President Lyndon B. Johnson had a biographer which wrote a four-volume set biography of Johnson (he is presently working on the fifth volume). So far, this is about 3000 pages. Can you imagine how long a thorough biography of Jesus might be? In other words, throughout the gospels, there are places where we know that much more detail could have been added, but was not.

Luke 10:17b ...saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!" (ESV; capitalized)

The men were particularly amazed as to how the demons responded to them. They could order demons out of these people and the demons would obey immediately. This means that they would come across demon-possessed people who were completely insane and dangerous, and within seconds, would return to complete normalcy.

Luke 10:17 The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name!" (ESV; capitalized)

What seemed to amaze the disciples the most was the power which Jesus had given them. They could cast out demons!

Given that His followers were so amazed as to their powers over demons, Jesus has a few words for them to take in and absorb.

Sometimes, there are moments of teachability. There is something that catches the attention of a person, or affects them directly, and they are suddenly open to this or that topic. Jesus knows that many of this group are ready for more information about the demon world.

The 70 (or 72) evangelists have returned from the various cities (we do not know how long this took, but it appears to have taken place over a fairly short period of time. They are quite jazzed over what happened and their success and the response of the people—and particularly, it seems—that the wicked spirits were subjected to them.

This is what they have said to the Lord: "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name!" (Luke 10:17b; ESV; capitalized). Therefore, Jesus will respond specifically to that.

Jesus, speaking as a prophet, seeing Satan being cast out of heaven like a lightning flash. Jesus saw this in His humanity, as His Deity is aware of every event of human and angelic history, past, present and future. This would be something that God the Holy Spirit would have to have revealed to Him long after the fact (specifically, to His humanity). This information is also revealed to us in the Scriptures. The imperfect tense indicates that Jesus saw this in the past and, in His memory (in His mind’s eye), He continues to see it.

At one time, Satan could move between heaven and earth as he so willed; prior to his fall. However, when Satan sinned against God, he was cast out of heaven. Being that he accuses Job before God, Satan is apparently allowed back into heaven at certain times and for specific reasons. See Job 1 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) and Job 2 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

When Satan was cast out of heaven, a third of the stars (angels) were pulled down with him (Revelation 12:4).

Luke 10:18 And He said to them, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. (ESV; capitalized)

Luke 10:19a Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions,... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus tells the seventy that He has given them the power (or the authority) to trample down scorpions and serpents. Even though this paints a very visual picture; I believe that we should understand this symbolically. Just as serpents and scorpions can be the enemy of man; their true enemies are unseen—demons from the spirit world. The mention of Satan, serpents and scorpions suggests a variety of demons.

Furthermore, serpents and scorpions represent natural dangers which a person is going to face; and God tells these men not to worry about these dangers; God is providing for them. This is God’s provision of logistical grace.

This does not mean that we should handle snakes or scorpions as a proof of our faith. It would only be a proof of our idiocy.

Jesus confirms to them what they have observed, that He has given them power over the enemies of God—and I think that the emphasis continues to be on the enemies from the spiritual world.

This is a statement with 3 negatives, which stacks up just how carefully God monitors their safety. In context, I would have to suggest that God is protecting them from the violent and powerful world of demons. These people were able to walk throughout the territory assigned to them by Jesus and, despite there being a massive host of demons which wanted to see them crushed, the Lord has made their desired assault come to naught.

Now, does this mean that no harm will ever befall us? What we have to do at this juncture is to stay with the context and not get too crazy when it comes to making application.

First of all, the context is, Jesus is speaking to those whom He sent out as His representatives, who were to act as evangelists, to offer to the people of Samaria the kingdom, and to heal the sick and, apparently, to cast out demons when necessary. There were no losses which occurred. That is, no one was in danger when on this mission, despite there being millions of demons who wanted to see them destroyed. They had complete protection from that.

Now, we as believers in our life and in our function for God (in the operation of our spiritual gifts), receive a great deal of protection as well. If we are honest, most of the troubles and difficulties of life are all a result of what we do to ourselves. And God does allow us to face some pressures and difficulties. No one goes through life without pressure, difficulties or roadblocks. Part of our spiritual growth is being able to deal with these things.

So, the people to whom Jesus spoke to had absolute protection against the spirit world. For us, in the Church Age, once we have believed in the Lord, demons cannot enter into us or control us; but they might influence us with their evil thinking. That is a choice that we make.

Now, I am where I am because of some difficulties and roadblocks that I experienced many, many years ago as a new Christian—some of these things brought on by mistakes which I made and some of them simply difficulties of life that I was unable to overcome. When it became clear that my only solution to move forward in my normal vocation was to move to another state, that was quite a difficult thing to do (for me); but it was the right thing to do. It would not have happened without facing some problems which could not be resolved remaining where I was.

Luke 10:19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. (ESV; capitalized)

Despite the language of what Jesus is saying as being quite strong, we need to stay with the context and apply without getting too crazy.

Dr. Daniel Hill: Let’s not take this as a sanction to test God by going out and playing with snakes and scorpions. That is as wrong as what Satan wanted Jesus to do in testing God in the temptations of Matthew 4 when he beckoned Him to jump off the highest pinnacle of the Temple because, after all, God said that angles would hold up the Messiah keeping Him from harm. What this verse tells me is that there is a destiny that God has for me and for you and as we follow Him, walking by faith in the Holy Spirit, we will be kept from harm in this the fallen devils world. That should make you feel pretty secure which is the answer to the third question. In what do you find your security? In being so skilled as to not step on a serpent or scorpion or in trusting God for your safety, your security, your destiny?

Luke 10:20a Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you,... (ESV; capitalized)

These disciples appear to be particularly jazzed because the demon world is subject to them. Jesus is not telling them that they should not rejoice, but He is going to offer them something even better to rejoice about.

Luke 10:20b ...but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." (ESV; capitalized)

“This is what you need to be particularly happy about,” Jesus tells them, “that your names have been recorded in heaven.” This means that they are eternally saved. This is a far more important consideration than Satan’s fall (which is why we have demons on the earth).

As an aside, let me point out that demons have great mobility, despite being thrown out of heaven (apart from very specific periods of time). They could go to Uranus, they could go to other solar systems, they could willfully separate themselves from earth and live elsewhere. However, they choose not to. Why? Because earth is where God is exercising His plan, and they would like to mess it up. Earth is where there are creatures of God (us) with free will and with a knowledge of God. Earth is where the action is, for the fallen angels.

Luke 10:20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." (ESV; capitalized)

The 70 evangelists came back enthusiastic, but with a skewed emphasis, which Jesus needed to correct, ever so slightly.

Dr. Daniel Hill: What should be our greatest source of Joy, what should make us more happy than anything else? That we are saved - our names are written in the Lambs book of life forever. Initially, the disciples were caught up in their relationship with the world, that in Christ’s name they had power over even over the spirit world. Jesus told them that they should be rejoicing in their relationship with God. Their names are written down in heaven.

Hill later writes: In what do you find honor or significance, in what do you find joy, in what do you find security? Our names are written down in heaven, and Jesus is now there to secure for us a place, and the Holy Spirit indwells us. Our Love our Joy our Peace - our significance, our happiness, our security. We have all that God has for us, let us rejoice in the God of our salvation.

Luke 10:18–20 Then Jesus said to them, “I saw Satan as an angel being cast down out of heaven, as lightning from the sky. Listen to Me: I have give you the authority to trample down serpents and scorpions; and I have given each of you the power over the enemies of God. There is nothing out there which can harm you without My knowledge and assent. Furthermore, do not rejoice simply because the spirits are all subordinate to you; but rejoice that your names have been recorded eternally in the heavens.” (Kukis paraphrase)

Steve Ellis: After they completed their mission, the 70 (or 72) returned with reports that reflect a preoccupation with the miracles they had performed. They did not report on the response of the people to their ministry; however, they reported on the response of the demons (v. 17) to the exercise of the authority that Christ had entrusted to them. Jesus found it necessary to give them a mild rebuke. He reminded them that the authority was not theirs, but His and He had just entrusted it to them (v. 19). This authority belonged to Him because He had expelled Satan from heaven at the time of his original fall (v. 18 cf. Ezek 28:12-15 and Isaiah 14:12-15). They were not to rejoice in the fact that the demons had been made subject to them, rather they were to rejoice in the fact that they had a heavenly home (v. 20).

My first impressions reading of this is, Jesus, in His humanity, is recognizing what God is doing and Jesus says this aloud, sharing His thinking with His disciples and with us, these many centuries later.

A brief review of Luke 10:17–20:

The context for the next two verses is this:

Luke 10:17 The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name!" (ESV; capitalized)

The 70 or 72 evangelists sent into Samaria have returned.

Luke 10:18 And He said to them, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus speaks prophetically of what He has seen in His humanity.

Luke 10:19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus assures His disciples of their safety. Even though He speaks about serpents and scorpions, He is actually referencing demons.

Furthermore, Jesus is not encouraging believers to pick up and handle snakes and scorpions. This is so not the point.

Luke 10:20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus tells them not to rejoice in their great authority, but over the fact that they are forever saved.

This short section appears to be a response to the enthusiasm of the Lord’s evangelizing disciples. The language which begins v. 21 places this prayer alongside of the successful return of the disciples whom Jesus sent out.

Luke 10:21a In that same hour He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit.... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus, in speaking with the seventy (-two) whom He sent out. He was encouraged by the faithfulness of God, which the seventy reveal at their return. Although God does not possess emotions, Jesus, in His humanity, does have human emotions (none of them sinful, of course). He has an appreciation, in the Spirit, based upon God’s faithfulness to these seventy disciples, who had returned from going out to the cities and towns.

All statements made by the Lord, regardless of the reason, if they are recorded in Scripture, are for our benefit and learning.

At some point during that day, Jesus began thinking of what He has observed thus far, and He rejoices in the Holy Spirit. Jesus came to a doctrinal conclusion, based upon His knowledge of doctrine and based upon His life to that point (perhaps based upon a few things that have just taken place, that day or quite recently).

It is also reasonable to think that Jesus had some human emotion at this time, because His humanity would have had human emotion.

Jesus is making a public prayer at this point. Jesus has come to some doctrinal conclusions, and He is stating them in a prayer. Jesus would be speaking to God the Father from His humanity. He is speaking aloud for the edification of those who are with Him.

I have suggested the following analogy when we consider the Lord’s Deity and His humanity—and how can you possibly consider these two aspect of our Lord separately? We, as human beings, all possess a similar dichotomy in ourselves. We have a soul, and that soul thinks and devises and considers. However, there is also a portion of our brain which is more or less on automatic pilot, and not subject to the volition of our soul. There is a part of our bring which controls our heartbeat, the movement of blood; the response to physical stimuli, etc. These are not conscious things which we do. I do not experience a pin prick, and then decide, “I will choose not to feel that.” My nerves are going to take a physical response right to my brain. Even though my brain is clearly involved in these involuntary physical acts and responses, I cannot turn them off and on. I cannot stop my heart from beating by my free will, for instance.

In much the same way, there are two distinct aspects to the Hypostatic Union of Jesus Christ—His Deity and His humanity and, in some way, these aspects of Him can function independently of one another. For instance, we are told that Jesus holds the entire universe together. I understand this to mean that there are some things, from His Deity, which function apart from His human volition. Somehow, Jesus is able to function as God, insofar as it is necessary in our universe, and yet this can remain separate from all of His decisions as a human being (as Jesus is fully human and fully divine, combined into a unique Living Being).

Let me suggest that He has chosen, in His human volition, to not access or use any of His Deity attributes on behalf of Himself as a man. Whatever Jesus must do as God—such as hold the universe together—this continues to take place on automatic pilot, so that whatever is required of His Deity take place apart from the volition of the humanity of Jesus. Furthermore, these things are taking place apart from the human knowledge of our Lord.

Now, we have a parallel of this in the human body. We have our normal human volition, which tells us to get up and to walk forward; but, that same human volition cannot contact the brain and tell us how fast the heart is to pump or what our blood pressure should be; or how our body should react to our blood pressure. We can affect some of those things by our actions (if I run, I will increase my heartbeat; but I cannot choose an arbitrary number and increase my heartbeat to that number).

Jesus specifically identifies Who God is. God the Father is sovereign in heaven and over the earth (even though Satan temporarily rules over the earth). God has, for a period of time, given Satan a position of authority—within very specific parameters—over the earth. One of those parameters might be, he is not allowed to destroy the human race as a whole or individual members of the human race. Satan would be limited as to who he can harm and to what degree. God may allow Satan to do physical or emotional harm as a part of the sin unto death.

Luke 10:21d ...that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding... (ESV; capitalized)

First of all, what things has God hidden from the wise and those with understanding?

Within the past hour, Jesus has said to his disciples: "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." (Luke 10:18b–20; ESV)

No one, by observation or by studying knows about the fall of Satan. No one knows that His disciples would have the authority to tread on serpents and scorpions (how demons are spoken of, as Jesus gave His disciples power over the enemy, that enemy being demon forces. The fact that the names of these 70 or 72 disciples are written in heaven is also something which cannot be found out through rationalism or empiricism.

There are more things which God has hidden from the wise and those with understanding, which will be spoken of in v. 22.

Luke 10:21a-c In that same hour He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and understanding... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus has been on the road long enough to have met and interacted with many religious types who were well-learned; and He was also aware of the sometimes childish outbreaks that His disciples might have. It is clear that God’s plan and will are being constantly rejected by the very people who ought to embrace it. The well-read religious Jews ought to exclaim, “I cannot believe it, that I should be alive during the revealing of God’s Messiah.” But, in Israel, only few of them come to this realization, despite all of their education and learning.

In our current society, scientists and doctors are unduly revered, and some groups of people attempt to suggest that there is some great chasm between science and Christianity. There isn’t and there never has been. Two scientists can view the exact same sets of phenomenon and come up with very different conclusions. Some scientists, in their work, marvel at the great creation of God. Other scientists who observe the same things, reject God from their reality.

I have watched many a nature series narrated by Sir David Attenborough. I see what he sees and I marvel at the creation of God. He has been quoted as saying, “It never really occurred to me to believe in God.” Now, it is not as though he has never thought about it. This interview indicates that he is an agnostic. Attenborough and I can see the exact same things, and yet he can think, “Maybe there is a God, maybe there is not.” But what I see is the very evidence of an intelligent Creator. Attenborough perceives instead millions of years of evolution, where there have been billions of mutations to bring us from a single cell to an entire human being. And prior to this great march from individual cells to human beings, somehow, individual cells came to be in the first place. In the view of the evolutionist, cells suddenly appeared through some unexplained process. And no individual cell is simple. A cell is very small, but certainly not simple. In fact, one might argue that a single cell is more complex than any computer which man has built. So, when I look at life, I do not see evolution at all. It simply violates too many tenets of science.

God has a plan and a purpose; and He has hidden these things from men who consider themselves to be wise and learned. Many have come up with their own ideas about Who and What God is; or what life is all about; but the geniuses of the world are unable to explain it. Various people have tried to explain this world and this life coming from a variety of directions, but this is something which man is unable to fully understand or appreciate on his own—apart from revelation (that is, God must reveal Himself, or man cannot understand Him).

The wise man might be a man who has been around for a long time; who has seen and experienced a great deal in life. Therefore, he has many experiences to draw from in order to develop his own philosophy. The learned is the one who has been schooled or has learned so much from others (through their books or philosophies or from their direct teaching). Some are life-smart and some are book-smart. However, again there is the problem of two people seeing the same thing and still coming to different conclusions. Someone can learn through books or through teaching, but that does not mean that they are studying truth. They are simply studying something which someone else wrote or said.

Man cannot, either by reason or by observation, determine what God’s plans and intentions are. These things are concealed from man and are only revealed to man as God chooses. God has not just given such information to us as believers, but we are encouraged by God to apprehend this knowledge.

Literally, Jesus, speaking to God, says, “You make such things known to those who are infants.” Or, “You have revealed these things Jesus is not saying that only babies crawling around needing their mother’s milk can understand God’s thinking; but those who may be considered infants by comparison to the wise and learned—that is the contrast which is being established here. They are able to understand God’s plan and His great purposes, based upon God revealing Himself to them.

These infants would have simply been the men and women who had not had all of the formal education which the scribes and pharisees had enjoyed. The scribes and pharisees have mis-learned the Scriptures. They have over-emphasized one set of truths and ignored a whole other set.

We have an excellent example of this in the Sabbath. The Jews followed the Sabbath with the application of great legalism. The Talmud lists 39 categories of work and made this a part of their observance of the Sabbath. So, not only have their over-emphasized one set of truths, but they had added a huge number of additional laws to better define how the Sabbath should be observed.

But do you know what the Jews did not observe? The Sabbath year. The Sabbath year is described in Leviticus 25:1–7. According to 2Chronicles 36:21 and Jeremiah 25:11–12, the Hebrew people were sent out of the land (the fifth cycle of discipline) so that the 70 Sabbath years which they ignored could be observed.

Both the super-legalism regarding the Sabbath day and the disregard for the Sabbath year are very well documented historical facts. So that tells us that Israel overemphasized one thing and yet ignored something else very similar to it.

The same thing is true of Messiah. The learned and the wise of Israel saw their Messiah coming to them as a conquering hero, but they were unable to apply Psalm 22 or Isaiah 53. What they did not like, they simply ignored and/or misinterpreted.

Jesus revealed Himself in such a way that some would understand with very little observation that He is the Messiah. Andrew, Simon Peter's brother,...found his own brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which means Christ). (John 1:40b–41)

Luke 10:21e ...yet You made these things known to [those who are like] infants [by comparison]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

How does a child learn as compared to an adult? A child primarily learns everything based upon faith. In most cases, his parents tell him X, Y and Z; and he believes X, Y and Z. Like most children, I believed in Santa Claus and I actually had some rational reasons for doing so. I knew that my parents were not wealthy, so I questioned how could they afford all of the things which our family received at Christmas. Eventually, I realized that there was no Santa Claus and they simply worked hard to afford what we received each year.

Similarly, figures of authority tell the child things and, in most instances, they believe those things. This is how a child can develop odd ideas and concepts after going to a public school, where odd ideas and concepts are taught by some teachers. For a period of time—sometimes, a very long period of time—a child has a difficult time discerning when to believe and when not to believe. As a young person throughout my public education years, it did not occur to me that teachers were imperfect and that they sometimes taught things which were false

One of the things taught to children from a very early age is evolution. I firmly believed in evolution up to about age 21 or 22. Like everyone else, I believed it to be the scientific explanation (even though it cannot be observed). I was surprised in my 20s to find that many people did not believe in evolution and that they had scientific reasons for not believing.

Earlier, I spoke of believers with doctrine and with flexibility could observe Jesus and accept Him as the Messiah of God. However, here Jesus is making a contrast between the wise and learned, who have rejected Him; and the infants, who believe in Him. How do we explain this?

Jesus came to a land where many people were steeped in the Scriptures, but they had a very specific view of things which rejected the gracious God of the Universe, and His Messiah (essentially, they rejected many aspects of the Messiah which are found in Jesus; therefore, they did not recognize Jesus as their Messiah). So these wise and learned men are people who knew the Scriptures, but only enough to support and justify their legalistic view of God. They were not believers in True God (as Paul once wrote, I fear you proclaim another Jesus).

Another way to put this is, they learned enough Scripture to reject the true God.

Let me offer a modern-day example. There are those on the far left political spectrum who present Jesus as a long-haired hippie, the first true justice warrior, who proclaimed socialism as the fundamental answer to man’s ills. Now, nothing could be further from the truth, but they take a little Scripture here, a little popular culture there, and mix in a few misconceptions, and they present a man who is not anything like Jesus.

Republicans Going to Church (a liberal meme); from Catholic Forums; accessed December 2, 2019.

Despite having four biographies of our Lord, people today do not know who Jesus is. They make Him in their own image.

The only important point to possibly correct is to #5. Because we are in a republic where free speech and free assembly are allowed, we may certainly protest our tax burden. But, similarly, we must accept it, no matter how ridiculously high it is.

Jesus as a long-haired socialist (a political cartoon); from Scottie’s Toy Box; accessed December 2, 2019.

Luke 10:21a-e In that same hour He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children;... (ESV; capitalized)

The key to understanding this passage is understanding the three basic systems of perception. Wise people have experienced a great deal of life through their various senses. This is perception based upon the senses. The second group referred to are those who know what they know from others. They have learned these things. The problem with both sets of perception is, they are meritorious and God does not reveal the gospel through either method. The third method of perception is faith, and this is how children learn. They ask questions, their parents answer these questions, and the children believe their parents. It is this latter way that God makes Himself known to man. God explains Himself through the gospel (the gospel is that Jesus died for our sins and we receive His righteousness if we believe or trust in Him). If we are interested in God, we believe what we hear. This is the first step in a relationship with God.

In this phrase, Jesus continues to address God the Father; but there is some confusion whether this is the vocative or the nominative case. It is God’s plan for Him to revealed it to whomever He chooses, and that those who are simple might understand it; whereas, the wise or the learned might not. The key is not IQ but revelation. The key is not intelligence but positive volition.

Luke 10:21 In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus, in His humanity, despite what He faced in the future, was a happy person. Therefore, He rejoices.

Dr. Daniel Hill: The Lord Jesus had abundant joy through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The Lord Jesus had great joy in the salvation of men. The Lord Jesus had great joy in the sovereignty of the Father, which resulted in His revealing His salvation The Lord Jesus further rejoiced because it was the Father’s good pleasure to accomplish salvation through the Son.

The things which have been hidden from the wise and understanding are various Bible doctrines. We do not, for instance, by thinking and pondering, come up with the concept of the Hypostatic Union. This is revealed to us in the Scriptures and we develop this doctrine based upon what God has revealed in His Word.

Luke 10:21 Later on, during this same day, Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit, saying, “I recognize that You, Father, the Lord of heaven and earth, have concealed Your plans and purposes from those who consider themselves to be wise and learned; yet You, at the same time, revealed these things to those who are (intellectual) infants, by comparison. Yea, Father, so You cause Your will and purpose to unfold. (Kukis paraphrase)

There are three systems of perception: faith, empiricism and rationalism. In the first, we do not actually see the thing in question or we do not reason our way to a conclusion, but we accept something we hear or read by faith.

Faith is not simply the domain of religion. Every person exercises faith. We see a paper written about climate science; we see comments or approval for this article written by other scientists; and so, we accept that information as true. That would be a matter of faith. Let’s say that we make our own measurements regarding the weather where we are and consider these from year-to-year; a compendium of such measurements would be an example of empiricism. If we draw some simple conclusions based upon these measurements (such that, over a period of time, we notice a trend of something going up, down, increasing or decreasing) that would rationalism based upon empiricism. When we come to a greater conclusion (like, these measurements seem to indicate that the climate of the earth is getting warmer), then we are bringing in a whole host of notions which are based upon faith.

As a well-taught geometry student knows, even to build a system of geometry (a specific kind of mathematics), we must begin with a dozen or more undefined terms and postulates (unproven statements which we accept as true) before we can proceed to any sort of rational conclusion (known as theorems). Every conclusion (or theorem) developed in Geometry is based upon a set of assumptions (which are taken on faith). Without making these assumptions, there is no Geometry (or any other kind of mathematics).

Luke 10:21 In that same hour, Jesus [lit., He] rejoiced in the Holy Spirit, and He said, “I acknowledge to You, Father, the Lord of heaven and earth, that You have concealed [Your plans and intentions] from [men who consider themselves] wise and learned; yet You made these things known to [those who are like] infants [by comparison]. Yea, Father, in this manner, Your purpose [and plan] came to pass before You. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The wise person alluded to here is a person who has lived for a long time and has recognized divine establishment laws as being the best laws for the human race. A person may start in his early life by thinking that marriage is an outdated arbitrary institution, and that children by be raised by virtually any entity, but as a person becomes wise, he finds out that not all households are equal, not all institutions of companionship and dedication are equal; and that the introduction of children changes a great many things. A wise man, after many years of observation, may conclude, children appear to do best when raised by both of their natural parents.

The learned man is someone who has been educated by whatever educational institutions are available. What that person will learn is based upon accepted concepts based upon faith, observations and logical though. The bias of the learning institution often makes an imprint on the learned man.

Regarding these two types of men, neither one understands God or God’s plan one whit. Not based on empiricism; not based upon rationalism (or book-learning). Spiritual information must be revealed to them from another source (which can take place in a learning institution or in a conversation over a cup of coffee or by reading the third chapter of John). Their only correct response is to hear about Jesus Christ and then to believe in Him.

Truth is revealed to whomever God chooses; and it cannot be discovered by the wise or the learned. God the Father has entrusted everything to His Son. In this context, we are speaking of God’s plan and His purpose and the revelation of these things.

A scientist can investigate a great many matters in physics or biology and come to the conclusion, this universe is not random; what do I make of that? This could be an expression of God consciousness. If the person then wants to know about God—the God Who designed this universe, the Singularity from which this universe suddenly arose—then God will see to it that he hears the gospel message from a believer (or from the Word of God). That scientist, by himself, even having discovered amazing overlaps in nature, still cannot discover the gospel message by going a little further into his study. The gospel message is God’s to reveal at will.

There are things in the universe which may alert your mind to the concept of God; but those things will not lead you directly to God. That only happens by means of the gospel message. The gospel message comes to us through revelation and not through scientific discovery.

The Fibonacci Sequence and Nature (a graphic); from Samrat Sen accessed November 22, 2024.

The Fibonacci sequence starts like this: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55 and so on forever. Each number is the sum of the two numbers that precede it. It's a simple pattern, but it appears to be a kind of built-in numbering system to the cosmos. Mathnasium provides 14 examples of the Fibonacci sequence in nature and I will give three of those as examples.

Leonardo Fibonacci came up with the sequence when calculating the ideal expansion pairs of rabbits over the course of one year.

Let us also consider the golden ratio. The golden ratio is called phi (φ) in mathematics and it is an infinite, irrational number. Phi = 1.61803...) and this ratio can be seen from the microscale to the macroscale, and right through to biological systems and inanimate objects. While the Golden Ratio (that is, the phi ratio) doesn't account for every structure or pattern in the universe, it's certainly a major player. Here are some examples from nature and the universes of both phi and the Fibonacci series. .

The head of a flower is reflects Fibonaccian processes. Typically, seeds are produced at the center, and then migrate towards the outside to fill all the space. Sunflowers provide a great example of these spiraling patterns.

The unique properties of the Golden Rectangle provides another example. This shape, a rectangle in which the ratio of the sides a/b is equal to the golden mean (phi), can result in a nesting process that can be repeated into infinity — and which takes on the form of a spiral. It's call the logarithmic spiral, and it abounds in nature.

Snail shells and nautilus shells follow the logarithmic spiral, as does the cochlea of the inner ear. It can also be seen in the horns of certain goats, and the shape of certain spider's webs.

A Shell and the Golden Rectangle (a graphic); from Mathnasium; accessed February 11, 2023.

The Golden Rectangle and the Fibonacci sequence together (a graphic); from How Stuff Works; accessed July 18, 2024. The spiral conforms to the boxes with a regional area that conforms to the Fibonacci sequence.

Flower Petal Arrangements (a graphic); from Medium; accessed July 18, 2024. This same pattern is also found in nature in many plants, either with their petals or their seeds.

These same patterns can be observed in such diverse natural occurrences as hurricanes, the ear, and the human hand. It can be found in both art and architecture.

Not surprisingly, spiral galaxies also follow the familiar Fibonacci pattern. The Milky Way has several spiral arms, each of them a logarithmic spiral of about 12 degrees. As an interesting aside, spiral galaxies appear to defy Newtonian physics. As early as 1925, astronomers realized that, since the angular speed of rotation of the galactic disk varies with distance from the center, the radial arms should become curved as galaxies rotate. Subsequently, after a few rotations, spiral arms should start to wind around a galaxy. But they don't — hence the so-called

winding problem. The stars on the outside, it would seem, move at a velocity higher than expected — a unique trait of the cosmos that helps preserve its shape.

A Spiral Galaxy (a graphic); from Mathnasium; accessed February 11, 2023. You can see the golden rectangle, the phi ratio, superimposed on the galaxy.

Much of this comes from Mathnasium (the text and the photographs). I collected some examples from other websites as well.

Even more fascinating is how the Fibonacci sequence is related to the phi ratio. Take the ratio of any two adjacent numbers in the Fibonacci sequence and that ratio moves closer and closer to the phi ratio as you move further along the sequence.

Now let’s look at the ratios: 2/1 = 2, 3/2 = 1.5, 5/3 = 1.666..., 8/5 = 1.6, 13/8 = 1.625, 21/13 = 1.615384615384615..., 34/21 = 1.619047619047619... Each time, we get closer and closer to the phi ratio (1.61803...). If f_n is the n^th term in the Fibonacci sequence and f_n+1 is the next term, we say that the limit of f_n+1/f_n as n goes toward infinity is phi. The phi ratio is also known as the golden ratio.

At the bottom of the article, do they add the words, and many scientists, as they ponder such things, believe that the universe and nature are not random, but designed, possibly by a Creator. For more information, see the book of John, chapter 1?

Of course not! These sorts of words are generally not found in science texts (although many individual scientists exclaim God’s existence, in some way, when they discover or examine different aspects of this world and universe. And many scientists do believe in God.

Quotes from Famous Scientists about God:

“The question of whether there exists a Creator and Ruler of the Universe has been answered in the affirmative by some of the highest intellects that have ever existed.” –Charles Darwin.

“The more I study science, the more I believe in God.” –Albert Einstein

“God [is] the author of the universe, and the free establisher of the laws of motion.” —Physicist and chemist Robert Boyle, who is considered to be the founder of modern chemistry. Boyle was a devout Christian.

“I believe that the more thoroughly science is studied, the further does it take us from anything comparable to atheism.” Lord Kelvin

“If you study science deep enough and long enough, it will force you to believe in God.” —Lord William Kelvin, who was noted for his theoretical work on thermodynamics, the concept of absolute zero and the Kelvin temperature scale based upon it. Kelvin was a devout Christian.

quotation-louis-pasteur-the-more-i-study-nature-the-more-i-stand-amazed-57-55-14.jpg

Charles Darwin Quote (a graphic); from AZ quotes, accessed June 28, 2024.

Louis Pasteur Quote (a graphic); from AZ quotes, accessed June 28, 2024.

“God created everything by number, weight and measure.” Sir Isaac Newton

“In the absence of any other proof, the thumb alone would convince me of God’s existence.” Sir Isaac Newton

“I have a fundamental belief in the Bible as the Word of God, written by those who were inspired. I study the Bible daily.” —Sir Isaac Newton, who is widely regarded to have been the greatest scientist the world has ever produced. Newton was a devout Christian.

“When I began my career as a cosmologist some twenty years ago, I was a convinced atheist. I never in my wildest dreams imagined that one day I would be writing a book purporting to show that the central claims of Judeo-Christian theology are in fact true, that these claims are straightforward deductions of the laws of physics as we now understand them. I have been forced into these conclusions by the inexorable logic of my own special branch of physics.” Frank J. Tipler.

There is no war between science and Christianity, not today and not ever. God created all of the scientific laws and what man studies in nature and in the universe, God created.

Most of these quotes were all taken from:

https://godevidence.com/2010/08/quotes-about-god-atheism/ accessed February 11, 2023.

Also:

https://www.azquotes.com/quotes/topics/science-god.html accessed June 28, 2024.

There is no war between science and Christianity. It tends to be scientists who do not believe in God who claim such a war exists.

Neil deGrasse Tyson, who is said to be an American astrophysicist and writer, has a Facebook page, and I thought, maybe he will share some interesting scientific tidbits with us. So I followed him. My experience so far is, he uses this page (or whoever runs this page) mostly for the purpose of insulting people he does not agree with (particularly Christians who do not believe in evolution). Rather than insights, he posts things like the meme that follows:

Neil deGrasse Tyson on the Empowerment of Science (a meme); from Facebook; accessed August 9, 2024.

I have found that many modern scientists are mostly disenchanted with people who do not believe in evolution, but believe in God. Every claim which science makes about evolution—that it is not simply a theory but a proven fact; that evolution is observed; that life is made from non-living things in the lab; that the fossil evidence is conclusive—all of these claims are completely and totally false. At best, some of these claims are exaggerated; at worst, some of these claims are outright lies.

When I was younger and in college, there used to be people who would travel from university to university and debate about Creationism v. Evolution (usually a panel of four). Back then, I hitchhiked to school (if I could not get a ride there from someone I knew); and I got picked once up by a member of the anthropology department. She had attended the debate the previous evening and I asked her who she thought won the debate. She said the creationists did, but quickly added, “But we know what the truth is.”

During this same time period, some universities had a course on Evolution v. Creationism, generally taught by two teachers, each given equal time in the course (obviously, one teacher believed in evolution and the other believed that God created the world and all life). The problem for the college or university, where such courses were offered, was, the wrong side would win. No matter how the class was split, by the end of the course, more people believed in creationism than did at the beginning. This was the wrong outcome, as far as the university was concerned.

My university did not have such a course, and they never brought this debate back onto our campus; but, what they did do was, suggest that evolution be taught more. That next semester, I had evolution taught to me in three different classes: the history of mathematics, a child development course, and one of the religious courses I took (I forget which one). I do not think this to be a coincidence that three courses taught evolution on the first day of class. Evolution has a better chance of convincing the student, if no other view is taught along side it.

Evolutionists aside, many scientists are brought to the point of faith in God through the things which they study. Clearly, nature is not random. There are things known as scientific laws, but that is a misnomer. Science did not originate any of these laws and science does not enforce them. However, the scientist who believes in God based upon his scientific observations is not saved. He must hear and believe the gospel of Jesus Christ and he must believe in Jesus. He may discover God through scientific research or observation, but his pathway to God is only through Jesus Christ.

So, the knowledge which can come from scientific observation and investigation can lead one to the concept of God, but, the thing which actually connects us to God—the gospel of Jesus Christ—cannot be discovered. The very words of the gospel must be given to us in some form. We have to read it or someone needs to tell us about it. We may be moved to inquire about God through a number of different ways, but the actual connection only occurs by means of the good news of Jesus Christ.

The key to salvation is faith in Jesus Christ, which is the first system of perception used by children. There is a very specific event which takes place in the life of almost every young person with one or both parents. He just starts asking questions. It sounds as if this kid wants to know everything all at once. Why is there rain? Why is the sky blue? How come caterpillars turn into butterflies? How far away are the stars?

At some point, the believing parent speaks of God, and then the floodgates of inquiry really open up. Who is God? Why can’t I see Him? Where is He? What does He do?

It is the wise parent who is ready for this sudden onslaught of questions, because often gospel information is a part of what the child wants to know. This is one of the most receptive periods of time in a person’s life.

Starting in v. 21, Jesus appears to be praying aloud before His disciples. He is openly praising God the Father. He explains the relationship between Himself and God the Father when speaking before His disciples.

Luke 10:22a All things have been handed over to Me by My Father,... (ESV; capitalized)

It is impossible to be an expert on every ancient Greek manuscript. I have read in some places that there are 24,000 partial and full New Testament manuscripts, and at other times, I have heard that the number is 26,000. There are far fewer complete manuscripts.

I personally depend up four ancient full New Testament manuscripts: the Westcott Hort text, Scrivener Textus Receptus, Byzantine Greek text and Tischendorf’s Greek text. These are all very well-known Greek texts, and some translations will pick one of these texts and follow it religiously; and other translations will pick and choose from them (and from others).

Luke 10:22a All [things] were entrusted to Me by My Father. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

However, the Scrivener Textus Receptus, the Byzantine Greek text and Tischendorf’s Greek text all have some additional words:

Analytical-Literal Translation And turning to the disciples, He said, "All [things] were handed over to Me by My Father,...

Far Above all Translations Then he turned to his disciples and said, “Everything has been handed over to me by my father.

Modern Literal Version 2020 And having turned to the disciples, he said, All things were given to me by my Father,...

It seems logical, even if these words do not belong in the original text, that Jesus is speaking before His disciples and likely directly to them.

God the Father developed the plan of God. God the Son executed the plan of God. Jesus goes back to eternity past where it is He Who is creating the heavens and the earth.

Angels were created after God created the heavens and the earth. The disposition of angels was given over to our Lord.

God also created man—who is very puny next to any random angel—and God the Father placed all mankind into the hands of Jesus.

Luke 10:22b ...and no one knows Who the Son is except the Father,... (ESV; capitalized)

The Son—Jesus here is referring to Himself—cannot be fully apprehended or understood except by the Father (that is, God the Father).

God the Father must reveal the Son to the unbeliever. This takes place because, in the divine decrees, God the Father determined that He would provide the gospel message to those who are interested in Him. At times, God reveals the gospel to those who are not interested in Him; but generally speaking, the gospel message is reserved for those who actually want to know God.

Furthermore, no one fully understands or knows Who God the Father is except for His Son—the Man speaking right now to His followers.

Luke 10:22d ...and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.” (ESV; capitalized)

Luke 10:22 All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows Who the Son is except the Father, or Who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.” (ESV; capitalized)

God the Father has handed everything over to God the Son. At the very beginning, when Jesus was born, no one really knew the Son except the Father. However, when God the Son grew spiritually, He understood who the Father is. God the Son can reveal to anyone of His choosing Who God the Father is.

There is an exception to what Jesus has said about only the Father understands and knows the Son; and only the Son knows and understands the Father. The exception are the people to whom Jesus reveals this information to. At this point in time, Jesus was revealing this information to His disciples (all those who are on positive signals and would listen to Him); and God the Holy Spirit reveals this information to us through a system of authority. Nearly always, this system of authority is a well-qualified pastor-teacher who studies and teaches the Word of God to His congregation.

R. B. Thieme, Jr. used to always say, a pastor-teacher cannot take his congregation past his own spiritual maturity; his congregation cannot advance any further than he has. The pastor-teacher studies and teaches and his congregation is limited by what he teaches them; and he is limited by his own knowledge as to what he is able to teach.

There are other factors involved. A pastor-teacher may be constrained by the number of hours that he teaches his congregation. This could be related to the length of the service, the number of gatherings each week, and the ability of the pastor-teacher to assimilate the material necessary to teach the Word.

One of the areas in which I hope to help is, the pastor-teacher who discovers my exegesis and develops a respect for my own integrity of teaching. I hope that he will feel comfortable to teach an entire book, leaning upon what I have put together (and upon his own spiritual growth and personal insight as well).

R. B. Thieme, Jr. often disparaged commentaries, but this is because they could be so unhelpful when plumbing the depths of a verse or a passage. However, he certainly did refer to commentaries and he studied carefully the teachings of Lewis Sperry Chafer.

My attempt is to provide a great depth of resources, including the original languages, three original translations, and a complete sampling of the available translations (I try to exclude translations which use the same phrasing or vocabulary of those already listed). I believe that I also provide an accurate and understandable commentary which focuses upon the words and their meaning.

R. B. Thieme, Jr. understood the power and importance of the Word of God and, therefore, taught as many as 9 hour+ classes each week (and more hours in a week of teaching for conferences). Thousands of men and women have benefitted from his concentrated teaching that he gave himself over to. (And, like all men who stand for the truth, Bob was much maligned throughout his life as a pastor-teacher.)

Furthermore, the ministry cannot be a numbers game. It does not matter if you have a congregation of 4 or 5 or if 2000 attend your church. I face the same things as a commentator. I simply put my commentary on the internet. I don’t advertise for it, I don’t charge for it, and I do not ask for money from those who go to my website (God has made that possible). There is no advertising. I may have 2 or 3 or 8 people who really study and use my website and 100,000 who click on a link, end up at my site, and leave 2 seconds later, never to return. I cannot concern myself with the numbers (although I admittedly do have an interest here). I can only exercise my spiritual gift faithfully as unto the Lord (a phrase I heard a thousand times or more at Berachah Church).

Luke 10:22 All [things] were entrusted to Me by My Father. Furthermore, no one knows Who the Son is if not the Father; and [no one knows] Who the Father is if not the Son (and to whomever the Son wills to reveal Him). (Kukis mostly literal translation)

This is the revelation of God. The Son, Jesus Christ, chooses to whom He will reveal God the Father to.

It is only through revelation that we understand (as well as we can) the Hypostatic Union. It is only through revelation that we understand the Trinity. It is only through revelation that we understand Who God the Father is and Who God the Son is.

We come to some very limited understanding of God through God consciousness. But we only come to a saving faith through revelation; and we only experience spiritual growth by means of revelation. What I mean by revelation is, God the Holy Spirit, through an evangelist or through a pastor-teacher reveals enough truth about Jesus that we believe in Him (for salvation); and reveals enough truth for us to grow spiritually. We are only saved by exposure to revealed truth and we are only able to grow by means of revelation.

God the Father is the Divine Planner and from Him are the divine decrees. These things were handed over to God the Son. No one understands any of these things unless they are revealed to him.

No one would understand Jesus as our Savior apart from the revelation of the Scriptures. No one would understand Jesus in the Hypostatic Union except as revealed in the Scriptures. Most of the time, we begin to understand these concepts when a well-qualified pastor-teacher teaches them to his congregation.

At this point in time, Jesus was revealing these things to His disciples. Many of them would be given the privilege to write Scripture and God the Holy Spirit would reveal that to man, to his human spirit (which is where divine understanding is stored).

Steve Ellis: In His prayer, Jesus acknowledges that the wise and learned (i.e. the religious leaders in Judaism) chose to be blinded to spiritual Truth whereas the “babes” (i.e. the simple and unlearned) had accepted the gospel of the kingdom. Jesus also acknowledged the expectation of generations of kings had been fulfilled in Him.

Luke 10:22 All things have been entrusted to Me by My Father. Furthermore, no one really knows the Son except the Father and no one knows Who the Father is except the Son (and those to whom the Son reveals Him). (Kukis paraphrase)

To put this in another way, the true revelation of the Father is found in the Son.

Earlier I mentioned the idea of a 4 year old child asking a plethora of questions, eventually leading to questions about God. How do you explain Who God is? You tell the child about Jesus. In Jesus, the Father is revealed; and by Jesus, the Father is revealed.

As an aside, the first few words in v. 22 which are considered questionable—those words probably came from v. 23a.

The crowds did not fully appreciate all that they were seeing and hearing, but those close to Jesus were told by Him that what they are seeing and hearing is quite incredible. How many of the disciples had no idea how unique and amazing that their experience was?

I have taken the common adjective ídios (ἴδιος) [pronounced IH-dee-os] and used it as an adverb. I think that is reasonable in this context to translate this word privately. .

Jesus has turned toward His disciples and He is speaking to them privately or separately here. He is no longer praying or speaking divine truth aloud to whomever is around Him. What He says is specifically for His disciples (which may go beyond the basic twelve).

Jesus more literally says, happinesses or blessings to your eyes; but obviously, He is referring to His disciples and their souls. They ought to enjoy great happiness and blessings because of what they are now seeing. What are they seeing? They are seeing the Son of God teach them truth.

This is in the context of teaching all of those in this crowd about how God reveals Himself by means of Jesus.

Luke 10:23 [Jesus] turned to face [His] disciples and He said [to them] privately, “Happinesses [belong to you all, for your] eyes are seeing what you [now] see;... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

When it comes to contemporary events, people often do not appreciate or understand them. The things which are truly important, they don’t notice; and the most transitory things are what appears to weigh on their minds. How many people on this earth spend their entire lives concerned with the most trivial of things, and what is of real importance rarely enters into their thinking.

Jesus is pointing out to them, “What you are hearing and seeing right now is the most important thing that could happen to you.”

Let me give a concrete example of this. In the United States, every four years, we vote for a president. Easily half of the discussion or interaction between the supporters of opposing parties have little or nothing to do with actual competence and philosophy. There has been much discussion of the past sexual history of both President Trump and Vice President Harris (who are the present candidates for the 2024 election). In both cases, their past indiscretions and bad choices go back a decade or more. There may actually be people who are swayed one way or the other based upon these past choices made by both candidates. How much relevance does this have to their potential performance in 2025 and forward? Very little, in my opinion. However, candidates are so often defined and voted against for some of the stupidest reasons; reasons which are completely unrelated to the office that they are pursuing.

My point being, people in this life do not necessarily understand what is happening all around them, even in the world of human events (setting aside for a moment God and His plan). Even in the human realm, people cannot distinguish the trivial from the important.

The contemporary history of the disciples is happening all around them, but what is most important is Jesus Christ standing right in front of them, along with the fact that He is teaching them directly.

Even though this is true for all of the people that Jesus has spoken with or to; He confines these remarks to His disciples (this may be more than just His twelve disciples).

Application: Of all the important things in my life, possibly the most important was the abundance of teaching which came out of Berachah Church. When I arrived in Houston, Bob was teaching 8 or 9 hour+ lessons each week. At the time, I did not really think much about it, except how much it impacted my social life from time to time. However, in retrospect, I can see how important that teaching was and how unimportant my social life was.

Principle: When you are in the middle of history, it is sometimes difficult to separate what is important from what is truly mundane. Whatever is related to truth, that is what is important.

Luke 10:23 Then turning to the disciples he said privately, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! (ESV; capitalized)

The disciples saw the actual Son of God; and they heard His words and He took time to explain to them what many things meant.

Jesus is explaining to His disciples the unique experience which they are having right at this moment (that unique experience being the fact that Jesus is teaching them face to face). They will also see the most important events of history play out: the crucifixion, the resurrection and the ascension.

Luke 10:24a For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it,... (ESV; capitalized)

Just as many people today wish that they could have sat at the Lord’s feet to hear His teaching; there were millions of people who looked forward into time desiring to see and hear the Messiah-King. Bear in mind, the promise of the Messiah loomed large in the teaching of the Hebrew people. We sometimes forget that because this is mentioned in Judaism today, but it is no longer presented as a fundamental tenet.

The people of Israel in the Old Testament were fundamentally concerned with the coming Messiah. There could be nothing more central to their worldview than their Messiah. Today, Jews are aware of the messianic teaching of their Scriptures, but it is no longer the foundational and central concept to them as it was to their predecessors.

Remember Andrew’s words to Peter when talking about Jesus? “We have found the Christ!” (John 1:41). Christ is the Greek translation for Messiah. The Messiah loomed large on the psyche of the Jewish people in the first century a.d. This was fundamental to the Jewish faith.

Both David and Isaiah looked forward to this Messiah as the culmination of all things. Both men wrote about this Messiah.

Messianic prophecies from the Old Testament:

One of the earliest prophecies found in the Old Testament is about Jesus:

When Adam and the woman had sinned, God spoke to the serpent who misled the woman and said this:

Genesis 3:15 Furthermore [lit., and], I will place enmity [and antagonism] between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed. He will bruise your head and you will bruise His heel.” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

There is the seed of the serpent and the Seed of the woman. The language used here is fascinating, as the seed of the serpent is not a reference to more serpents but to men who would follow Satan. The Seed of the woman is a reference to the Messiah, the One Who would come.

Now, generally speaking, seed is not a word associated with women. It is the man who provides the seed in conception. But God speaks of the Seed of the Woman because there will be no man involved in the conception of Jesus. The virgin birth is necessary in the human race because the sin nature is passed down from the man to his children (girls or boys). So this becomes a great theme of the Scriptures, beginning here in Genesis and prophesied in Isaiah and fulfilled in the book of Luke.

The Seed of the Woman will crush the head of the serpent, which will be the death blow to the serpent (Satan). Also, the serpent will bruise the Lord’s heel (which occurs on the cross). Although a seemingly fatal blow, as Jesus physically dies on the cross, God will raise Him up three days hence.

Although the Messiah, in one form or another, is found throughout the book of Genesis, let’s go to the end of Genesis:

Genesis 49:8–9 You [are] Judah; your brothers will praise you; your hand [will be] on the neck of your enemies; and the brothers of your father will bow down to you. Judah [is] a lion’s cub away from [his] prey; you have gone up, my son; he has crouched down, he lies in wait [or, reclines] like a lion; and, as a lion, who would rouse him up? (Kukis mostly literal translation)

At the end of his life, Jacob speaks of his sons and blesses them. What he says about Judah is most unusual. Judah is Jacob’s fourth-born son. He is not preeminent in any way. Not by his behavior (see Genesis 38) and not by his order of birth (although Judah simply assumes a position of prominence in his family around Genesis 43–44).

At the time that Jacob speaks these words, Joseph is the lord of the family. He is the one with great authority in Egypt, being second-in-command only to Pharaoh. But to whom will the tribes bow themselves down to? Who will the tribes praise in the future? It is Judah.

There is a period of waiting which takes place (these words are spoken around 2000 b.c.), so there will be about 2000 years which transpire. However, about 1000 years later, the tribe of Judah will become preeminent and a son of Judah, David, will become the first Judaic king. From that point forward, the line of kings will be descendants of Judah. Judah has crouched down, lying in wait for this time, like a lion, and who will rouse him? The tribe of Judah has been like a lion, crouched down, waiting for his time. When David comes into the picture, this is the lion rising up and taking charge.

Genesis 49:10–12 The scepter will not depart from Judah and the Lawgiver [will not depart] from the midst of His feet until Shiloh comes; and He has the obedience of the peoples. Binding His donkey to the vine and [binding] a foal to a choice vine. He has washed His garment in the wine and [He has washed] His clothing in the blood of the grape. [His] eyes are red from wine and his teeth are white from milk. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Judah will become the ruling tribe. The scepter, a sign of rulership, will not depart from Judah until Shiloh (a reference to Jesus Christ) comes.

Shiloh is the Hebrew word Shîylôh (שִילֹה) [pronounced shee-LOW], and it means, he whose it is, that which belongs to him; tranquility. These meanings are uncertain. Obviously this is transliterated Shiloh and many believe this to reference Messiah. Strong’s #7886 BDB #1010.

The references to the blood of the grape and washing His garment in wine refer to the Lord being closely associated with sin. He became sin for us. Yet, His white teeth refers to His perfection, His being without any sin.

Messiah would come from the tribe of Judah. Both Joseph (not the Joseph of Genesis 39–50), the Lord’s legal father, and Mary, the mother of Jesus, come from the tribe of Judah. Both are in the line of David, which is the record of Matthew 1 (for the line of Joseph) and Luke 3 (the line of Mary).

The prophet Isaiah certainly looked forward to the Messiah:

Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel. (ESV, capitalized)

Immanuel means God with us; and Jesus on this earth, walking among the people, was certainly God with us.

God speaks of the future sometimes from long ago (as the Old Testament prophecies above); but sometimes, He prophecies about the near future.

The angel Gabriel prophecies to Mary about Jesus:

The virgin spoken of in Isaiah is Mary. God told Mary that she would bear a Son and she agreed to this.

Luke 1:26–27 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. (ESV; capitalized)

God’s promise of Isaiah 7:14 would be fulfilled in Mary.

Luke 1:28 And he [the angel] came to her and said, "Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!" (ESV; capitalized)

Luke 1:29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. (ESV; capitalized)

Mary was of course taken aback by having an angel speak to her and greet her in this way. At the time, it may not have been apparent at first that she was speaking to an angel.

To put this another way, Mary remarks, “Just what the heck are you talking about?”

Luke 1:30–33 And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end." (ESV; capitalized)

The angel prophesies as to Who Mary’s Son would be. Her son would be David’s Greater Son, Who is the Messiah.

Luke 1:34 And Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin?" (ESV; capitalized)

Mary was young, but she understood that it required a man and a woman to produce a child. She is a virgin.

Luke 1:35–37 And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God." (ESV; capitalized)

The angel explains. I should point out that the process here is not some form of intercourse. The power of the Most High would overshadow Mary. Skeptics try to paint this as something very crude, which it is not.

Luke 1:38 And Mary said, "Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her. (ESV; capitalized)

Mary agrees to what the angel just proposed. She is agreeing to, as a virgin, give birth to the Messiah.

My point in all of this is, the Messiah was central to the Old Testament. Those passages are still there, but no longer does present-day Judaism emphasize this aspect of their doctrine.

Luke 10:24a For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it,... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus is telling His disciples privately that what they are seeing, many prophets and king desired to see this for themselves.

Luke 10:24b ...and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” (ESV; capitalized)

These people from the past wanted to hear what the disciples are now hearing; Jesus teaches His disciples divine truth every single day. This is what so many in the past desired to hear.

Luke 10:24 For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” (ESV; capitalized)

I took just a small handful of passages of those who looked forward to the coming Messiah, who desired to see what the disciples saw.

So many of the prophets spoke of the Messiah. So many of the kings—David and Solomon for instance—also greatly desired to see and hear the Messiah. God has given that great blessing to the disciples, to whom Jesus is speaking.

Luke 10:23–24 Then turning to the disciples He [Jesus] said privately, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” (ESV; capitalized)

People without doctrine or without divine establishment thinking cannot understand or evaluate the times in which they live. Things happen, there are national movements, there are points of inflection, but people who lack the orientation of doctrine or of divine establishment can rarely make sense of these things, or see where they are going. They do not see the patterns, they do not understand the true causes and effects, and they do not understand the health and focus of the nation in which they live.

The laws of divine establishment are laws which are applicable to all societies and countries, and they work for believers and unbelievers alike. A believer with Bible doctrine understands these laws. Believers without doctrine do not understand them and many unbelievers not only lack understanding of such laws, but are in opposition to these laws. A few unbelievers understand these laws; and to many of them, they are just common sense.

Fundamental to any society or country are the basic divine institutions. The volition of the soul, the institution of work, marriage (between one man and one woman), family (in most cases, the biological family), and nationalism. These are fundamental and foundational to the health and welfare of any nation.

Illustration: Communist and socialist countries often limit the volition of their citizens, particularly when it comes to God. This does not make a country better in any way.

Illustration: The United States has made it possible for millions of people to live without work. We have also distorted the institution of marriage and family and nationalism. These things are strong negatives with regards to the United States.

Illustration: We have two good illustrations of this which took place over the past 20–30 years (I write this in 2023 and 2024). One of these was the acceptance of marijuana as just another nearly harmless drug, safer than alcohol. As a result, the usage of same not only increased and became commonplace. Therefore, one state after another legalized marijuana in one way or another. Intoxicants are dangerous for our culture; and the more we are intoxicated as a country, the worse off our country is. I know people who honestly believe that there is nothing wrong with getting stoned every day because pot is legal where they live. The second thing which was accepted in our country as normal and acceptable behavior was homosexuality (which, for hundreds of years, was not). This opened up all sorts of sexual floodgates, including gender confusion which is going to destroy the lives of many children, who, when they suddenly grow up, will realize that they have turned themselves into physical freaks, and no one is interested in a real relationship with a freak. Both changes of thinking by our society were big mistakes; and we as a country will pay dearly for the misguided thinking of this era.

Application: How did it happen that the people of the United States come to the point of accepting marijuana and homosexuality as normal? There was a huge amount of misinformation which was circulated. However, fundamentally, people in the United States simply rejected the laws of divine establishment, which is the instrument by which societies and countries are guided and advanced.

Luke 10:23–24 [Jesus] turned to face [His] disciples and He said [to them] privately, “Happinesses [belong to you all, for your] eyes are seeing what you [now] see; for I say to [all of] you that many prophets and rulers wished to see [that] which you (all) see but they did not see; and to hear [that] which you (all) hear but they did not hear.” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Application: What many of us do not appreciate is, when we hear a book of the Bible presented accurately, in its historic and theological context, and we understand what the writer meant to say, and how it applies to our lives—that is the greatest thing happening in our lives. That is an amazing blessing to us. This is actually greater than this disciples being able to eat and drink and hang with Jesus. Nothing is greater than the infallible Word of God.

Saint Peter, who actually saw the glorified Christ early on, says this exact same thing. Peter will make the claim that the Word of God is greater than the experience of seeing Christ glorified.

What is even greater than seeing Jesus Christ in person and hearing Him teach?

(R. B. Thieme, Jr.’s corrected translation will be used below)

2Peter 1:16 For not having followed as our source of authority cleverly concocted myths, when we had communicated to you all the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we have become spectators of His majestic magnificence [appearance of the second advent].

Peter communicates that he has seen the glorified Christ (also known as the Shekinah Glory). Jesus took three of the disciples aside and they separated themselves from everyone else, and then Jesus was glorified before them. Moses and Elijah appeared to them as well.

We would think that this would have been the ultimate experience, the ultimate in truth. Peter says no, it isn’t.

2Peter 1:17 For when He [Jesus] had received from God the Father honour and glory, such a unique voice having been carried to him by His majestic glory, “This One Christ is My Son, My beloved One, with reference to whom I have been well pleased.”

Peter and the other two disciples actually heard God speak to them. God said specifically to them, “This One Christ is My Son, My beloved One, with reference to Whom I have been well pleased.”

This appears to be the most amazing experience ever in life, so that Peter did not just see the glorified Christ but he heard the actual voice of God. Could there be anything in life greater than this experience?

2Peter 1:18 And we heard this same voice, having been carried from heaven, when we were with Him on the holy mountain.

Peter, James and John all heard the very voice of God. They saw with their own eyes the glorified Christ. Could anything be greater than this? Peter will answer yes, there is something greater than this.

2Peter 1:19 We keep. possessing this prophetic doctrine as something more reliable, with reference to which doctrine, you perform honorably when you habitually become occupied with doctrine; doctrine as a lamp shining in a dark place until the day dawns and a morning star [Venus] has come up.

However, what Peter and the other Apostles possess is an even more reliable Word. They have something more reliable than seeing the glorified Christ and hearing the voice of God. You may be asking yourself, what the heck could that be?

It is this: Peter and the other disciples are teaching the very words of God. These words which they are teaching are more reliable and they are greater than this experience of Peter, James and John.

2Peter 1:20–21 Knowing this first that all prophecy of Scripture does not originate from one’s own explanation for prophecy was never produced from human design or volition; but men (human authors) communicated from God, being carried along by the Holy Spirit. (R. B. Thieme, Jr.’s corrected translation throughout)

The prophecy which they are teaching does not come from them personally, from their own human experience and wisdom. The word which they teach is from men of God being carried along by God the Holy Spirit. These words of instruction are more important than seeing the glorified Christ! Their words—the words of Peter and John, as writers of Scripture—are more important than the experience of hearing God speak!

The question again is this: What is even greater than seeing the Lord Jesus Christ in person and hearing Him teach? What is greater than seeing the glorified Christ in person with your own eyes? Hearing the Word of God taught by a well-qualified pastor-teacher or (in a few instances) reading the Word of God being taught by a well-qualified commentator. That is what Peter is teaching.

Luke 10:23–24 Jesus then turned towards His disciples and quietly said to them, “This is a tremendous blessing to you, for you are seeing Me and these great miracles. Listen, there are many prophets and rulers from the past who wished to be able to see what you are seeing now; and they desired to hear these words which I am speaking. Such things they strongly desired to see, but did not.” (Kukis paraphrase)

Dr. Daniel Hill: One cannot read the Psalm and not realize that these saints of old longed for a time when they would see the prophecies of God fulfilled. When they would see the one whom God would send to be the salvation of mankind.

Psalm 14:7 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When the LORD restores the fortunes of His people, let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad. (ESV; capitalized)

Today is the greatest time to be alive:

Any well-qualified pastor-teacher could tell his congregation this today: There are many prophets and rulers from the past who wished to be able to see what you see now and hear the words which you hear now. They had such a great desire to hear and see the things which you hear and see.

You may not realize, but we live in the greatest times ever; we live under the greatest blessing ever. We get to observe God’s plan as it unfolds over the ages. We get to see God calling Abraham, the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice the son whom he loved. We see Moses leading the children out of Egypt and Joshua leading them into the land of promise to take it. We view hundreds of years of history of Israel, right up to the time of the revealing of the Lord. We get to experience all of that. God has provided for us the record of these events and a good pastor-teacher can place us back into those times through the power of the Word and our own mind’s eye.

On top of all this, many of us enjoy life in the greatest country in the world—in the United States—where God’s great blessing is apparent. More importantly than that, we have access to some of the greatest Bible teaching which has occurred in all human history. There are churches which actually understand the importance of the Word of God and the pastor strives to teach as often as he is able.

But just as Jesus pronounced these great woes against the cities where His message was rejected, this might also be the woe of the city in which you live. This could be the great woe against the United States. There has never been a greater time to be alive; and there has never been a greater nation and environment for us than life in the United States. Do we hold onto it or do we let these great blessings slip through our fingers?

Dr. Daniel Hill continues with this same theme: But while that was good for these disciples to be in the presence of Christ on earth, and that was greater than the prophecy of Christ, we have something even better.

Saint Peter speaks of these wonderful blessings which we enjoy in this life:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen Him, you love Him. Though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. (1Peter 1:3–9; ESV; capitalized)

And today, our lives as believers are even greater than they could have been during the time of Peter.

I know that in this world, the cosmic system tells us that we live in terrible times and that this is the worst time ever to raise up a child, and so, we should not have any children. This is pure-d balderdash. There are great potentials and opportunities in the United States. The key is, first get your priorities straight, and then everything else will fall into place. This does not mean that life will be without opposition or suffering; but God, through His Word, will give us the means to stand.

The opportunity to take in doctrine here in the United States is phenomenal. The opportunity to move where doctrine is being taught is out there. We, as believers, simply need to seize the moment, and fully appreciate this time during which we live.

In this next section of Luke, we sometimes have an extended narrative and teaching session which can be broken down into several subsections. Most people are aware of the story of the good Samaritan—in fact, even the term, good Samaritan, has taken on a life of its own, so that millions of people know that term without even knowing where it comes from or what it really means. How many people, when they hear these words, think, I guess these Samaritans were pretty good people back then?

Few people realize that this narrative has a beginning, a middle and an ending; and only the middle section is actually about the good Samaritan. Whereas, a few people could tell you about the good Samaritan, far fewer can tell you what led up to this and what the aftermath was.

I have talked about these various sections being held together by very specific time phrases. After these things, for instance. We might call these time stamps, which pull together the previous narrative with the current narrative, even if these narratives have little in common (apart from them being from the public ministry of Jesus).

At this point, we have words which suggest that soon after Jesus speaks to His disciples, there was an incident which takes place. The word behold suggests that we are still in the time frame outlined in Luke 9 and continued in Luke 10.

A lawyer is someone who was a person well-versed in the Law of Moses. It is not someone who would necessarily stand up and argue in favor of his client.

Hastings’ brief explanation of a lawyer: This term in Scripture does not belong so much to the legal as to the religious sphere. The ‘lawyers’ busied themselves with the study and exposition of the Written and the Oral Law of Israel, and were practically identical with the scribes.

Hastings NT: In Israel the activities of the lawyer were limited by the Torah, or Law of Moses. His functions were three-fold: to study and interpret the Law (and the traditions arising from it), to hand it down by teaching, and to apply it in the Courts of Justice. The lawyers played an important part in the proceedings of the Sanhedrin, not only voting, but also speaking, if they saw fit, on either side of a case, though in criminal charges solely on behalf of the accused (Mishn. Sanhedrin, iv. 1). The Roman lawyers, were more secular in their interests, and applied themselves more directly to the practical aspects of jurisprudence. Their work in the law-courts covered a wide range. The most general representative of law was the cognitor, or attorney, whose place (in Gaius’s time) was partially filled by the procurator litis, or legal agent; but in court the case was pleaded by the patronus or orator, the skilled counsel of whom Cicero is so illustrious an example, often assisted by the advocatus, or legal adviser. The opinion of jurisconsulti, or professional students of law, could also be laid before the judges...

In the NT lawyers appear as νομικοί, ‘jurists’ (freq. in Lk., but elsewhere only in Matt. 22:35 and Tit. 3:13), or νομοδιδάσκαλοι, ‘doctors of the law’ (only in Luke 5:17, Acts 5:34, and 1Tim. 1:7); but they are clearly identical with the γραμματες, ‘scribes,’ who are mentioned so often in the Gospels and Acts. These lawyers are all of the Jewish type. The Roman lawyer appears, however, in the ῥήτωρ or ‘orator’ Tertullus, who pleaded the cause of St. Paul’s prosecutors before the Roman governor Felix (Acts 24:1 ff.)—in order, no doubt, that the proper technicalities might be observed, and the case presented in the way most likely to win over the trained Roman mind.

One problem with the lawyer, as found in this context, is they often did not understand the Law concerning which they were experts. Their minds were too clouded with extraneous materials. Today, we might call such extraneous knowledge as precedent, but it is really just traditions.

This lawyer did not have a legitimate question. This is not something that he has been wondering about and now that Jesus is here, he can ask Jesus. In fact, he is not even asking Jesus to get His perspective, to consider it. He is testing Jesus with this question. “Do you really understand this, Teacher?” might best convey his approach.

This sort of thing happened throughout the Lord’s public ministry. Many experts in the Law stood up and tried to trap Him with various questions. Matthew19:16 22:35 Luke 18:18

Sometimes, the trap was such, so that, no matter what the Lord said, they would have a place to argue with Him. At other times, they were certain that Jesus would answer the question wrong (as per their own additions to the Mosaic Law). Of course, He never did.

Twice in this passage, interestingly enough, this man’s motivation is laid bare. Here, he is said to be testing the Lord; and later, in v. 29, he will speak with the intention of justifying himself. It is quite interesting to me just how Luke knows this man’s personal motivation and when did he know it. There are several possible answers: (1) this could have been simply revealed to Luke by God the Holy Spirit, as Luke wrote these words; or (2) the lawyer in this narrative could have revealed this to Luke directly. I like this second option for several reasons: (1) quite obviously, the one person who would know the lawyer’s motivations is the lawyer himself. (2) This interaction with Jesus may have stuck in the mind of this lawyer more than with anyone else (particularly if this lawyer eventually believed in the Lord). (3) This is a unique narrative in the gospels, which would make sense if the source of this story was the lawyer himself. Although these are three very strong reasons which help to tie up a lot of loose ends for this narrative—that is, if the lawyer eventually believed in the Lord, and later encountered Luke and told him this story. Nevertheless, I realize that this is a matter of speculation, but I give this better than even odds that I am right about this. I suspect that my opinion/speculation here might be a unique one and yet very possibly correct.

I have no doubt that Jesus had a read on this man (not in a mystical way, but simply by observing him), and knew that the man did not want information. Jesus understood that the man simply wanted to put Jesus to the test. But since Luke did not speak with Jesus, he would have known this information (that this was a test) from a different source.

Luke 10:25a-b Behold, a certain lawyer stood up, testing Him,... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

If this man is an expert in the Law, would he not already have a fixed opinion on this matter? That by itself suggests to us that he really is not asking a question to gain information.

Warren Wiersbe expressed this opinion: Like some theologians and Bible students today, Jewish rabbis enjoyed debating the fine points of doctrine; and this lawyer (a student of the Old Testament law) wanted to hear what Jesus had to say. We get the impression that the man was not seeking truth, but was only trying to involve Jesus in a debate that he hoped he would win. The lawyer proved to be evasive when it came to facing truth honestly and obeying it.

Luke 10:25c ...saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" (ESV; capitalized)

The verb is an aorist participle, so would refer to action in past time. It would be legitimate to understand this in the 1^st person, like the main verb, giving us: ...saying, “What should I have done [so that] I will inherit eternal life?”

The implication is, “I already have eternal life; but, in Your opinion, what should I have done in the past to secure that eternal life?”

On the surface, this appears to be a legitimate question, but given that the action of the participle precedes the action of the main verb; and that an aorist tense is used, the oddity in this question seems to focus on the past. Nothing can be changed from the past. Jesus might be thinking, “Why ask a question in this way?” We have already been informed that this lawyer is putting Jesus to the test. Therefore, he is not seeking information; he is hoping to trip Jesus up.

Dr. Daniel Hill: The word for LIFE found here in the Greek New Testament which is ζοω and in the Hebrew of Leviticus 19:5 which is cha-yah both mean more than just to live and breath or have biological life. These words look at a quality of life, a meaningful life, a life that is full of all the good things God would have for us. And this relates to the original question the man asked. Not merely how can I have or enter eternal life but how can I inherit or have the inheritance of eternal life. He wants more than just to be saved, he wants all that God has for him both now and in eternity - which is commendable.

Luke 10:25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" (ESV; capitalized)

Theoretically, the certain lawyer asks, “What should I have done in the past in order to inherit eternal life?” So the lawyer sets aside the place where he is now and whether or not he has eternal life. “Maybe I have eternal life, and maybe I don’t; but what should I have done in the past in order to have it?”

Luke 10:25 Behold, a certain lawyer stood up, testing Jesus with the following question: “What should I do in order to inherit eternal life?” (Kukis paraphrase)

Jesus was asked this question, no doubt, a number of times by a number of different people. Another similar incident also took place near the end of the Lord’s earthly ministry (the rich young ruler, who is found in Matthew 19:16–24 Mark 10:17–25 Luke 18:18–23—when we get to this passage, it will be fascinating, as there are many lessons to learn from it). In these two incidents, the way that Jesus deals with them will be very different.

The difference between this and our Lord’s encounter with the rich young ruler suggests to me that Jesus takes a read on this man—Jesus looks at the man, listens to the words that he says along with their intonation—and, as a result, He has a very good idea as to what is happening with that person.

Here we are told that the man is testing Jesus with this question, so Jesus is going to throw this question right back on him.

Jesus looks right at this man in order to give him an answer. I do not believe that Jesus used His omniscience, for the most part, during His public ministry (very possibly never). So, when interacting with a number of individuals, Jesus would look at these people, and evaluate them based upon the His Own ability to read a person. Jesus was brilliantly perceptive in His humanity.

This phrase tells us that Jesus did more than speak to the man; Jesus looked at the man and took his measure. How do I know this? Let’s look at the ESV:

Based upon the ESV’s translation, we would think that we have the verb to say, to speak followed by the dative of autos (αὐτός) [pronounced ow-TOSS]; which would be simply translated, to him (or, to him (for his advantage)). But that is not what we have here. We have the preposition prós (πρός) [pronounced prahç] plus the accusative of autos (αὐτός) [pronounced ow-TOSS]. In this case, prós means, facing, face to face with; to, towards, unto. Strong’s #4314. Jesus, while speaking to this man, is looking at him face to face. Jesus is not simply speaking to this man; Jesus is taking the measure of this man while He speaks to him.

Jesus asks the man—Jesus appears to know that this man is an expert in the Mosaic Law— “What does the Law say?”

Have you ever been to a Sunday school class or to a Bible study, and the person leading the study asks to hear each person’s opinion about the meaning of a verse? In a sense, Jesus is doing this, but He is not necessarily assigning equal value or authority to every person’s interpretation.

“You must have some idea about this? How do you read the Law?” Jesus asks him.

This man, Jesus senses, has a point of view. He has a ready answer. Therefore, Jesus chooses to begin with the man’s answer to his own question and then go from there.

Luke 10:26 He said to him, "What is written in the Law? How do you read it?" (ESV; capitalized)

“First, quote a few verses, and then you tell me what you think they mean,” Jesus says, facing him. “What does the Old Testament say and how do you interpret it?” (I am paraphrasing here; Jesus would not have used the term the Old Testament.)

Luke 10:26 Jesus looked right at him and said, “What does the Law say? How do you read it?” (Kukis paraphrase)

No doubt, the man is thinking, “This is the crux of the matter; and this I understand!” He does not say this out loud, but let me suggest that Jesus looked him directly in the eyes, read this, and said, “No, you go. You know the answer to this one.”

The Law of Moses is quite lengthy and involved. For this man to cut through all of that and find what is most essential is quite amazing. He does not simply throw out there a few of his favorite verses, but he summarizes the Law as Jesus Himself would later summarize it. But, there is a problem with what he says, despite it being a rather insightful answer.

Jesus used a variety of teaching methods. With this lawyer, he allowed the man to speak his own mind and to give his own opinion. Jesus would use this interaction not only to teach those who were with Him, but He teaches us as well, 2000 years later.

As an expert in the Law, this man was only too happy to reveal his own knowledge.

Luke 10:27b ..."You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart... (ESV; capitalized)

The lawyer quotes from the Law directly. He asked Jesus directly, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus put it back on him, asking him, “How do you read the Law on this question?”

The lawyer appears to have a ready answer. There is a saying that, a lawyer should not ask a question of a witness on the stand unless he knows the answer to that question. Even though this man is a different sort of lawyer, this appears to be the case, nevertheless. He has an answer of his own which is quite certain of. “You will love the Lord your God,” he says, “out from all your heart.” The heart is often used to encompass the entire thinking and reasoning ability of a person. Based upon all that you can think and reason with, you love the Lord.

Now, technically, the soul is how man relates to man (the human spirit is how man relates to God). However, the word soul is also used for that part of man which is immaterial. Throughout human history, people have separated the soul from the body, in theory. It is only recently, since the internet has come about, where I have seen a great many atheists actually deny the existence of the soul. They believe that their thinking is only juices sloshing around in the brain and firing off of electrical signals. Many of them maintain that there is no such thing as a separate entity which we know as the soul.

Tangent: It is fascinating how some people think. Many believe that, in some part of our evolution, we developed self consciousness. That is, we somehow evolved to the point where we recognized ourselves as an entity separate from all other living entities out there. That is, there was a period of time when we lacked self consciousness, and a later period of time when it evolved.

Tangent: I have seen at least two science fiction series where non-living beings suddenly achieved self consciousness I guess “making them human” allows for more of an emotional investment from the audience. Furthermore, they are much easier to write dialogue for if they have a soul.

Back to our context. The man asked about what should he do to received eternal life, and Jesus said, “You tell me first how you see it.”

Luke 10:27a-c And he answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul...

Jesus is allowing this man to answer his own question. And he continues, quoted from the Old Testament (that is, their Bible at that time).

This love of God must come from all of your ability to love. The feminine singular noun used here is ischus (ἰσχύς) [pronounced ihs-KHOOÇ], and it means, ability, force, strength, might. Strong’s #2479.

Now, it may be somewhat difficult to clearly differentiating what each of these things means: loving God from all of your heart, from all of your soul, from all of your strength (or, ability) and from all of your mind. I do not believe that the concept here is, our love proceeds separately from four different places; but that we love God with all that we are and all that we have.

In Deuteronomy 6:5, Moses speaks of loving God will all one’s heart, soul and might (strength). Loving God with one’s heart and soul is mentioned in Deuteronomy 10:12 11:13 13:3 30:6. The lawyer appears to have thrown in with all your mind for good measure (I do not find it in the LXX or in the Hebrew). However, Jesus, when summing up the Law, will say virtually the same thing that this lawyer has said.

Therefore, based upon this passage in Matthew 22, Jesus apparently agrees—to some extent—the assessment of this man of the Law (although they are answering different questions); and they even agree upon this additional phrase found in Deuteronomy (which appears to have dropped out of the Hebrew text).

Luke 10:26 He said to him, "What is written in the Law? How do you read it?" (ESV; capitalized)

Luke 10:27a-e And he answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind,... (ESV; capitalized)

The lawyer then adds one more thing: “You must also love your neighbor as yourself.” The subject and verb (you will love) come from the first thing that this man says.

It makes sense that, because we all must interact with other human beings, that ought to be a part of what saves us.

This lawyer has taken the better part of two verses, from two different books, and thrown them together. Deuteronomy 6:5 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. He adds to this Leviticus 19:18b ...and you shall love your neighbor as yourself... (ESV)

Now, interestingly enough, this lawyer did not include any part of Leviticus 19:34, which reads, in part: ...You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt...

I believe that it is very likely that this verse came to the mind of the lawyer; and to the mind of Jesus. Should not this man have included the immigrants of their land as well, as who should be loved by the one seeking eternal life? It is entirely possible that the law expert remembered this verse, but did not include it.

The Lord, Who is remarkably good at reading people, knows the entire Old Testament, and He perceives that there is the slightest hesitancy or the slightest lack of confidence in the man’s answer.

Luke 10:27 And he answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." (ESV; capitalized) (Deuteronomy 6:5 Leviticus 19:34)

Notice the remarkable similarity of this incident to one recorded by Matthew (which would also have taken place near the end of the Lord’s public ministry, which was probably after this interaction with a lawyer):

Luke 10:27 Answering, the man said, “You will love the Lord your God out from all of your heart, and with all of your soul, all of your ability and all of your mind. Also, you will love your neighbor as yourself.” (Kukis paraphrase)

Are we not both wondering, Just how does Jesus respond to this man’s answer? After all, this lawyer has both the question and the answer already; and he speaks to test Jesus. Nevertheless, the man’s answer is rather insightful. That cannot be denied. So, how should Jesus deal with all of this?

Notice what Jesus does not say. He does not say, “Okay, now you must set the Law aside and believe in Me.” Jesus says something very different.

Luke 10:28a And He said to him, "You have answered correctly;... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus answers this man in a totally uncharacteristic manner. “You’re right,” Jesus tells him. How many times does Jesus converse with a pharisee, a scribe and/or a lawyer and say, “Yep, you’re completely right about that”? Possibly, this is the only time (or the only time that is recorded).

What is this man right about? This is what he said: “You will love the Lord your God out from all your heart, with all of your soul, with all of your ability and with all of your mind. [You will] also [love] your neighbor as yourself.” To love the Lord your God out from all of your heart, soul, strength and mind would suggest a full knowledge and understanding of God (as full as God has allowed us to understand Him). Would that not include faith in His Son? At present, yes. But, in the Old Testament, salvation/justification was by faith in the Revealed God, as we read in Genesis 15:6 (the Revealed God in both the Old and New Testaments is Jesus; but He is not revealed as Jesus in the Old Testament).

If we understand salvation to be inherent in the law expert’s answer (whether or not the law expert himself was saved at this time), then all of this narrative holds together. Remember that most of what Jesus taught was the Old Testament. He taught the Law of Moses as it should be taught; Jesus taught the words of the prophets as they should be taught (which doctrines were being distorted by the legalistic teachers of that era).

How does a person love the Lord God with all of his substance without actually knowing Him—and therefore, without actually having believed in Him?

Luke 10:28a He said to him, “You have answered [this question] correctly. (ESV; capitalized)

We are going to find out that there is a chink in this man’s armor (this expert in the Law); and he personally knows where this problem is (well, he is aware of one of his problems, maybe not all of them).

Jesus seems to know how this is going to play out. He seems to know that this man is going to reveal his hand. Jesus is very good at reading people and He also knows how to get to people.

Illustration: This illustration may be too old for some of you to get, but there was a news person named Barbara Walters, and she would often do interviews with various celebrities; and very often, during the interview, the celebrity would tear up (and there would be a full face view of that celebrity on the screen as he or she teared up). Barbara Walters knew how to probe a sensitive area, an area appropriate for her interview, but something that might cause the interviewee to respond emotionally. She knew how to do this. She was such an expert at it that parodies of her would have this as a point of reference for humor. However (and I have strayed from my point), she knew how to reach a person emotionally as few interviewers could do.

Jesus knew how to reach men and get to their core. He would not necessarily reveal their weaknesses to others, but the other person often would recognize his own weakness when talking with the Lord.

Luke 10:28b Keep on doing that and you will live [forever].” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Jesus tells the man to keep on doing what he just said, and he would live forever.

Note that I interpreted this by adding the word forever, but that is not found in the Greek text. Some suggest that Jesus is quoting (or, more accurately, paraphrasing Leviticus 18:5 You shall therefore keep My statutes and My rules; if a person does them, he shall live by them: I am the LORD. (ESV; capitalized) See also Proverbs 19:16 Whoever keeps the commandment keeps his life; he who despises his ways will die. (ESV)

Perhaps Jesus’ point here was, by following these laws, which the lawyer correctly quotes, that he will considerably improve the quality of his own life. However, these are the words of Jesus:

Luke 10:28 And He said to him, "You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” (ESV; capitalized; emphasis mine)

Steve Ellis: While this is a rather well-known parable, there are just a few points I’d like to cover. First, notice that the lawyer was testing Jesus. It was really a challenge from a self-righteous man. Implicit in this man’s question to Jesus is an understanding of the resurrection of the believing Jew as evidenced by Daniel 12:2. Second, the lawyer’s response to Jesus was a quotation of Deuteronomy 6:5 – a text that was recited twice a day by every faithful Jew. Third, Jesus is not advocating a system of works for salvation in His response in verse 28. Rather, Jesus is teaching this man the same principle that He taught Peter in Matthew 19:27-30, i.e. “many who are first will be last.”

Ellis continues: Jesus averts the lawyer’s attempt to find a loophole in the requirement of the law by using the parable to teach the lawyer the same principle found in Hosea 6:6 – “For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.” In other words, God is more interested in the believer understanding and executing the intent of the law rather than the letter of the law. The irony of the parable is that the despised Samaritan, who had nothing to do with the fact that he was born into a despised race, knows how to show his neighbor unconditional love whereas the respected and educated priest did not.

Dr. Daniel Hill sees this slightly differently than Ellis does: And Jesus tells him just how correct he is at this point. He quotes also from Leviticus 18 and tells the man that if he loves god and loves his neighbor he will have that exception, supernatural quality of life forever.

Luke 10:25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" (ESV, capitalized)

A lawyer from this era would be an expert in the Mosaic Law. He is probably aware of the many comments made on various verses and passages from rabbis in the past.

Luke 10:26 He said to him, "What is written in the Law? How do you read it?" (ESV, capitalized)

Jesus takes an instant read on this man, and can tell that he has an opinion on this matter. So He says, “You tell me your thoughts first. How do you read the Law?”

Luke 10:28 Then Jesus answered him, saying, “You have answered this question correctly. If you continue doing that, you will live forever.” (Kukis paraphrase)

With many of these religious types, Jesus has been confrontational and argumentative. Most of the time, these religious types were distorting the Word of God. But this man is not. Jesus tells him, “You’re correct.”

Now, hasn’t Jesus said, on many occasions, “Believe on Me and you will be saved”? But this man appears to have described a different way of gaining eternal life. And Jesus appears to be endorsing his view.

What might help is, Jesus has said, on another occasion, that the entire Law and the prophets hang upon these two commandments. In other words, obey those two commandments perfectly and you are obeying the mandates of the Law and the Prophets.

Because we have sin natures, we will never fulfill this commandment. This is why we need Jesus.

What I believe is the case here is, this man has believed in the Revealed God—he believes in Jesus—and in this dispensation—the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union (most of which falls under the banner of the Age of Israel)—what this man has described is, essentially, the spiritual life of that era. The believer who is able to use those two commands as a basic guide to life has the essence of the Law in that brief summary (and Jesus will later Himself summarize the Mosaic Law with these same two commandments).

The alternate view of this is, the man is not saved at this point, but that he will be saved later, coming to the conclusion that no one can fully obey these two laws. That would leave him at a loss.

Although we do have insight into this man’s motivation, we are not told whether he has exercised faith in the Revealed God or not.

Jesus, the Law and Salvation (Luke 10:25–28):

Sometimes salvation takes a few seconds. The gospel is given, God the Holy Spirit makes it understandable, and the person believes in Jesus Christ. Boom, flash; and it’s over.

However, there are also times when salvation is a process, where certain barriers must be gotten out of the way first. With a gentile, one might be able to simply say, “You cannot be saved by the Law; this is not what it is designed to do.” Or, as Paul wrote to the Galatians (gentiles): Galatians 2:16 ...yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified. (ESV) Many people in Galatia had believed in Jesus Christ, were saved; but now the Judaizers were coming to them and saying, “You must obey God’s Law, the Law of Moses.” These people were not brought up with the Law, so Paul, by a few clear statements, can set the Law aside.

However, when dealing with an expert in the Law, when dealing with someone who has been brought up with the Law all of their lives, dismissing the Law so casually is hard to do. Jesus cannot look at this expert in the Law and say, “Listen to Me—set the Law aside, it won’t save you. Alright? Faith in Me saves you!”

This is not really dealing with the Law. Jesus needs to meet this man where he is, stuck on the Law, and bring him along from there.

Luke 10:25 Behold, a certain lawyer stood up, testing Jesus with the following question: “What should I do in order to inherit eternal life?” (Kukis paraphrase)

We know that this lawyer is testing Jesus and we might assume that he believes the Law is key to his salvation. So Jesus essentially says, Okay, let’s go with that assumption.

Luke 10:26 Jesus looked right at him and said, “What does the Law say? How do you read it?” (Kukis paraphrase)

Jesus is going to allow the man to change the Law to reflect its essence and go with that. When the man sets up these boundaries for the Law, he is subjecting himself to these various boundaries.

Illustration: I used to be a math teacher, and in most math subjects which involve say 4 or 5 or 6 steps, when a student is stuck back on step 2, then they are not going to move to step 3 or 4 or 5 or 6. You have to go back to step 2 and get them over that hump; then they can move forward.

This man, this expert in the Law, has grown up with the Law; it is always on his mind, and, even if Jesus says to, he is not going to just set the Law aside. (And, to be clear, Jesus would never preach to set the Law aside.)

So, what is another approach? Start with the Law providing salvation and follow that out to a point at which the hearer will recognize, “I cannot be saved by the Law.”

Illustration: In geometry, this is known as an indirect proof. Let’s say that you are trying to prove X; so what you do is, you assume not-X to be true, and that assumption should lead you to a clear contradiction of things that we know for certain are true. If you are led to a contradiction, then your original assumption, which led you to a false conclusion, is false. If not-X is false, then X must be true.

That is what Jesus is going to do here. He is going to assume that this man can be saved by the Law. Let’s first of all simplify everything. Let’s not worry about every jot and tittle of the Law, let’s boil it down to its essence and go with that.

The man gives a good summation of the Law. We know it is good, because Jesus Himself says the exact same thing when summarizing of the Law at a later date. So He and this man are nearly perfectly in synch when it comes to the Law.

Luke 10:28 Then Jesus answered him, saying, “You have answered this question correctly. If you continue doing that, you will live forever.” (Kukis paraphrase)

Jesus essentially compliments the man. “You’ve got it right. Just keep on doing that and you will live forever.”

Is that true? Not exactly. Jesus is making an assumption that is true, and that assumption is going to lead to a contradiction. The man himself—probably expecting a different response from Jesus—is now going to think about what he has said, what Jesus has said, and then look for a point of clarification.

The man, getting a positive response from Jesus, then starts to think about what he said and what Jesus said.

In any case, this man cannot simply just drop it. He cannot seem to say, “Okay, I am right; Jesus said I am right; so I guess I will be off, continuing to live my truth.” Something makes this man remain with Jesus and to probe further, despite being proclaimed right.

Let me suggest that this lawyer did not come to see Jesus alone. He came with a few friends of a similar persuasion, and they have talked things over, they have talked about Jesus, and they have talked about different ways that they might talk legal circles around Jesus. These men probably know some things about one another.

So Jesus proclaims this man right—no need for an argument here, no need for a debate—and this lawyer is sort of stopped in his tracks. Let me suggest one more thing—these lawyers have talked to one another about Samaritans (half Jews) and gentiles in language that was none too kind.

Now, even though it seems that I am reading a lot into this, I am simply providing some likely background information. This entire conversation moves along fine without knowledge of this man’s friends and what they know about each other—but this adds some depth to the narrative. It helps you to understand one set of circumstances which would require this man to continue speaking with the Lord, despite being acknowledged as giving a correct answer.

All the time, Jesus is looking at this man, taking a read on him; and Jesus is looking at this man’s friends as well. By being people-smart, Jesus knows what is happening between these friends. He may have even heard them.

Again, we have a view into the motivation of this lawyer, who has a desire to justify himself before Jesus. Or maybe he is justifying himself to his friends who are with him. In any case, this is the second time that we are told what the lawyer is thinking.

I don’t know if the lawyer expected the response that he got from Jesus, because it was decidedly non-confrontational.

This man thinks about things—possibly he is thinking very fast—and he seems to be giving some authority to the Lord. However, he also feels that he must justify himself at this point. I don’t think that he is trying to justify himself to Jesus, because he is meeting Jesus pretty much for the first time. Jesus has looked the man over and evaluated him; but the man does not know this.

Recall that this is taking place in Samaria, and very few Jews had a good relationship with Samaritans. Generally speaking, there was great animosity between the two peoples. So, do the people around this lawyer know how surly he has been toward non-Jews?

If he is intending to justify himself, that would indicate to me that he has reason to do so. Maybe his conscience is motivating him; and maybe he is with people who have seen another side to this man beyond the one standing before Jesus, implying that he loves his neighbor just as he loves himself.

Now, what does Jesus know about this man? My guess is, very little; but allows for this man to define himself and whatever misgivings he himself might have.

This is true in many churches where the Word of God is taught accurately. So often, the pastor will teach something and various members of the congregation will be thinking, “Who is telling him all about me? I thought that was a secret!” But this happens when the Word of God is taught; sometimes, It cuts so close to the bone that congregants believe the pastor is talking directly to them.

If you attend a church where the Bible is taught, how many times have you heard information which was very applicable to your life and circumstances right now? How many times have your heard teaching that made it clear that you come up really short in this or that area? I can personally testify that this happens a lot to me (possibly because I come up short in a lot of areas).

Luke 10:29a And the [law expert], wishing to justify himself,... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Sometimes we have to speculate about what is going on in a person’s mind (and all speculation should be carefully done and clearly pointed out); but here, we are told by the Bible what this man was thinking. He wanted to justify himself—interestingly enough, before this crowd and Jesus—that is his motivation for what he is about to say.

It is interesting that he has this motivation to justify himself, because Jesus has just told the man, “You’ve got it; you are correct. You have just summed up what is necessary. You just scored 100 on your pop quiz today.”

That we know this man’s motivation at this point, as I mentioned earlier, is quite fascinating. I would suggest that Luke’s recording of this incident (which he himself did not witness) has a reason to record this man’s motivation.

The Scriptures are the Word of God; and yet, they are also the words of man. The former is emphasized all of the time by believers; and the latter is emphasized all of the time by unbelievers (who most naturally reject the divine nature of Scripture). For the believer, he ought not forget the human side of the recording of the Word of God (just as we should not forget the human side of Jesus). Again, since Luke is recording an incident which he did not witness, and yet he adds in something which is unseen—this man’s motivation—we should consider other options besides, the Holy Spirit revealed this to Luke. Does God the Holy Spirit help to guide Luke in recording God’s Word? Absolutely! Does that mean that everything that is human about Luke is set aside for this important task? No! Emphatically, no! Therefore, I think that one might reasonably postulate that Luke did not simply pull this man’s motivation out of thin air—which Luke does not generally do—but that Luke has the most logical and reasonable reason for knowing this man’s motivation—the man himself tells this story to Luke. Even though this statement that I have just made is clearly speculation, it also makes sense. No other disciple records this incident; and what is happening here would have been quite meaningful to the law expert himself. Who else would have had such a crystal clear memory of this event than the man who directly interacted with Jesus? This entire incident is recorded in thirteen verses—the interaction between the lawyer and Jesus, followed by the story of the good Samaritan, which is then followed by more interaction between this lawyer and Jesus. So, again, let me suggest that Luke knows all of this information in all of this detail because an eyewitness to this event told him about what happened; and the inclusion of the lawyer’s motivation suggests that the person who recounted this event to Luke was the law expert himself.

I believe that we can cautiously come to the conclusion that Jesus knew exactly what He was doing, in this approach to this particular man. I would suggest that this man believed in the Lord as a result of being shown that the Law was a dead end. He believed that he was keeping the Law, and Jesus is going to reveal to him that he is not, despite his personal self-righteousness.

We would think that what the man said and Jesus agreeing with him would have ended the conversation. It did not. This man begins to consider what he said, in the light of the fact that Jesus has agreed with his analysis.

So this expert in the Law feels that he must take this one step further, in order to justify himself. So he asks this question:

Remember, he has just told Jesus that he should love the Lord with all his soul and mind; and that he ought love his neighbor as himself. And Jesus tells him, “You’re right!”

I do not think that this lawyer expected the answer from Jesus that he got. He probably had a point to make, but that got neutered by Jesus’ response.

So the man poses a question to Jesus. What about this term, neighbor, associate, a person who is close by? Just exactly who are we talking about? I believe that this is a legitimate question. What I mean by that is, the man actually wants to hear what Jesus will say here and that Jesus’ words are going to impact his thinking.

This question seems to reveal a chink in the man’s armor. This guy is probably pretty decent toward other Jewish people with whom he interacts. But what about those who fall outside of that group?

Remember the context of some of these chapters (at least Luke 9–10). Jesus is leading His disciples back to Jerusalem for the last Passover, but they are traveling through some Samaritan cities. It is interesting that the lawyer is here and that he asked this question to justify himself.

Luke 10:29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" (ESV; capitalized)

Since this lawyer is looking to justify himself, is he saying, “Is my neighbor pretty much anyone?” Or is he saying, “When talking about my neighbor, we are referring to fellow Jews, right?”

Dr. Daniel Hill: That is a very disappointing statement. This man, because of his law background, sees a need for justification or vindication or commendation of self.

Hill continues: [This man] so accurately quotes the Old Testament passages that cut through all the Law and emphasizes the Love of God and then wipes it all out by getting involved in the legal issue of who is and who is not one’s neighbor. It is this type of thinking, however, that is a stumbling block, a distraction from grace, even to the Christian today.

That Jesus has agreed with this man might have surprised him; but he begins to think—just who exactly is my neighbor? After all, each city is made up of a grouping of people, not all of whom are Jewish. Many of the people around this man—which could be half Jewish or less—may not receive this man’s full-throttled approval or even some measure of kindness from him. There may even be some Samaritans present who would question that this man really follows what the Bible mandates: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Maybe some of these men are looking at him right now. That would certainly explain why he felt that he needed to justify himself.

As we proceed further into this narrative, remember that Jesus is leading His disciples toward Jerusalem, but they are walking through Samaria, which is made up of half-Jews, many of whom believe that they also have a relationship with the God of Moses.

Given the first half of this verse—that this man wishes to justify himself—likely suggests that this man did not have a good attitude towards those who were not 100% Jewish (like these Samaritans, for instance).

Luke 10:29 The law expert, hoping to justify himself, asked Jesus directly, “Just who exactly is my neighbor?” (Kukis paraphrase)

One of the fascinating things about this narrative—the story of the good Samaritan—is the many words found here which are unique to this narrative. So far, I have come across six or seven hapax legomena (words found only one place in the New Testament—these are given in the chapter study of Luke 10 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)). Now, on the one hand, I would suggest that these terms are medical terms with which Luke would have been familiar. However, at the same time, Jesus is speaking all of this (all of the story of the good Samaritan). So, when hearing this narrative (Luke received all of his biographical material from others), this particular narrative must have stood out to Luke, as Jesus used so many unusual medical terms. There are also terms associated with travel found only here and nowhere else. Luke is also an historian; and part of being an historian is having a good feel for the place of things. There is a vocabulary associated with movement and travel; a vocabulary which is found only here in this narrative.

Most often, when Jesus gives a parable, we have some word which describes it as a parable. Furthermore, a parable is often a story that most people in His audience can all relate to. Yes, I’ve done that; or, yes, I have witnessed that; or, yes, I know exactly what you are talking about. This does not seem to be the case with the story that Jesus tells below. I would suggest that Jesus’ account of this good Samaritan is not a parable but a recent event which took place in that or a nearby city. This was something which actually happened and most of the people listening to Jesus actually knew about this event.

Although we previously read, this law expert was looking to justify himself; he asks a rather penetrating question, “Who exactly is my neighbor?” The lawyer is asking about the person that he is supposed to love. Also, regardless of his motivation, this is a reasonable question to ask.

This entire narrative has a beginning, a middle and an ending. Luke 10:25–29 is the beginning of this narrative. No Samaritan has been mentioned yet, good or bad.

Based upon the lawyer’s additional question (“Just exactly who is my neighbor?”), Jesus will respond with the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30–35). This is not a parable, it is a story or a narrative; it is the telling of events which actually took place. Since Jesus is speaking these words in a Samaritan city or village, much of Jesus’ audience is aware of it. This actual event and the fact that Jesus cites it, is going to grab the attention of His audience.

We are now moving into part II of the story of the good Samaritan. In part I, a lawyer, testing Jesus, asked, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” (Luke 10:25b; ESV) The discussion for this section was probably longer than you expected it to be.

And the lawyer does. “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” (Luke 10:27b; ESV) The man’s answer comes from combining two different passages from the Torah of Moses.

Well, Jesus tells the man, “You’re right. That is an excellent summation of the Law.”

The lawyer thought about this for a time and I believe that it occurred to him that, he was not loving toward everyone—and I have suggested that there were people there who knew this (perhaps lawyer friends). However, maybe the Torah command was not to love everyone, but just to love one’s neighbor.

But he [the lawyer], desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" (Luke 10:29; ESV)

Remember that this takes place in a Samaritan village, and it is very possible that this lawyer was not too kind to Samaritans.

There are thirteen verses given over to this interchange, the true story which illustrates the concept of being a neighbor, and a final conclusion. We do not normally find this much detail given for a single interchange between Jesus and a man who seems, on the surface, to be predisposed to be negative to the gospel message.

What is even more strange is, Jesus does not allow them to progress to a point where He gives the man a clear gospel message. Jesus appears to give the man a legalistic approach to God, and then tells him, “Go and do this.”

My assumption is, at this point, the expert in the Law will soon recognize that he is deficient in his own summation of the Law. Jesus will point out this deficiency, but in such a way to maintain this man’s privacy. Then Jesus will trust His Father to bring someone else onto the scene to witness to the expert again. At this point, he is not ready yet for the gospel message.

Based upon the detail of this story, I believe that it was the Law expert himself that told Luke all about this incident, which includes the story of the good Samaritan (a true event, not a parable).

Now, Jesus will illustrate who a neighbor is by citing a true incident which recently took place. Those in His audience all know about this event.

Luke 10:30b ..."A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho,... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus will use what I believe is an actual event (not a parable) to communicate to this man where he is deficient (and yet, even in a public setting, allows this man his complete privacy). This man more or less believes that he is keeping the Law. The problem is, even he himself recognizes that there might be a problem. Given some time and some introspection, he should admit to himself, “I am not really keeping the Law; not even my summation of it.”

Jesus is going to focus this man’s attention on someone else, on a man who gets robbed and beaten half to death.

Jesus begins to talk about a man who travels from Jerusalem to Jericho; and His audience recognizes the situation that he is in. Being robbed is not an uncommon occurrence along some roads.

This particular story is so detailed as to make me come to the conclusion that it actually occurred, and that Jesus is using it as an illustration. Jesus immediately defines that place where this man is. He does not say, a certain man is walking along a certain road between cities, but this man is going down a specific road between two specific cities going in a specific direction. With these first few words, this sounds like the recollection of an actual event which has taken place—something that many there listening to Jesus are familiar with. People traveled between Jericho and Jerusalem all the time.

Dr. Daniel Hill: The road from Jerusalem to Jericho descends about 3,000 feet in about 17 miles. It is a road that is full of steep grades and switchbacks and was an ideal place for robbers to prey upon unsuspecting victims. The fact that the man is traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho would indicate that he was a Jew. We find that robbers attack him, strip him of his clothing, beat him and leave him to die.

Although Herod the Great had removed many of the robbers throughout region where he ruled, it is nearly impossible to solve this problem forever and in every place. So, this was a problem which apparently plagued that area over periodically a long period of time. The man to whom Jesus was speaking, and the crowd listening to them both, understand and can relate to what is being said.

Often adults have a strong interest in the news, especially if it is an incident which takes place nearby. Very likely, this Law expert may have already heard something about this incident. Jesus is not giving a common, everyday incident that many of the people have personally experienced. He is describing a very specific incident which actually took place.

Sometimes when traveling from city to city, there are thieves on the road who will rob those who travel that way. Here, they surround the man in Jesus’ story.

Getting the exact words down to reflect was Jesus is saying is quite difficult to do. But the general idea is easy to understand. These thieves removed the man’s clothing (that which they wanted) and anything else valuable that he was carrying, and they beat him pretty badly.

The thieves assaulted this man and then left him for dead. They got what they wanted; and they did not concern themselves with this man’s life. He will probably die. He was no longer their concern.

The man is left behind half-dead. There is no concern for his welfare by the thieves. If he died, he died. They got what they wanted from him. They were vicious and cold-blooded.

Luke 10:30 Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. (ESV; capitalized)

Interestingly enough, Jesus does not identify the man. Is he a Jew, a gentile, a Samaritan? We don’t know. However, I don’t think that Jesus is simply making up a parable here. I would lay odds that this news item was known to most of His audience.

Two reasons why we know this is not a parable: (1) this is not an event which most people there have experienced or have witnessed and (2) in a parable, the people generally represent someone or something. After we go through this parable, I would be fascinated if you told me who these people all represent.

Luke 10:31a Now by chance a priest was going down that road,... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus continues with this story, which was possibly ripped from the headlines (why wouldn’t Jesus use a current news story to make a point?).

There is the man who has just been robbed and stripped of his clothing; and he is lying along side the road, left for dead. A priest is coming down that same road.

The man who walks by him is a priest of Israel, a man we would assume to be a paragon of virtue. We would think, if anyone, this man would stop and render aid. But he does not.

Luke 10:31b ...and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. (ESV; capitalized)

A very important aspect to this story is, the priest saw him. The priest looked right at him and assessed the situation. The priest sees this man and decides to pass along by, on the other side of the road.

I can come up with a number of reasons why this man did not stop. There are robbers along the road so he needs to be circumspect. Hard to be circumspect if you are helping along a man who is seriously injured. Perhaps he determined, “This man is going to die; so there is really nothing for me to do here.” No doubt, this man rationalized what he did here. What he did not do is stop to render aid.

Luke 10:31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. (ESV; capitalized)

So we have a priest who comes across this man who is half-dead and dying; but the priest goes to the other side of the road.

Dr. Daniel Hill: One would think a priest would be very good at loving God and loving others but here the priest, who no doubt knew as much about the Law and the commands to Love as did the lawyer who was listening to this story, made a point to get avoid the helpless man.

Luke 10:32a So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place... (ESV; capitalized)

Similarly, there is a Levite in this same place. Levites were a part of the religious class. One family of Israelites was given over to religious activity, and those were the Levites. Two branches of the Aaron family line (Aaron was a Levite) were drawn upon for the Hebrew priesthood.

The Levite looks at him again, probably assessing the situation in terms of his own situation. Then he decides to walk by on the other side.

What happened was, the Levite drew closer and closer, to the point where he could determine about what took place, that this is a fellow man, and he has been severely injured. At that point, the Levite crosses the street and continues his travels, but on the other side of the road.

The Levite goes by, sees the man, and he also goes over to the other side of the road and passes by him.

Dr. Daniel Hill: Levites, who assisted the priest, were more itinerant in their ministries. They too would have well know the command of the Law to love God and love others and would be expected to help fellow travelers in need. But this Levite also made a point to avoid the helpless man.

Luke 10:32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. (ESV; capitalized)

Now a Levite walks by this man, assesses the situation, and crosses over himself to the other side of the road. Then he just walks on by.

Luke 10:31–32 Just by chance, a certain priest was traveling along that road. When he saw the man laying half dead along the road, he passed by him on the other side. Similarly, a Levite was also traveling along that road, and he also saw the man and he also passed by along the other side. (Kukis paraphrase)

A priest has walked by this man, and crossed over to the other side of the road to avoid him. Then a Levite does the same.

Gary North: Why did they pass him by? Perhaps they feared that the man’s assailants were still in the neighborhood. Better to walk away quickly and avoid danger. Or perhaps they believed he was dead. If a Jew touched a dead man’s body, he became unclean for a week. “He that toucheth the dead body of any man shall be unclean seven days. He shall purify himself with it on the third day, and on the seventh day he shall be clean: but if he purify not himself the third day, then the seventh day he shall not be clean” (Num. 19:11–12). This was a nuisance, but it was not a disaster. It meant that he could not enter the temple (Num. 19:13). Perhaps they had business to conduct at the temple.

People have a number of reasons for avoiding something like this. I would think that, best not to get involved or this is not my business would be at the top of the list for many. But, fundamentally, it is a person thinking that his own business on that day supercedes what he has just seen. As he continues on his way, he may certainly rationalize to himself, “That man is dead or very nearly so. There is really nothing I can do.”

Time and place: Jesus is speaking to a crowd which includes Samaritans, and He is recalling a true incident where a man was traveling from Jericho to Jerusalem, and he is attacked and robbed. The man is left for dead. A priest later walks by, sees the man, and crosses over to the other side of the road, to avoid this man. Then a Levite does the same thing.

Luke 10:33a But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was,.... (ESV; capitalized)

Two men, a priest and a Levite, have seen this half-dead man, and they just kept on going. But a Samaritan sees the man while traveling and he goes up to him. Remember the other two men avoided him by walking over to the other side of the road and proceeding from a distance. They came up close enough to see what was going on, and then went to the other side of the road and kept on walking.

There has been an historic animosity between the Jews and the Samaritans. The Samaritans believed that they had the right to worship the same God as the Jews and to attend services at the Temple; and the Jews did not. As a result, they reviled one another. The priests would have been a first line of defense to keep Samaritans out of their religious services.

Dr. Daniel Hill: Now in contrast to the priest of Israel, the Levite of God, we have a man from the country of Samaria. The Samaritans were scorned by the Jews because of their mixed Jewish and Gentile ancestry. And Jesus specifically uses a Samaritan in the story because while a Jew may consider helping another Jew, no Jew would ever think of helping a Samaritan and yet here, in the irony of the parable, a Samaritan will stop and give aid and comfort to this helpless Jew.

Dr. Hill has assumed that this man is a Jew. I don’t know that to be the case; and I don’t see how that might change anything, one way or the other.

When the Samaritan got close and could see this half-dead man, he could see him better and was emotionally moved; meaning that he was concerned for the man and his predicament. Neither the priest nor the Levite really gave the man enough thought to become moved for this man. The priest and the Levite simply were moved to the other side of the road, to avoid any direct contact.

The other two men thought of themselves, where they were going, what they had to do. But the severely injured man—they just left him there, perhaps just assuming that he would die soon anyway.

Luke 10:33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. (ESV; capitalized)

The Samaritan sees the man and has compassion for him. He quickly determines in his own mind what he might do for the man. His compassion is more than simply feeling emotional about this man. He actually helps this man and develops a longer term recovery plan while helping him.

He came close to the man and began to bandage his wounds. The Samaritan moved closed enough to help the man.

Most of us, in our medicine cabinet, have a variety of bandages. Or we know that we can pop down to the local pharmacy and purchase them. This Samaritan would not have had an attache of bandages with him. He would be taking cloth from his own clothing and using this on the man. He is ruining his own shirt in order to help this man. People typically did not have much more than a change of clothes. In most cases, this clothing would have been made in his home.

The Samaritan also poured olive oil and wine on the man’s wounds, which would have been an expense to the Samaritan. The oil would have provided moisture and cleansing; and the wine would have disinfected the wounds. The use of these two items would have been common in that era. It would not be unusual for a man to be carrying these two items.

Notice that we have the participle here and the main verb was in the previous phrase. The action of the participle precedes the action of the main verb, no matter where they occur in the sentence. So the Samaritan pours oil and wine on the man’s wounds and then he bandages the man up.

The present (continuous) tense suggests that the Samaritan did this more than once. The Samaritan took his time to tend to this man’s wounds.

The Good Samaritan Stops to Render Aid (a graphic); from iBelieve; accessed September 20, 2024.

The Samaritan had some kind of a pack animal with him, and he lifts the man up onto this animal, so that he can be moved from laying the road to the nearest town.

The Samaritan knows of an inn—perhaps he just stayed at the inn—and he goes there with the man. Whether he went back to where he had been or forward to where he was going, we do not know.

Among the Jewish people, in and around Jerusalem where the Temple was, there would have been inns (similar to our

modern-day motels). There is not a plethora of archeological evidence about inns that I am aware of. The inn at Bethlehem (where Jesus was born) is discussed the most.

A typical inn with buildings arranged round a courtyard (a graphic); from Leen Ritmeyer; accessed October 25, 2024. This is a larger set of buildings than I would have imagined. Jews had to assemble three times a year for three specific festivals. At least during one period of time, people would go to specific cities to register their lands, births and/or to pay taxes.

This story about the good Samaritan is told by the Lord, but with great detail. It is certainly a true story and not a parable. Parables generally have a completely different approach. A represents X; B represents Y; and the interactions of A and B are really representing the interactions between X and Y. The hearer has a very specific opinion about A and B; and later, realizes that he should have the same opinion regarding X and Y.

However, that is not what is taking place in the story of the Good Samaritan. The Samaritan, the priest and the Levite are exactly those people. They do not represent anyone or anything else. All three men have come across a man beaten half to death. The priest is not representative of the religious institutions of that day nor does the Samaritan represent his entire people. These people are simply who they are.

In a parable, people understand the basic story; but the key is, what is analogous to what? That is why a parable is given, to actually explain something else. When Jesus tells a parable, the story sticks with those hearing it. They often develop an opinion about the parable; and often, when they think about it later, realize what the parable was really about. That is not what is taking place here. Jesus is recounting an incident which actually took place.

This is a story and no one represents anything else; no one is analogous to anything else. Therefore, this is a true story (I have made this point several times, because how many times have you read the words, the parable of the good Samaritan? Both e-sword, in its section headings, the New Testament for Everyone and the Lexham English Bible all use this exact phrase. It’s not.

Bear in mind that this man had been robbed and stripped of anything valuable, so the Samaritan was not doing this, expecting some kind of reward in the end. This beaten man may not even be able to thank him at this point. He may not have even been conscious.

Luke 10:34 He [the Samaritan] went to him [the beaten man] and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. (ESV; capitalized)

The Samaritan, who, like everyone else, has places to go and people to see, nevertheless stops to render aid. He also develops a longer range plan to save this man’s life.

This is the ancient world. There is no doctor’s office where the Samaritan can take this man.

Luke 10:35a And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper,... (ESV; capitalized)

The next day, the Samaritan apparently needed to travel. He took out two day’s wages from his pocket and hands them to the innkeeper.

As I write this today, two day’s wages might be $200, or it might be $600. But, to whomever has spent two days working, that is a considerable amount of money to leave on behalf of this injured man who was a stranger to the three men he encountered after being beaten and robbed.

The Samaritan has a life, he has a business, he has things that he has to do. Carrying the man all over the place would not have been practical, nor would it have helped the injured man. The man needed to be resting for a few days or even a few weeks, allowing his wounds to heal. However, the Samaritan did not have that sort of time.

The Samaritan is going to follow up, but he is unable to stay with the beaten man to the point of full recovery. Therefore, the Samaritan strikes a deal with the innkeeper.

Luke 10:35c ...and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.' (ESV; capitalized)

The Samaritan promises that, if there is more money spent on this injured man beyond the two denarii, then he would be certain to reimburse that innkeeper. He opens up a tab with the innkeeper.

It appears, by this, that the Samaritan is just not wandering about aimlessly, looking for good deeds to do, but that he had places to go and people to see. He had to return to his own life and see to his own responsibilities. However, he sees to the needs of this man, developing a longer range recovery plan.

The Samaritan also made certain to return to the inn and see if any additional expenses were incurred in order to take care of this man (who is probably unable to move about on his own).

The Samaritan has things which he must attend to, but he will be traveling back along this way and he will stop in at the inn to see what has taken place and if additional funds are needed to make things right with the innkeeper.

Luke 10:35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, 'Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.' (ESV; capitalized)

Like the Levite and the priest, the Samaritan had things to do and places to go. He put his own life and responsibilities on hold while seeing to this man’s needs. He will take care of his business and then come by this way again to wrap things up.

This narrative all began with an expert in the Mosaic Law asking Jesus the thing (s) he must do in order to gain eternal life. Jesus throws this question right back at him, asking, “What do you think?” The man had a ready answer: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." (Luke 10:27b; ESV). Jesus does not dispute his answer. Instead He says, "You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live." (Luke 10:28b; ESV). The lawyer thinks about this for a short moment and asks Jesus, “Exactly who is my neighbor?”

Jesus then tells him about a man going from Jericho on up to Jerusalem who is attacked, beaten and robbed. He was beaten so badly that both a priest and a Levite saw him and walked right by him on the other side of the street, choosing not to engage. But the next man to see him is a Samaritan.

Luke 10:33–35 “A certain Samaritan, traveling along this same road, saw the man and went towards him. When he saw the half-dead man, he was emotionally moved. He came towards him and bandaged the man’s wounds, pouring olive oil and wine on them. He placed him onto his own pack animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him there. The next day, he gave the innkeeper two denarii, and he said, ‘Please take care of this man. If you spend more to take care of him, then I will repay you upon my return.’ (Kukis paraphrase)

The Good Samaritan by Rembrandt (a graphic); from wikimedia; accessed September 20, 2024. It appears that this painting is under the control of Department of Paintings of the Louvre; and the Netherlands Institute for Art History is given credit for the photograph.

Gary North: The wounded man was not a ritualistic threat to a Samaritan, who would not be entering the temple [courtyard]. The Samaritan was willing to examine the man closely to see if he was alive. He was also willing to assist him with his wounds. He took him to an inn, paid for his lodging, and promised the innkeeper that he would return and pay for any additional expenses incurred by the innkeeper in treating the wounded man.

North continues: This was selfless assistance. The Samaritan had no guarantee of repayment. Still, he helped the man. Why? Because he understood that the man was his neighbor. They were both on the same road, facing the same risks. They shared a common environment. They were therefore neighbors. The Samaritan understood Jesus’ ethical principle, which we call the golden rule: “And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise” (Luke 6:31). The Contemporary English Version renders this: Treat others just as you want to be treated.

Dr. Daniel Hill: Notice what the man did to help. Came to him where others avoided him Bandaged up his wounds, got down in the dirt and dust with him and cleaned the wounds, wiping away the blood, getting into the wound to help the poor man Poured on the wounds oil and wine to help heal and clean. These were valuable commodities and yet the Samaritan used them to help the man Put him on his own donkey, he had to walk but knew the man could not. Took him to an inn, took care of him through the night. Paid for the logging. And then promised to pay for whatever else is needed. Now at any point he could have stopped helping and would have done far more than the priest and the Levite were willing to do. But instead he went the extra distance in his love. Here you have the lawyer asking who is my neighbor, and would have argued that a Samaritan could ever be considered a neighbor of a Jew and yet hearing a parable about a Samaritan helping a Jew - unbelievable! And a perfect illustration of the love going beyond the mere words, beyond the impersonal, to the personal extending of one’s self in the labors of love.

Hill then references 1Corinthians 13:1–3 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. (ESV)

Hill then concludes: The only profit that can ever come from love is when it is given away. Instead of asking who is our neighbor, we should ask who can I be a neighbor to? The point is simply that our neighbor is anybody who needs us, anybody whom we can help.

At this point, Jesus has concluded the story of the Good Samaritan and He has a question for the lawyer. This is the conclusion of the story of the Good Samaritan, so allow me to reintroduce the context.

When asked to summarize the Law, a lawyer said to Jesus, “You will love the LORD your God with your whole heart [fig., your entire inner self] and with your whole soul and with your whole strength and with your whole understanding,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.” Luke 10:27 (the Analytical Literal Translation), and the man is quoting Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18.

Then, the lawyer, hoping to justify himself, asks Jesus the legitimate question, “Just who is my neighbor?” (Luke 10:29b)

Having recounted the story of the good Samaritan, Jesus then asks the lawyer this question:

Luke 10:36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” (ESV; capitalized)

There is the priest, the Levite and the Samaritan; which one appears to be most the neighbor to this man who had been taken down by the thieves?

Obviously, it is the Samaritan who acts as a neighbor to the man who was beaten and robbed. He demonstrates love. He demonstrates the love found in the verse, Love your neighbor as yourself. Recall, that the expert in the Law seemed to have a problem with the concept of neighbor. He knew that he was supposed to love his neighbor, so who exactly is that? Are there some people that I run into that I can set this rule aside?

The concept of love when it comes to other people—neighbors if you will—is more than just a neutral relaxed mental attitude. There are times when the mature believer must act with compassion toward others. He must take actual and positive steps to help others.

In most cases, love being a mental attitude, we interact with others without subjecting them to a flurry of mental attitude sins (like jealousy or anger or arrogance). We keep these mental attitude sins under control by naming our sins to God (silently, when we are in a group setting). However, there are circumstances where love requires us to act in a positive manner, as did the Samaritan.

Application: This is certainly not the Lord teaching socialism. Socialism is about giving the state complete authority over you and your business; and over much of the money that you generate. In return, the state gives you and whomever they want whatever it wants to give; but they always keep the cream off the top for themselves. Furthermore, they will investigate any citizen who seems to have too much of anything.

Application: The Lord is too often inaccurately portrayed as the first socialist. That is far, far off the mark. What Jesus is speaking of here is simply a man who is helpless, and the response to this from three other men, a priest, a Levite and a Samaritan.

Jesus will not conclude his recounting of the good Samaritan by saying, “And this is exactly why there needed to be a state-run medical center in that town.”

Jesus does not suggest that the Samaritan report the other two men to the authorities because they were not fulfilling a state-imposed social contract.

Socialist Citizens/Socialist Leaders (a graphic); from Facebook; accessed February 13, 2023.

Luke 10:36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” (ESV; capitalized)

It is interesting the way that Jesus put this. Given the entire context, one might expect Jesus to ask the question, Which if the three men showed love to their neighbor, the man who was beaten and robbed? Jesus asks this in a different way. [Jesus asks] “Which of these three would one consider to you to be a neighbor to the one falling among the thieves.” (Kukis mostly literal translation) I think the idea is, Jesus was asking, “Which of these three acted like a true neighbor—one who showed compassion—to the robbed man?”

In other words, Jesus is not dividing these men into groups and allowing this or that group a pass. One man behaves like a neighbor and the other two do not. Furthermore, the race of the injured man is never spoken of. Why? Because that is not an issue when it comes to what should be done for him.

This legal expert was looking to take the term neighbor and use it to limit his own liability. He wanted to limit his personal responsibility to some. He wants for this word to allow him to exclude some people whom he does not consider his neighbors. Jesus understood that immediately. The law expert wanted to specify, “The Levite living next door to me—he is my neighbor; but some half-breed Samaritan, he is not really my neighbor, so what exactly do I owe him?” This is possibly what was in the law expert’s mind; and what Jesus was doing was taking the word neighbor to expand his realm of responsibility. The lawyer wanted to constrict his responsibility and Jesus was not allowing him any convenient limitations.

Jesus asked this man, who of the three is the true neighbor to the man who had been robbed. Obviously, this was the Samaritan; and the legal expert agreed with this.

You see how Jesus completely turned this around on the lawyer. The lawyer wanted the word neighbor to be restrictive, to reduce the number of people that the lawyer was obligated by law to love. Jesus not only removed all restrictions with this story, but He used this actual event to illustrate what love actually looks like.

Luke 10:37b And Jesus said to him, "You go, and do likewise.” (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus told the man, “Depart now and you consistently do the same thing. You now have a measuring rod by which to measure yourself and your own actions.”

Now, why didn’t Jesus say, “Believe in Me, and you will be saved”? Logically, this Law expert needs to determine for himself that, he cannot meet this standard of loving his neighbor. You and I know that he cannot meet this standard; and Jesus knows that as well. However, the lawyer is not yet ready to admit this. Jesus, Who is an expert in the realm of human psychology, can see this.

Jesus needs to allow this man to think and to put together all that he has now learned. Is it possible that he will never come to the realization that Jesus is the key? Yes. Nevertheless, Jesus does not push him then and there for a decision, for further conversation, for anything more. The man has enough to ruminate on. Will he come to the conclusion that he is imperfect and does not deserve to be saved (which would be the correct understanding and application of what Jesus has taught him so far)?

Application: Sometimes, when interacting with an unbeliever, you cannot always take him all the way there. Sometimes you have to give him enough information to ruminate over; and let God take it from there.

Application: Sometimes, our interactions with unbelievers are not going to end in a conversion (obviously, most of the time). Best we can do is plant the seed and not to be complete idiots. There are times that we should take a read on a person and whatever he actually says or asks, and stick only to that.

This is what Jesus did. The man gave a reasonable yardstick to measure himself by. He summed up the Torah with two commands (just as Jesus will do on another occasion). Essentially Jesus is telling him, “Go with that. You meet that standard.” (Obviously, the man cannot.)

Illustration: When a basketball player needs to take the ball to his team’s side of the court to shoot the basket, he does not do this all by himself. He belongs to a team. Two or three men move the ball from one end of the court to the other, and a fourth man might be the one to take the shot. We are on that kind of team. Sometimes you point a person toward a important and relevant point of doctrine and leave it there. We act and speak on the basis of circumstances and on the basis of the Bible doctrine in our souls. Not every single interaction with an unbeliever needs to end with, “And if you want a relationship with God, then you must believe in Jesus Christ. Do you understand the issue?” Sometimes, if the unbeliever you are interacting with knows you are a Christian, then your best interaction with him is not to be a complete jerk. If he thinks or talks about you, will he say, “That is one more Christian who is an effing hypocrite”?

Even Jesus, the world’s greatest evangelist, meets this man right where he is and gives him something to think about which may lead him to being open to the gospel message. Not right then; not five minutes from now, but sometime in the future.

Luke 10:37 He [the lawyer] said, "The one who showed him mercy." And Jesus said to him, "You go, and do likewise.” (ESV; capitalized)

The verbs go and do are both present tense, imperative mood. However, they would be understood in different ways. The first verb is the present middle/passive (deponent) imperative. Jesus is not saying, “Now you go, and you keep on going.” Jesus is telling him to simply go back to his life, which he interrupted momentarily to speak with Jesus. He will go here, he will go there; he will simply continue with his life.

The second verb is the 2^nd person singular, present active imperative of poieô (ποιέω) [pronounced poi-EH-oh], which means, to do, to make, to construct, to produce; to carry out, to execute [a plan, an intention]; to practice. Strong’s #4160. Then an adverb is added: homoiôs (ὁμοίως) [pronounced hom-OY-oce], which means, likewise, similarly, so, equally, in the same way. Strong’s #3668. Jesus is telling the lawyer to go and keep on doing likewise; keep on acting in a similar manner to the Samaritan. Jesus is pretty much giving this man a full-time job here. How many people will this lawyer come face to face with that he is obligated to love and, as a result, take some sort of action (like the acts of the Samaritan). And those to whom this lawyer must show love to are not limited by the word neighbor.

The implication is, “Now, if you want to be saved by the Law, then go out there and act like the Samaritan acted.” Not only does this command push a few buttons, but a honest man will come to the conclusion—at some point—that “I do not reach this standard of behavior. Not every day, not all of the time.” Jesus will depend upon some honest introspection by this man.

I personally believe that this lawyer understood enough at this point to go his own way. I think that he will ponder this interaction with Jesus and even monitor his own behavior and his own compassion (along with related shortcomings). He will take note of his own behavior. When does he stop and render aid? When does he see someone who needs help and he crosses the street to avoid that person?

Dr. Daniel Hill sees it differently, not believing this man to be able to apply what Jesus has just said: There is no doubt that the lawyer understood the point of the parable and the issue of mercy. But the understanding, the knowing, the knowledge does not mean there is application.

Gary North: The parable of the good Samaritan deals with the question of loving one’s neighbor. The Samaritan was the wounded man’s neighbor because he helped the man when the opportunity arose. The opportunity arose because they were both travellers on the same road. The priest and the Levite were also travellers on that road, but they did not help. They refused to act as neighbors. Jesus chose the highest ecclesiastical officers as His examples of how not to serve as neighbors. This deliberate provocation could not have been missed by members of both groups. He was making it clear that the concept of neighbor is broader than either race or confession. It has to do with shared circumstances and close proximity. It also has to do with need or weakness. It has to do with the golden rule (Luke 6:32).

At some point, this lawyer will have to conclude, if he is objective, is that he is not always the good neighbor. Sometimes he is, but certainly not always. There are times when he will cross the street to avoid helping his neighbor. The conclusion he is forced to is, if he does not love his neighbor as himself, then he is not able to follow the law well enough to attain to eternal life.

The final narrative of Luke 10 is about Jesus in the home of Martha and Mary. I have a keen interest in scope and sequence of the gospels (particularly when it comes to Luke) and the two charts which I often refer to are my chapter-by-chapter description of the book of Luke and Ken Palmer’s Harmony of the Gospels chart (which I have modified). Both of these are found in my introduction to Luke (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

Most of Luke, starting in Luke 10 and going halfway through Luke 18 is exclusive to Luke. This portion of Luke focuses primarily on the teaching of our Lord (with limited narrative). So far, throughout Luke 9–10, I have shown that each section seems to lead into the next section. Luke 11 does not begin with a phrase taking us from the Martha and Mary narrative to the teach us how to pray narrative. Furthermore, Luke 10:38 will not provide us with a clear transition of one narrative to the next. There is no phrasing which takes us from the narrative of the good Samaritan to Martha and Mary, as though these narratives occurred in chronological succession. Unfortunately, this is not how it will appear in your translation.

There is another problem. If this is the same Martha and Mary found in John 11, then they live in Bethany (John 11:1). This places us very close to Jerusalem. So that means that Jesus and company were on the border of Galilee and Samaria and, suddenly, picked up the pace to get to Bethany. That is also problematic.

Jerusalem, Bethphage and Bethany (a map); from Faith Bible Church accessed October 4, 2024.

So, if we are in Bethany right here in the narrative, then we have already passed through all of Samaria and Jesus is about to go up the mountain road to Jerusalem, coming in from the east side. This is also where we are, midway through Luke 18. At that point, we return to the synoptic gospel fold, as it were. Because of where we are geographically, this also fixes our time. So, this means we are about to begin the final week prior to the crucifixion. Matthew, Mark and Luke begin to agree on event after event at that point (halfway through Luke 18). But we are in Luke 10. There are 8½ chapters to go to take us to the point of where we are already.

Luke 13:22 He went on His way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem. (ESV; capitalized)

Luke 17:11 On the way to Jerusalem He was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. (ESV; capitalized)

Do you see what a mess this is? We cannot be in Bethany right now, just outside of Jerusalem; and yet be on our way to that place in Luke 13:22 and 17:11. Jesus cannot be traveling between Galilee and Samaria, wind up in Bethany (Luke 11:38), but then find Himself back between Samaria and Galilee (Luke 13:22 17:11). This would not make any sense.

If Luke is strictly a chronological study, how are we Bethany almost to Jerusalem; and yet Luke 13:22 and 17:11 have Jesus progressing between the regions of Samaria and Galilee, making His way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying in the direction of Jerusalem? I will provide a map so that you can see that this makes no sense.

Galilee, Samaria and Judæa (a map); from Quizlet; accessed October 31, 2024. If you can find Jerusalem on the map, we are close to Jerusalem in Luke 10:38, but a long distance from Jerusalem in Luke 13:22 17:11.

This gives us several options (and more than one of these options may be true): (1) this is not the same Martha and Mary named in John 11. If that is the case, then we are no longer in Bethany. (2) This is the same Martha and Mary, but they moved (to Samaria, to the border of Samaria? This seems unlikely). Or (3) the exact chronology of Luke 12–18a was not known to Luke. He twice makes reference to some of this teaching taking place on this journey from Galilee through Samaria going toward Jerusalem, but this does not jive with Martha and Mary being in Bethany here at the end of Luke 10. Luke 10 (where Jesus might be in Bethany) cannot chronologically take us to Luke 13:22 and Luke 17:11 followed by Luke 18.

How is Matthew different from Luke? How is Mark different from Luke? Matthew was with Jesus throughout most of His public ministry, and so we would expect everything in Matthew to be in a chronological order. Peter was also with Jesus all of this time, and Mark is really Peter’s gospel. Therefore, the book of Mark is also in chronological order. Luke was not there with Jesus. Luke did not travel with Jesus. Luke has never met Jesus.

Given that Luke amassed his biography of Jesus from speaking to perhaps a dozen people, there were going to be some important teachings which accidentally ended up untethered to a particular time (and sometimes, untethered to time and place). Luke, having read the gospels of Matthew and Mark (that seems to be the general consensus), does not want to simply throw these sermons away (which sermons make up the bulk of Luke 11–18). “Hmmm, this sermon by Jesus is really good, but I cannot figure out when He gave it so I guess I won’t include it.” That is a thought which Luke never had.

So if we are in Bethany here at the end of Luke 10 and we are going up to Jerusalem in Luke 18:31 (which is where Jesus would be, the moment He walks out of Bethany), then that places Luke 11–18a in a mostly unknown time and place. The two verses cited above (Luke 13:22 and 17:11) tells us that some of this teaching took place on the way to Jerusalem when traveling through Samaria. Therefore, that had to take place prior to Jesus being in Bethany (which is where we might be in this final section of Luke 10). Again, I only see three options: (1) this is a different Martha and Mary; (2) Martha and Mary moved; or (3) Luke’s narrative—at least chapter 11 through chapter 18½—is not strictly in chronological order as the rest of Luke is.

My belief is, Luke had material which he just had to include (as it was not found in Matthew or Mark), but he was unable to match it up with the chronological narrative that he had developed, so he just throws it all together into this middle section of the book of Luke. I lean toward the third explanation that chapter 11 begins a section we might label The Teachings of Jesus; Other Teachings of Jesus; or Miscellaneous Sermons of Jesus. When considering who Luke is and how he gathered together the material for his gospel, writing a section like this makes perfect sense. I would also suggest that this is a different Martha and Mary, simply because Luke would have logically placed this narrative in Luke 18, had it been the same Martha and Mary found in John. Luke, knowing the geography and location of Martha and Mary, would have known where to place this narrative. Maybe he did not know where Martha and Mary lived and that helps to explain why this is not in perfect chronological order.

I mention this information right here, because if this is the same Martha and Mary found in the book of John, then this means, geographically speaking, the second half of Luke 18 starts right here, after Luke 10.

Keeping this information in the back of our heads, let us begin the final incident of Luke 10.

I could give many other examples. My point is, if you do not know the Greek, it appears that we have moved from the previous narrative chronologically to this narrative. That is what the English tells us in the English Standard Version along with most other translations.

There is a lot to be said about the first five words in the Greek—which I don’t think are anywhere literally translated—but I will reserve that commentary for the chapter commentary on this verse: Luke 10 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD)

In any case, these first five words appear to take us from the previous situation to the next situation, if we only know the English translations. In other words, we still appear to be progressing in the same narrative and that is because the ESV (and other generally accurate translations) make it seem that way.

However, note the translation I give these first five Greek words: And during their travels,... (Kukis mostly literal translation) The words which take us from the Good Samaritan to the next increment of this chapter are this: And during their travels,... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

These words do not advance us in the narrative from first Jesus speaks with a lawyer in Samaria to then next, Jesus goes to the home of Martha and Mary. The actual connecting words are very general and they do not suggest that these incidents are in any way connected. We are not going from one incident to the next. So, it is these words which tell us, for a period of time, we are going to leave a strict chronological study. From Luke 10:38 to Luke 18:31, and during this time, we will study a few things which Jesus said during His travels.

In fact, I have been looking for a phrase like this for the past year or so. I knew that, at some point, that we were no longer in chronological order, and it is this little phrase beginning Luke 10:38 tells us that we are not.

Unlike all of the connecting phrases which we have previously studied, this is the first phrase which gives us a great deal of leeway when it comes to determining where we are with regards to time.

Jesus and His disciples traveled about, and during these travels, this other thing also happened. That would be a really extended paraphrase of the five Greek words found here.

Luke speaks of a certain village. This is because Luke receives this information from a variety of sources, he does not always know every single detail. One detail he lacks is the name of this village.

Jesus and His disciples are moving about. We have no idea as to the size of their entourage. They come to a certain village here, which is unnamed. My only explanation as to why this might be unnamed is, Luke just did not catch the name of the village (and these could be very small villages that we are speaking of; whose names would otherwise be unknown). All we know, based upon the connecting text, is that this took place while Jesus and His disciples were traveling about (which takes in a very wide swath of time).

Again, Luke did not actually witness any of these events; he hears this information from other first-hand witnesses. So, now and again, when he is taking notes, he leaves out an important piece of information. During the interview, he forgets to ask, “Now where exactly did this happen?” Or, “At what point in the Lord’s ministry did this take place?” It was so easy to get caught up in the Lord’s teaching so that Luke forgot to inquire about time and place.

Therefore, there is this very large section of Luke which has no specific time frame for it. These things took place during the Lord’s public ministry, but Luke was unable to be more specific than that (this is the material between Luke 10:38 and halfway through Luke 18).

Luke 10:38c And a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus and His disciples are welcomed into a home there; and, all we know at this point is, Martha and Mary appear to be the ones who live at this home and possibly own it (the Greek suggests that Martha owns it). There could be a lot more going on here; but we do not know what that might be.

Notice how this is phrased. There is both Martha and Mary living at this home, but this is presented as Martha’s home. Perhaps they live together; perhaps not. But this ought to stand out. Martha either has the larger home, better for the entertainment of guests; or she is the go-getter of the two sisters. Even if they live together, it is Martha’s house.

As previously discussed, if this is the same Martha and Mary from the book of John, then we are in Bethany, which geographically (and chronologically) takes us right to the middle of Luke 18.

Luke 10:38 Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. (ESV; capitalized)

Based upon most English translations, It appears that we pick up the narrative right where we left off in v. 37. Jesus and His disciples were in one village previously speaking to a lawyer; and now they move to another village. If this is not the Martha and Mary from the book of John, then logically, Jesus and His disciples would simply be in another Samaritan village.

The only occupants of this home named are Mary and Martha, and they are sisters. Have their husbands passed and they live here? Do they have servants? How many disciples are there at their home? Even though these are reasonable questions, this narrative never addresses them.

Mary, the sister of Martha, is sitting at the Lord’s feet and taking in Bible doctrine. He is teaching her face to face. It is highly unlikely that He is teaching her and her alone. This is probably a teaching session for His disciples, and Mary is very interested, so she sits at His feet.

Because Mary was such a common name in that era, there is no reason to attempt to identify this Mary with any other Mary in Scripture.

We know in retrospect the amazing importance of the Lord’s teaching at this time; and that this was an event which would never be repeated—certainly not for Mary and Martha.

It is possible that neither Mary nor Martha fully appreciated this, but clearly, Martha appreciated this less than Mary did.

Luke 10:39 And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to His teaching. (ESV; capitalized)

In John 11, there is a family of Mary, Martha and Lazarus (apparently all siblings), and they all live in Bethany. We find out in this same passage that Mary is the one who anointed the Lord’s feet and washed them with her own hair. Because Luke 7:38 and John 12:3 are two separate incidents, we do not know if this is the same Mary in both incidents. The other option is, these are two very similar incidents, but the woman in Luke 7 is not Mary. Given that Martha is a homeowner and Mary is there, either Mary completely cleaned up her act after Luke 7 (which is why she is with her sister Martha); or the woman of Luke 7 is simply a different woman. If this is the same woman, what an amazing arc there has been in the life of Mary, over a very short period of time!

In case I have confused you, there is a Mary and a Martha who live in Bethany. They have a brother, Lazarus. That Mary did wash the Lord’s feet with ointment, using her own hair to wipe His feet (compare John 11:2 and 12:3). There is a separate incident where an unnamed woman does the same thing in Luke 7 (much earlier in the Lord’s public ministry). Given the context of Luke 7, that woman was of very questionable character (as many at that meal apparently knew). We do not know this woman’s name. Did Mary wash the Lord’s feet twice with her hair? Did she only do it once and someone else did it in Luke 7? We don’t know.

We do not know if this is the same Martha and Mary here at the end of Luke 10 (which is what we are now studying) as is found in John 11:1–12:3. I do not believe that these are the same Martha and Mary. However, Luke 10:38a removes us from a strict chronology (meaning that, this could be the same pair of sisters).

The very long passage found in the book of John suggests that these two woman and their brother are quite significant in the early church (which would explain the depth of explanation given by John). As previously discussed, if this is the same Martha and Mary, then there might be some confusion in our location or timeline (however, Luke 10:38a eliminates any confusion in this regard). The easiest assumption to make here is, there are two pairs of sisters named Martha and Mary.

Luke 10:38–39 And during their travels, Jesus [lit., He] entered into a certain village. And a certain woman, Martha by name, received Him into [her] home. There was also a sister called Mary, and she was sitting down at the feet of Jesus. She was hearing His teaching [lit., word]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Tangent: Let’s say that this is the same person here as in Luke 7, the same person who washes and moisturizes the Lords feet with her hair, and using very expensive oils on his feet. Why is she named here but not there? In the context the previous incident—given that the woman’s character is hinted at—maybe Luke did not say her name simply to preserve her privacy back in Luke 7. There is no need to preserve her privacy in this passage. Nevertheless, the simplest explanation is, these are different women.

Now, although it sounds as if Martha is doing all of the work and Mary is just sitting around neglecting her duties. However, we do not know that to be a true representation of what these women are doing. Do they have servants? Do they have a staff of any sort? Are there others there? And perhaps Martha is stressing about things which do not necessarily need to be done at this time.

In any case, Martha appears to be distracted from what Jesus is saying as she has many tasks and duties to perform. After all, if Jesus is there, then His disciples were also there or nearby. Martha could be overseeing the feeding of 15 or 20 people (or more!). So, she isn’t simply being a bitch about this. She no doubt has real concerns about everything that needs to be done.

Martha considers what is going on, and she finally takes a stand. She speaks up, speaking directly to Jesus, rather than to her own sister.

Luke 10:40c ...and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister... (ESV; capitalized)

She asks the Lord whether or not He is concerned about her sister. So Martha is running about doing things, but her sister is sitting there at the feet of the Lord; and He is presumably teaching.

Again, we do not know the history of these two women. Is Mary’s background as sorted as we might think? Or is Martha simply the go-getter of the two sisters? In either case, Martha’s reaction and complaint seem reasonably valid.

Martha suggests that she is deserted and trying to do everything by herself at this point. This is her complaint and she is making this complaint directly to Jesus.

She may or may not have servants; and this meal preparation could involve 15 or more people being fed. So this was a large meal, even with servants.

There are many of us who might identify more with Martha than Mary, given the task set before them. We have no idea how many disciples are with Jesus at this point, but upon His arrival in Jerusalem, there were hundreds.

Since Jesus is, apparently, doing some teaching and Mary is listening to Him; Martha says, “Maybe you could speak directly to Mary, while you are at it, and get her to give me a hand.”

For all we know, Martha could have waited for Jesus to take a breath in His teaching, and suddenly she says all of this. Perhaps we see her walking hurriedly in and out of this room, carrying plates and other items in preparation for a large meal.

Jesus is in the home of Martha and Mary. Martha is running about, preparing the meal (or overseeing its preparation), and Mary is listening to the Lord teach.

Luke 10:40 But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to Him and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." (ESV; capitalized)

Martha appears to be too busy to listen to the Lord, but she seems to be okay with interrupting Him and asking Him for a favor.

Martha has complained to the Lord that she is running around doing everything, and her sister, Mary, is just sitting there, at the Lord’s feet, listening to Him. Jesus listens to her complaint and then He responds.

Luke 10:41b ..."Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things,... (ESV; capitalized)

Although there are a number of times when a person’s name is doubled in Scripture, I think the only thing that Jesus is saying here is, “Listen, Martha. Listen carefully.”

Jesus points out that she is stressed out over many things, and is suggesting that she should not be.

We know that Martha is not at ease, she is not happy, she is not relaxed; and yet she should be happy, as the Lord of Lords, King of Kings is in her home teaching. This should be the greatest experience of her life, but it is not. She complains to the Lord about her sister and Jesus tells her, “You are anxious and troubled about many things,...” This is a once in a lifetime experience, and yet she has no personal benefit in her soul as a result. She lacks the spiritual capacity to appreciate what is happening.

This verse appears to carry over into the next one. A few translations present this as a continued sentence.

Luke 10:41 But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things,... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus points out the obvious, that Martha is upset and very concerned about many things.

I believe that this is a reasonable translation of what the Lord said. The one thing would be salvation to those who have not believed; and Bible doctrine for those who have. This should be the point of concentration for all mankind. The gospel message for the unbeliever; and Bible doctrine for the believer. She lacks the latter.

Luke 10:41–42a The Lord answered her, saying, “Martha, Martha, you continue being stressed and troubled about many things, but few things are [really] important except one [thing]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Martha is continually concerned about the work that she must do and Jesus tells her that this is one thing in particular which is more important. That would be His Word.

Mary has figured out that being taught by the Lord is the most important thing for her to have.

R. B. Thieme, Jr. used to continually teach that learning the Word of God was the most important thing that we could do, as opposed to running around and doing things (witnessing, giving money to the church, feeding the poor, etc.). This is fully in line with what Jesus is teaching here. Both Mary and Martha could be up and around preparing the meal for Jesus and whatever people were with Him; but He testifies that what Mary is doing—carefully listening to Him—that is divine good. That is what she ought to be doing.

Luke 10:42b-c Mary has chosen the good part [for herself], which will not be taken from her.” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

It is interesting that Luke placed this narrative back-to-back with the one on the Good Samaritan. In the Good Samaritan story, it is clear that those who saw injured man laying on the side of the road should have stopped and rendered aid of some sort. They should have volunteered their reasonable service to a fellow human being.

Nevertheless, we have to be careful about going overboard when it comes to helping others. There is actually a time where help is requested and the mature believer refuses. Every circumstance has to be considered; and there is no magic percentage (offer your help 70% of the time). And, quite obviously, what could be more important than sitting at the feet of the Lord and hearing Him teach?

Application: Most of the time, when it comes to making decisions in the Christian life, God gives you enough information to determine what you should do. In most lives, there are only a handful of decisions which are questionable; which do not have a quick and easy answer. For most believers, in the two examples given (The Good Samaritan and the Duties of Martha and Mary) what a person should be doing should be easy to ascertain. Quite obviously, the more Bible doctrine that the believer has in his soul, the easier it is to make such decisions.

Luke 10:42b-c Mary has chosen the good part [for herself], which will not be taken from her.” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

What cannot be taken from Mary? The Bible doctrine in her soul. The information given to her by Jesus, which information she has taken into her soul by faith.

Luke 10:41–42 The Lord answered her, saying, “Martha, Martha, you continue being stressed and troubled about many things, but few things are [really] important except one [thing]. Mary has chosen the good part [for herself], which will not be taken from her.” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Martha, who is focused upon works, is clearly stressed. Her sister Mary, on the other hand, is focused upon the teaching of the Lord, and that is the most important thing, the thing that could not be taken away from her.

Luke 10:41–42 The Lord then spoke to her, saying, “Listen, Martha, you are continually being stressed out and troubled about many things, but there is only one truly important thing, and Mary has chosen that good thing for herself (that is, the teaching of Bible doctrine). Doctrine in her soul cannot be taken away from her.” (Kukis paraphrase)

Steve Ellis: This pericope illustrates the need for us to focus upon spiritual priorities. Too many times we are like Martha – all consumed with the need to be constantly doing and providing rather than quietly meditating on the Word so that we may have long term focus. “To be occupied with the Person of Christ is more important than to be occupied for Christ. To devote oneself to the word of Christ, so as to be taught by Him, is more important than to be busy for Him…Those who would later minister for Him needed to learn that the ‘better part’ was to be preoccupied with Him and to be taught not to neglect Him in their ministry.”

It appears that there is a close relationship between this family and Jesus. That is, if this is the same Mary and Martha found in the book of John. Extra-Biblical sources suggest that they were childhood friends. Lazarus, whom the Lord will later raise from the dead, is their brother (perhaps this has already taken place?).

Bible translation used: The Scriptures 2009. Unless otherwise noted, all other quotations will be taken from this translation as well.

In the Scriptures 2009, instead of God, we have the word Elohim, which is a transliteration from the Hebrew. The other name for God, YHWH (or Jehovah, Yahweh, Adonai, Lord, JHWH, Y^ehowah) is represented with the actual Hebrew יהוה. The reason for there being so many different words used here is interesting. Originally, the Hebrew was written without vowels—not just YHWH, but every single Hebrew word. Because the Hebrew Scriptures (which we know as the Old Testament) were read aloud so often, the reader could look at the Hebrew consonants and know the word that was there. In fact, the Masoretes, who preserved the Bibles' pronunciation, introduced diacritical marks in the 7th century a.d. (these are vowel points, which was added above and below the original Hebrew text). Up to that time, every word in the Bible was read aloud except for one, and that was YHWH. When the Jews came to this proper name, they said, Adonai (= Lord). As a result, the Jews preserved the pronunciation of the Biblical text for all but one word. Of the nearly 100 translations of the Old Testament to which I refer, any one of those eight forms may be found—and one of them, the Message (I believe) uses God. Furthermore, Bible translations are not necessarily consistent at this point. One place we may read Lord, and elsewhere we may read Jehovah in the same translation.

Introduction: Luke 10 is a series of incidents which take place while Jesus is beginning to travel through Samaria to Jerusalem for the final time. Jesus stayed in the Galilee region prior to this trip and then remained in the Judah region—in Jerusalem—after this trip.

The first five incidents of this chapter appear to take place, one after the other. The final narrative of this chapter—the one about Martha and Mary—does not immediately follow the previous five incidents. In fact, it leads us into a new section of Luke.

New Testament Map of Palestine (a graphic); from Quizlet; accessed October 18, 2024. The maps from this era differ somewhat with regards to the size of Samaria and its exact boundaries. There were ways for Jesus to travel from Galilee to Jerusalem without spending much time in Samaria.

Nevertheless, the several incidents of this chapter appear to take place in Samaria.

Even though we are only in Luke 10 (there are 24 chapters in the book of Luke), we are in the final months of the public ministry of our Lord in this chapter.

It is likely that Luke 11–18½ are not in any sort of chronological order (including the final narrative of Luke 10). I will attempt to fully summarize this in as few points as possible.

The Chronology of Luke 9–19

1. There are nine incidents in Luke 9:18–50 which can be matched with the same incidents in the same order found in Matthew 16:13–18:6 and also in Mark 6:27–9:37. These incidents can be more clearly seen in the Harmony of the Gospels Chart which is found in The Introduction to Luke (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

2. Given the location of these incidents in Matthew and Mark, they take place right before Jesus enters into Jerusalem for the last Passover of His public ministry. He will fulfill the shadow image of the Passover by becoming our Passover Lamb on the Roman cross. That will take place in the very near future (from the narrative that we are studying). Jesus will be in Jerusalem perhaps 2–3 weeks after Luke 10 (except for the final narrative of Luke 10).

3. Then, after Luke 11–18½, we have five parallel incidents which occur prior to Jesus ascending into Jerusalem (the sixth incident) found in Matthew 19:13–21:1 Mark 10:13–11:1 and in Luke 18:15–19:28. Again, refer to the Harmony of the Gospels Chart.

1) Notice that there is perhaps a single chapter of Matthew between the passage named here and the one cited in point 1; and a single chapter of Mark between the passage named here and the one named in point 1 above.

2) However, we jump from Luke 9:50 (point 1 above) to Luke 18:15 (point 3 above). That is 9½ chapters. Why is there be so much material in the book of Luke?

4. Next we have Jesus during holy week, which series of events precedes the crucifixion. Between Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem to right before the Passover dinner with His disciples, there are over twenty incidents found in all three synoptic gospels in the same exact order. These incidents are found in Matthew 21:1–26:20 Mark 11:1–14:17 Luke 19:29–22:14.

5. We have this consistent chronological flow of incidents in both Matthew and Mark.

6. In Luke, we have this same flow of incidents, but in between the first nine incidents and what follows are the chapters 10–18½ in Luke, which section is approximately a third of the book of Luke. I have been wondering about the scope and sequence of those chapters for the past two years or more.

7. In Luke 10, there is language which leads us from one incident to the next, with the exception of the Martha and Mary narrative. Therefore, most of Luke 10 simply follows Luke 9, but it is not material recorded in either of the other two synoptic gospels.

8. In Luke 10:38, we have a key phrase—mistranslated almost everywhere—which intentionally does not take us chronologically from Luke 10:37 (the end of the Good Samaritan event) to the Martha and Mary narrative which follows (Luke 10:38–42).

9. So, in Luke 10:38–18:14 we have a set of Jesus’ teachings which are all gathered together in this middle section of Luke. Luke appears to maintain to a pretty consistent chronological sequencing of events between Luke 1:1 to Luke 10:37. Then, at Luke 18:15 and following, Luke continues with this careful sequencing of events. We know this, because we can match these many narratives with those found in Matthew and Mark.

10. Only in the middle of Luke do we have 9½ chapters which are not as carefully sequenced. I have no way of tying the events of these 9½ chapters to Matthew or to Mark.

11. Nevertheless, this fits with Luke’s method of gathering these narratives for his book. He would have had some teachings of Jesus not clearly tied to this or that series of incidents. He places all of these teachings in this middle section of Luke, providing as much contextual information as he has.

1) Why would Luke do this?

2) If he placed these teachings at the beginning of the book of Luke, they would not make sense, as Jesus has not been introduced.

3) If these teachings were placed at the end of the book of Luke, this would be after the crucifixion and resurrection. That would suggest that these things were taught post-crucifixion. But they weren’t.

4) So, the logical thing to do would be to place these teachings somewhere in the middle of the book of Luke.

12. I first became aware of this oddity in Luke as I went through Luke 8–9 and noticed the series of events which could be easily matched with the other two synoptic gospels, but that there was this large set of chapters (Luke 10–18½) which did not fall into the synoptic gospels scope and sequence as per Ken Palmer’s Harmony of the Gospel Chart. It was only recently that I realized that Luke 10:38a was the key that told us where this middle section actually began.

13. Beginning with Luke 10:38, we will listen to the teachings of Jesus untethered to a set of events. In this way, the middle section of Luke stands apart from the rest of Luke, as well as from Matthew and Mark.

I realize that the vast majority of Christians do not concern themselves with such things. Of course, what is key is the content of these teachings. However, if we approach the book of Luke with a critical eye, then there must be an explanation for this middle section in order for the entire book to make sense.

Luke 10 will pick up where Luke 9 left off (remember, we are now summarizing Luke 10). But the final narrative of Luke 10 is not tethered chronologically to the rest of Luke. This final narrative begins the middle section of Luke.

Luke 10:1 And after this [the incidents of Luke 9] the Master appointed seventy others, and sent them two by two ahead of Him into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.

There are two readings for this verse, seventy or seventy-two; and which one is correct is not really a theological issue of any sort.

Jesus is going toward Jerusalem for the final time, and He will be traveling through Samaria. His advance team will go first to determine whether or not he should go into this or that village.

Luke 10:2 Then He said to them, “The harvest indeed is great, but the workers are few, therefore pray the Master of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.

Jesus recognizes that there is a great deal of positive volition in Samaria, but this positive volition is not to be found in every village and town. Furthermore, the time He has remaining is very limited. Therefore, Jesus sends out an advance team to determine where the pockets of positive volition are.

As an aside, this is another one of the many indications that Jesus did not use the attributes of His Deity in His day-to-day life. He does not use His omniscience to determine where the positive volition is.

Jesus speaks of His disciples as going out as lambs into a country filled with wolves. This means that they are helpless, apart from God. This means that there is some severe opposition out there.

Luke 10:4 “Do not take a purse, nor a bag, nor sandals. And greet no one along the way.

Jesus’ advance team is being sent out immediately. They are not taking any time to prepare to go out. Jesus is giving them a very specific assignment, and they are not to allow themselves to be waylaid along the way. They need to stick to this assignment, as Jesus is advancing toward Jerusalem, intending to be there during the Passover.

Luke 10:5 “And whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’

Jesus is anticipating that they will be invited to stay at certain homes when doing this advance work.

Luke 10:6 “And if indeed a son of peace is there, your peace shall rest on it; and if not, it shall return to you.

The phrase son of peace means that there is a believer who lives at this house. Peace resting upon the house means that God’s protection and provision is in place for that house for that period of time. If there is no believer there then there is no automatic peace and prosperity for the house or for the people in it.

Luke 10:7 “And stay in the same house, eating and drinking whatever with them, for the labourer is worthy of his wages. Do not move from house to house.

These believers are to take refuge in the first house where they are invited. They are not to go from house to house to find the best deal (the best meals, the best accommodations, etc.) What they eat and drink will be considered their wages for this assignment.

Luke 10:8–9 “And into whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat whatever is placed before you, and heal the sick there, and say to them, ‘The reign of Elohim has come near to you.’

The people are not to be finicky. They are to eat whatever is placed before them. It appears that Jesus is, for this short period of time, suspending the dietary laws.

Luke 10:10–11 “And into whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, ‘ Even the dust of your city which clings to us, we wipe off against you, but know this, that the reign of Elohim has come near to you.’

If members of this advance team are not welcome, they are to leave and wipe off the dust from their sandals. This is a sign that they are taking nothing of that village with them.

This time the advance team warns that the reign of God was near to the people of Samaria. The King was willing to speak with them, but not every village was willing to hear Him.

Luke 10:12 “And I say to you that it shall be more bearable for Seom [= Sodom] in that Day, than for that city.

Jesus warns that a city filled with negative volition faces great discipline in the future. “It will be more bearable for Sodom in that day,” Jesus warns.

What exactly does that mean? God sent angels to deliver the four believers from Sodom. A city with negative volition, one which refuses to hear the Lord, will find itself completely destroyed, with no one being delivered out of it.

This understanding is applicable in the Day of Judgment, in the day of Christ (seven years after the rapture).

What follows (vv. 13–16) appears to be a message given by Jesus after the advance team has left to go into the various Samaritan cities. However, much of this message seems to be about positive and negative volition toward Jesus Christ and toward the believers who represent Him.

Luke 10:13 “Woe to you, Corazon [= Chorazin]! Woe to you, Běyth Tsaia [= Bethsaida]! For if the miracles which were done in you had been done in Tsor [= Tyre] and Tsion [= Sidon], they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.

Jesus speaks of various gentile cities, and how they would have changed their thinking long ago had they seen the miracles that these Samaritans would see.

Luke 10:14 “But it shall be more bearable for Tsor and Tsion at the judgment than for you.

Jesus is prophesying here that there will be positive volition in some gentiles cities, which means that these cities will fare better for the judgment to come.

Luke 10:15 “And you, Kephar Naum [= Capernaum], who are exalted to the heaven, shall be brought down to She’ol.^a Isaiah 14:13, Isaiah 14:15.

Jesus quotes from Isaiah about these various cities in relation to the towns and villages His advance team would go into. Capernaum is in Galilee. As we will find out in the book of Acts, much of Judæa will turn against Jesus (particularly Jerusalem).

A city rises and falls based upon its attitude toward Jesus Christ. So Capernaum has, for the most part, embraced Jesus over the past three years. So Capernaum is exalted to the heaven. However, it will be brought down to Sheol (the place of the dead) for negative volition. It is both a fascinating and sobering thing to read about Capernaum in the gospels (it is named 16X in the gospels), but it is not found in the epistles or in the book of Acts. Where is their positive volition?

Much of the tenor of the book of Acts is God turning away from His people and toward the gentiles.

Luke 10:16 “He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me.”

The advance team would do healing and they would possibly give the gospel message; and they would tell of Jesus willing to come to their village. If the people reject the advance team, then they are rejecting Jesus. The believers in the advance team are not to take this as a personal affront.

This is a general prophesy of any group of believers. We, as believers, speak for Jesus.

Luke 10:17 And the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Master, even the demons are subject to us in Your Name.”

The people that Jesus sent out were quite jazzed as to the response of the people; but even more so when it came to their own personal powers.

Luke 10:18 And He said to them, “I saw Satan falling out of the heaven as lightning.

Jesus appears to be speaking prophetically here. Satan existed in heaven, but when he rebelled against God, he was cast out (although he apparently can return at specific times to accuse believers).

Luke 10:19 “See, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and none at all shall hurt you.

Jesus speaks of the authority and power of these 70 (or 72) believers. They have such power over serpents and scorpions because Satan has fallen out of heaven.

Luke 10:20 “But do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names have been written in the heavens.”

Jesus tells them that it is more important that their names are written in the heavens. Their temporary powers are great and all, but more importantly, they are saved forever.

Luke 10:21 In that hour יהושע [= Jesus] exulted in the Spirit and said, “I praise You, Father, Master of the heaven and of the earth, that You have hidden these matters from clever and learned ones, and did reveal them to babes. Yes, Father, because thus it was well-pleasing in Your sight.

In order to understand the gospel message, it has to come from God. People who have a natural intelligence or people with a strong academic background are not able to understand the gospel message unless God the Holy Spirit reveals it to them.

Luke 10:22 “All has been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is, except the Father, and who the Father is, except the Son, and he to whom the Son wishes to reveal Him.”

God the Son understands God the Father and vice versa. We only understand God the Father as He is revealed by Jesus. All Divine information, apart from some specific topics (like the laws of divine establishment, creation v. evolution, apologetics) can come only from God. We do not discover theological imperatives except by the gracious revelation of God.

Luke 10:23–24 And turning to His taught ones He said, separately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see, for I say to you that many prophets and sovereigns have wished to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it.”

The taught ones are those whom Jesus has been teaching. Like so many people in this world, they do not really understand their contemporary events. The fact of Jesus being there before them and teaching is one of the most amazing things in the world. Prophets and sovereigns wished to see this day themselves, but they were born at the wrong time. Jesus followers and the Samaritans were seeing amazing history take place, yet how many of them appreciated what they were seeing? How many realized that they live in the day that prophets spoke of?

Luke 10:25 And see, a certain one learned in the Torah stood up, trying Him, and saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit everlasting life?”

This narrative begins with the words, and behold. This suggests a continuation of the previous narrative.

A lawyer, in this era, was a person who was thoroughly trained in the Law of Moses (also called the Torah).

Luke 10:26 And He said to him, “What has been written in the Torah? How do you read it?”

Rather than give this man a straightforward answer, Jesus asks him, “How do you understand it from the Scriptures?”

Luke 10:27 And he answering, said, “ ‘You shall love יהוה [= YHWH, Jehovah, Y^ehowah] your Elohim [= God] with all your heart, and with all your being, and with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ Deuteronomy 6:5 and ‘your neighbour as yourself.’ ” Leviticus 19:18.

The lawyer chooses two separate passages from two books and quotes them. He presents these two passages as a summation for the Law—specifically as a summation of his responsibility in the Law.

There is another incident where someone asks Jesus for the two greatest commandments, and this was His answer—the same as the lawyer’s.

Luke 10:28 And He said to him, “You have answered rightly. Do this and you shall live.”^b Leviticus 18:5.

Jesus tells the man, “You answered your own question correctly. Do this and live (forever).”

Now, Jesus’ answer may seem strange, because this is not the gospel message with which we are familiar. Nevertheless, stick with me on this narrative.

Luke 10:29 But he, wishing to declare himself righteous, said to יהושע, “And who is my neighbour?”

The man, wishing to demonstrate that he is righteous, asks, “Just exactly who is my neighbor.” Spoiler alert: this lawyer is looking to limit his obligation by limiting who his neighbor is. However, Jesus’ explanation will expand greatly his obligation.

Let me suggest that, if this man’s neighbor is a Jew, he receives decent treatment from the lawyer. He his nearby neighbor is a Samaritan, his level of personal consideration is considerably less.

Jesus will answer the man’s question with an illustration—an illustration ripped from the headlines, as it were.

Luke 10:30 And replying, יהושע said, “A certain man was going down from Yerushalayim [= Jerusalem] to Yerio [= Jericho], and fell among robbers, who, both stripping and beating him, went away, leaving him half dead.

Even though we have the wording, a certain man, this is not necessarily a parable. There are many specifics in this story.

Furthermore, parables usually refer to a similar parallel circumstance which is actually quite different from the original. The parable usually has a clearly defined right and wrong answer or explanation; and this informs us regarding the original story. There is not some parallel spiritual truth which this represents, which is why this is not a parable.

Luke 10:31 “And by a coincidence a certain priest was going down that way. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.

We would think the most spiritual person around would be the priest. But when he sees the injured man, he walks around him.

Luke 10:32 “And likewise a Lěwite [= Levite] also, when he came to the place, and seeing, passed by on the other side.

God dedicated one branch of the Israelites to spiritual matters, and that was the Levites. However, this Levite saw the injured man and walked around him, going to the other side of the street to avoid him.

Luke 10:33–34 “But a certain Shomeroni [= Samaritan],^c journeying, came upon him. And when he saw him, he had compassion on him, and he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. And having placed him on his own beast, he brought him to an inn, and looked after him.

Samaritans did not travel with some sort of a first aid kit. Wine and oil were carried and used for drinking and for moisturizing. He certainly did not have a set of bandages among his traveling possessions. He would have had to shred some of his own clothing in order to bandage up the injured man. That would have been at great personal expense. If you wear collared shirts and look in your closet, you might have 20 or even 50 collared shirts. It was unlikely that this Samaritan had more than one or two shirts. Unless he was smart about it, he probably ruined a shirt in order to bandage up this man.

Luke 10:35 “And going out on the next day, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Look after him, and whatever more you spend I shall repay you when I return.’

By the next day, the Samaritan took this injured man to an inn, left some money behind, promising to come back and check to see if money more was spent.

Luke 10:36 “Who, then, of these three, do you think, was neighbour to him who fell among the robbers?”

Jesus turned this story around a bit, but asked, Who was really a neighbor to the man who was beaten and robbed?

Luke 10:37 And he said, “He who showed compassion on him.” Then יהושע said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

The answer is obvious. The Samaritan acted like a neighbor to the injured man, meaning that he acted in love (a non-emotional love). He showed great consideration for this man, this stranger. “You do the same,” Jesus insisted.

What about the gospel message? This lawyer believed that there was something that he could do in order to win God over. Having Jesus accept his way of salvation, it might take him a few days or even a few months to realize, “I am not acting like the Samaritan. I can’t meet this standard.” And at the time, God would send someone to him with the gospel message of salvation through Jesus Christ.

Luke 10:38 And it came to be as they went that He entered into a certain village. And a certain woman named Martha received Him into her house.

There is a Martha and Mary pair of sisters in John 11. This does not mean that these are the same people. In John 11, they have a brother Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead.

The main problem with matching these pairs of sisters up is, where they live. The Martha and Mary of John 11 live in Bethany, which is right outside of Jerusalem (I believe that it is between Jericho and Jerusalem). At this point, Jesus is walking through Samaria toward Jerusalem. Jesus will be in Jerusalem mid-chapter 18. What happens between Luke 11 and Luke 18 was discussed at the beginning of this abbreviated study of Luke 10.

Because of the first few words of this narrative, this could have happened at any time, so where Jesus and His disciples are in Luke 10:1–37 is unrelated to where they are in vv. 38–42. So, it is possible that this is the same Martha and Mary of John 11.

Luke 10:39 And she had a sister called Miriam [= Mary], who also sat at the feet of יהושע and heard His word.

Luke 10:40 But Martha was distracted with much serving, and coming up she said, “Master, are You not concerned that my sister has left me to serve alone? Speak to her then, to help me.”

We do not know how many people were with Jesus at this point in time. If this is the last stop for Jesus prior to Jerusalem, then He will have hundreds of people with Him (we know this because it becomes very difficult for an onlooker to come up to Jesus and speak with Him). However, this could have taken place at another time.

Even if it is logical for the followers of Jesus to break up into groups when lodging, the number of people with Jesus would have still been fairly large.

I am suggesting that Martha is preparing food for perhaps a dozen people; perhaps twenty, perhaps even more. That is certainly a possibility.

Luke 10:41–42 And יהושע answering, said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many matters, but one only is necessary, and Miryam has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken away from her.”

Jesus tells Martha that she is overly concerned about other matters, when the most important thing is the teaching that Jesus is doing.

Jesus says that this cannot be taken away from her. Once the doctrine is in her soul, that is something that cannot be removed.

The Luke 10 chapter study is now posted online. (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) This is everything which we have studied along with a word-by-word exegesis of the entire tenth chapter and three original translations. Also included are verse and passage translations chosen from over 100 other sources.

As you observed in Luke 10, the commentary of Luke 11 also has specific words which appear to be links. These words are linked to definitions in the chapter studies (which was done on the 2^nd draft) (what you are reading here actually represents the 3^rd draft). What you read here will be integrated back into the text of the Luke 11 chapter study (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) when we complete chapter 11 in the emailed study (you are reading the emailed study). At that point, the internal links (which are primarily definitions) will work.

The chapter study is a word-by-word, chapter-by-chapter study of the book of Luke. Each chapter is a separate document (by the 3^rd draft, each chapter is essentially a book with 300–500 pages). Writing and assembling this study is a process which takes place over many years, taking this study to the 3^rd draft stage. It appears that I began the book of Luke in 2018 and am nearly half way through it in the year 2024 (so far, I have done the 2^nd draft on every chapter; and the 3^rd draft has been done for chapters 1–10). Although I will still want to make improvements to the 3^rd draft, I don’t know that I will have enough time left in my life to do that.

Harmony of the Gospels:

You may recall that the book of Luke chronologically followed the life of the Lord from His birth to His intention to go to Jerusalem in Luke 1:1–9:56. We appear to continue this narrative (chronologically) with Luke 9:57–62 and 10:1–37 (due to the connective words which link these narratives together; the connective words suggest that we are moving forward in time in each narrative).

Recall that there were ten or more incidents found in Matthew, Mark and in Luke 9, all in the same order, thereby establishing a common time frame (in parallel passages in Matthew and Mark, Jesus is about to set out with His disciples to travel to Jerusalem).

The very end of Luke 9 and then all of Luke 10 have no parallels with the narratives of Matthew and Mark. However, there appear to be chronological connections throughout Luke 10, suggesting that these events took place successively while Jesus was in Samaria traveling south toward Jerusalem.

Apparently, Luke had a great many incidents and teachings which he wanted to include in his book, but he did not know where to place them in the chronology of the first ten chapters. Matthew and John lived the events which they write about. Mark appears to have taken Peter’s experiences and put them to writing, so the approaches of Matthew and Mark would have been chronological. However, Luke had no direct contact with the Lord. He spoke to a number of people before assembling his gospel (which is biography of Jesus). Therefore, Luke would not have had a chronological slot for everything that he heard during his interviews. He heard some important teachings of Jesus, but he, not living these events himself, could not place them in the chronology that he had established. Therefore, for the next 8½ chapters (beginning with Luke 10:37), Luke is going to give us a few incidents in the life of Christ along with some great teachings of Jesus. Luke’s dilemma is, he has these teachings which he wants to share, but he does not know where they belong chronologically speaking. So he simply puts them all together in this middle section of his book (from Luke 10:38–18:14).

At this point, you may want to take a look at Ken Palmer’s Harmony of the Gospels Chart, found in the Introduction to Luke (HTML) (PDF) (WPD). Most of what we find in Luke 11–18 is not found in the other gospels (there are some minor exceptions to this not found in his chart). This chart was once found online at http://www.lifeofchrist.com/Life/Harmony; however, now it is here: http://www.onthewing.org/user/Gospel_Harmony.pdf

You will see in this chart that there are large chunks of Luke (and of John) not found in Matthew or Mark. This is mostly Luke 10–18. Also, these are incidents and teachings (almost all teachings) which would not fit chronologically into Luke’s gospel where it is all placed. Luke has the material to record, but not a chronological place to put it.

In other words, pretty much all of Luke 1–10 is chronological and this is picked up again in Luke 18:15 (we know that it is chronological because it is matching up with the books Matthew and Mark). So this middle section of Luke (chapters 11–18) falls under the heading, oh, yeah, here is some other things that Jesus taught and did.

The books of Matthew, Mark and John are essentially eyewitness reports. Mark is writing down what Peter has told him; Matthew writes down what he personally observed; and John, decades later, writes down what he remembers. Matthew and Mark’s gospels would be chronological; John’s is more thematically arranged. But this is not Luke. Luke has interviewed a number of people (we don’t know how many; I would guess at least five and maybe as many as twenty). Some of those interviewed by Luke (the women) were with Jesus from the beginning, and they would have provided a very detailed chronological narrative, as we have been studying in Luke 1:1–10:37. Furthermore, this chronological narrative is going to start up again after about eight chapters.

Luke is going to talk to people who remember a sermon, or a series of sermons by Jesus. Maybe they cannot exactly place it into a chronological narrative, but they might remember what happened right before the sermon; or what caused Jesus to go off in that direction. But, since Luke cannot easily fit these into his two chronological narratives (Luke 1:1–10:37 and 18:15–24:53), he places this material in the center of the book of Luke, as the center of the Lord’s public ministry was teaching.

Luke could certainly ask the question, “Do you think that this took place in the first, second or third year of the Lord’s public ministry?” Many of those giving a report to Luke would have no idea. Their lives may have intersected with Jesus for a few days or even a few weeks, but they would not necessarily remember the year or how long Jesus had been teaching for.

I have been under the teaching of R. B. Thieme, Jr. for most of the past 50 years. He had an early period, a middle period and a late period. Although I can tell after listening to a lesson for 15 minutes which period this comes from, most of the time, I could not tell you what my personal experiences were when listening to that teaching. Only by looking at the year of a study and thinking back to that period of time am I able to match the teaching with my own life experiences at the time. This is why believers devoted to Jesus may have heard some of His teaching, remember it clearly, yet not know exactly when He taught it.

Introduction to Luke 11: Luke 11, like most of the chapters in this middle section of Luke, is all about teaching. Even when specific incidents are recorded, it leads to a teaching moment. Jesus first teaches His disciples what we know as the Lord’s Prayer. Then He teaches the parable of the persistent friend. He tells His disciples that, if they really want something, they can keep on asking the Lord.

When Jesus is seen casting out a demon, which demon had kept a man from being able to speak, He was accused of casting out demons by the prince of dung (Beelzebub). Jesus teaches why this is not logical. However, it is remarkable that those around Him were so ready to accept this false explanation. While teaching this subject matter, Jesus teaches about the man cleaned of a demon, but who then takes in 7 more spirits into himself. The connection here may be thematic rather than chronological.

A woman interrupts Jesus while He is teaching and He is does not speak very kindly towards her.

Jesus then speaks of the sign of Jonah and how the eyes are the light of the body.

The end of this chapter is devoted to the pharisees, the lawyers and Jesus. Jesus is asked to a meal, but He apparently is watched very carefully, so that the pharisee who asked Jesus to eat, notices what Jesus does wrong (in his opinion) and, apparently, points it out to others. Jesus reprimands the pharisees and, when a lawyer pipes up and tells him that he is offended too, Jesus reprimands him as well.

One of the things which stood out to me in this chapter were the words of Jesus. In many of his sermons and answers, he seemed to speak poetically. This may not always stand out, but if you read Rotherham’s Emphasized Bible, that approach is quite obvious.

Going back to Luke 8, I began to discuss the organization of the book of Luke. In Luke 9, there are the nine incidents which line up with the same events in Matthew and Mark. These events all appear to take place right before the Lord goes to Jerusalem for the last time. Going from the final half-dozen verses in Luke 9 and going forward, we seem to lose all semblance of a chronological order.

It is because of this understanding that we can put together a very accurate outline or overview for the book of Luke.

The first thirteen verses match up very closely to Jesus’ teachings found in the Sermon on the mount (Matthew 5–7). However, interestingly enough, the circumstances leading up to this teaching are very different. In Luke, Jesus is praying and the disciples ask Him about how they ought to be praying (they wait for Jesus to complete His praying before they question Him).

Jesus, in the context of the sermon on the mount, teaches many of the same concepts found in Luke 11:1–13.

Because these are different incidents, what we will study in Luke appears to be something that the disciples would have asked Jesus very early on in His ministry (within the first year). Then it would not seem odd for Jesus to teach these same things in the sermon on the mount weeks or months later.

What would not make sense is for Jesus to first teach the disciples and others how to pray in the sermon on the mount, and then for them to ask how should they pray 2.5 years later (that would be based on the assumption that the book of Luke continues chronologically (which I have already argued against). The point I am making is, Luke 11:1–13 (particularly the first four verses) would not have taken place during the final months of Jesus’ public ministry. His disciples did not suddenly wonder, three years into their association with the Lord, how does one pray, Lord? That would not make any sense.

The false interpretation of this middle section of Luke is, Jesus just did a whole lot of teaching as He walked toward Jerusalem (for the last time), and Luke records all of that teaching. There are many problems with that theory. One problem with that theory is, the material covered here in Luke 11:1–13 sounds like the kind of information that Jesus would have taught very early on in His ministry. These are questions that the disciples would have asked during the first six months of their time as disciples. The final two verses of this chapter also suggests that this is occurring in the first year of His public ministry and not in the last (go and read them if you want; do you think that it is at this point, three years into the Lord’s ministry, when the religious types decide to do this?).

We have discussed the organization of Luke since Luke 9. It is logical that what we read in this middle section is not Jesus teaching near the end of His ministry, walking between Galilee and Samaria, on His way to Jerusalem for the last time. Some of this material may come from this period of time, but sections of this chapter clearly came from very early on in the Lord’s public ministry.

Luke 11:1a Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when He finished,... (ESV; capitalized)

When Luke writes a certain place, you get the impression that he would have liked to have included that bit more information here, but he just does not have the information.

Luke 11:1a Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when He finished,... (ESV; capitalized)

Most of the time, Jesus would go off privately to pray and here He is said to be in a certain place.

The impression that I get is, His disciples found where He was and stood nearby waiting for Him to finish.

The material covered in these first thirteen verses are also found in the sermon on the mount (Matthew 6:9–15 7:7–11). This is clearly the same teaching, but it is not the same incident.

Given the introduction (v. 1a), Jesus is not in the midst of 5000 people teaching them. Given the teaching of Matthew 6 and 7, the disciples would not have asked Jesus questions about how to pray, if He has already taught them how to pray in the Sermon on the Mount. Therefore, logically, this takes place very early in the Lord’s ministry, prior to Matthew 5–7. Therefore, prior to the chronological progression of Luke 7–10 (which we have previously been studying).

That Jesus taught the same material on different occasions is clear. He taught many of the same things in the sermon on the mount (in Matthew) and the sermon on the plain (in Luke); and some similar things in this first narrative of Luke 11.

That Jesus is teaching this information to His disciples based upon their questions to Him, indicates to us that Jesus taught them this material prior to the sermons on the mount and the plain.

When Jesus came to the end of His prayer, one of His disciples spoke to Him. This is another bit of missing information. Which disciple asked Jesus this question?

We have a particular way of praying in our culture where we usually bow our heads and we are looking down with closed eyes. I suspect that Jesus was looking up into the air and praying—probably with His eyes open.

So that there is no confusion here, it is customary in our culture to pray looking down with our eyes closed to give people in a gathering privacy. We are shutting out the rest of the world, including those around us, and speaking to God. There is no indication that a particular posture is required for praying.

On the other hand, you would not, in a church service, all be standing up and moving or raising your arms and speaking in tongues. Why? Both the movement and the speaking aloud would be a disturbance to others, and an intrusion into their prayers. Furthermore, our God is not a God of confusion, and nothing is more confusing than 20 or 50 or 500 people talking in nonsense sounds all at once.

Luke 11:1a-b Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when He finished, one of His disciples said to Him,... (ESV; capitalized)

When Jesus refocuses His attention from prayer to what is in front of Him. In front of Him is one of His disciples asking for guidance.

The disciples makes a request of Jesus: “Teach us, Lord, how to pray.” By using the word us, this disciple suggests that he is putting forth this question, but that the other disciples are with him, wondering the same thing.

Logic would tell us that a question like this would have been asked of Jesus very early on in His public ministry. His disciples had seen Him on many occasions go off by Himself to pray and He did this often enough for them to ask about it.

Interestingly enough, John the Herald taught his disciples how to pray (something which is not recorded elsewhere in the Bible). However, this disciple is aware of these teachings, meaning that he was originally a disciple of John’s (suggesting that this might be Andrew or his brother Peter asking the question).

The fact that John the baptizer is mentioned also indicates that these questions were asked early in the Lord’s ministry. John was mentioned more frequently at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry than at the end.

Luke 11:1 Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when He finished, one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples." (ESV; capitalized)

So, one of Jesus’ disciples—perhaps Peter or Andrew—approached Jesus and asked Him to teach the disciples how to pray, noting that this is something which John the Herald taught his own disciples to do.

What I am struck by in the prayer that follows is just how much of it is directed towards our own thinking. God is saying, “I know what you want; I am going to tell you what I expect.” I do not mean this in a legalistic way, as in, “Do exactly what I want if you want Me to answer your prayers.” It is more like, “This is My character; now I want you to apply My character to your daily lives and to the things that you want to pray about.” As we go through this prayer phrase by phrase, this will become obvious.

Jesus disciples have asked Him how they should pray. He tells them, “When you begin a prayer to God, these are thing things which should be included in that prayer.”

Our prayers are directed to the Father; to God the Father. God is the Author of the divine decrees (I am aware that many present this is a single decree); we are living our lives in His universe, where He has made a great number of decrees back in eternity past, which decrees play out throughout human history. Therefore, we should focus upon Him; we should make our requests known to Him.

It should be obvious that this is a prayer designed for the believer. Unbelievers do not have a prayer line open to God, other than the prayer of salvation. “I have heard and I have understood the good news that Jesus Christ died for my sins; and I am believing in Your Son and I am asking you to stand by Your Word and save me.” What must accompany those words is the volitional choice that takes place in your soul to believe in Jesus. There is no magic formula prayer to be saved (that is, no specific set of words will save you). Salvation takes place as a result of an act of faith in your soul. Whatever you say to God in your salvation prayer, it should match up with the change in your thinking (you used to have one opinion about Jesus, but now you have changed that opinion).

Here we have the 3^rd person singular, aorist passive imperative of hagiazô (ἁγιάζω) [pronounced hawg-ee-AD-zoh]. This word means, in the imperative, make (declare, acknowledge as) holy (sanctified, consecrated, set apart, pure, cleanse); separate from profane things and dedicate to God; (ceremonially) purify or consecrate; (mentally) venerate. Strong’s #37. The subject is not God (that would be the 2^nd person singular), but the name of You. A more literal translation would be, Let Your name be set apart (be consecrated, be sanctified, be holy).

The name of God is representative of His character or His essence. Let Your Person be set apart (from the profane)... The aorist imperative is interesting. It is the command verb form that expresses a single, completed action, using the aorist tense in the imperative mood. The present tense is not used because that would imply that God, in some way, must continue and maintain this separation. The aorist tense means that this is a fundamental reality which cannot be changed.

Why would we pray this? This helps to set to proper mindset in the thinking of the believer who is making this prayer. It is almost as if the one doing the praying is saying, let me first understand and appreciate how your essence is separate from all else.

Luke 11:2a-c So he said to them, “When you pray, say, ‘Our father in the heavens, May your name be sanctified. (The Far Above All Translations)

Luke 11:2a-c He said to them, “When you pray, say, ‘Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. (World English Bible)

Luke 11:2a-c Then He said to them, "Whenever you_p are praying, be saying: 'Our Father, the [One] in the heavens, let Your name be regarded as holy;... (Analytical-Literal Translation)

Much of the Law (or, Torah) in the Old Testament concerns itself with separating the holy from the profane. It distinguishes that which belongs to God and that which belongs to the cosmic system (which is the world order under Satan).

No matter how we feel about it, God, due to His perfect righteousness and justice, cannot have a relationship with the profane. His righteousness cannot be associated with the profane (which includes anything that is sinful). God’s justice must condemn unrighteousness. Apart from the cross, we are profane to God. Without the cross, we can have no close association with God.

So many gross parallels occur to me, but let’s consider a rotting animal along side of the road. In most circumstances, we would not want to have any association with the animal’s rotting corpse. The smell alone is hard to bear. This is what we are before God; we are rotting corpses; we stink. God is separate from all of that. It is only through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross that we have access to God. We must approach God through Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God.

Ultimately, there is only one way to finalize this separation—which separation is required by the holiness of God—and that is to cast all manner of creature into the Lake of Fire, and to save those who have believed in Jesus Christ. That is the only final solution. There are those who have chosen Jesus Christ; and those who have rejected Him. There is no complete separation until this final separation.

We live in a world where the separation between the holy and the profane is often difficult to recognize. God is not going to allow this confusion to continue on into eternity. At some point, He will separate us. At some point, God will institute the eternal division between that which is holy and that which is profane.

Within our own souls, as we pray something like this, we need to make such a separation ourselves between the holy and the profane. There are things which we should be associated with; and things which we should not be associated with. Part of our living here on earth is making those distinctions.

Just in case you try to over-apply this concept, this does not mean that you can only do business with Christians; and that you can only work for a business which has a Christian boss and Christian employees. God left us in the world, and the world before us becomes our mission field. The fact that we rub shoulders day in and day out with unbelievers is an opportunity to witness with our lives and with our verbal testimony.

In this era that Jesus was in—the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union—He offered Himself to Israel to be accepted as their King, their Messiah. A mass acceptance of Him as Messiah by the Jewish people would have ushered in the Kingdom of God. But that was not the response of the people of God (see Luke 4:16–30). They clearly rejected their Lord in Luke 4 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

This was the proper time for God to offer His kingdom to His people. However, there were too many among the Jews who rejected God—including a huge percentage of the religious class. As we will eventually see (even in this chapter), that live and let live is not an option for them. They had to get Jesus; and, at some point, they had settled upon killing Him (Matthew 12:14 Mark 3:6).

The disciples praying for this is a prayer for universal acceptance of the Lord, Who can bring in the Kingdom. However, God is a Gentleman (as R. B. Thieme, Jr. often said), meaning that He allows us our volition, even when we are on negative signals.

Luke 11:2e ...let Your decree in heaven also be [Your decree here] on the earth. (Literal translation taken from the Byzantine Greek text) (this is not in the Westcott Hort text; and therefore, not in many English translations)

When the Kingdom of God is brought to this earth, then God’s decrees are as powerful on earth as they are in heaven. Satan and his angels; and we are given a great deal of leeway in our life choices on this earth. We, even as believers, give in to our sin natures and we sin and we act against God. Right now on earth, this is allowed (although there are consequences).

This prayer is not just for God to bring His Kingdom and His will upon this earth, but it is a prayer where we learn to bend our own will in His direction.

Luke 11:2 And He answered them, “When you [all] pray [to God], say [this]: ‘Our Father, the [Father] in the heavens; make separate Your name [separate from the profane]. Bring in Your kingdom, let Your decree in heaven also be [Your decree here] on the earth. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

All prayer is directed to God the Father; and there is to be an acknowledgment of the holy and the profane (naming out sins to God prior to prayer is such an acknowledgment). Calling for and accepting God’s kingdom on this earth should also be a part of your thinking.

Luke 11:2 Jesus answered them, saying, “When you pray to God, say a prayer similar to this: ‘Our Father, our God in the heavens, make separate Your character and essence from the profane. Bring Your kingdom to this earth, so that Your decrees in heaven will also be obeyed on this earth. (Kukis paraphrase)

In your prayers, there should be an acknowledgment of God’s decrees. This provides us with a fascinating dichotomy in God’s plan. It really isn’t, but from the man-ward side, it seems to be. God, on the one hand, has decreed what will take place on this earth and when. On the other hand, God will tell us, “If you want something and you are sure of it, then you keep on praying for that. After so much time, God will get tired of it and He will just give you what you are praying for.” (Luke 11:5–9) Although I have certainly taken some liberties here with paraphrasing this passage, most believers understand what I am saying here. If God has decreed what will take place throughout human and angelic history, why exactly would we be encouraged to pray to God, and, in some instances, pester God with our prayers?

Let me give two examples from real life which might help to sort out this seeming dichotomy. When I was young and an early Christian (I believed in Jesus at age 21), there were things that I naturally wanted. I can think of several instances where I really wanted a particular woman to marry me. In retrospect, I know that, in probably every single one of those cases, had God answered my prayer the way I wanted Him to, that would have been a disaster in my life (which I was too stupid to recognize at the time). On none of those occasions did I go on a marathon prayer to get what I wanted. However, how many times have you really wanted something, and, in retrospect, you realize that would have been really bad had you gotten it? For me, I can remember many instances where I thank God that He did not give me what I asked for in my prayers or desires.

A second example of this principle is the 2024 (second) election of Donald Trump as President of the United States. I would suggest to you that overwhelming prayer from believers in the United States resulted in Trump being elected president. I believe that this is perhaps the most obvious example of God answering hundreds of thousands of prayers from nation USA (and many prayers from outside our country as well). I first wrote these words mid-November 2024, and at that point in time, there were still states that were counting votes—illegally—trying to overthrow this election of Donald Trump.

Luke 11:2 And he said to them, "When you pray, say: "Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. (ESV; capitalized)

This translation is in line with the Westcott Hort text and Tischendorf’s Greek text.

This additional phrase comes from the Byzantine Greek text and Scrivener Textus Receptus.

Although the ESV is dead-on accurate here, I believe that my translation above gives you a better understanding of what Jesus said to His disciples.

We need food, shelter and clothing—all represented by the word bread in this verse. We need these things daily. This is a prayer for God to provide for us each day our needs. It is also a call for us to recognize that God is providing for us, day in and day out, of the things which are necessary for our continued lives.

There is one thing I want you to notice here: Jesus does not include the word please. He does not even include the words, if it be Your will, O Father. This is God’s guarantee to the Jews. They can simply point to God’s promises throughout the Scriptures and say, “Give us our daily sustenance.” When something is affixed to God’s promises, we don’t have to ask nicely for it. We can demand God give to us according to His Word, because this is our promise.

Luke 11:3 Our necessary subsistence [lit., bread] give that to us daily. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Although I have maintained the word order and the additional definite article (translated that), most translators opted to rearrange the words in the English, making a translation of the additional definite article unnecessary.

The word bread represents our necessary subsistence. Calling upon God to provide our daily needs for us means that we understand logistical grace and God’s post-salvation relationship with us.

When it comes to forgiveness of sins, there is the ultimate forgiveness, promised us by Jesus’ death on the cross; and there is temporal forgiveness, which is our day-to-day walk as believers. When we sin, we no longer enjoy fellowship with God. We name this sin to God and we are back in fellowship.

In order for us to have any fellowship with God, our recent sins must not be an issue. God must temporally forgive us our sins. However, God’s interactions with us are based upon His justice. God cannot simply look at us and say, “Now, that Charley Brown, he is such a nice man. I really like that guy, except for that sin he committed on Tuesday. Since he is such a nice guy, I will forgive him that sin.” God cannot do that with us. That would violate His justice and righteousness, which are His points of contact with us.

Illustration: I suggested the idea of forgiving someone because they are a good guy. This is what politicians do; this is how both sides of the aisle act. So many of them are dirty; and if there is a way that they can protect themselves by protecting others, they will do it. They do not act out of justice and righteousness; they act out of self-preservation. “You cover me and I will cover you.” Can you imagine if Congress was legally subjected to the consequences of the crimes each one has committed? We might have 15 members of Congress unindicted. But they cover for one another; even Democrats for Republicans and vice versa.

Illustration (continued): However, when the politics dictates, they will use another’s wrongdoing to their own advantage. During the time I have been writing this, a Matt Gaetz was up for a cabinet position and it has been suggested that he made use of Congressional fund to pay off people who had accused him of wrongdoing. Even former colleagues of him have turned against him for this reason, when, I can guarantee you that they, or people close to them, have enjoyed the same payoffs. Justice and righteousness requires that, since this is public monies, that all of this be revealed (for all Congressmen and women). But the fact of these payoffs is used (or ignored) when politically convenient. This is the exact opposite of being just and righteous.

God does not forgive us our sins based upon some political connection to Him. He forgives us because Jesus Christ died for our sins and we have believed that. We have accepted God’s forgiveness in His Son. Therefore, we are forgiven. God’s just requirements have been met. All of the sins that we have committed have been paid for.

Jesus is teaching this prior to His death on the cross. The Jews knew that God would forgive them of their sins, but they may have had some difficulty explaining why. However, the reason why is in their Scriptures. Isaiah explained how this took place: Surely He took on our infirmities and carried our sorrows; yet we considered Him stricken by God, struck down and afflicted. But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. We all like sheep have gone astray, each one has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:4–6; BSB) Even in the Old Testament, it was clear that our iniquity was placed upon Him. Exactly how this was to take place would have been difficult for Old Testament saints to explain, but the punishment due us had to go somewhere. This is a theme of God’s perfect justice, found in both the Old and New Testaments.

To sum up, God forgives us our sins based upon His perfect righteousness and justice. In the context of this prayer, this would be temporal forgiveness (forgiveness in our daily spiritual walk).

Luke 11:4b ...for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus is teaching here that this forgiveness needs to come from us as well. There are many people who have wronged us; many who have sinned against us. You may have even prayed for the justice of God to come down upon Lucy Van Pelt because of the evil that she has fashioned against you. I know I have.

However, Jesus is telling us here, “Do not hold a grudge. Forgive those who are in your debt due to the evil things that they have done against you.” Jesus also died for their sins.

Especially if you are holding onto a grudge or anger toward another person. You must let that go. You must forgive them, otherwise you remain out of fellowship for as long as you cannot forgive them. Your hatred and anger are sins, no matter how much these emotions are justified.

Luke 11:4b ...for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. (ESV; capitalized)

Application: If you are a normal person living a normal life, you can think of people who have done you wrong. That is a part of life. It is up to us to forgive them, to continue in our own spiritual walk.

Finally, we are to pray for God not to lead us into temptation; which I would understand as not to put testing before us that we are unable to bear.

The word found here is the masculine singular noun peirasmos (πειρασμός) [pronounced pie-rahs-MOSS], and it means, temptation, provocation, solicitation; testing; a putting to proof (by experiment). Strong’s #3986.

I believe that we can depend upon the fact that God will not tempt us beyond what we are able to resist. In fact, God does not tempt us at all; but He does allow us freedom of movement and choice in this life.

I have areas of strength and areas of weakness, like anyone else. Put me in a room filled with drunks and alcoholics, and I am not the least bit tempted to join them in a drunken binge. That is not because I am a great person; it is because that is an area of strength for me (at this point in time). If I never had another drink again, I would not miss it (well, I would miss beer with pizza or with Mexican food or wine with Italian food, but I could easily survive even that loss).

However, there are other areas where I could be tempted. We pray not to be put into a situation where temptation would overcome our better judgment.

Luke 11:4d ...but deliver us from the evil [one].’ ”.(Kukis mostly literal translation from the Byzantine Greek text and from Scrivener Textus Receptus) (not found in the ESV; not found in the Westcott Hort text, and not found in Tischendorf’s Greek text)

The verb is the 2^nd person singular, aorist (deponent) middle imperative of rhuomai (ῥύομαι) [pronounced RHOO-ohm-ahee], and it means, to draw to one’s self, to rescue, to deliver, to save; as a participle: savior, deliverer. We are demanding from God (imperative mood) what He has promised us. Strong’s #4506.

The word for evil is ponêros (πονηρός) [pronounced pon-ay-ROS], and it means, hurtful, evil (in its effect or influence on others), bad, grievous, harm [ful], malicious, wicked. Strong’s #4190.

This short phrase is not found in translations which primarily follow the Westcott Hort text (like the ESV).

Luke 11:4d ...but deliver us from the evil [one].’ ”.(Kukis mostly literal translation from the Byzantine Greek text and from Scrivener Textus Receptus)

Finally, we ask to be delivered from Satan and from his cosmic system. We are tempted from within, from our own sin nature; and we are tempted from without, by Satan (which temptations often appeal to our sin nature).

Matthew 6:13 reads: And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. (ESV) As mentioned earlier, the prayers given here and in Matthew 6:13 are nearly equivalent, although the circumstances surrounding the prayers are different. It would be reasonable for Jesus to privately teach this prayer to His disciples and later to teach this prayer to a large crowd of believers. There is no reason for these prayers to be the same, word-for-word.

Did Jesus leave off this last phrase or did the person telling Luke about this incident leave off this last phrase. We don’t know. Since it is found in Matthew, in the context of the same prayer, it is not wrong to include it here (it is found in the Byzantine Greek text and in the Scrivener Textus Receptus; but not in the Westcott Hort text or in Tischendorf’s Greek text).

There are passages in the New Testament which clearly do not belong there (like the false ending to Mark). However, there are passages like this where it is possible that text was added, but we do not know for certain (and it is far more likely that text has dropped out rather than text has been added).

Tangent: Allow me to say a few words about textual criticism, which would help explain that parenthetical statement. Copyists for hundreds of years very carefully transcribed each letter from an old manuscript to a newly prepared writing medium. There are two principle ways that text is dropped out. One is, the original manuscript becomes damaged or worn to the point where portions of it cannot be read. If you cannot read something, you cannot copy it. A second way that text is dropped out occurs like this: the word orange occurs two times close together in a manuscript (orange is just an arbitrary word that pops into my head). The copyist is copying along and copies the word orange; and then looks back up to to the original manuscript and his eyes fix upon that second occurrence of the word orange. He picks up copying from that point, so that all the words in between orange and orange are unintentionally dropped out.

Is there a way for this text to be added in? Certainly. Let me propose two ways: (1) the text is mostly unreadable, so that the copyist writes down what he knows from memory, accidentally confounding the texts from Matthew and Luke. (2) The copyist believes that this additional text ought to be here and simply adds it in (that is much more rare; copyists typically did not add any text to the Word of God).

Those who copied the Old and New Testament texts were extremely dedicated and well-trained. Most of them believed that they were copying the very words of God. Therefore, did not intentionally add or remove text. However, being human, sometimes errors crept in.

The claim has been made that the accuracy of the Bible manuscripts is actually superior to that of the preservation of Shakespear’s writings (which were preserved after the advent of the printing press).

Luke 11:4 ...and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation [but deliver us from the evil (one)]." (ESV; capitalized; with the addition from the Byzantine Greek text)

There are three or four things which we are to pray to God. Temporal forgiveness of sins, guidance and ability to forgive others, not to be led into testing which is beyond our ability to pass the test, and to be delivered from evil and/or the evil one (few if any believers are pestered by Satan directly, but demons are certainly assigned to us, some of whom seek to inspire our enemies).

Luke 11:2–4 Jesus answered them, saying, “When you pray to God, say a prayer similar to this: ‘Our Father, our God in the heavens, make separate Your character and essence from the profane. Bring Your kingdom to this earth, so that Your decrees in heaven will also be obeyed on this earth. Every day we have daily needs, and we ask that You provide these for us. Also, we ask for Your forgiveness of our sinful debt against You, even as we learn to forgive others who are indebted to us. Finally, do not bring us into temptation but deliver us from Satan and from his evil cosmic system.’ ” (Kukis paraphrase)

Jesus continues speaking about prayer, but about a different aspect of it. Perseverance is an important aspect related to prayer and one which may seem counterintuitive.

Luke 11:5a And He said to them, "Which of you who has a friend... (ESV; capitalized)

The context of this parable is about prayer. The disciples of Jesus have asked Him how to pray. He gave an example of a prayer to give; but He is going to address some other aspects of prayer.

Obviously, we address God in prayer. However, Jesus is going to give us a parallel circumstance. Let’s say we really needed something from a friend; how could we get that thing?

In a parable, Jesus sets up a situation which is either familiar to His audience or they understand it, even if they have not experienced this exact situation themselves.

Every one of the disciples has a friend. When you have a friend, you often ask a favor of them. That is what is happening here.

The time that this favor is going to be asked is an inopportune time. You go to your friend at midnight to ask this particular favor.

The general concept is, what you are asking of your friend is inconvenient. The timing in particular is off. The favor itself might not be difficult for your friend to respond to, but you are asking for this at midnight, and that does not bring an immediate positive response.

You have a friend and you ask him to lend you $500. For many friends, this is not a big deal (I speak as an adult; this is a much bigger ask from a teen friend). However, let’s say you go to a friend’s house and make this request at midnight, after he and his family are in bed. That is a much bigger ask.

Ancient world homes were much smaller than our homes today. You might yell at the top of your lungs today from the front door, and, if all the bedrooms are in back, the occupants might not hear a thing. In the ancient world, the family might be sleeping right on the other side of their front door; or they might be near to it.

The focus here is upon a favor being asked—the favor itself is not difficult to grant—but your timing is bad (timing itself, is an interesting parallel to prayer).

Luke 11:5 And He said to them, "Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves, (ESV; capitalized)

I think we will set aside for the moment whether or not the friend actually has this bread on hand. I am assuming that he does because the friend does not say, “Listen, we have no bread prepared. Sorry.”

Luke 11:6a ...for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey,... (ESV; capitalized)

It’s midnight, you are outside of a friend’s house, and you explain your situation. Another friend of yours has come to you from a journey. Obviously, he came to you in the middle of the night.

In the parable, there must be a pressing reason for making such a request late at night, so Jesus puts together a backstory for troubling a friend so late at night.

The problem is, your traveling friend has come to you at the middle of the night from a long journey, but you have no food to offer him. We will reasonably assume that your traveling friend is quite hungry.

Again, this is not something that we can easily relate to today. In most American homes, you open up the refrigerator and there is a lot of food there. In the ancient world, storage of food was much more of a problem; and there was no way to store prepared food for any period of time. Therefore, food was not kept around for a long period of time. Maybe a day, maybe, in rare cases, two or three days.

The conveniences which we have are relatively new, even though we all take them for granted. That is, when you are born, and you have X, Y and Z around the house; you take those items for granted. As far as you are concerned, those things have always been around the house (in the kitchen, there is a stove, a refrigerator and plates and silverware. From the moment of your birth, those things were in your house. Therefore, the invention of and the accumulation of those items is not any sort of an issue to you.

In the from the mid 1800s to the early 1900s people had literal ice boxes. That is, they had a place for food, and someone often delivered a big block of ice to place in that box to keep things fresher (this is before my time even). When I was born, we had what was called an ice box, but it was really a refrigerator. It retained that name for awhile from its previous incarnation which was an actual ice box.

So, even though this parable is somewhat dated to the modern reader, the idea is, you have a favor that you need to ask of a friend and your timing is bad. You are asking this favor in the middle of the night and he has no interest in granting you that wish at that time. Six hours earlier or sox hours later, and the favor would be no problem.

Luke 11:6 ...for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him';... (ESV; capitalized)

In v. 6, the person making the request makes his case for asking such a big ask in the middle of the night.

Luke 11:7a ...and he will answer from within, 'Do not bother me;... (ESV; capitalized)

The friend inside the house at midnight tells his friend outside of the house, “Listen, you are really putting me out here. This is a lot of trouble. Don’t bother me.”

Then he explains why. These are things that his friend on the outside is aware of, but they are repeated for us, the reader.

My guess is, when the door of a home was secured for the evening, that this may have been a more complicated process than it is today. Today, we flip the deadbolt; and we may set the alarm; and, in under 30 seconds, our home has been made relatively secure.

In the ancient world, this would have been more of a process; it would have taken time to close and lock the door; and it will be time to undo all of that.

Furthermore, they could not simply turn on a light in order to see what they are doing (there would have been candles which could be lit, but bear in mind, they did not have matches back then). So they would have to fumble in the dark to get enough light to see what they are doing.

Also, the friend inside the house complains, “All of my kids are in bed.” In that era (and in many cultures even today) the children and the adults are all sleeping together. For someone to get up and rustle about will wake up everyone in the household.

How many of the children might wake up and not go back to sleep? So granting this request upsets many apple carts, as it were.

The friend inside of the house says, “Listen, given the circumstances which I have outlined to you, it is a big problem for me to get up right now and grant you your request.”

Luke 11:7 and he will answer from within, 'Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything'? (ESV; capitalized)

The question mark at the end of v. 7 (in the ESV) is explained by the entire context.

Luke 11:5–7 And He said to them, "Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him';and he will answer from within, 'Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything'?(ESV; capitalized)

Jesus asks, “If you were in a situation like this, where you have a friend showing up in the middle of the night who is hungry, which of you has a friend who you might call upon, even though it is midnight?”

The context of this passage is prayer. Jesus has already suggested a prayer for the disciples to make. Now He is going onto a different aspect of prayer—perseverance on the part of the disciples.

Luke 11:5–7 Jesus then spoke a parable to them about prayer. He said to His disciples, “Let’s say that a friend of yours has come to you at midnight from a long journey and you have no food to serve him. So you go to the home of another friend and bang on his front door, saying, ‘Listen, I have a friend here from out of town and I am out of food. Could I borrow three loaves of bread from you?’ But your friend from inside the home answers you by saying, ‘Listen, this is too much trouble for me. My door is shut and bolted; my children are here with me in bed. There is no way I can get up and find this bread to give to you.’ (Kukis paraphrase)

This is the set up for what Jesus is attempting to teach His disciples about persistence in prayer.

Luke 11:8a I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend,... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus then points out something interesting. The friend inside the house at midnight is not raised up on account of his friendship with the man outside. That is not the primary motivating factor.

The word found here is anaideia (ἀναίδεια) [pronounced ahn-ah’ee-die-AH], and it means, persistence, shamelessness, impudence, importunity. Strong’s #335. The key meaning is persistence.

The friend inside will give the bread to the man outside because of the man’s persistence. He just does not want to keep hearing his voice and his banging on the door. He gives in.

The man inside does not get up and answer the call because of friendship; he does so because of the persistence of the man outside his door.

The man inside is awake, roused from his sleep, and because his friend outside was so persistent, he will give his friend whatever he requests. That is the only way to get him to cease making this request and to go away.

The homeowner decides, “Do I listen to him banging on my door for the rest of the night, or do I get up, give him what he wants, and then go back to bed?” The latter approach seems to be the most reasonable.

Application: The parallel is this. There are times, apparently, when God answers your prayers simply because you keep praying for the same thing. One might be cautioned to recognize God’s sovereignty and omniscience and to also pray, “If this is Your will.”

Illustration: There have been things in my life which I have wanted. However, considering such things years later, it was a good thing that God did not fulfill all of my desires in life. How many times did you want something, and you prayed for it, but did not get it—and then, five, ten or twenty years later, you remember that desire and thank God that He did not give it to you? For me, this is many times. God has, on many occasions, given me a glimpse of what my future could have been, had He given me what I wanted in life.

Luke 11:8 I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus says that this man gets up and honors the request not out of friendship but because of the other person’s persistence.

Luke 11:9a And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you;... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus is speaking to His disciples and he continues telling them about prayer. I would think that most of them when given the Lord’s prayer probably thought that was enough. But Jesus goes into much more detail.

Jesus is actually encouraging persistence. If Jesus said to ask one time, He would have used the aorist active imperative; but He instead used the present tense, which often means to keep on doing something (which is perfectly in line with the parable He just gave).

Illustration: God answers our prayers and He wants to answer our prayers, as this glorifies Him. In the early 1980's, I took my girlfriend at the time over to a house just built by a former roommate of mine, and I was amazed. I was totally knocked out by this house and loved it. Fast forward 10 years later and I find myself living in that same house. I don’t think that I prayed to live in this house, but it was pretty obviously in my own soul that I absolutely loved it. It was so far outside of my range that it was never a serious consideration. Yet, God had other plans.

There are things that we might seek after; and these might be material things, but not necessarily.

Again, there is some persistence involved, as Jesus uses a present active imperative, which suggests one continues seeking.

Now, this does not mean that, no matter what it is, if you keep asking and asking, God will give it to you. But, in some instances He will.

The more Bible doctrine that you know, the better your prayers will be and the more in line you will be with God’s plan. And the more doctrine that you seek after, the more you will receive.

Illustration: One of my consistent prayers—something I may pray for once or twice a week—is for the health and well-being of a person I know who has struggled with health problems for much of her life. I believe that God has, over the period of many years, answered this prayer (and continues to answer this prayer). I pray for this because I know that she is a blessing to many people that she has contact with.

There is a door, you want to have it opened; so you knock on it. Jesus said, “Keep on knocking and it will be opened to you.” These words hearken back to what He just taught about the persistent friend. He really needed the bread for a guest and he kept on knocking until his friend on the other side of the door acquiesced.

We might understand this to be a door of opportunity or an option which we might like in our lives or this can be intercessory prayer.

Luke 11:9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus encourages His disciples to remain in communion with God and to make all of their requests known to Him. And if it is an important enough prayer, you might find yourself repeating it many times to God.

Jesus assures His disciples that anyone who keeps on asking will keep on receiving.

I don’t know if there is a nuanced difference between this and v. 9a. It appears to be confirmation of what Jesus has just said.

Let me suggest this. You keep on asking for something, but God considers two things regarding your prayer. God is concerned about what are you praying for and also, what is the desire behind your prayer. For instance, you may pray to become a millionaire (or more); but your desire in this is to become financially stable. God may not make you a millionaire, but He may give to you the financial stability which you have requested.

Luke 11:10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus indicates to us that God will reward persistence. Or, God will honor our persistence. However, bear in mind that we may ask for one thing, but there is a desire behind that request. Many times, God answers the desire, but not the actual prayer.

Luke 11:9–10 I say this to all of you: ask God and He will give you what you ask for; seek after what He has planned for you, and you will find what you are looking for; knock and God will open up opportunities and options for you. Listen, the one who keeps on asking will continue to receive; the one who keeps seeking will keep on finding; and the one who knocks at the door, that door will be opened for him. (Kukis paraphrase)

Constant contact with God through prayer and persistence are keys to what Jesus is teaching His disciples.

One additional bit of information: when you pray for something, you may find that God provides you information which changes you. Again, with the praying to be a millionaire as an illustration: you may experience spiritual growth to a point where you realize that the amount of money that you have on your balance sheet is not necessarily a key asset in your life. At that point, you would probably cease making that prayer. However, you got something better than a million dollars—you received a doctrinal understanding of yourself and money.

In v. 11, there are several problems with the text. In the Byzantine Greek text (or the Scrivener Textus Receptus), Jesus asks three very similar questions in vv. 11–12. In the Westcott Hort text, there are only two questions being asked. The ESV has the second and third questions.

Luke 11:11a For who from among you [all], [if] the son will ask his father [for] bread, he will not give his son [lit., him] a stone [will he]? (Kukis mostly literal translation; from the Byzantine Greek text, the Scrivener Textus Receptus and Tischendorf’s Greek text)

Jesus appeals to the men around Him—the fathers—to consider their own dealings with their sons. “If your son asks you for bread, would you give him a stone?” is the question Jesus is asking, if we put all of this into the 2^nd person.

In the Greek, we have the negative m (μή) [pronounced may]. We may insert this into the sentence as a negative; or we can answer the question posed with a negative.

A Voice in the Wilderness If a son asks for bread from any father among you, he will not give him a stone, will he? The VW asks the question, and a negative answer is expected, but not stated.

Wilbur Pickering’s New T. And which father among you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Note that Pickering leaves out the negative altogether, but his question demands a negative response.

Jonathan Mitchell NT "Now [for] a certain [situation] from among you folks: the son will ask the father for bread – he will not give him a stone; Mitchell gives a fairly literal rendering, retaining the negative, but not posing this as a question.

Luke 11:11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent;... (ESV; capitalized; taken from the Westcott Hort text)

The ESV text, taken primarily from the Westcott Hort text, has one question in v. 11 and one question in v. 12. This is the second question in v. 11 for the Byzantine Greek text, Scrivener Textus Receptus and Tischendorf’s Greek text.

Luke 11:11b Or [if the son asks for] a fish, the father [lit., he] will not give him a snake instead of a fish. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The Lord’s question continues to the fathers among His disciples: “Let’s say that your son asks for a fish from you; would you give him a snake instead?” The obvious answer is no.

Luke 11:11 For who from among you [all], [if] the son will ask his father [for] bread, he will not give his son [lit., him] a stone [will he]? Or [if the son asks for] a fish, the father [lit., he] will not give him a snake instead of a fish [will he]? (Kukis mostly literal translation)

There are two questions which appear to be repetitive (which is reasonable, because Jesus is teaching a principle which can be given a multitude of illustrations).

Luke 11:12 ...or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? (ESV; capitalized)

The third statement/question is very much like the first two. The sons asks for something (an egg), and Jesus asks the fathers, “Would you give your son a scorpion instead?”

An Understandable Version gives us the note: While at rest a scorpion rolls up in a ball that resembles an egg. Now, I don’t know if that is true, but it may help with my interpretation below, which may not be what you are expecting. Would the father hand the son something which looks like an egg, but suddenly, it unravels and it is a scorpion instead? Obviously no father would do this.

The interpretation here can get quite tricky. Remember, the context is prayer and Jesus is setting up a common analogy between a father and son, comparing them to God the Father and the believer.

On the surface, it sounds as if when you pray for X, God is not going to give you Y. But that is not the way to understand this. Sometimes you will pray for, let’s say, an egg; but God realizes that egg would be a scorpion in your life. For that reason, He would not answer your prayer exactly as you would want.

Let me give you a situation that many of us can relate to: we are young, we meet a person of the opposite sex, and we decide, “This is it; I am head over heels in love.” And then, you start praying for that person. You pray like there is no tomorrow that God will give you that person as a husband or wife. Now, you may think that she is a tasty egg; but God knows that she is a scorpion. Do you really want to be married for the rest of your life to a scorpion? God knows that you don’t; and so, He sometimes answers your prayers with a firm and final no.

Obviously, this circumstance of being asked for an egg by your son has never come up in your life (where handing him a scorpion was some kind of option); but let me offer an up-to-date parallel, which would fit with the interpretation that I have offered. You are a father (or mother) and your child has just asked you for something sugary before dinner (cookies, candy, a piece of cake), and you offer him a carrot or an apple instead. You don’t want to kill his appetite; and you do not want him eating empty calories before a healthy meal.

Have you ever prayed for something; or simply thought that, you would really like to have something, and then it turns out that getting that thing could be quite problematic? Or maybe you get it, and it causes you no end grief. Have you been married to a scorpion and this was someone that you, at one time, believed that you truly loved?

My point being, sometimes when God answers your prayer with a solid no, that is the best thing that could ever have happened to you.

Illustration: I recall once applying for two possible jobs, but the job I was offered was my second choice—by a lot. God gave me my second choice. Many years later, I found out that my second choice was a much better fit and the best thing for me. In fact, during that period of my life, the location of the second job was my third choice of where I wanted to live. God gave me my second choice for a job (I had two potential choices for the job) which was in the city of my third choice in terms of location (I had three potential choices). God knew and I did not. God put me where He wanted me; and God put me where my life experiences would be best. This was a long time ago, so I forget exactly what I prayed, but to this day, I remember how I rated my options. God, being omniscient, knew what my best options would be.

In any case, I hope that these illustrations give you a more nuanced understanding of how to interpret this passage.

Luke 11:12 ...or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? (ESV; capitalized)

As a father, would you give your son a scorpion instead of the egg? Of course not!

Luke 11:11–12 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? (ESV; capitalized)

Luke 11:11–12 Is there any father among you that, if his son asked for bread, you would give him a stone instead? If your son asked for fish, would you, the father, give him a snake? Or if your son asked for an egg, would you give him a scorpion? (Kukis paraphrase)

Jesus continues teaching His disciples about prayer. Jesus has just asked His disciples these questions:

At this point, Jesus brings the substance of his answer to a conclusion. He does this by asking another question.

Luke 11:13a If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children,... (ESV; capitalized)

Every person to whom Jesus spoke has a sin nature; all of them have sinned. Yet, despite their shortcomings, they know how to give good gifts to their own children. The right treatment of their own children is inherent in them. So, can we not depend upon our own heavenly Father to give us what is best for our lives?

Luke 11:13b ...how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus then asks the question, “How much more is the Heavenly Father able to answer your prayers, even to send you the Holy Spirit, if requested?”

The disciples have not asked for God the Holy Spirit; although the Holy Spirit is their provision as disciples, to draw upon. So Jesus is speaking about more than just prayer here. He is telling His disciples, “You need to ask for the Holy Spirit.” The Holy Spirit would empower the disciples during this period of time, and they could ask for the Spirit.

Just so there is no misunderstanding, even though we are God’s disciples, we do not ask Him for the Holy Spirit. We are given the Holy Spirit at the point of salvation (1Corinthians 3:16 12:13). When we are out of fellowship, we have quenched the Spirit; but when we name our sins to God, He restores us to fellowship and the Holy Spirit (1John 1:9).

In the Church Age, we can quench the Holy Spirit, but we cannot lose the Holy Spirit (as was possible in previous ages—Psalm 51:11).

Luke 11:13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!" (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus, speaking specifically to His disciples, points out that they, being evil, know how to give good gifts to their own children. “How much more will God the Father give you the Holy Spirit if you ask Him!” Hint: you need to ask for the Holy Spirit (Jesus’ disciples need to, not us).

What About the Parallel Passage in Matthew?

Among the translations, one of them in a footnote suggests that Luke edited Jesus’ words in order to make a point. I can guarantee you that Luke did not ever edit the Lord’s words. If Luke was given the report that Jesus said, “X, Y and Z;” Luke would not have decided to write, Jesus said, “X and Y.” Luke never had the thought, “No one really needs to know about that Z thing that the Lord talked about.”

This passage in Luke is similar to, but not the same as what is found in Matthew 7:7–11 "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father Who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! (ESV; capitalized)

Now let’s compare to this passage: Luke 11:9–13 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus is teaching the same principle, but to two difference audiences. In Matthew 7, Jesus is speaking to those gathered around Him for the sermon on the mount. In Luke 11, He is teaching His disciples, to whom He would give the Holy Spirit (He continues to answer the question asked of Him by one of His disciples in Luke 11:1). Quite obviously, like any other pastor-teacher, Jesus repeated Himself. Obviously, He could have spoken just about nonstop throughout His public ministry without repeating Himself, but repetition is necessary in teaching.

Application: On many occasions, I have gone back and listened to lessons by R. B. Thieme, Jr. 30 and 40 years after the first time I heard that same lesson. There is always a wealth of information to be found—and always material that I did not understand as well the first time through.

We suddenly go from Jesus speaking to His disciples about prayer to this next narrative. The two narratives are not really tied together in any way. Luke simply uses the kai conjunction, which means, and, even, also; but. Strong’s #2532.

In other words, this is a brand new narrative, unrelated to the previous narrative in sequence or subject matter.

This new narrative is parallel to an incident described in Matthew 12:22–30, 43–45. When we complete this particular narrative in Luke, we will look back on the Matthew narrative.

The construction of this phrase is quite interesting. The word mute is an adjective taking the place of a substantive, referring to a mute person. However, where we would expect the ablative case, we have the nominative case. The ablative case would mean that this reads, from a mute person. The nominative case is the case of the subject, but the mute is clearly not the subject; Jesus is the One acting on this man, casting out the demon from him. It is an odd way to construct the sentence. Perhaps this is the way that narrative was originally recounted to Luke (recall that Luke put together his biography of Jesus based upon people who were there and recounted these events).

Luke 11:14a Jesus [lit., He] was casting out a demon [from] a mute,... (The word from would have been inserted had this been an ablative case.)

We might understand this to mean, Jesus was casting out a demon [who made his human host] mute...

Bible in Worldwide English Jesus was driving a bad spirit out of a man who could not talk.

Easy-to-Read Version–2008 One time Jesus was sending a demon out of a man who could not talk.

Luke 11:14b When the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke,... (ESV; capitalized)

It appears that there are a crowd of people near there, observing what is happening. They are not mentioned until the next phrase. The idea is, their thoughts, opinions and observations are just not very important. They will appear to be on positive signals at first, and then one of them will suggest something absurd, and the others will all grab on to his absurd theory. That reaction reveals that the people are negative toward Jesus Christ.

The other idea here is, Jesus is not doing this for a crowd. He did not look over at this crowd and say, “Hey, guys, look over here; watch this!” What He was doing was separate from the crowd, people who happen to be nearby.

Nearly everyone knows that this mute is mute. He is well-known among the crowd that is watching Jesus. So that is why they have the reaction that they do.

A crowd of people are watching what Jesus is doing—apparently unsolicited by the Lord—and when the see the demon go out of the man (we don’t know exactly what they see, but they seem to understand that a demon is cast out of the man) and then the man speaks. This amazes them. In fact, there are three responses to this miracle of casting out a demon, and the first response recorded are those who are amazed. We don’t know if they responded by believing in Jesus—it seems likely that some of them did. But simply the fact that these people are amazed is not the same as saying, they then placed their faith in Jesus. If you have ever seen Penn and Teller perform, you might be amazed. But this does not mean that you place your trust in them.

Now, I suspect that there is a lot more going on than what Luke records here. The man was possessed by a demon, so it is my guess that his actions were often unusual and off-putting. He probably exhibited some unusual behavior, but all that Luke mentions is the fact that this man is mute and, suddenly, he speaks. There may be a change in other behaviors, but Luke focuses on this particular one.

The crowd is amazed when they see this man speak. Obviously, they know that the man is a mute. And, if there was any unusual behavior, that has also stopped.

In many instances of Jesus casting out demons, the person has the demon for a long enough time for that to define him. This man could have been like this for months or even years. Everyone who knows this man knows that he is mute and that this is a demon-induced ailment.

Luke 11:14 Now He was casting out a demon that was mute. When the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke, and the people marveled. (ESV; capitalized)

Even though the ESV provides a confusing translation, the original text is somewhat confusing.

Luke 11:14 Jesus [lit., He] was casting out a demon [from] a mute, and it happened [that] the mute spoke [as] the demon was going out. The crowd [of people] were amazed [by this]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

People are there, observing this, and they are quite surprised when the man speaks. It is not clear if anything else was actually observed, but what caught the attention of the people there was that this man spoke.

There is something else which is going to be illustrated here. This is a crowd of people—we don’t know why they are there, but they are probably not followers of Jesus (given the things that they say). They might be more curiosity seekers or people who like to see magic. So, they hear that Jesus is in town and they go over to watch Him perform, so to speak.

This could indicate positive volition, but not necessarily. We all come to the Lord in a variety of ways, so even a curiosity seeker might believe in Him and be converted. However, as some of these men are looking on with interest and wonderment, one of them speaks.

He is going to say something which has no foundation in fact. There is no evidence whatsoever for what he says. However, his assertion is enough to tip the balance of the crowd. They saw Jesus do something that was amazing, they are wowed; but, they will hear this false accusation, and, their minds are no longer captivated by the Lord.

This is as if a crowd is wowed by a trick performed by Penn and Teller, and then someone says, “Here’s how they did it.” And suddenly, all of the magic is gone.

Luke 11:15b ..."He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the prince of demons," (ESV; capitalized)

“Listen,” the unnamed man says, “here is what is happening: Jesus is having Satan cast out these demons to get our attention and to sway us.”

Is there any evidence of this? Does the man have a specific reason that he makes this claim? No and no.

Illustration: Have you ever seen a well-known person brought down by an accusation? Have you ever heard anyone accused of something, and, after that, you could not look at him or view him the same way? All of a sudden, the sheen is gone off this person. People make such accusations and sometimes these accusations completely destroy the reputation of a person; and the accusations are made without any foundation whatsoever.

Illustration: This is done in politics all of the time. Huge numbers of people vote for or against a person based upon general impressions (such impressions do not have to be true in order to influence an election). Politicians adopt meaningless slogans and, if the slogan is good enough, many will attach themselves to that politician. I asked a friend of mine, a college-educated woman, why she had voted for Barack Obama, and she gave me the explanation, “Hope and change.” Along the same lines, if a person can be labeled or associated with a strong negative, there are many who will not vote for him (or her). Sarah Palin, a very influential vice presidential candidate, became associated with the words, “I can see Russia from my house.” A comedian said those words, not Palin (Palin knew exactly where Russia was in relationship to Alaska, and they are much closer than most people realize). What the comedian said was based upon Palin accurately pointing out that you can see Russia from the state of Alaska. This and one or two other things attached themselves to Palin, and I can guarantee that many sway voters voted against her because of those associations.

In this case, this is all that was needed to sway the people there. Someone makes the claim, “Here is how He cast out that demon; He just told his buddy Satan to do it.”

Another illustration: In 2016 (I write this in 2020/2023/2024), our president (President Trump) was accused of having a close relationship with President Putin of Russia. The accusation was, Putin had something on Trump, to blackmail him with, and Trump would do Putin’s bidding. MSNBC notwithstanding, there was absolutely no proof of this, and an investigation was launched without having any foundation for the investigation in the first place. What happened was one of the most un-American things I have ever seen. The president was accused, without any evidence whatsoever (the evidence that was presented was phony and developed by the opposite party), and a year and a half was devoted to trying to find anything at all the would damage the President. Even though these were the actions of the opposite party, the primary news outlets presented the case with great bias. I don’t know what the percentages are, but I suspect that at least a third of the population of the United States takes it as a fact that Putin had some sort of control or undue influence over President Trump—although millions of dollars and hundreds (?) of witnesses were brought forth, none of whom could verify any of the accusations.

Illustration: So one party accused the leader of the other party of things he did not do, and I have no doubt that this swayed millions of people against the President.

Illustration: What is clear to me in United States elections is, a person’s competence or record affects the opinion of some people (I personally changed my own mind about Donald Trump when I began to see what he actually did as president). However, for many elections, the most minor thing which is said; the most outlandish accusation is made, and such loose talk is often rewarded with enough of a vote swing to change an election.

Illustration: I have heard the absurd comment that some people would vote for a president if he is the kind of guy you would like to get a beer with. This has so little to do with a president’s function; and yet, there are people who actually make a choice based upon this silly metric.

Luke 11:15 But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the prince of demons,"... (ESV; capitalized)

This is what happened here. A few people stood up, and made this accusation—an accusation which has no foundation in fact. Suddenly, all of those who were just amazed by what Jesus had done, were now skeptical about Who He is and what He did.

This absurd claim came right out of left field, with absolutely no evidence at all. It was simply an accusation.

Luke 11:16 ...while others, to test Him, kept seeking from Him a sign from heaven. (ESV; capitalized)

A few persons got the crowd fired up, and then those in the crowd began to demand that Jesus provide them a sign—from heaven—to prove that He was not in league with Satan.

What Jesus did at this point was quite amazing; even though the accusation made had no foundation whatsoever. These men saying, “Give us another sign from heaven,” were not there prepared to change their minds. They simply wanted more to see. There is no indication in this record that Jesus obliged them.

Another way to express what is happening here is, a little leaven, leavens the whole lump. All it took was a few people expressing some off-handed idea, and the crowd turned against the Lord. In their opinion, He now owed them proof that His power is from God.

Application: Let’s say, one day, you begin to doubt God. If you look up in the sky and say, “Okay, God, if You are real, I want to see the tree over there fall down. You’ve got 5 seconds.” What’s going to happen? About 99.999% of the time, nothing. You are being an idiot. We don’t get to tempt God; we don’t get to tell God that He must prove Himself to us or to those we know. That is what was happening with this crowd.

Luke 11:16 ...while others, to test Him, kept seeking from him a sign from heaven. (ESV; capitalized)

Although the people were amazed that a formerly mute person was made able to speak, the off-handed remark of a few of the observers was enough to turn people against the Lord.

Luke 11:14–16 Jesus was casting out a demon from a man who was mute, while a crowd of people watched. They heard the man speak as the demon went out of him. At first, the people were quite impressed by what they saw, but then, a few persons from that group spoke out, saying, “He is casting out demons by the power of Beelzebub, the prince of demons.” Then others began to tempt the Lord, actually believing this accusation, and then demanding that He provide them a sign from heaven. (Kukis paraphrase)

Jesus legitimately cast a demon out from a man who was previously mute. He began to talk and many people who observed this were quite impressed. However, all it took was an unsubstantiated remark to turn their piqued interest into misgiving. That is because the people there were negative toward God and toward His Son. So even witnessing a great work was not enough to change them.

Luke 11:14–16 Jesus [lit., He] was casting out a demon [from] a mute, and it happened [that] the mute spoke [as] the demon was going out. The crowd [of people] were amazed [by this]. But some from among them spoke [out, saying], “He is casting out the demons by Beelzebub, the prince of the demons.” Then others [began to] test [Him], demanding a sign from heaven. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Despite being amazed by a great work, the people there were easily swayed by the words of some others who are there. They saw a miracle with their own eyes, and yet, chose to believe the words of a few bystanders (these bystanders were pharisees, which Matthew points out in Matthew 12:24).

Illustration: You may be listing the achievements of President Trump to a skeptic, and then that skeptic, in a rebuttal states, “Well, he’s in league with Putin.” And that silly remark—which is completely weird and untrue—is equivalent in that person’s mind to any good thing that Trump has ever done.

Jesus has just cast a demon out of a mute man, and the man has begun to speak. There were some people watching Jesus, and, at first it appeared as if they were responding to this miracle with positive volition. But some pharisees suggested that Jesus was operating under the power of Satan himself. Then others wanted Jesus to show additional signs from heaven, so that they might be assured of His divine power.

Whereas the first objection was raised verbally, we do not know about the request which followed. It seems logical that a desire for another sign would have been voiced aloud.

Nevertheless, the idea that Jesus used the power of Satan—that accusation was voiced aloud. Therefore, in order to make the argument that Jesus makes, it is not necessary for Him to know the hidden thoughts of the persons making that accusation. It is, however, necessary for Jesus to understand the reasoning of these people, which is not something that is supernatural. Jesus simply listened to what was said and He fully understood the argument that was made (this was more of an accusation than an actual argument). This argument, without any basis in fact, was accepted at face value by many of the others who are there.

Only a few people made this false allegation; but many others there have now accepted this accusation as probably being true. Because this was said by pharisees, many of the people there simply accepted their opinion on the matter.

Accordingly, Jesus is going to respond to the reasoning or thinking of them all. However, He is not going to perform better miracles for them. He is simply going to provide a better and more logical counter-argument.

At this point, let me suggest that I know your reasoning. You have read these statements, but then you read your Bible (whatever translation that you like) and it says, thoughts. So, to your way of thinking, Jesus is reading their minds. Well, first of all, He does not have to read their minds, because the allegation was made out loud (v. 15). Jesus can look at the people there, having heard the accusation, and He can tell that they are buying into that accusation. That does not require Him to read minds; it simply requires Him to listen and to be people-smart, which Jesus is.

The word in question is the masculine noun dianoêma (διανόημα) [pronounced dee-ahn-OH-ay-mah], which is a compound noun made up from two Greek words: (1) diá (διά) [pronounced dee-AH], which means, through; with; in; of time; throughout; during; by the means of; by reason of; on account of; because of, for this reason; therefore; on this account. Strong’s #1223; and (2) noéô (νοέω) [pronounced noh-EH-oh], which means to think, to understand, to perceive. Strong’s #3539. Putting the two words together, this is something which is thought through; that is, reasoning, logic, deductive thinking. There already is a noun which means thinking; but this has more to it than just thinking. The people had to be leaning in one direction, they hear a simple explanation, and this tilts them in the other direction. Strong’s #1270.

In order for Jesus to refute this false argument, He must first understand what the argument is (which He does, as we are told that Jesus knows their reasoning). He must understand their reasoning, their logic, their deduction which has allowed these men to be swayed by a false statement. By first understanding their argument, He can present the opposing view (which is the truth).

Luke 11:17a Jesus [lit., He], knowing their reasoning,... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Application: On occasion, we will be called upon to defend our faith. This requires two things of us: we must first understand our faith and how it is rooted in history and reality; but secondly, if we are defending our faith to someone else, it is also important to understand their arguments, their point-of-view. In many cases, it is legitimate to think about what the other person has said and then respond to that.

Luke 11:17b ...said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste,... (ESV; capitalized)

Kingdom might be a somewhat dated term. It might be better to understand this as meaning, a nation that is in opposition to itself will fall.

Illustration: It has been argued by many that the United States will not fall simply because it is attacked by an outside power, but that it will fall apart from the inside first. Despite the great blessings our nation enjoys, it is clear that there are a considerable number of people living in the United States who believe that this is an unjust nation founded upon racist principles. That sort of thinking could not be more foreign to the believer with Bible doctrine in his (or her) soul. This is insane thinking to the person who thinks with a divine establishment point of view. Hence, we may be a nation divided against itself.

As an aside, I believe those who oppose and hate the United States are a relatively small number of people; but large enough at this time to be disconcerting.

Jesus then argues something more close to home: “A household divided against itself will fall.” He is not talking about the physical structure of a household, but the people who make up that household. If they are at odds with one another all of the time, that family will split apart. They will sever ties with one another. Some American families have experienced this split.

Luke 11:17 Jesus [lit., He], knowing their reasoning, said to them, “Every kingdom [that is] divided against itself will be laid to waste; a house [divided] against itself [lit., house] will collapse. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Abraham Lincoln, our 14^th president, used these very words in a speech. I am assuming that he followed the King James Version.

Luke 11:17 But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a divided household falls. (ESV; capitalized)

If Satan has one set of demons entering into people; but then has other of his workers casting demons out, does that make sense? His would be a kingdom divided against itself.

Remember that Jesus is responding to an unsubstantiated accusation with reason and logic.

Application: When presented the gospel message, God allows us to use reason and logic to advance our propositions. Even though the unbeliever is encouraged to exercise faith alone in Christ alone, that does not mean that your presentation of the gospel should be devoid of logic.

Jesus then takes this same reasoning—suppositions which He has presented as axiomatic—and applies that to this false allegation.

The people there likely accepted the Lord’s premise, that a house cannot stand divided against itself. This has been accepted as so fundamentally true, that Abraham Lincoln. In 1858, included that thought near the beginning of a speech which he gave.

Tangent: Allow me a tangent here: people in the Church Age are often confused by our power. There are some who want to do miracles of some sort; and speak in tongues at the very least. But this is not God’s plan for the Church Age, post-canon period. God’s plan for our time is to learn and know Bible doctrine, and to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Having doctrine in our souls while being filled with the Spirit will be our impact in this life.

How did I jump to this tangent? Bible doctrine is an assemblage of words, which words represent thoughts and principles. We, as believers, are to have these principles in our souls. This thinking and these principles are our great power (as guided by God the Holy Spirit). It is the words that we have in our souls which is key to the Christian life. In the narrative we are studying, recall that just a few unsubstantiated words turns an audience against Jesus, despite just witnessing a great work. These words represent thoughts, and such thoughts give the skeptics reason to doubt Jesus.

Illustration: Why do you think that the United States is a great nation? It is based, in part, upon two very important assemblages of words. Our Declaration of Independence and our Constitution; along with the speeches of many presidents over the years. Now, on the one hand, certainly the nation is greatly blessed on the say-so of God. However, the thoughts and words which created this nation are based upon fundamental principles found in the Word of God (based either upon Bible doctrine or upon the laws of divine establishment). The great founding principles of this nation are completely in line with the laws of divine establishment. This is why the United States is great. We are not great because we have great wheat exports, or great technology, or we have elected these wonderful and great politicians. Our nation’s foundation was an alignment between the thinking of God and the thinking of our founders. When we adopt this same thinking, we are empowered. The correct assemblage of words is great power.

Illustration: Let me give you a simple example: Isaiah 33:22 For the LORD is our judge; the LORD is our lawgiver; the LORD is our king; He will save us. (ESV; capitalized) Compare to this our three branches of government (judicial, legislative, executive) created in the Constitution. God, of course, is able to do all three, because He is perfectly just. However, in the most practical terms, it is best of these three functions are kept separate in the design of our government (which is fundamental to the United States Constitution). I believe that some of our founders read these words and believed these to be the best division of powers among our leaders.

Illustration: Another founding principle of the United States is freedom. How many people have come to the United States simply to enjoy the freedom which we enjoy here? We can speak our minds; we can think our thoughts; and we can attend the church we believe is correct. Freedom in the Bible (aka volition) is key; remove man’s volition and he no longer is able to play a part in the Angelic Conflict.

Illustration: Sometimes it is the will of a single person that makes all the difference in the world. We are all certainly aware of the will of Ronald Reagan (whose will was bolstered by the will of his wife, without whom, it is doubtful the Reagan would have charted the path that he did). There is the will of Donald Trump, who began a movement simply on the strength of his will; and had four years in office which was all about his will and where he was going to take the country (I write this is January of 2025, so President Trump has not yet begun his second term). I named two presidents; but there is also R. B. Thieme, Jr. When he began as a preacher, he was nearly disowned by his father (who eventually did believe in Jesus); and he was, in my opinion, the greatest Bible teacher of the 20^th century. Who has ever taught the book of Revelation, or the Assyrian Crisis, or the Life of Abraham or the Life of David like Thieme did? Although Bob had a lot of support from his deacons and his congregation, he also faced a lot of opposition from those in his congregation. Another person comes to mind: Ruth Gruber, who brought nearly 1000 Jews from Europe into the United States in order to protect them from the evil that was taking place there. She had opposition come from everywhere, even from his closest allies, and yet she had a clear vision and understanding, and she did exactly the right thing, based upon her will alone (and her will was often pitted against much more powerful men in government).

Illustration: Now let’s take this full circle. Slavery is anathema to the founding principles of the United States because the free will of the slaves is taken from them. This was not always complete and total destruction of their freedom; but it certainly was not a pleasant experience. So Abraham Lincoln brought in the words of Jesus to speak to a great injustice that still existed during his time.

Tangent: No matter what you have heard from skeptics, the sort of slavery practiced in the early United States was against some fundamental Biblical principles. If a person was simply taken from his life and made into a slave (this is called kidnaping or man-stealing in the Bible), that act was illegal and punishable by death. Exodus 21:16

Illustration: Allow me another tangent: you will note that in many anti-American movements, the leaders of such a movement often attack statues of people who died a long time ago. The ancient sin of having slaves nullified anything that person did in his life. Therefore, anything that these people have said or did can be discounted. “Well, it does not matter that Jefferson said that; that bastard owned slaves!” This way, the thoughts and ideas of our founders can be dismissed without considering the content of their thoughts. One of the successes of this anti-American movement is, many of their adherents can be convinced that so-and-so was a terrible person because he owned slaves or his family owned slaves, and therefore, everything that person ever said or did is neutralized. This is one way a country can be destroyed from the inside out. Our country is founded upon great ideas; our country is founded upon principles which align with the laws of divine establishment; despite the fact that these founding principles came from the mouths and pens of imperfect men. Our internal enemies seek to eliminate grand thoughts and ideals of this nation and to paint its greatest men as being flawed. That is easy to do, because all men have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Jesus has been accused of casting out demons by the power of Satan. This would make Satan divided against himself, where some with his power are indwelling men as spirits; and others are casting these same spirits out.

Jesus’ reasoning is simple. If Jesus is casting out demons by the power of Satan, then Satan’s house is divided against itself. Satan would have his servants working at cross-purposes with one another. How does such a kingdom stand?

Luke 11:18a-b And if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus is saying, “You have accused Me of casting out demons using Satan’s power. Why would Satan use his power to have spirits indwell men, and also use his power to cast out the same spirits?”

Jesus repeats the false allegation. This is important for Him to understand fully the argument being made, to be able to express that argument, and then He specifically refutes that argument.

“You are alleging that I use Satan’s power to cast out demons...” Jesus is quoting back their argument to them.

Luke 11:18 And if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus states the counter-argument in full: “You are saying that I cast out demons by the power of Satan, but if his kingdom is divided and working at cross-purposes, how will it continue? Nevertheless, you illogically allege that I cast out demons by Beelzebul.”

Those who should have believed in Jesus had their minds swayed by an accusation, an assemblage of words impugning the Lord. Jesus responds with an assemblage of words, refuting such a position.

“So, for the sake of argument,” Jesus says, “let’s assume that I am casting out demons by Satan’s power and authority.” Jesus will take this approach to its logical conclusion.

Jesus begins with their argument. “Let just say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul...”

If there were those in the Jewish community who cast out demons, through whose power do they act?

This is an interesting approach because there are two ways to understand this: (1) such exorcists existed among the people of God and they did cast out demons, or (2) there were no people casting out demons apart from the Lord.

“If there are people out there casting out demons,” Jesus proposes, “are you saying that they all operate by the power of Satan?” Of course not! This would be an unacceptable point of view by the Lord’s critics.

However, there is also the second possibility that no one is casting out demons except for Jesus. Jesus by making this statement would be saying, “Listen, you do realize that I am the only Person doing this, right?”

Jesus seems to be arguing the first proposition that such men exist. These men who do cast out demons stand in judgment over the argument that was spoken by His critics. “You’re argument is invalid; otherwise, everyone who casts out demons can be accused of the same thing...working by the power of Satan.”

Luke 11:19 And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. (ESV; capitalized)

These men who cast out demons—they would be the judges of the people making these false accusations against Jesus. If such men exist, they are judges in the sense where, if their works are accepted as legitimate, then why aren’t the Lord’s? And if such men do not exist, that is also a judgment against the people falsely accusing the Lord.

You will note that Jesus makes a reference to their sons. So, the people there believe that, in the future, their sons will be able to cast out demons. “If you say that I am casting out demons by Beelzebul, how about your sons in the future?”

Luke 11:20a But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. (ESV; capitalized)

In the alternative, Jesus is acting by the power of God (this power is not God’s arm or even God’s hand, but God’s finger—indicating that very little divine power was required here).

Throughout the ministry of Jesus, He credits His power and function to God, His Father. At this point in time, it is my opinion that all miracles done by Jesus were done by the power of God the Father or God the Holy Spirit; but not by any inherent power in Jesus.

Luke 11:20b But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons [and it is], then the kingdom of God has come upon you. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus tells these men, “If I am operating under the most minuscule power of God, then the Kingdom of God is in your midst. It has come to you.”

This is a very sobering assertion. Jesus, standing before them, is the promised King, the Greater Son of David. He is offering the Kingdom of God to them. But do they understand that?

Luke 11:20 But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus is saying, “If I cast out demons by the finger of God, do you not realize that the kingdom of God has come to you?”

Let me remark on one more thing. Many people seem to think that Jesus, by His power as God, performed miracles, healed the sick and cast out demons. Jesus here is not saying, “I cast out these demons,” He is saying, “By the finger of God, I cast out these demons.” I would suggest to you that Jesus operated almost entirely within the confines of His humanity during his incarnation (and quite possibly, entirely). Don’t misunderstand me—I am not arguing that Jesus is not God—I am simply asserting that He did not resort to calling upon His Own Deity in order to do this or that. In staying with the plan of God, Jesus only did what God the Father foreordained.

Luke 11:17–20 Jesus, understanding their reasoning, said to them, “Every kingdom that is divided against itself will be laid waste; any house divided against itself cannot stand. So, if Satan is separated from himself and he is at odds with himself, how can his kingdom stand? You keep alleging that I cast out demons by means of Beelzebub, but if I cast out demons using Satan’s power, by whose power do your sons cast them out? Your sons, based upon this simple logic, judge you and your negative volition. On the other hand, if I am casting out demons by the power of God, then the Kingdom of God has come to you (and, in fact, it has). (Kukis paraphrase)

A house divided against itself cannot stand, is Jesus’ assertion. And some loudmouth in the crowd just said, “You are casting out demons by the power of Satan.” Jesus tells him, “Do you not see how illogical that statement is?”

We have been studying Luke 11:14–20, which says, Now He was casting out a demon that was mute. When the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke, and the people marveled. But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the prince of demons," while others, to test Him, kept seeking from Him a sign from heaven.

In a parallel passage, we find out that these making such a comment are pharisees.

But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a divided household falls. And if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. (ESV capitalized)

Jesus asks these pharisees, “Why would Satan act against himself?” Jesus’ conditional statement indicates to the crowd that the kingdom of God has come to them.

Unlike what we read on the internet, Jesus does not toss out some great insults, with the idea that penetrating insults win the argument. He continues to employ logic.

Luke 11:21a When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace,... (ESV; capitalized)

This is a parable. First, we have to understand what Jesus is saying, on the surface; and then we interpret that parable. A parable has two meanings: (1) it means exactly what it says; but also (2) there is a deeper, parallel meaning for every parable, and that deeper meaning is actually the point the Jesus is making. Everyone understands and agrees with the surface meaning (1). However, Jesus’ actual point is the parallel behind the story (2). Therefore, a person must think about (1) for awhile and then logically follow that to the parallel meaning. Then he understands what Jesus is saying.

Most of the time that Jesus teaches by parables, those who hear Him usually understand only the surface narrative. At a later time, if they are so motivated, they might think, “Okay, just exactly what was His point?” Positive volition would consider what Jesus said and probe it for the deeper meaning.

So, on the surface, we have a fully-armed, strong man is guarding over his dwelling and the possessions which are contained therein.

When the strong man guards his own dwelling—particularly when he is fully armed—then his possessions are safe. They are protected. This keeps on being true as long as the strong man is there guarding.

At this point, we do not proceed to some tangent or go down some blind alley; we simply accept the story at face value. We need to hear the entire story first.

Luke 11:21 When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are safe;... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus states what is common sense. A strong man may have many possessions, so that he protects them, guarding his palace, fully armed. Generally speaking, his possessions are safe.

Luke 11:22a ...but when one stronger than he attacks him and overcomes him,... (ESV; capitalized)

However, let’s say that a stronger man comes along. He may come into the man’s dwelling (courtyard or palace) and he might subdue him. The subjunctive mood here suggests that the stronger man can choose whether or not to do this.

Luke 11:22b ...he takes away his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoil. (ESV; capitalized)

The stronger man will carry away the armor, upon which the original man trusted. If we are looking at this parable today, the strong man may guard his home with an AR15; but the stronger man is able to come in and take that away from him. Maybe the stronger intruder has a more powerful weapon.

The stronger man makes off with the protection that the strong man had along with all of his prized possessions which he was guarding.

Luke 11:22 ...but when one stronger than he attacks him and overcomes him, he takes away his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoil. (ESV; capitalized)

The stronger man can take away whatever he chooses to take away, and then give those things to his own friends. He is able to distribute these spoils (that is, the stuff he has taken).

Luke 11:21–22 When a fully-armed strong man guards his own dwelling, his possessions are protected [lit., are at peace]. But when a stronger man than him comes in, he might subdue him. His armor upon which the first man [lit., he] trusted, he carries off; and he [then] distributes his plunder. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

A fully-armed strong man is watching over his home and he is protecting the things within it. Everything is fine, and everything is safe because of this. However, if a stronger man comes along, he can take whatever he wants away from the first man. He can even take away what he was using as protection (in the ancient world, this may have been a full set of armor and weapons; in the modern world, in the USA, this might be an AR15). The stronger man can do whatever he wants with what he has taken.

That is what is taking place on the surface, and those listening to Jesus must admit, “All of this sounds reasonable.” But what is Jesus actually talking about?

Who is the fully-armed strong man? Satan. This is his world. Satan is in charge of the earth. Man was given dominion over the earth and all that was in it, but man succumbed to the temptations of Satan; and thus, Satan took over control of the earth. Satan has his own power and he employs the power of demons (such as the one who took over that man and made him mute). Satan also has the help of his apologists, like that man who accused Jesus of using Satan to cast out a demon.

Who is the stronger man? Jesus Christ. Jesus has come into the world and Jesus can choose to subdue Satan and his allies. Jesus did not cast out all demons; but He chose to cast out some of them (likely, demons that had control of those who would choose to believe in Jesus). Casting out this demon was an example of the stronger man (Jesus) plundering the strong man (Satan). Jesus is able to do whatever he wants with Satan’s demons and with the things over which Satan has dominion. Casting out this demon should have been proof of that.

At some point, all things will be placed under the control of Jesus, including all of His enemies (who will be made a footstool for the Lord’s feet).

The people there attempted to set up some sort an alliance between Jesus and Beelzebul; so Jesus tells them what the true alliance is:

Who or what is Jesus speaking about here? He is addressing those who witnessed this great demonstration of power—that He threw the demon out of the mute man (more accurately, God cast out this demon at Jesus’ request). This power only required the finger of God.

Now, these men may think that they are on the side of righteousness; and that they oppose Satan and his demon hordes, but they are not. If they are not with Jesus, then they are against Jesus (thereby, they have aligned themselves with Satan and his demon corps).

The Lord is warning those who believe that He is harnessing the power of Satan to work against Satan. To take this one step further, those who are against Jesus are for Satan. They align themselves with Beelzebub in opposing the Lord.

The word translated gathering had quite a variety of meanings. We choose gathering because it is the opposite of scattering, the verb which is in apposition to gathering. Gathering here could refer to the gathering of anything. However, here, the specific application would be the gathering of people who have chosen to believe in the Lord.

Luke 11:23 Whoever is not with Me is against Me, and whoever does not gather with Me scatters. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus has gathered one man as a convert—the mute man. A demon was cast out of him and we might reasonably assume that man now believes in Jesus. There are a crowd of onlookers, and you will recall, some of them said, “You cast out that demon by Satan’s power!” That man is not gathering souls for God, he is scattering them. The people with him—at first amazed by what Jesus did—now are reconsidering, based upon the allegations of a few. Those making the false allegations are scattering while Jesus is gathering. And those who align themselves with the ones scattering (by taking his allegations against Jesus seriously) are also scattering.

Luke 11:21–23 When a fully-armed strong man guards his own dwelling and courtyard, his possessions and household are protected. However, if a stronger man than him comes in, then this stronger man might prevail over him. Even the armor upon which the first man trusted, the stronger man will carry off, along with the rest of his valued possessions, which the stronger man will then sell or give away. Anyone who is not with Me is against Me; and the person who does not gather alongside Me, he scatters instead. (Kukis paraphrase)

Jesus gives a parable here, and I think that some of these parables are designed for people to remember, even if they do not get the gist of what Jesus is saying.

The strong man guarding his dwelling and courtyard is Satan. He is guarding cosmos diabolicus. The stronger man who will prevail over him is Jesus. Jesus will plunder the earth and prevail over Satan. Jesus demonstrated His power over Satan by casting the spirit out of the man who was mute.

Those who are not with Jesus are against Him. Those who do not gather up along side the Lord scatters instead.

Jesus either goes on to a different topic or the next passage is a different teaching session.

First, let’s look at the parallels this passage in Luke has with Matthew and Mark. Even though Luke was unable to chronologically place this passage, we have enough information to determine where it belongs. There are enough parallels so that we are assured these three authors describe the same incident.

Harmony of the Gospels from Life of Christ (Ken Palmer/Gary Kukis)
Event	Matthew	Mark	Luke
Jesus casts out a demon from a demon-possessed man. The man was previously a mute, but now he can speak.	12:22		11:14
The people react to Jesus healing the demon-possessed man, with some pharisees suggesting that Jesus casts out the demon by the power of Beelzebul.	12:23–24	3:22	11:15–16
Jesus’ counter-argument is, a house divided cannot continue to stand.	12:25–26	3:23–25	11:17–18
Jesus’ second counter-argument: by whose power will your sons cast out demons?	12:27		11:19
If Jesus is casting out demons by the finger of God, then the Kingdom of Heaven has come to the people of God. If the Kingdom of Heaven has come to the Jews, then Satan is defeated.	12:28	3:26	11:20
Parable of the strong man	12:29	3:27	11:21–22
Being with Jesus or against Him	12:30		11:23
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit	12:31–32	3:28–30	12:31
Jesus may have taught this (as well as many other concepts) on several different occasions. When we find three of more parallels given in the same order (Matthew 12:22–30 Mark 3:22–30 Luke 11:14–23), this suggests that these are parallel incidents/teachings.
If we were motivated to place Luke into chronological order, we have enough information to relocate this particular passage.
Good fruit/good tree.	12:33
“You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.”	12:34
Jesus called the pharisees a brood of vipers on many occasions.
“The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.”	12:35
“I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."”	12:36–37
The sign of Jonah; the condemnation from the Queen of the South	12:38–42		11:29–32
The return of the unclean spirit (is this a parallel?)	12:43–45		11:24–26

Between vv. 24–36, there are four recorded vignettes. The unclean spirit, the horsey woman, the sign of Jonah, and Jesus’ discussion of light. Each narrative is approximately four typewritten pages.

The first three vignettes took place at the same time; the fourth could have been an entirely separate incident (it was Jesus teaching, using the illustration of light).

We are in the middle section of Luke, where a number of Jesus’ teachings are gathered and presented. This middle section is not in any sort of chronological order. However, portions of it can be placed in a chronological order after the fact (we can place the next three narratives in parallel with the same narratives in Matthew 12).

What has taken place is, Jesus has done what is clearly a good work. He cast a demon out of a man who was previously mute. Now that man is able to speak. Although some unbelievers developed an interest in the Lord’s claims, this interest was derailed when some of the pharisees made the false claim that this miracle was done in the power of Satan.

Jesus has reasoned with the people on this topic, but He does not choose to try to outdo the first miracle with another better miracle. He has determined that doing that would be futile. Those around Him, for the most part, have chosen not to believe in Him

Luke 11:24a "When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person,... (ESV; capitalized)

At this point, Jesus is not specifically speaking of the man there—the mute from whom He just dispelled a demon. However, this general circumstance is probably given because the man who has just been cleansed has not yet accepted Jesus as his Savior.

The situation described is a general one, but, quite obviously, quite similar to what just happened. “There is this man, and an unclean spirit exits him,” He says.

The unclean spirit finds no rest. Fallen angels are inherently restless and unhappy. They cannot stay away from mankind. There is no place in the universe where they would rather be but around us. No group of fallen angels are hiding out in a galaxy five billion light years away, thinking that they might hang out there, separate from God. There is nothing for them anywhere. These spirits have a desire to change and affect man for the worse. No matter where this unclean spirit goes, it will seem barren to him, as if being without water (water is not necessary for angels, but Jesus says this for the benefit of those hearing Him, who now better understand what the fallen angel is going through).

I could not tell you exactly how this feels to a spirit,. But, you can imagine being in a desert region without water, while your dream is to be in the middle of an oasis or to be drinking a massive glass of cold, clean water. This is more or less the way a fallen spirit feels, on whatever level they experience their own existence.

The fallen spirit looks everywhere and it cannot find any rest. There is no place a fallen spirit can go where it feels happy and refreshed. I would suggest that this is true for all fallen spirits.

Luke 11:24a-c "When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places, seeking rest and finding none... (ESV; capitalized)

Fallen angels can easily go off and be a part of some static experience. If they go to a planetary system with a sun and various planets and moons, they can observe natural phenomenon take place. It might be interesting for a few hours or even a few hundred years; but there is nothing to keep them there. They must involve themselves with man.

Let me try to explain why. No doubt, you have binge watched a portion of a series. Perhaps you watched three episodes back-to-back, and half of your day is gone. But the episodes were so involving that you had to watch the next one and then the one after that. This is what is taking place with angels here on earth. They are watching the greatest miniseries ever written—the history of mankind. They cannot stop watching.

Luke 11:24d ...it says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.' (ESV; capitalized)

The unclean spirit takes stock of its own existence and realizes that he had it pretty good inhabiting the person that he went out of.

Now, if that person is regenerate, then this is not an option for the unclean spirit. Anyone who is regenerate could not be inhabited by a fallen spirit. A person who was previously possessed and had the spirit cast out and then believed in Jesus—that person cannot be inhabited again. However, if such a person did not choose to believe in Jesus after the spirit was thrown out, that person’s body is potentially inhabitable.

I would assume that Jesus is saying this with the mute standing right there, nearby. Even though this portion of Scripture is not clearly associated with a time and place by Luke, what we are studying is parallel to Matthew 12:43–45. Matthew is likely in Chronological order throughout, and we have seen recently on a chart how this portion of Luke is in parallel with Matthew 12. See the Harmony of the Gospels Chart in the Luke Introduction. (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

The method by which the unclean spirit reenters the body of this man is not given. I would assume that this requires the volition of the victim as well.

Luke 11:24 "When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and finding none it says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.' (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus explains that the restlessness of an unclean spirit would be like a thirsty man traveling through a desert region where there is no water to be found. He has to move on and find water; he cannot remain in this waterless place.

Luke 11:25 And when it comes, it finds the house swept and put in order. (ESV; capitalized)

The unclean spirit returns to the man and inspects his soul. We do not know exactly how a spirit is able to inhabit a person, but this appears to be similar to you or I going into a house. The spirit looks the situation over. The man has not been re-infested by another demon; and he is relatively clean inside, as if the house had been swept out and made ready.

Luke 11:25 And when it comes, it finds the house swept and put in order. (ESV; capitalized)

What has taken place is the fallen spirit was cast out by Jesus; and the previously-possessed man has put some of his life in order, but he is not born again. A born again believer cannot be possessed by an unclean spirit.

Luke 11:26a Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself,... (ESV; capitalized)

The unclean spirit does not simply enter into this man; it finds seven more spirits, more evil than himself, and they all enter in together.

This is also an interesting statement. This suggests that there is some sort of relative evil among fallen angels.

In order for this to take place, the man from whom the demon had been cast must not be regenerate. That is, despite having a demon cast out of him, he has not believed in Jesus. Therefore, by whatever means, he remains susceptible to the demon re-entering him. In fact, the demon returns with seven additional demons who are even worse than he is.

When we believe in Jesus Christ, then we cannot be indwelt by anything other than the Holy Spirit. No demon can indwell a believer (but demons can influence believers in their thinking).

The original fallen spirit and these seven unclean spirits all enter into the man. Because the man is unregenerate, he is apparently fair game. That is, fallen spirits, under certain conditions, can reenter the unregenerate person.

Luke 11:26c And the last state of that person is worse than the first." (ESV; capitalized)

This man’s state of being is now worse than it was before. He is now indwelt by eight demons.

I would think that this previously mute man might speak up and say, “Jesus, how can I keep this from happening?” However, that is not a part of this narrative.

Luke 11:26 Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last state of that person is worse than the first." (ESV; capitalized)

We do not know exactly the process involved in a demon spirit entering into a person, but it seems that the volition of the man must be somehow engaged to allow for this. God would have to allow this to take place as well.

Luke 11:24–26 You also need to consider this: after an unclean spirit goes out from a man, it finds itself going through some weary and barren places. It sought out some sort of rest, but it could not find it. The unclean spirit then said, ‘I will return to my previous residence from where I came.’ When it returns to the man, he finds his soul empty of other spirits, swept out and made ready. The spirit does not simply enter into the man, but it gathers with it seven more spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter into the man. As a result, the latter state of the man is far worse than the first. (Kukis paraphrase)

At this point, we may want to take a look at the parallel passage in Matthew 12:43–45.

This was certainly R. B. Thieme, Jr.’s favorite passage (or one of them). He taught it many times. This flies in the face of those who are involved in Mary worship in any way. Essentially, this horsey, loudmouthed woman stands up while Jesus is teaching and says, “Let’s hear it for Your mother! Obviously, she is a great woman who ought to be revered!” And Jesus essentially responds with, “Nay, woman!”

Jesus is teaching. This is the God of the universe conveying accurate information. Jesus spoke as a man, but accurately, about the Law of God.

What would you think of someone who suddenly interrupts Him, to give her opinion? There is a woman in the crowd who wants to give her take on what she is observing. She has got a point of view, and she believes that she needs to share it with everyone there.

Often, people came from all over to hear Jesus speak. No one had gathered to hear this woman.

Despite Jesus being one of the greatest teachers of all time; and being the most accurate teacher of all time; a woman interrupts Him, shouting out. Jesus did not look to the crowd and say, “Do any of you have an opinion that you would like to share now?” The women just believed it was time to call out what was on her mind.

This woman—R. B. Thieme, Jr. referred to her as a horsey woman—starts speaking directly to Jesus.

The greatest authority on the Law of God is speaking to this crowd, but this woman believes that she needs to stop everything, and give her opinion. She has a important piece of doctrine that she believes she needs to share.

The woman wants to give a shout out to Mary (she likely does not know who Mary is and could not pick her out of a crowd). The implication here is, “Now, this is who we ought to be celebrating right now, the woman who gave birth to you. She is the real star of this show.”

So apparently, even before Catholicism existed, there was a Catholic in the crowd. Before women’s lib existed, there was a women’s libber in the crowd. Before feminism existed, there was a feminist in the crowd. I say these things, but with the knowledge that, these points-of-view have always existed. What and how this woman expresses herself is not some brand new thing; this is not a point of view that no one has thought about before; this is not some brand new opinion. This horsey woman embodied all of these philosophies.

This woman is not specifically calling those particular parts of Jesus’ mother’s body blessed; but they stand in for the mother herself. The womb and the breasts are metonyms for the mother of Jesus. Who is happy and blessed (or who should be happy and blessed) is Mary.

Let me suggest again that this woman did not know Mary. She does not use Mary’s name; she does not refer to anything which could be directly tied to Mary specifically. The woman simply makes reference to those two things that were required in order for Jesus to be born, and then to be fed: a womb and two breasts.

It is as if she is saying, “Listen, Mister, You drew a large crowd here who want to hear You speak, but You would be nothing without Your mother.”

Luke 11:27 As He said these things, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts at which You nursed!" (ESV; capitalized)

So Jesus is teaching, and this woman interrupts Him in order to give a shout out to His mother.

So, does Jesus agree? Does He respond with, “O woman, right you are, to cite My mother. She is the reason I stand before you today.” Well, no. Jesus did not say this:

Jesus does not say, thank you, sister Lucy, for your profound thoughts; can I get an amen for sister Lucy? Instead, Jesus says to her, mehn-OON-geh.

Essentially, Jesus is saying this to get her attention, and the attention of the crowd, and bring them around to the proper set of values. Jesus is going to state a fact, and none of it will have anything to do with the womb and breasts of his mother Mary.

Luke 11:28b ..."Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus speaks of blessings and happinesses, the very word that this woman used. However, he uses this word in the plural, indicating multiferous blessings, and they will go to a specific class of people—those who hear the Word of God (being taught). This is what Jesus was doing. Everyone there potentially can have happiness and blessings because they are listening carefully to the teaching of our Lord.

Jesus, by His teaching, right then and there—teaching which this woman interrupted—was providing the basis for happiness and blessings to the people who are there. Even this woman, if she could have kept her mouth shut, would be on her way to a better life with a better attitude. But, she needed to listen to the teaching of the Word of God. That was the teaching which she rudely interrupted.

No one there is hearing the words of this woman and being edified by them. They are, however, as a group, being built up by Jesus’ words (at least, His teaching has the potential, depending upon their response to it).

This happiness and blessing continues to those who keep this teaching, meaning that they listen carefully to what Jesus is saying and remember it. This is the very opposite of this woman, who is not paying attention. She has something to say, and she waits for the one or two seconds that Jesus takes a breath, and then she shouts out what she thinks. She has been thinking about this for awhile, not concentrating on the Lord’s message, and she thinks this point is important enough to interrupt the Lord’s teaching.

Luke 11:28 But He said, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!" (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus tells her, “The great blessings come to those who are hearing Me teach the words and thoughts of My Father.” We might add that, had Jesus’ mother been in the audience, she could be blessed as well by Jesus’ teachings and not by the words of this horsey woman.

Luke 11:27–28 Then, right in the middle of Jesus teaching, a woman from the crowd shouted out, so that everyone might hear her, saying, “Happy and blessed is the womb that carried You and the breasts which nursed You.” But He said, “On the contrary, happinesses and blessing are for those who hear the Word of God and who keep it.” (Kukis paraphrase)

Jesus is teaching, and this woman has a thought. She waits for Jesus to take a breath, and she shouts out her own thoughts. “Your mother is blessed,” she calls out. But Jesus responds by saying, “Wrong; those who are hearing My words are blessed!”

Luke 11:29a When the crowds were increasing, He began to say,... (ESV; capitalized)

Things started to get interesting. Jesus cured a man by casting a demon from him, and He was countermanded by some religious types there, who just made up something right there on the spot. They claimed that Jesus accessed the power of Beelzebul (Satan) in order to do the miracle which they all observed.

Jesus danced logical circles around His accusers, all of whom attempted to sway the crowd. It is unclear whether Jesus convinced the crowd or not, but his logic was spot on.

Then a woman stood up in the crowd, apropos of nothing, and she begand eclaring the glory of Jesus’ human mother. Jesus shut her down as well.

People had not seen anything quite like this before, so they begin to gather around. There was already a number of people in Jesus’ periphery, but more began to gather.

Notice how the Voice embellishes this short narrative setting: Jesus was becoming more and more popular, and the crowds swelled wherever He went. He wasn’t impressed. Jesus was beginning to have large crowds. What pastor or evangelist would not take this as a great sign that he was doing good? In fact, often they would understand this to mean that they are doing great things for God! But Jesus understands why many of these people are here—they want to be entertained. Or they want something from Jesus (a cure). But they are not recognizing Who He is or what His message is.

How many people go to church today to feel good? To have an emotional experience that they are not ashamed of? That is not the purpose of church. We do not go to church to get worked up or even inspired (even though that can legitimately happen on occasion).

We attend church to learn the Word of God. Ideally speaking, the people gathered in great crowds around Jesus are there to hear the Word of God and to see their Savior. If you were to eliminate those who were not motivated by either of those things, and who would have been left?

Jesus had treated both sets of people that He spoke to rather harshly. But now, He goes full on against those listening to Him. “This generation is evil,” He says. The people that He is talking about are all around Him. So, this takes in the religious type with their made-up, unsolicited opinion, and takes in the loud-mouthed woman; but by saying, this generation, Jesus is including many or all of those who are now listening to Him.

Now, Jesus could, by appropriating the powers of His Deity, read the minds of everyone there and process this information in a split second, but I do not believe that He is doing that. I believe that He is looking into the crowd, reading their expressions, listening to the things which they say, and evaluating them based upon how He reads the crowd. It is even possible that people are shouting out other things to Him as well (the religious types and this woman all shouted out their false and evil opinions). We have been given two examples, but were these the only people to express an opinion?

Luke 11:29c It seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it... (ESV; capitalized)

Recall was has recently taken place. Jesus cast out a demon from a man, and the people there all acknowledge that this took place. However, some religious types in the crowd suggested that Jesus performed this spirit-dismissal by the power of Satan (they called him Beelzebul). Some in the crowd then said, “Show us another sign. Do something even more amazing to convince us.”

“You all, in this generation,” Jesus says, “want a sign.” After being accused of depending upon Satan to do a miracle, Jesus set those men straight. So, what did they want? “Give us a sign from heaven,” they requested.

“You want some kind of sign or miracle,” Jesus tells them, “but you are not getting one!”

Why not? These men are on negative signals. Jesus could do something, and one of the more recalcitrant of the group might pop up and say, “Listen, this is how He just did that. He is not from God.” And, because of their negative volition, they would believe the man (just as they accepted that Jesus cast out a demon by the power of Beelzebub).

They all knew who Jonah was, and they would have known the whole story. It was an unusual story. Jonah came to Nineveh to proclaim judgment upon them (he did not want to go to these Assyrians in the first place; he hated them). Nevertheless, the men responded positively. They believed in the Revealed God of Jonah, and, therefore, were saved. Not the outcome that Jonah wanted.

Luke 11:29 When the crowds were increasing, he began to say, "This generation is an evil generation. It seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah. (ESV; capitalized)

The generation of people before Jesus are evil because they have rejected Him and have ascribed His works as being empowered by Beelzebul.

Luke 11:30a For as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh,... (ESV; capitalized)

“Jonah was a sign for the Ninevites,” Jesus explains. Jonah had come to give them the good news of the God of Israel. Much to Jonah’s chagrin, they responded to Jonah with positive volition (yes, you read that right, Jonah did not want them to respond with positive volition).

Just as Jonah was a sign to that generation of Ninevites, so the Son of Man will be a sign to this generation (Jesus is the Son of Man).

Did Jonah do any miracles or amazing signs for the people there? As far as I can remember, no, he did not.

Jonah spoke to these people and they were ready to hear him. They believed in his God.

“I, the Son of Man, am a sign to you in much the same way,” Jesus is saying to them.

Luke 11:30 For as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. (ESV; capitalized)

The New American Bible has an excellent observation at this point: The “sign of Jonah” in Luke is the preaching of the need for repentance by a prophet who comes from afar. Repentance, by the way, is a change of mind. These people did not believe in Jesus, and Jesus is telling them, “Change your mind about Me.” (He is not telling them, change your minds about sin.)

Apparently, I will need to do a study of this book as well. I may put that into my schedule over the next few years.

Jesus has thrown an evil spirit out of a possessed man. The pharisees observing this credited this powerful act to Beelzebul (Satan). These words convince many who observed the miracle. Jesus has already told them that they should consider the sign of Jonah.

Jesus’ response to this accusation continues to something else this crowd needs to think about.

Luke 11:31a The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with the men of this generation... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus momentarily leaves the illustration of Jonah and speaks of the Queen of Sheba. She will awaken at the final judgment, right along with the people who will rise up in resurrection bodies at the same time.

The Queen of Sheba will condemn that generation. She responded with positive volition to the teaching of God (embodied in the teaching of Solomon). She has believed in Solomon’s God. The people standing before Jesus at this moment are not really that interested in what He had to say. They would certainly like some signs, just as I would enjoy watching some of Penn and Teller’s magic. But they did not believe Him to be the Messiah.

Luke 11:31c ...for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon,... (ESV; capitalized)

This woman came from the ends of the earth in order to hear the wisdom of Solomon. There was no one like Solomon of that generation. He wrote a great deal of the Old Testament (Proverbs, Song of Songs, and Ecclesiastes).

Luke 11:31d ...and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. (ESV; capitalized)

Then Jesus tells them, “Right now, right in front of you, is someone who is greater than Solomon.”

Jesus, as a person, is greater than Solomon. But what He will do is far, far greater than Solomon. The neuter singular comparative adjective here speaks of what Jesus will do in dying for our sins.

The Queen came from far away to hear Solomon’s wisdom; but Jesus is even wiser than Solomon and He stands before this people right now. Yet, they don’t see it; they do not get it. They certainly have no idea what He is going to do.

Luke 11:31 The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. (ESV; capitalized)

The Queen of Sheba, called here, the queen of the South, will rise up in judgment of the men to whom Jesus is speaking (to those who choose not to believe in Him). She will be a part of the redeemed but they will not be. Most of those in the crowd before Jesus have rejected Him.

Luke 11:32a The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation.... (ESV; capitalized)

At the final judgment, the men of Nineveh—those who responded to Jonah’s teaching—will rise up in judgment of the unbelieving Jews standing before Jesus. They will stand up in resurrection bodies at the final judgment. They will go into the Millennium; but many of the people standing before Jesus right now would not. Many of the people who had come to see Jesus did not believe in Him. They did not see Him as their Savior.

“Those men condemn you,” Jesus tells them. They believed Jonah; they believed in Jonah’s God; and they are saved.

This is actually quite insulting. The Queen of Sheba is a gentile. She will rise up and she will condemn the Jewish men standing before Jesus. This gentile will condemn these Jews. So will the gentiles of Nineveh.

Luke 11:32c ...for they repented at the preaching of Jonah,.... (ESV; capitalized)

“Here is what they did,” Jesus explains, “They heard Jonah’s teaching and they changed their minds. They considered what Jonah was saying and they believed in the God of Jonah.”

Repentance means, they used to think one way, and now they have chosen to think differently. They were previously heathen gentiles believing whatever such men believed in the past; but having heard Jonah, they believe in his God.

Luke 11:32d ...and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. (ESV; capitalized)

“But right now,” Jesus tells them, “There is someone greater than Jonah standing before you. Listen to Me and change your minds about Me!”

Luke 11:32 The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. (ESV; capitalized)

The men of Nineveh will rise up and stand in judgment against those Jews who are standing before Jesus, rejecting what God did through Him.

Luke 11:29–32 As the crowds were gathering [around Jesus], He began to speak, [saying], “This [particular] generation is evil. They keep on seeking a sign, but a sign will not be given to them, except the sign of Jonah the prophet. Just as Jonah become a sign for the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man [be a sign] to this generation. The Queen of the South will awaken for the [great end time and] judgment along with the men of this generation and she will condemn them. She came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and listen, [there is] One greater than Solomon [standing right] here [before you]! The men of Nineveh will rise up with this generation [at that final] judgment and they condemn them. You see, they changed their thinking [at hearing] the proclamation of Jonah; but listen, [there is] One greater than Jonah [standing right] here [before you]! (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The crowds gathering around Jesus have rejected the fact that he cast out a demon by the power of God, right in front of them. They did not doubt the miracle, but they decided that Jesus did not do this by the power of God but by the power of Beelzebul (Satan). Jesus calls these men an evil generation, and He warns them that the Queen of Sheba and the men of Nineveh will be raised from the dead by God and blessed; but these Jews will be judged instead.

The gentile Assyrians and the gentile Queen will all condemn the people to whom Jesus is speaking, because they responded with positive volition to the Hebrew God. And right now, the God of Israel is standing before this crowd of Jews, and they are not believing in Him.

Translation for Translators does a nice job with this passage, except for their misunderstanding of the word repent (which I fixed in this slightly altered translation): When the group of people around Jesus got larger, he said, “Many of you people who have been observing my ministry are evil. You want me to perform a miracle to prove that I have come from God, but the only miracle that I will perform for you is one like happened to Jonah. After Jonah was inside a huge fish for three days, God performed a miracle to restore Jonah. Jonah then went and testified about that to the people in Nineveh city. God will perform a similar miracle for me, the one who came from heaven. When you people have seen that miracle, you will believe my message. Long ago the queen from Sheba, far south of Israel, traveled a long distance to hear Solomon speak many wise things. But now I, a man who is much greater and wiser than Solomon, am here, but you have not listened to what I have told you. Therefore, at the time when God judges all people, the queen from Sheba will stand there, along with you people, and will condemn you. The people who lived in Nineveh city changed their minds when Jonah preached to them. But now I, who am greater than Jonah, have come and preached to you, but you have not changed your minds. Therefore, at the time when God judges all people, the people who lived in Nineveh will stand there with you and condemn you.”

The key was not how these people felt, nor was the problem not turning from their wicked ways (these were Jews and they tended to be very moral). The problem is, they were not believing in Jesus; they did not recognize Who He is and why He was there speaking to them.

Luke 11:33a "No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand,... (ESV; capitalized)

We must interpret this in the era in which it was written. When we think of lighting up a light, we walk through the door into a dark room, hit the light switch, and there is light. That was not the case in the time that this was written. The Bible must be interpreted in the light of the time during which it was written and, once that is understood, then it could be apply to us today.

In order to light up a room, a lamp or a candle was lit, and typically, that candle was placed into a holder and placed in a prominent spot in the room, that its light might go all over the room.

No one lights a lamp in the ancient world, and then puts that lamp in an unoccupied room nor would they place it underneath something like a basket or a crockery pot. The purpose of lighting a lamp was to provide light, not to hide it. The light is provided for those in the room.

Israel, through its unique relationship with God, had the light of the Word. God had given Israel knowledge and wisdom. God had revealed Himself to the Israelites in the Scriptures. When you know this information, it is not designed for you to know it and hide it.

Jesus, Who is standing before them, is filled with light. That is, He has assimilated all of the Scriptures; they are in His soul. Therefore, He is teaching them. He is making this light known to those around Him.

A lamp, in the ancient world, would be lighted, and then placed on a lampstand, which would be in a prominent place in a room. This is so that, people near the light will be able to see the light and all that it has illumined.

Sometime ago, I put two long rows of floor to ceiling shelves in my garage, with a walkway between them. Nearly all garages have but one light, a lone bulb in the middle of the room, and the walkway on one side of the far shelves and in the midst of these shelves was dark. Given how cheap it is to provide additional lights, I connected two additional lights on separate circuits, so that a person inside of the garage, with the garage door closed, has light and can see where he is going.

The Jews had the Word of God; this was light. The idea was, if someone was associated with a Jew, there should be light provided (spiritual light); there should be wisdom in their souls that they could share.

Jesus knew the Old Testament Scriptures perfectly, and during His public ministry, He was sharing the correct understanding of them. He was providing light for the people around Him by teaching them.

Although many Jews in that era were misinformed about their laws and regulations, they knew the Scriptures themselves, and should have recognized when Jesus taught them correctly.

It would have been wrong for Jesus to understand all of this information, and then, not to share it. He had this light and he shared the light with the world.

Luke 11:33 "No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus is filled with light. He is going to teach them truth. He is not going to hide His light from them. His disciples should have the same mental attitude. Just as a lampstand lights up a room, believers with the light of the Word of God should also be providing light to others.

The people of Israel had God’s light. They should not place this light in a cellar or under a basket. They should share the light of God’s Word with other nations and other peoples.

Jesus has just given two examples of the light of His Word being shared: Solomon shared his wisdom with the Queen of Sheba and Jonah shared his message from God with the Ninevites. In the latter case, God had to guide Jonah to the right path because he did not want to go to Nineveh. He did not want those people to hear God’s Word and be converted. However, what Jonah wanted was not what God wanted. It is God’s preference that every man believe in Him. God wanted them to have light and Jonah was to be the provider of that light.

Luke 11:34b When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light,... (ESV; capitalized)

When a person’s eye is clear and whole, then his body is filled with light. That is, the eyes provide the ability for a person to walk about in the world without bumping into things. However, that is what Jesus’ teaching here means on the surface.

Now, what is Jesus talking about? The Jews have been given the Scriptures and they have been given the ability to read and understand them. As long as their perception is not distorted by religion. When one’s thinking is distorted by religion (the eye is not whole), then they cannot understand the Scriptures that God has given to them.

Luke 11:34c ...but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness. (ESV; capitalized)

It may be completely light, with a clear sky and a bright sun, but a man whose eye is bad (diseased, not properly functioning), that man is in darkness. The light all around him is no good to him, as his eye is not functioning correctly.

Here is what is meant by all of this. God has given the Jewish people the Scriptures, which are truth, light and wisdom. If their thinking and perceptions are distorted at the beginning—that is, they are taught an incorrect and legalistic relationship with God and they believe that—then they cannot understand the Scriptures of grace (God was gracious to the Jewish people just as He is abundantly gracious to us).

If we in the Church Age have a mind which is corrupted by religion or by humanism or by some other system of human viewpoint thinking, then we may hear the Scriptures, but they mean nothing to us. We either reject them outright or we distort them.

I have occasionally frequented a Christian vs. Atheist webpage, and almost guaranteed, every time an atheist attempts to make a point based upon his interpretation of this or that Bible passage, nearly every time, they misinterpret the passage to begin with.

Luke 11:34 Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness. (ESV; capitalized)

The eye, in what Jesus is saying, represents our means of perception. We understand things according to our beliefs, which may or may not be related to our observations in life and our logical approaches to life. Everything that we take in colors what we take in and how we understand it.

In particular, the Hebrew people were being taught very legalistic systems of religion by their Hebrew teachers. As a result, the Hebrew people did not understand the Scriptures given them by God. They thought that they needed to earn or deserve God’s approbation; and others believed that they were automatically connected to God by birth.

This legalism distorted their perception so their eye was unhealthy. They heard the Scriptures read and explained, but it did not fit into their thinking.

Luke 11:35 Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus makes what could be perceived as a very unusual statement— “Make certain that the light is in you is not darkness.”

The Jews were given the Old Testament Scriptures. They heard the words of God on numerous occasions. These needed to be understood as they were given; not distorted through the lying lens of legalism.

The light is the truth of the Old Testament Scriptures; but the darkness is the legalistic distortion of same.

Luke 11:35 Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness. (ESV; capitalized)

How can light be darkness? They can read and yet completely misinterpret or misunderstand the Word of God, given to them by God.

Luke 11:36a If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark,... (ESV; capitalized)

If a person’s entire body is light, that means that their eye is whole and that there is no distortion. Jesus is assuming this for what he says next.

“Then your way will be completely lit, and you can walk about without stumbling,” Jesus says.

Luke 11:36c ...as when a lamp with its rays gives you light." (ESV; capitalized)

If a person’s eye is whole, then they take in the light that is all around them, and they can see. They do not stumble in the darkness. This can be day or night. At night, they have a lamp given to them for illumination.

The Hebrew people have been given the light of God in the Scriptures. This should guide them in the devil’s world.

More importantly, the humanity of Jesus Christ is standing right before them. He is able to fill them with light (that is, with wisdom).

Luke 11:36 If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light." (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus describes the ideal circumstance, that a person’s eye functions perfectly and they can move around in the light without walking into things.

The person with a good eye, walking in the light, can see everything. When a believer is mature, they not only see everything, but they understand most of it.

This middle section of Luke is one vignette followed by another. Some of them probably occurred close in time to some others (see vv. 27 & 37), and others are stories unrelated to the story which follows. .

What we have below appears to take us from Jesus’ previous teaching to Jesus being asked to have a meal at the home of a pharisee.

Luke 11:37a While Jesus was speaking, a Pharisee asked Him to dine with him,... (ESV; capitalized)

This does not appear that the pharisee politely waited until Jesus was done speaking. En + the locative can have a temporal meaning, and can be translated, while Jesus is speaking.

The pharisee did not simply ask Jesus to eat with him. He kept on asking; present active indicative. This present tense is linear aktionsart, meaning, he kept on asking. This suggests that the pharisee asked many times. You may recall that this has happened before. The fact that this man keeps on asking suggests that Jesus did not immediately jump at the chance to dine at his house.

There was also the possibility that these pharisees were devising a trap in order to capture the Lord. As I have suggested before, Jesus did not use His omniscience to determine what was going to happen next. He faced every situation just as we do. He did not know what was going to happen the next hour or the next day. A situation presented itself with many options; and then Jesus determined what He needed to do in response to it. When interacting with an individual, certainly Jesus could read him to some extent. Is this person truly interested? Is he positive toward the gospel? No doubt Jesus could tell that this invitation was not one from a man truly interested in what Jesus was saying (after all, he interrupted Jesus while teaching—apparently several times—in order to ask Him to a meal).

By attending this meal, Jesus is going to find Himself in the midst of a hostile crowd, of those who will criticize everything that He does, has done, says or has said. Although the pharisee asked a number of times, Jesus finally agrees to this meal. He agrees, knowing that He is potentially walking into a minefield. Jesus knows this, not from omniscience, but from various interactions which He has had with the pharisees previously. Furthermore, Jesus is able to get a read on this man making the invitation (by that, I mean, Jesus was able to determine his actual interest in what Jesus was teaching).

Now, was Jesus afraid? Was He simply avoiding an unpleasant situation? Jesus’ public ministry was all about presenting the gospel message to Israel. That message was, whoever believes in Jesus Christ shall be saved. Furthermore, Jesus would teach the truth of God, which is the Old Testament (Jesus lived during the Age of Israel). Many times, Jesus corrected the traditions which had become a part of the Jewish faith. What is the purpose of going before men who are, from the jump, negative toward the message of grace? They were not even interested in the truth for their dispensation, if that truth conflicted with Jewish tradition. In such a situation, Jesus is at best, casting pearls before swine.

Let me suggest that Jesus, a genius at reading people. Having been interrupted three, four or five times, He took a moment to scan the crowd for religious types. I would postulate that Jesus saw some positive volition. There were not light bulbs over the heads of the positive ones; but He could read their expressions. Jesus probably picked out two or three people of the religious types who actually had some interest in what He was teaching. For that reason, Jesus agreed to this meal. Jesus knew that this meeting potentially could be productive.

Jesus apparently agrees to this meal and enters into the man’s home and sits down. Actually He reclines at the table, as people did in those days. Those ready to eat would be laying on their sides around a low elevation table, their heads and hands were close to the table, their feet were a distance away. Given where men walked day after day, it is reasonable to place their feet the greatest possible distance from the table.

Luke 11:37 While Jesus was speaking, a Pharisee asked Him to dine with him, so He went in and reclined at table. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus, sensing some possible positive volition, goes to dine with the pharisee and many of his friends and associates.

Luke 11:38 The Pharisee was astonished to see that He did not first wash before dinner. (ESV; capitalized)

The pharisee was watching Jesus—and I believe that all of this was on purpose. The pharisee had heard a rumor and he wanted to see if it was true; or he just wanted to watch Jesus and see what He did in a social setting. They would call Him on anything that was amiss, which means, something that violated Jewish tradition (which they put on an equal scale as the existing Scriptures).

If you know anything about the translation from Greek to English, you would guess that the subject is the pharisee, which is followed by the main verb (to be astonished), which is followed by a present infinitive. You would have been correct for two out of the three.

The first verb is the aorist participle of eidô (εἴδω) [pronounced Ī-doh], which means, seeing, having seen, perceiving, discerning, knowing. Strong’s #1492. The aorist tense can refer to a point in time or to several points in time. This suggests that this pharisee had his eye on Jesus on several occasions, watching Him carefully, but he was not staring at Him (that would have been the present tense).

Then the pharisee is the subject of the verb thaumázô (θαυμάζω) [pronounced thau-MAUd-zoh]. This verb means, to wonder, to marvel, to be struck with admiration or astonishment. Strong’s #2296. Jesus has just cured a man who was mute by sending a demon out of him; and He has made some great theological points. But, you know what amazes the pharisee? Jesus did not wash His hands before sitting down (I should say, before reclining).

There is another interesting verb found in v. 38: the aorist passive indicative of baptizô (βαπτίζω) [pronounced bap-TID-zoh], which means, to baptize, to wash, to immerse; to do a ceremonial ablution, especially (technically) of the ordinance of Christian baptism. Strong’s #907.

Literally, this reads: But the pharisee watched, and he was astonished that [Jesus] did not first wash [lit., baptize] [his hands] before the meal. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

I have been studying the books of Exodus and Leviticus while doing the book of Luke, and one thing which has surprised me is, I do not seem to find the requirement that Israelites wash their hands before a meal. No doubt, you have heard the saying, cleanliness if next to godliness. That saying is not found in the Bible.

The Mosaic Law, although both restrictive and prescriptive, still allowed for a variety of personalities and day-to-day actions.

Now, I was raised to wash my hands before a meal, and I do. It is a matter of cleanliness and not spirituality. When I wash my hands, it does not have any spiritual benefit for me.

But I was led to ask myself, why did the pharisees come up with the rule to wash one’s hands before a meal; but God did not require it in the Law of Moses?

Let me suggest a few things here. First of all, a person who has been working all day with his hands might wash them as a matter of habit; they might do it as a religious rite; but Jesus has been pretty much just talking. There is nothing in the previous narrative to indicate that Jesus got His hands dirty by doing anything.

Secondly, washing in that era and before is much different than washing one’s hands today. That is, at best, in that era, one might dip his hands into a bowl of water that 5 or 10 others have already put their hands into (or more). Today, it is genuinely cleaner to put your hands under a faucet and wash them; but then, the end result of putting your hands into a bowl of water, sharing that water with 5 or 6 or 20 others, is that really a cleansing experience?

So, are your hands cleaner simply having attended to the chores and life that you had to lead? Or are they cleaner when they have been placed into water that 5 or 6 others have places their hands into? Reading this far into the narrative, this is where my mind went.

However, this is not really the issue for Jesus, at this point. He is going to approach the pharisee’s observation in a completely different way.

Also, it is possible that Jesus purposely did not wash in order to have a teaching conversation with the pharisees.

Luke 11:38 The Pharisee was astonished to see that He did not first wash before dinner. (ESV; capitalized)

Although the ESV translates the participle (seeing) like an infinitive (to see), this pretty much tells us what is happening.

Matthew 15:1–11 and Mark 7:1–16 describe a similar situation, but not the same one.

Jesus speaks directly to this pharisee. Even though Jesus is speaking specifically to this pharisee, this is some sort of a group meal. Therefore, Jesus was speaking so that others could hear.

The pharisee’s public appraisal of the situation—that Jesus did not wash His hands—would demand a public response.

Luke 11:39b ..."Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish,... (ESV; capitalized)

The pharisees emphasized what could be seen. I believe that the behavior that Jesus is referencing is certainly actual, yet has a deeper meaning.

Jesus uses the 2^nd person plural, present active indicative of katharizô (καθαρίζω) [pronounced kath-ahr-EED-zoh], which means, to clean. Strong’s #2511. The present tense is linear aktionsart, meaning, they keep on cleaning. An aorist tense means, the literal plates and cups that they are using were previously washed and were set out for use. Linear aktionsart means, the pharisees keep on washing them to the point of making a show of it, so that everyone saw that they had washed them.

This suggests that, while Jesus had sat down, the pharisees there were cleaning the plates and cups; and they kept on cleaning the plates and cups, making pretty much a public show of it.

This is the sort of thing that Jesus would do. He would take something that everyone knows about, that everyone can see; something concrete that everyone is able to see and to relate to. He would use this act to make a point.

This is indicative of their lives, which are on display as a show. They do things so that people might actually see them doing those things. Their overt righteousness and goodness is out there for all to see.

There is this long-standing illustration of doing good to others, of walking a old lady across the street. The pharisees would do such things with a flourish, offering out their arm very publically, holding up the other hand to stop oncoming traffic; possibly wearing some bright colored exterior garment so that all could see them. Don’t misunderstand me, I am not saying that pharisees actually did this; I am simply saying that, when they did good works, everyone around was made aware of what they were doing.

Luke 11:39c ...but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. (ESV; capitalized)

Then Jesus speaks rather harshly: “Your insides are filled with greed and malice.” So that you do not misunderstand what is happening here, your insides are filled with greed and malice; and my insides are filled with greed and malice. Since we are men, we are corrupt, we are evil; we have terrible greed and desires. This is how we are born, and when we are out of fellowship, this is what is going on inside of us.

Because Jesus attended feasts and went to the Temple and went into synagogues, He observed much of this behavior firsthand. He learned early on about religious legalism.

The pharisees have a nice, shiny clean exterior, but inside, they are filled with greed, covetousness, depravity and wickedness. This is what being a human being actually is. They have learned how to hide their inner being from others.

However, occasionally, as a society becomes more degenerate, people begin to wear their evil on the outside as well. This is what we are seeing today with Antifa and Black Lives Matter (I began to write this chapter in 2020/2023). Their anger, their hatred, their vicious callousness; their rioting and looting—and their self-righteousness—is all out there in public to be seen. Some might try to keep this hidden—by breaking the phone or camera of anyone filming what they are actually doing—but their evil and depravity within is on display when they act out their political stunts and theater.

Luke 11:39 And the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. (ESV; capitalized)

The pharisees have emphasized to Jesus the importance of washing one’s hands prior to eating. This is a long-standing tradition among the pharisees (Mark 7:3). Jesus speaks to them about the reality of their own personal corruption, which cannot be seen.

Luke 11:40 You fools! Did not He who made the outside make the inside also? (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus is telling them, “Listen, God made your bodies; but He also made what is inside of you—your soul.”

The implication is, God is just as concerned, if not more so, about what is happening on the inside. The problem with the pharisees is, their insides are corrupt, but they do not understand or believe that they need a Savior.

Luke 11:40 You fools! Did not He who made the outside make the inside also? (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus responds with strong words. The pharisees are only concerned with what can be seen. Jesus is suggesting that they give some serious thought to what is inside of them (meaning, what are they thinking and what are their motivations regarding Jesus).

Jesus has been inside this house just long enough to recline by the table, and already, one pharisee is lodging a complaint against Him. So Jesus talks not about this man personally, but about all of the pharisees who are there. He speaks in general terms, so that only those guilty of emphasizing the external are condemned.

V. 41 is somewhat difficult to explain, so we need to integrate that verse with the context.

A brief review of Luke 11:37–40:

Luke 11:37 While Jesus was speaking, a Pharisee asked Him to dine with him, so He went in and reclined at table. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus is teaching and a Pharisee interrupts Him several times to ask Him to dine at his home. Jesus eventually agrees and He goes in to recline at the table with them.

Jesus is aware that the pharisees have been a tough sell. They, who should know the Law and should be able to recognize Jesus, do not. This is because they are overly concerned with exterior things and because they have equated their own traditions with the Law of Moses. Because of that, it is more difficult for them to recognize Who Jesus is.

They invite Jesus to a meal to observe Him more closely and have a more intimate one-on-one with Him. If Jesus is speaking to a crowd of 100 or 1000, the pharisees find it difficult to insert themselves into the conversation. They are the experts and they really don’t know Who He is. But, if there is a meal with Jesus, pharisees, scribes and law experts, this balances out the odds in their favor.

Luke 11:38 The Pharisee was astonished to see that He did not first wash before dinner. (ESV; capitalized)

The first thing that the pharisees notice is, Jesus does not wash prior to a meal. Although there were cleansing rituals, washing with water that 20 other people have dipped their hands into the same water was only cleansing if your hands were covered with dirt. Jesus has been teaching, so this was not the case.

Luke 11:39–40 And the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. You fools! Did not He who made the outside make the inside also? (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus responds rather harshly to the observation made by the pharisee. First of all, this is not the way a guest is treated. Secondly, Jesus knows the thinking of these men, and inside, they are filled with lust and evil. Jesus tells them that they need to be just as concerned about their inner selves as they are with external things.

We have gone from Jesus being ask to dine with some pharisees to Him be criticized for not washing His hands, but now Luke talks about alms?

Luke 11:41a But give as alms those things that are within,... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus begins with the conjunction plên (πλήν) [pronounced plane], which means, albeit, save that, rather, yet, notwithstanding; moreover, besides, but, nevertheless; except. Strong’s #4133. This is followed by the words, the things.

Then we have the neuter plural definite article followed by a neuter plural, present participle of éneimi (ἔνειμι) [pronounced EHN-ī-mee], which means the things being inside of you. This word is only found here. The neuter plural means that we are talking about things as opposed to people. Strong’s #1751.

This is followed by the 2^nd person plural, aorist active imperative of didômi (δίδωμι) [pronounced dihd-OH-mee], a very common verb that means, give, grant; supply, furnish; entrust. Strong’s #1325.

What are they to give? The feminine singular noun eleêmosunê (ἐλεημοσύνη) [pronounced el-eh-ay-mos-OO-nay] (which is in the accusative case). Notice the –sunê at the end. This often means that we are talking about an abstract concept. It means, mercy, compassion, pity; especially as exhibited in giving alms, charity. Strong’s #1654.

Luke 11:41a Notwithstanding, give the things within [as] mercy [or, as an indication of compassion],... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

What is their problem? What is wrong with the pharisees right now? They are not giving anything from inner motivations (like mercy, compassion, empathy). What are they giving? They are giving Jesus a meal. But they are not giving it from the good qualities which should be within.

Here is why the inside is so important. It is the inner man that gives mercy; it is the inner man which is gracious. The inner man recognizes the needs of others and is open to these needs. Mercy and charity come from the inner resources of the soul. One cannot give mercy or charity or alms from an inside filled with greed, anger, jealousy and wickedness.

This pharisee host is anything but gracious to Jesus. He has publically pointed out what he believed to be a flaw in the Lord’s behavior. Even if the pharisee observed this and thought it to be wrong, a gracious soul would not make it public. If the inner man was filled with compassion, nothing would have been said.

Of course, if you are a parent, and teaching normal manners to your children, you are going to point out infractions like this and send them to the nearest washroom. But this narrative is all about adults.

The pharisees are giving to Jesus from what is inside of them, which is greed, anger, jealousy and wickedness. When a person gives, he gives of himself, he gives of his inner person, so we must be clean inside in order to give that which is worthwhile to others.

Luke 11:41a Notwithstanding, give the things within [as] mercy [or, as an indication of compassion],... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

If their insides are clean, then all that is around them is clean. A person who has a clean soul of grace and mercy would not even think to call Jesus out for not washing His hands.

“When you give grace,” the Lord explains, “Then everyone is clean before you.” If their motivations had been pure in the first place, then Jesus’ hands would have been clean to them. They would not have given a single thought to whether or not He washed.

However, these pharisees are filled with greed, anger, jealousy and wickedness, so what they see in everyone else is bathed in the light of these same evil motivations and lusts which they have within.

Luke 11:41 Notwithstanding, give the things within [as] mercy [or, as an indication of compassion], and listen, [when you give mercy, then] everyone is clean to you+. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The pharisees should first clean their insides and then they would not assign the worst motivations to people they do not like.

The pharisees were looking to find anything wrong with the actions or words of the Lord, and they watched Him carefully in order to find something to accuse Him of. They did this because on the inside, they are filled with mental attitude sins against Him.

What is being said here is difficult to ascertain. Here are some other translations:

The Spoken English NT But devote your inner thoughts to practicing mercy, and suddenly everything’s clean for you.”

The Voice Jesus: If you were full of goodness within, you could overflow with generosity from within, and if you did that, everything would be clean for you.

This pharisee has judged Jesus as being dirty because He has not washed His hands before a meal. But the true filth is within the pharisee.

This is a theme which Jesus goes with on many occasions. The pharisees continually emphasized what is on the outside. They always pointed out what others could see. But the key is, what is on the inside.

Interestingly enough, the only person clean at this meal is Jesus, yet the pharisees were not perceptive enough to see this.

Luke 11:39–41 The Lord then spoke directly to him, [saying], “Now you+ pharisees keep on cleaning the outside of the cup and the plate, but your insides are filled with greed and depravity. [Listen, you] ignorant ones, the One who makes the outside also made the inside. Notwithstanding, give the things within [as] mercy [or, as an indication of compassion], and listen, [when you give mercy, then] everyone is clean to you+. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Jesus had not even begun to eat, and the pharisee notices—and points out publically—that Jesus did not wash His hands prior to this meal. Jesus makes the point that cleanliness is on the inside, not the outside.

A pharisee kept on asking Jesus to come to a meal. Jesus finally gave in the went. However, the first thing that the pharisee noticed was, Jesus did not wash His hands prior to reclining to eat. Jesus emphasized that what is important is on the inside of a man, not what he shows on the outside.

The context of this sermon is, Jesus was invited to eat at the home of a pharisee; but the man notices that Jesus did not wash His hands. Therefore, due to his inner motivations, the pharisee made mention of this, and Jesus then got up in his face over it.

The word for woe is an onomatopoetic word, which sounds similar to woe. It is ouai (οὐαί) [pronounced oo-AH-ee], and it means alas, woe. Strong’s #3759. Many translators rose to the challenge of bringing this word/concept into more modern English:

The Message “I’ve had it with you! You’re hopeless, you Pharisees! Frauds!

Jonathan Mitchell NT "But in contrast, tragic will be the fate for you Pharisees...

Translation for Translators But there will be terrible punishment for you Pharisees!

What is being illustrated by these imaginative translations is, the future end of these pharisees. If they remain in this legalistic approach to God, their end is tragic. They are bringing a curse on themselves through their unwillingness to believe in Jesus. Bear in mind that Jesus was not turning their Scriptures upside down or misinterpreting them. The pharisees were doing that themselves, as they heard the Scriptures read regularly. They themselves read these Scriptures, and yet, they accepted the false traditions of their religion over the clear revelation of God’s Word.

Jesus, although He uses the opportunity of what this pharisee said in order to make some doctrinal points, addresses the pharisees in general. So, it is not just this man, but there are many religious types just like him. This is a problem big enough to indict most pharisees by it.

We know by the use of the plural, that there are a number of pharisees and religious types who are there. This is a meal at which the pharisees intend to expose Jesus as a fraud; but He turns the tables on them, going on the offensive. Jesus did not allow Himself to be treated like a doormat (however, bear in mind that there are times for interactions between believers and others which are less forceful).

Paul, in the book of Acts, is a great example of this. When he faced great persecution, there were times in court when he responded with great enthusiasm; there were times when he used the law to his own benefit, pursuing every legal course of action; and there were times when he accepted his situation and stayed right where he was (under house arrest in Rome).

Let me put this in another way: when you become a believer in Jesus Christ, you do not assume the personality of your pastor and employ that personality in your daily life. Many times, women will emulate the wife of the pastor, to the point of adopting her vocal inflections and speech patterns (I have seen this firsthand). Imitation of other believers in this way has nothing to do with the Christian life. In fact, this is embarrassing for other believers who know you who have some discernment in life.

I have seen this in holy roller churches, but I know this has occurred in the church I have attended. R. B. Thieme, Jr. had a personality. There was no doubt about that! If a person did not really understand what Bob was teaching, he sometimes would imitate Bob’s personality (unfortunately, he would do this when interacting with his own wife or as a teacher of young children).

Illustration: People have personalities. One of the most colorful personalities on the political scene was that of Donald Trump (I write this in 2023/2025). He expresses himself in very specific ways. People could appreciate his personality, his approach to his job as president and support him; but without trying to imitate his personality.

Now, what is Jesus doing? Is He going after them because they went after Him? Of course not! But there are one or two pharisees there or associates of pharisees, and they know first hand what their colleagues are like. What Jesus says will reach them. They will get it; they will understand it. As a result, at least one or two men at this gathering place their trust in Jesus.

How do I know this? Two reasons: (1) Jesus is not going to have a meal with a dozen or two dozen legalists in order to spend a meal trading insults with them. (2) We have a very detailed remembrance of these interactions. If none of Jesus’ disciples are here (and they are not mentioned), then who gave this information to Luke? Probably one of the pharisees who believed in Jesus.

The pharisees do some of the most mundane and inconsequential things. The spices and herbs mentioned here are tiny; and the pharisees apparently make a show of paying tithes (10%) for them.

As is recorded elsewhere in the gospels, the pharisees strained at a gnat, and swallowed a camel. That is, there focus was often on the inconsequential, and they ignored what was important.

At this point in time, these pharisees are in the Presence of the Son of God, their Savior, and yet, they are obsessed over Him not washing His hands.

What is important is the justice of God and the impersonal love of God. Because the pharisees do not appreciate either of these things, they are unable to behave graciously.

Our entire relationship with God is founded upon justice, not upon love (but love is a motivational factor). We have a relationship with Jesus Christ because He died for our sins; we have a relationship with God because Jesus took the penalty our sins from us, by paying that penalty Himself.

Agapê love is the feminine singular noun agápē (ἀγάπη) [pronounced ag-AH-pay], which means, agape love, mental attitude love, volitional love; brotherly love, affection, good will, love. I particularly like the understanding that this is a mental attitude love and a volitional love. You may not actually like a person; or you may have no feelings whatsoever about a person, but you can have agapê love for that person. That is, you can choose to treat him with respect and courtesy, and not have a head filled with mental attitude sins towards him.

One of the things which Paul emphasizes (as do many teachers of the Word) is that we believers are a motley bunch. I may have next to nothing in common with the people behind me, in front of me, or on either side of me (in church). But what I cannot do is watch them carefully and pick apart this or that thing that they do, and then point it out. That is the exact opposite of expressing agapê love.

Luke 11:42b-c For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. (ESV; capitalized)

The pharisees legalistically find the most minor things and make a big deal out of observing some ritual involving such things; but they pay no attention to justice of God or to the impersonal love of God, which are fundamental to our relationship with God.

Bear in mind that the context for this teaching is that several pharisees are looking at Jesus in judgment, simply because He has not washed His hands before a meal. They feel as though they have discovered a serious flaw in Him.

God chose to love us; and God is without emotions. So God does not look at you or me and get weak in the knees from emotional love. But He chooses to love us, as His creation; even though we are fallen creatures and even though we act in opposition to Him for so much of our lives (before and after salvation).

Because God chose to love us, He found a way that we might be presentable to Him. As we are, God cannot have any direct contact with us. We have a sin nature and we have committed personal sins. Yet the God of justice and truth found a way for us to spend eternity with Him.

The pharisees are completely ignoring the concepts of justice and volitional love. They stress what is taking place on the outside. They emphasize the externals. They focus on the most unimportant things of life.

The pharisees should be acting out of justice and love and not from legalism and judgment.

Luke 11:42d However, it is necessary to do these things,... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

These things refers back to love and justice. It is necessary to act from a foundation of love and justice. It is necessary to act justly and with love (a mental attitude love, not an emotional love).

There is no concept of justice in the souls of these pharisees and there is no mental attitude love. Certainly, most of the pharisees have negative feelings directed toward Jesus, this these should be set aside.

It sounds as if Jesus is saying, “Pay attention to the big things (justice and love) without neglecting the other things (all of that little legalistic stuff that you all do). But that is not what is being said here.

The text is not translated well by the ESV here. There are only two words which close out v. 42. There is a negative followed by the aorist active infinitive of paríēmi (παρίημι) [pronounced pahr-EE-ay-meet], which means, to let pass; to pass by, to neglect; to disregard, to omit; to relax, to loose, to let go; to be relaxed. Strong’s #3935. Many times, in the Greek, a direct object is not found in the text but is understood.

Luke 11:42e ...and he [is] not to [simply] ignore [them]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Luke 11:42d-e However, it is necessary to do these things, and he [is] not to [simply] ignore [them]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The pharisees have, essentially, ignored these two fundamental principles in all that they do. The emphasize minor things, they emphasize legalism; but they ignore love and justice.

It is necessary, Jesus tells them, to think from a base of justice and to apply agapê love when interacting with others.

One or two of the pharisees here are listening to Jesus and they are getting it. They know their fellow pharisees and they know that they hauled Jesus here to embarrass Him and to pick at Him. They should know that their behavior is not just and it is not love.

Luke 11:42 But woe to [all of] you pharisees, for you+ continue giving tithes [for minor things], for mint, for rue and for any herb, but you ignore the justice and agape love of God. However, it is necessary to do these things, and he [is] not to [simply] ignore [them]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The pharisees emphasize what is exterior and great significance is given to minor things. However, they set aside what is important, which is love and justice.

Because of their self-righteousness and their approach to life, these pharisees are setting themselves up for eternal condemnation.

No doubt, Jesus has the attention of all the pharisees there and anyone else who has gathered for this meal.

“Here is what is important to you pharisees,” Jesus says, “approbation lust . You want a place of prominence in the synagogue. You want people to notice you. You want people to think well of you, seeing you in this special seat.”

Pharisees are recognized and greeted in the marketplace; or in whatever public place they happen to be. They were celebrities (to some degree) and they reveled in this celebrityship. They enjoyed being looked up to and recognized.

In the Christian life, there is only one true celebrity, and that is Jesus Christ. Nevertheless, these pharisees saw themselves as being celebrities.

Luke 11:43 Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the best seat in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces. (ESV; capitalized)

Many pharisees enjoy their position as it gives free reign to their approbation lust.

Luke 11:44a Woe to [all of] you, [you scribes and pharisees, you hypocrites],... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

What is in brackets is found in the Byzantine Greek text and in the Scrivener Textus Receptus but not in the Westcott Hort text or in Tischendorf’s Greek text. These words are found in the similar text of Matthew 23:13–15, 23, 25, 27, 29.

In the Westcott Hort text (and Tischendorf’s Greek text), this reads, Woe to all of you; and the Byzantine Greek text and the Scrivener Textus Receptus both read, Woe to (all of) you, (you) scribes and pharisees, you hypocrites.

We really do not know who is in attendance at this meal. I suspect it is the pharisee and some of his legalistic friends. This may have included scribes and other pharisees. It is my opinion that the disciples were not invited.

The way that this is worded (in the Scrivener Textus Receptus), these scribes and pharisees are addressed as hypocrites. Jesus, at a later date, also referred to these groups of people as scribes and pharisees, [you] hypocrites! See Matthew 23:13–15, 23, 25, 27, 29. We do not have parallel text, but we have a similar set of woes elsewhere in Matthew. Since that Matthew passage probably occurs late in the ministry of our Lord, this indicates to us that, as a whole, the pharisees did not benefit from the ministry of Jesus.

Jesus draws an analogy here, calling the pharisees unmarked graves. Elsewhere, Jesus refers to them as sepulchers; but here, specifically as an unmarked grave; a grave that is hidden. Someone can be standing right on top of the grave, but they do not realize that they are. They do not realize what is right below their feet.

Luke 11:44c ...and people walk over them without knowing it." (ESV; capitalized)

Men walk on top of these hidden graves, but do not know it. They don’t know that they are walking on a grave.

The pharisees are spiritually dead; they have no relevance to the spiritual life. Their existence provides no help or guidance to others. They are not any good except to be used as negative examples.

People see them, admire them, interact with them; but do not realize that they are communicating with spiritually dead people.

Luke 11:44 Woe to you! For you are like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without knowing it." (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus says, “Woe to you pharisees!” They are like unmarked graves, filled with rotting corpses, but no one realizes that this is their actual state of being. People do not see the mental attitude sins taking place inside of these pharisees.

Jesus can. How? Does He tap into His omniscience to see what these men are all about? I would say no, but suggest several reasons why He know this: (1) Jesus knows that He will offer up His life for the salvation of others, based upon the animal offerings of the Old Testament and Isaiah 53. (2) Jesus has figured out in very short order that He has no alliance with the pharisees and priests, the religious crowd. Their hostility is constantly at hand. (3) Jesus could determine that, without regeneration, these religious types would escalate their behavior, and act against Him. (4) Also, Jesus is able to read people by their expressions. Jesus is able to figure out that these are very dangerous and hateful people, and He knows from experience that very few of them will shed their religion and believe in Him.

Luke 11:42–44 But woe to all you pharisees! You publicly give tithes for small things, like mint or rue and any herb; but you completely ignore both the love and justice of God. It is necessary to act in accordance with God’s justice and love; you cannot ignore them! Woe to you pharisees—you love to sit in a place of prominence in the synagogue, and you love receiving greetings when in the market place. Again, woe to you pharisees—your souls are like unmarked graves that people walk over, but they don’t know that your grave is right there beneath their feet. (Kukis paraphrase)

Because of some verses which will follow, it is clear that this incident took place early on in the Lord’s ministry. This was an early encounter with the pharisees. The religious crowd would become much more negative over the next two or so years.

It is my opinion that what Jesus is saying registers with one or two of them and they become introspective as a result. At some point, a small number of these religious types will place their faith in Jesus. However, most of them will become recalcitrant toward the teachings of Jesus. If anyone should recognize the Messiah, it is those who have read and studied the Scriptures; yet they are unmoved.

Jesus has been invited to a meal, but the pharisees have used this opportunity to rag on Him. There are other legalists there besides pharisees.

Jesus made no request for commentary or discussion, but one expert in the Mosaic Law spoke up. There were, apparently, another set of those who studied and knew the Mosaic Law. However, they understood the Law primarily through the commentaries written by rabbis. These commentaries were placed on the same level as the Scriptures themselves. The religious Jews did not fully understand or appreciate the importance of the Law and the Prophets, which are the Scriptures given to the Jews from God.

As we have just studied, Jesus spoke at length, criticizing the legalism of the pharisees in general. This is what we studied in vv. 39–44. A lawyer who is there has taken offense at the things that Jesus said.

Luke 11:45b ..."Teacher, in saying these things You insult us also." (ESV; capitalized)

The lawyer tells Jesus, “You have insulted us as well.” In today’s vernacular, the lawyer is saying, “You have offended me with Your words.”

The lawyers also read and studied the Law. They also followed the commonly agreed to and well-established laws and traditions of the Jews. However, the pharisees and the lawyers did not separate their traditions from the dictates of the Mosaic Law itself. So, a person might follow the procedures and practices of that era—the rabbinical traditions—and in their minds, they are following the Law of God. However, these are not the Laws of God but the traditions of man.

Luke 11:45 One of the lawyers answered Him, "Teacher, in saying these things You insult us also." (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus said, “Woe to you, pharisees...” and this expert in the law says, “Listen, You are insulting me as well with Your words.”

The pharisees were offended by Jesus and now a lawyer at this meal also takes offense at what Jesus said.

Recall that Jesus has been invited to a meal at the home of a pharisee, but it does not appear He is given any chance to enjoy this meal. First the pharisee who invited Him complained that he had not washed His hands and now a lawyer speaks up.

Jesus has just been told that he has insulted the lawyers there as well. “We’re offended by Your words,” was essentially what this man said.

Again, these are not lawyers in exactly the sense that we know them today; but they were very learned in the Law of Moses as well as in the traditions which had been built up over the years regarding the Law. It does not appear that clear distinctions were made between the Word of God and the traditions which were adhered to and followed over the years.

As an aside, I have been working on the first five books of the Bible, evaluating them word-by-word, verse-by-verse, and it is clear that modern Jews, no matter how orthodox they see themselves to be, practice a faith which has almost nothing in common with the books of the Law. God has told them what they are supposed to do, and there is not a Jew anywhere who follows the writings of Moses.

For instance, read and study the Passover tradition as found in Exodus, and then compare this to the modern-day Satyr. These things take place at the same time of the year, but that is pretty much where the resemblance ends between then and now.

Jesus decides that the lawyers need to hear from Him as well. He does not hold back.

Jesus essentially says, “I certainly don’t want you all to feel left out; so woe to you too!”

Luke 11:46c For you load people with burdens hard to bear,... (ESV; capitalized)

These burdens are additional laws and regulations which the people were subject to, but were not actually found in the Law of God. These lawyers made it quite difficult for anyone to obey all of the additional regulations that they came up with. It was difficult for men to even know all of the additional laws.

Remember that Jesus was just accused of not washing his hands, which is not actually a violation of the Law.

Luke 11:46d ...and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers. (ESV; capitalized)

I am stuck between two interpretations here. (1) Do they not lift up even a finger to help those they have burdened? (2) They do not apply these laws to themselves with the same vigor. Both things are true of these legalists.

Luke 11:46d ...but you will not touch these burdens [with] one of your+ fingers. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

These lawyers are great when it comes to deciding new regulations and new requirements to be placed on others, but they will not lift a finger to help those whom they have burdened. Furthermore, they do not subject themselves to these same burdens. If Jesus misses a single tradition, they point it out and talk about it. However, a meal with pharisees and lawyers only would not be spent discussing the infractions of one another.

You will note that I have given Jesus’ answer two interpretations. Some of my confusion may be related to the pronoun autoi (αὐτοί) [pronounced ow-TOY], which most translations translate as yourselves; but I don’t know that is properly understood as a 2^nd person reflexive pronoun (although that is clearly the consensus here among other translations). This is apparently a more obscure use of this pronoun. If you have any further interest in the Greek of this passage, see Luke 11 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) and check the Greek exegesis of v. 46d.

Luke 11:46 And He said, "Woe to you lawyers also! For you load people with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves [= they] do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers. (ESV; capitalized)

Israeli Authorized Version And he said, Woe unto you also, ye Torah experts! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.

The Scriptures 2009 And He said, “Woe to you also, you learned in the Torah, because you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.

Tree of Life Version Then Yeshua said, “Woe to you Torah lawyers as well, for you weigh the people down with burdens hard to carry, yet you yourselves will not touch the burdens with even a finger.

Far Above All Translation But he said, to you scholars in the law too, for you burden men with burdens which are hard to bear, but you yourselves do not feel what the burdens are like with a single one of your fingers.

New Matthew Bible Then he said, Woe is to you also, doctors of the law. For you load men with burdens grievous to be borne, and you yourselves do not touch the packs with one of your fingers.

The lawyers placed all kinds of legal burdens on others, but did not subject themselves to the same burdens.

Furthermore, these are not all of the laws developed by Jewish tradition; these are a sampling of laws for the Sabbath added by tradition to Law of Moses. Interestingly enough, the Jews went overboard when it came to observing the Sabbath day, but they appear to have ignored the Sabbath year (every seventh year) and the Year of Jubilee (every 49^th year) and the requirements of these special years.

Jesus has pronounced woes upon the pharisees earlier; the lawyers said, “Well, this offends us as well!” So Jesus now pronounces woes upon the lawyers.

Given what Jesus says, His negative pronouncement against the Law experts also includes the other religious types who are there.

Bear in mind that Jesus is surrounded by men who are on negative signals. So, why does He do this? It is one thing to give an evangelical message to an accepting crowd; another to give this message to people who are mixed in their response (some approving, some not); but why would Jesus go and attempt to evangelize or even speak to a very negative crowd? The reason why Jesus did this is staring us right in the face. The reason is the very recollection of this incident which we are studying. Luke never talked to Jesus; he never met Jesus at any point. So how was Luke able to record this narrative? Someone at this house—one of the religious types—had to have heard the Lord and believed; or believed at a later date. Someone at this meal had to give this information to Luke in order for Luke to record it in his gospel. Therefore, at least one person heard the message of Jesus Christ and believed. Furthermore, this does not appear to have been witnessed by a disciple of Jesus, as (1) they are not mentioned in this narrative and (2) this incident is not recorded in any of the other three gospels (the other three gospels have their source with Matthew, Peter and John, who were disciples of Jesus).

These are necessarily tombs to which Jesus is referring to here. The word is mnēmeîon (μνημεον) [pronounced mnay-MEE-ohn], which means, any visible object for preserving or recalling the memory of any person or thing; a memorial, monument. This can refer to a tomb, but that is not its only meaning. Strong’s #3419.

Luke 11:47b ...for you+ [who] keep on building monuments of the prophets,... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The lawyers feigned deference to the prophets of old, and they kept on building monuments to them. Had they lived in the time of these prophets, the prophets would have condemned these lawyers and these lawyers would have persecuted the prophets.

How do I know this? I know this because the greatest of all prophets is standing right in front of them. If they are unwilling to accept Jesus’ authority, which other prophet would they have listened to?

Now, we are not responsible for what our parents have done; and much less so regarding our ancestors many generations ago. So how can Jesus say such things? These very men standing before Jesus will both persecute Him and give assent to His crucifixion; and they will also persecute the Apostles as well. Jesus either knows this as a prophet or He can look into their eyes and see their resolute hatred for Him. Jesus does not have to use His omniscience to look into their souls. Their faces tell Him what they are thinking.

You are not responsible for the sins of your father; but you are responsible if you commit the very same sins.

What cannot be denied at this point is, Jesus is the greatest prophet; and these men have (nearly) all rejected His authority. He was called upon to dine with them, but they did not want to listen to Him; they did not want to learn from Him. None of these lawyers is saying, “Listen, this is what we have been teaching for many centuries. Have we got this right? Or are we confused on these issues?” There is no deference exhibited in any of these conversations.

I want to remind you that Jesus has performed at least one miracle that these men are all aware of. He cast out a demon, yet these religious types set that great work aside, deciding amongst one another, “He casts out demons by the power of Beelzebul.”

Luke 11:47 Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets whom your fathers killed. (ESV; capitalized)

These religious type have built monuments to the prophets, but these prophets were killed by the fathers of these religious types. Furthermore, these same men will do the same against Jesus. They will first persecute Jesus and then they will persecute His messengers. They are just like their fathers, who also operated on negative volition.

The people there at this meal are witnesses to the negative volition which they are all expressing.

Luke 11:48a Consequently, you are [all] witnesses [to this evil]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

“You yourselves are witnesses,” Jesus says, “to the evil of your fathers and to your own evil.” (He implies)

Luke 11:48b ...and you consent to the deeds of your fathers,... (ESV; capitalized)

By their words and deeds, these lawyers (and the others who are there supporting them) approve of the deeds of their ancestors. Their ancestors killed the prophets, and they are going to do the same thing.

How does Jesus know this? These pharisees have attacked Him twice already, concerning the casting out of the demon (it appears that pharisees were there); and they have criticized Him for not washing His hands (as if there were some sort of spiritual dimension to that). In the future, these pharisees will become very hostile towards Jesus, first trying to find anything wrong with what he says; and then, later, lying about Him and putting things in motion to cause Him to be crucified (based upon the records we have, there is no indication that the Romans would have crucified Jesus apart from the pressure put on them by the religious Jewish hierarchy).

These men who have criticized Jesus—they are just like their ancestors who stoned the prophets many centuries earlier. They are of the same mindset. Constructing monuments to the prophets is meaningless.

The ancestors of those speaking to Jesus killed the prophets. ...they killed them,... They are not simply genetic ancestors, but they reveal the same thinking; the same negative disposition toward God. They share the values and misconceptions of their fathers. They are the moral descendants of their fathers.

How does Jesus know this? Because they follow the traditions of their fathers and they have invited Jesus to a meal in order to cast aspersions upon Him. Their negative volition is palpable. They have clearly begun to judge Him from the moment He reclined at the table to eat.

Luke 11:48d Nevertheless, you [all] keep on building [these (meaningless) monuments for them]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

What is in brackets represents three additional words that are found in the Byzantine Greek text and the Scrivener Textus Receptus (these words are not in the Westcott Hort text or in Tischendorf’s Greek text). I added the word meaningless by way of interpretation.

Despite all that Jesus has said, these men will continue to build monuments to the prophets—prophets whom they themselves would have killed, if given the chance.

Luke 11:48 So you are witnesses and you consent to the deeds of your fathers, for they killed them, and you build their tombs. (ESV; capitalized)

These lawyers who stand before Jesus, offended, would repeat the same deeds of their fathers, who killed the ancient prophets. What is ironic is, these lawyers build monuments to the prophets which their fathers killed.

Luke 11:47–48 Woe to you+, for you+ [who] keep on building monuments of the prophets, but your ancestors killed them! Consequently, you are [all] witnesses [to this evil]. You keep on approving the deeds of your+ ancestors, for indeed, they killed them! Nevertheless, you [all] keep on building [these (meaningless) monuments for them]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

These religious types would prove to be the greatest thorn in the side of the ministry of Jesus Christ; and of the Apostles who will follow Him.

A lawyer has stood up and complained that he was offended by Jesus. Jesus has been responding to him. Jesus continues:

Luke 11:49a By this, the wisdom of God has also spoken,... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Jesus is about to speak some great words of wisdom, as if they had come from God Himself, as if He were reading from an important passage of the Old Testament, yet He is not quoting anything here, but acting as a prophet of God. Because He is acting as a prophet of God, His words will reflect the very wisdom of God.

This had to be very powerful, and those with positive volition heard these words and were knocked over. They knew these words were from God. Most of the religious types there were unmoved. They didn’t get it. These were just words from a Man Whom they did not respect or believe in.

Who is speaking? Jesus Christ. He is speaking for the Wisdom of God. He is telling His audience, “Everything that I am telling you is absolutely true; it is as if God Himself were speaking to you!”

This would be God speaking from the foundation of the world. God decided that He would send prophets and messengers to His people, to guide them, to set them aright, if they are getting off course. (This is what the Old Testament prophets did.)

Bear in mind that this is not the case for today. We can get similar warnings, but this information will come from God’s spokesmen in this dispensation, which means, pastor-teachers or evangelists or even some missionaries. Now, pastor-teachers do not receive visions or special messages from God, but they dig this information out of the Scriptures. We have enough Biblical history to know what God does not like; and we know what God will do as a result.

When the government and/or the people begin to persecute God’s messengers in this dispensation—pastor-teachers—that means that country is in trouble. When people are not positive toward the gospel message; and when believers are not positive toward Bible doctrine, then we know that this nation is in trouble. When a people prefer religiosity over a relationship with God, the nation is coterminously trending downward. These concepts are not difficult, but if they are not being accurately taught in the church of God, the stages (or cycles) of discipline are going to kick in. See Gene Cunningham (or Glenn or Pastor Rick Bettez) on the Five Cycles of Discipline.

Luke 11:49c ...some of whom they will kill and persecute,'... (ESV; capitalized)

However, instead of listening to this prophets and messengers and being guided by them, some of these prophets were killed and others were persecuted.

Application: We have this sort of thing taking place in Canada right now with some inkling of trouble in the United States (I wrote this 2019–2025). Obviously, we are not to the point where pastor-teachers are being killed in the streets or pulpits; but some in Canada have been locked up. Essentially, the state in Canada believes that it should be able to supercede the teachings and practices of any church; and there are certainly people in the United States government who believe that should be the case as well.

Luke 11:49 Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,'... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus makes a statement which reflects the wisdom of God. God sent prophets and apostles to His people, the Jews, and His people would turn on these messengers of God, killing them and persecuting them.

Based upon what Jesus has just said, about the previous generations killing the prophets, and this generation building monuments to them, God speaks through Jesus, revealing His wisdom.

Jesus is not quoting a passage of Scripture here; He is saying something which is dogmatically true. He is speaking with the full authority of God. No doubt the attendees were knocked off their feet. At first, they must have wondered, what passage is He quoting from? However, at some point, they will realize that Jesus speaking from His Own authority.

At some point, God would require something for the blood of the prophets. The people must pay for the evil that they keep on doing.

There will be a payment required for the pouring out of the blood of the prophets and messengers from the foundation of the world. From the very beginning, God’s people have been persecuted (by God’s people, I mean the prophets God sent to Israel). From the very beginning, the blood of God’s people has been poured out.

Luke 11:50 ...so that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation,... (ESV; capitalized)

God does not place the sins of the fathers on their sons; but He does require what is due when the sons commit the same sins. These religious types are looking at Jesus, trying to find something wrong with Him; and they will, at some point, kill Him as well. The greatest messenger God has ever sent to His people, and those listening to Jesus will kill Him in the future.

Luke 11:51a ...from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah,... (ESV; capitalized)

This is how long this killing and persecution has gone on—from the very beginning all the way to the end of the Old Testament. This is an indictment of mankind. Cain killed his own brother for no reason other than, he offered up to God what God expected (a blood sacrifice); and Cain offered up the works of his hands. When God found the works of Cain unacceptable, Cain killed his brother.

Zechariah would be easy to explain, if not for the parallel passage in Matthew, where he is called the son of Barachiah (Matthew 23:35). We will get to that problem momentarily.

At the end of the Jewish Old Testament, we have the final murder of a prophet recorded in 2Chronicles 24:20–22 Then the Spirit of God clothed Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, and he stood above the people, and said to them, "Thus says God, 'Why do you break the commandments of the LORD, so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the LORD, He has forsaken you.'" But they conspired against him, and by command of the king they stoned him with stones in the court of the house of the LORD. Thus Joash the king did not remember the kindness that Jehoiada, Zechariah's father, had shown him, but killed his son. And when he was dying, he said, "May the LORD see and avenge!"

Essentially, we have the first martyr of Scripture paired with the last martyr of Scripture, proof positive of the persecution and evil of mankind (this was an indictment of all mankind, not just the Hebrew people).

Regarding the name, one possible explanation is, there is a mistake in the names in Matthew (this would not be Matthew’s mistake, but some error in transmission). However, to be clear, we have no evidence of this error. Another explanation is, Jehoiada is mentioned in this passage, as Joash had a kindness shown to him by Jehoiada, Zechariah’s father. However, there may have been a branch of the family that Zechariah belonged to, which was the family of Barachiah, which family Zechariah and his father Jehoiada both belonged to.

Interestingly enough, Zechariah’s death is not the final death chronologically in Scripture. Later in time, Uriah was murdered by Jehoiakim (Jeremiah 26:23). However, the two deaths cited by the Lord mark the first martyr and last martyr of the Jewish canon of Scripture (2Chronicles is the final book in the Hebrew canon).

Luke 11:51b ...who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. (ESV; capitalized)

I may need to adjust this translation. Abel died near an altar and Zechariah near the Temple. But I believe that Jesus was specifying Zechariah here, who died between the altar and the Temple (the brazen altar stood outside the door of the Temple). He is said to have been stoned to death in the courtyard of the Temple, which apparently placed him in between the altar and the Temple.

Luke 11:51c Yes, I tell you, it will be required of this generation. (ESV; capitalized)

Again, this reckoning is not required for the sins of the fathers, but for the sins which the Hebrew people of that generation will commit. They will repeat the sins of their fathers.

Luke 11:51 from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it will be required of this generation. (ESV; capitalized)

In the pages of the Old Testament, Abel is the martyr in Genesis and Zechariah is last man killed in 2Chronicles, which is the last book of the Hebrew Bible.

Luke 11:49–51 Because of this, the wisdom of God has stated, ‘I will send them prophets and messengers, some of whom they will kill and some of whom they will persecute.’ Therefore, God will require a reckoning for the blood of all His prophets from the foundation of the world until now—and He will require it from this generation. Beginning with the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the Temple. Surely I keep on telling you that, God will require a reckoning from this generation. (Kukis paraphrase)

When Israel was going awry, God sent them prophets to put them right. However, they often expressed their negative volition by killing His prophets.

This should not be difficult to understand. If Israel, as a nation, was going astray, God would send them a prophet. However, if the people continued to go astray, God would eventually step in with divine discipline.

The experts in the law have come to Jesus and they have complained. “When You insult these pharisees, you are offending us as well,” they complained. Therefore, Jesus pronounces a woe specifically for them.

Jesus tells them that they have taken away the key of knowledge. Jesus, the One standing before them, is the Key of knowledge. Everything is based upon Him, Jesus being the fundamental constant of life. The entire Old Testament is potentially understood if we understand the Person of Jesus Christ.

Genesis 22 is a very confusing passage for the unbeliever. They read this and they don’t get what is taking place. However, the believer who understands that Jesus is the beloved Son of God also understands what Genesis is all about.

Jesus tells them, “You have not entered [into knowledge].” Jesus is the fundamental constant of knowledge, and they have not believed in Him. They have rejected Him.

Bear in mind that these religious types have not just met Jesus and only some of them are still trying to form an opinion of Him. One of their lot asked Him to come for a meal, and they all have been carefully watching Him, to see what they can pick out as being against their own faith. They seemed to know enough about Him to reject Him from the jump. Therefore, if they have rejected Him, they have rejected the key to knowledge.

Believing in Jesus and then beginning to understand Him is the key to knowledge.

Not only are they themselves not entering into knowledge, but they seem to be doing whatever they can to hinder others from knowing Jesus.

Luke 11:52 Woe to [all of] you lawyers; for you have taken away the key of knowledge. You [all] have not entered in [to the knowledge of God] and you have hindered others [lit., those] [from] entering [into knowledge].” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The key of knowledge is Jesus Christ. The lawyers have taken away the key of knowledge by rejecting Jesus Christ as their Savior. They have replaced the central figure of the Old Testament (Jesus Christ in His preincarnate form), but they also tried to replace Him with extreme legalism, particularly regarding the Sabbath day.

This marked a new chapter in the ministry of the Lord. He continued with His ministry of teaching, along with healings and miracles; but there was a new wrinkle at this point. This new wrinkled would have been the constant opposition of the religious types.

I point this out with regards to chronology. Jesus faced the opposition of the religious crowd, but this might be more apparent in the book of Matthew. We are in the middle of the book of Luke, which is not tethered to a chronological approach. Luke heard the stories of Jesus from many people. Maybe he spoke to ten people, maybe to twenty. For most of them, he was able to put together a chronological biography, beginning with the story of Jesus even before He was born. We follow this through Jesus’ last trip to Jerusalem, where He spends some time in Samaria along the way (Luke 1–10). But some of Luke’s sources remembered things which Jesus taught, but they were unable to give a clear explanation of the time frame of those teachings. Those teachings are found in Luke 11–18.5. So what we have here is significant chronologically speaking, even though it is not found in chronological order.

My point in all of this is, this event which we have almost completed is one of the first times that Jesus withstood the religious crowd; and the religious types realized, from this point forward, that they needed to be better prepared to get Jesus.

Luke 11:53b ...the scribes and the Pharisees began to press Him hard and to provoke Him to speak about many things,... (ESV; capitalized)

From that point forward, the scribes and pharisees would begin an intense campaign to catch the Lord doing or saying anything wrong. They would try to entrap Him; and they would ask Him many questions—not for the intent of learning anything or solving a difficult theological problem, but to catch the Lord in some way. They were hoping to prove that He was against the Law of Moses.

This meeting, this meal, was attended by religious types, a few of whom were open to the teaching of Jesus (it is because of them that we know that this meal happened). However, most of the religious types, from this point forward, turned fully against the Lord. If there was a way to oppose Him, they did.

Luke 11:53 As He went away from there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to press Him hard and to provoke Him to speak about many things,... (ESV; capitalized)

At this point, the scribes and pharisees determined that Jesus was their enemy, so they went out of their way to argue with Him or to set theological traps for Him. If He did anything wrong or said anything wrong, they were going to be there to catch it and use it against Him.

The religious types lay in wait for Jesus in many places. In the middle of Him teaching this or that, one of these religious types will speak up, attempting to catch the Lord making a mistake or saying something that they could dispute.

The scribes and pharisees looked for anything the Lord might say, and tried to harass Him for anything which might be perceived as being in opposition to their laws.

Illustration: I don’t want this illustration to be taken wrongly, but I originally wrote this in 2020; and for the previous four years, certain members of the media (most of them) take virtually anything that Donald Trump says, and harangue Him for it. The idea is, no matter what he says, it is the very worst thing that a president could utter; and they would gather up 4–6 experts to tell you just how bad it was in a panel discussion (this was the game plan on CNN and MSNBC pretty much every day 2016–2020). Quite obviously, I am not drawing any parallels between Jesus and Donald Trump. Quite frankly, in 2020, many people had no idea if Trump was even saved (although he appears to have a respect for God). But, if you are able to be objective (as if anyone could be objective about Trump), you can see how everything that he does or says is jumped on. This is what happened to Jesus. Obviously, I am not comparing Donald Trump to Jesus, but if you picked up on Trump being constantly attacked by the media during his first term in office, and you have an idea as to what Jesus faced from the religious crowd.

Jesus’ religious enemies continually pumped Him with theological questions, hoping to catch Him in some mistake or some error. This was going to be their approach from this point forward in the Lord’s public ministry.

Luke 11:54 ...lying in wait for Him, to catch Him in something He might say. (ESV; capitalized)

The focus of the religious crowd was to find anything that Jesus might say that would be objectionable.

Luke 11:53–54 From then on, [after] He went out, the scribes and pharisees began an intense [campaign] to entrap [the Lord] and to catch Him [off guard] with questions regarding many [things], [just] lying in wait [for] Him, to ensnare Him by something He might say [lit., to ensnare one from out of His mouth] [to the intent that they might accuse him]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

This particular set of events (Jesus’ teaching being interrupted, Jesus being invited to have a meal with the religious crowd, followed by a confrontation) clearly did not take place after the events of Luke 1–10. At the end of Luke 10, Jesus appears to be on His last trek to Jerusalem. Would it make sense that, two chapters later, the lawyers, scribes and pharisees are just now starting to try to catch the Lord saying something wrong (vv. 53–54)? What we read in this final passage of Luke 11 appears to be just what the religious types have been doing for some period of time (see Matthew 16:1 Mark 3:2 7:1–9 8:11 Luke 6:7 and many other passages). Logically, there would have been a time early on in the Lord’s ministry when the religious types decided to try to catch the Lord in some sort of theological mistake. The passages cited suggest the concerted attacks on Jesus by the religious types has already been taking place. So, logically, this particular series of events takes place prior to Luke 9. However, this is one of the many unique events to take place in the book of Luke, not recorded in any of the other three gospels.

The point I continue to make is, this middle section of Luke does not appear to be in any sort of a chronological order. Many of the events logically occur prior to Luke 9–10 (in fact, long before Luke 9–10).

To remind you, my simple organization is this: Luke chapters 1–10 are in chronological order, which picks up again mid-Luke 18. Luke had a great many additional stories and teachings by the Lord which would have been difficult to sandwich in here or there (maybe he could have done it, maybe not), but Luke was not writing on a word processor, where reorganizing a series of events would be relatively easy to do. So, he decided to have the first and last third of his historical biography of Jesus to be in chronological order; but then he had some additional teachings and events that he simply had to include in this bio. So he just places all of it in a middle section and calls it good. What Luke did not do is devote a paragraph to describe how he planned to organize this book. For some reason, he decided to leave that up to me.

Bible translation used: The Scriptures 2009. Unless otherwise noted, all other quotations will be taken from this translation as well.

Introduction: I have made quite a big deal out of the organization of the book of Luke, and Luke 11 very neatly fits into the middle section of Luke, which is made up of various teachings of Jesus. These things took place at different times in different circumstances. In v. 1, the disciples speak to Jesus privately about how they should pray. This obviously did not take place late in the Lord’s earthly ministry (even though Luke 9 is clearly near the end of our Lord’s earthly ministry). Prayer is one of the first things that Jesus would have been asked about.

Another narrative has Jesus casting out a demon, and there are a crowd of people about. When the crowd grows extremely large, Jesus speaks of the sign of Jonah.

In the final section, Jesus is dining with pharisees. There is nothing which moves us from one set of teachings to the next. There are no specific locations given. We will not read the words, After this, Jesus went down to Capernaum and He taught the people there. The barest of set ups is given for most sections. That is because the focus, in this central section of Luke, is the teaching of the Lord.

For those who have a red-lettered version of the New Testament, you are now seeing a lot of red. Most of the middle section of Luke is red in a red-letter Bible. In other words, this middle section concentrates on the words spoken by Jesus. As an aside, I put all New Testament passages in a dark red and all Old Testament passages in dark blue simply to make them easy to identify. I use purple to identify any Old Testament passage quoted in the New. That has characterized my writings from the beginning (I began developing many sets of notes around 1995).

Luke 11:1 And it came to be while He was praying in a certain place, as He ceased, one of His taught ones said to Him, “Master, teach us to pray, as Yoanan [= John] also taught his taught ones.”

Given the content of this first section, it is clear that this teaching came from very early on in the Lord’s ministry. Jesus’ disciples have seen Jesus go off by Himself and pray to His Father on a number of occasions, and now they are wondering, how exactly should we be praying?

Secondly, John the baptizer is mentioned. Some of the disciples would have come directly from John’s ministry and latched onto Jesus and His teaching. You may recall that when Jesus came to see John speak, John said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” (referring to Jesus).

Luke 11:2 And He said to them, “When you pray, say: Our Father in the heavens, let Your Name be set-apart, let Your reign come, let Your desire be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Jesus teaches His disciples to address their prayers to God the Father and to first affirm three things which are a part of the divine decrees. (1) Let Your name be set apart. The Old Testament is all about separating the holy from the profane, even to the point where even certain foods are considered either clean or unclean. As human history progresses, it becomes more and more clear Who and What God is. (2) Let Your reign come to pass. In the Millennium, Jesus will reign over all the earth. This is perhaps the most important prophecy for the future. As an aside, the Old Testament did not differentiate between the 1^st and 2^nd advents (however, Jesus did). (3) Let Your will (or desire) be done on earth as it is in heaven. In the Millennium, as ruler, Jesus will exercise control over the earth. Although there will be perfect environment, people will also still possess sin natures (not you or I, as we will be in resurrection bodies—thank goodness).

So, interestingly enough, Jesus tells his disciples to begin their prayers by asking for the kingdom of God to come to pass. I say interesting simply because it will definitely come to pass and on God’s perfect timetable. So why would the disciples be encouraged to pray such things? This means that they are lining up their thinking with the plan of God, as it unfolds all around them. They are not simply accepting future events, but eagerly awaiting for these events to come to pass.

Also, the disciples need to be aware that God’s timing is not their timing. My impression is that many of the 1^st century believers believed that Jesus would return soon. He will not return for at least 2000 years. So, even though we pray for such things to come to pass, we also need to realize that the timing of God’s plan is perfect, even if the rapture of the church is another 1000 years in the future (the believer who understands eschatology knows that the rapture could occur this evening or 100 years in the future or even 1000 years in the future).

Once we have believed in Jesus Christ, God sees to our daily needs. Nevertheless, Jesus encourages His disciples to think about their needs and to pray for them to be met.

For many of us, expressing gratitude for all that Jesus has done on our behalf is apropos.

Luke 11:4a “And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.

The forgiveness of sins requested here is temporal. That is, it is a matter of rebound. Similarly, we should forgive those who have done wrong to us. If God has forgiven us and if God has forgiven them, then certainly we can forgive them.

I realize that this is easier said than done. If you are a normal Christian, you will have enemies, no matter what you do. In fact, if you are a normal person, you will have enemies. We as believers need to set aside all of the evil things which they do against us.

We ask God not to be led into testing which we would fail, but to deliver us from the evil one (and from all his temptations).

Next, Jesus is going to give an illustration related directly to the prayer life of the believer.

Luke 11:5–7 And He said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, since a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I do not have food to set before him,’ then the one inside answering, says, ‘Do not trouble me, the door is already locked, and my children with me are in bed. I am unable to get up and give to you’?

Jesus is pursuing a new aspect of prayer, and that is praying with persistence. Jesus teaches this principle of prayer by way of analogy. You have a need and you go to a friend to ask him to meet this need. The problem is not that he is unable to help you or unwilling; it is your timing which does not work for your friend. You are making a request when it is extremely inconvenient for him.

Bear in mind, this is a parable which relates to our asking God for something. If we have believed in His Son, then we have the established relationship with God. God is able to provide anything that we ask of Him. However, the only problem is, is this the right time?

Luke 11:8 “I say to you, if he does not get up and give to him because he is his friend, he shall get up and give him as many as he needs because of his persistence.

Interestingly enough, Jesus says, “This guy will not honor your request because he is your friend but because you are so persistent in your asking.”

It is okay to ask God, and ask Him again, and to keep on asking Him. What might the problem be? Timing. Maybe God has a very specific timeline, and you keep on asking Him to set aside His timeline.

Perhaps you have prayed for the extension of another’s life or even for the extension of your own life. Jesus, as the Son of God, informs us that, God will actually take your persistence into consideration.

The other rules of prayer are still in effect (for instance, you must be in fellowship when you pray), but you have added persistence to the mix. I realize that it may seem impossible for you to continue petitioning the Creator of the Universe that He will hear you, but Jesus tells us that God might even give in to your petition.

Jesus is literally encouraging His disciples to go to God in prayer and to be persistent in prayer.

Luke 11:9 “And I say to you: ask and it shall be given to you, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened to you.

Or, take note of the morphology: “Keep on asking (present active imperative) and it will be given to you. Keep on seeking (present active imperative) and it will be given to you. Keep on knocking (present active imperative) and it will be opened to you.”

Jesus tells His disciples, using a series of present active imperatives, to keep on asking, to keep on seeking and to keep on knocking.

If you have children, have you not said at least once, “Listen, I said no; end of discussion”? God says just the opposite here. “I did say no, but if this is important to you, then keep on asking. I may eventually say yes.”

I have seen a personal matter of prayer in my own life which I believe continues to be answered. However, let me give you a very public matter. I believe that Americans, as has not been true since World War II, came together in prayer and kept on praying to God for Donald Trump to win the presidency a second time. About 40% of Americans believe that the outcome of the 2020 election was fraudulent (I am one of those people); and given what happened in 2020, so many of us were worried that Donald Trump would win again, and still lose by chicanery. I don’t have any statistics about believers praying to God regarding President Trump, but I saw many more calls to prayer and indications that others were praying in 2024 than took place in 2016 or in 2020. How many of us prayed with the preface, “I recognize that our nation is in the depths of sexual perversion and that I as an individual have little or no standing apart from Jesus Christ, but...” ?

As a nation, we prayed for the successful end to World War II and I have no doubts that we petitioned the Lord similarly in 2024.

Luke 11:10 “For everyone asking receives, and he who is seeking finds, and to him who is knocking it shall be opened.

Jesus continues to use the present tense, which is linear aktionsart, meaning continuous action. The one who keeps on asking, keeps on receiving; the one who keeps on seeking will keep on finding; and the one who keeps on knocking keeps on having doors opened for him (or her).

We are not simply told by Jesus, it is okay if we want to keep asking God for something which is on our minds; Jesus is encouraging us to do this.

Luke 11:11–12 “And what father among you whose son asks for bread shall give him a stone, or if he asks for a fish shall give him a snake instead of a fish, or if he asks for an egg shall give him a scorpion?

Jesus then asks three questions. “What father among you, when his sons asks for bread, gives him a stone instead? Or he asks for fish, but he gives him a snake; or if he asks for an egg, he gives him a scorpion?” Obviously, no father would do this. He would not hear a normal, plaintiff request of his son and give him something worthless or something dangerous instead of what he has asked for.

Luke 11:13 “If you then, being wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father from heaven give the Set-apart Spirit to those asking Him!”

“Now, if you fathers,” Jesus continues, “are evil and yet you still know how to give good gifts to your sons; how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” Jesus takes this a step beyond asking for one’s wants or needs, and indicates that His disciples should ask for the Holy Spirit.

The disciples, even being with Jesus, struggled with many of the difficulties of being on a missionary tour throughout the entire Galilean, Samaritan and Judæan area; and Jesus made it clear that they could ask their Father for the Holy Spirit and He would provide It for them.

One reason to present a chapter as a singular whole is, we can make some overall observations. Portions of Luke 11:14–32 can be placed in parallel to Matthew 12:22–45. For a bird’s eye view, see Harmony of the Gospels (a chart) found in the Introduction to Luke (HTML) (PDF) (WPD). This chart is an excellent work begun by Ken Palmer and expanded on by me. A key to unlock some of these parallels comes from understanding how Luke is organized. That understanding clears up a dozen problems with what appears to be different chronologies in Matthew and Luke.

When we place these narratives together side-by-side, Matthew fills in a few gaps for Luke and Luke fills in a few gaps for Matthew. We further understand that this middle section of Luke is not in any sort of chronological order, so that sections which we study may find parallels elsewhere. These parallel events are placed in a chronological order in Matthew or in Mark, but if they are found in the middle section of Luke, only the teaching is emphasized. The when is not. Because of the structure of the book of Luke, we know that we may have some parallels that did not make sense before because of where this section is in the book of Luke.

Luke 11:14 And He was casting out a demon, and it was dumb. And it came to be, when the demon had gone out, that the dumb spoke. And the crowds marvelled.

Jesus is casting out a demon. The original text is a little confusing, but what has taken place is, the demon (whom Jesus would cast out) made his human host unable to speak. After the demon was cast out, the man could speak again.

The people were impressed by this, as they were apparently all aware of the man being unable to speak.

Jesus has come along and done something that no man had been able to do. He cast out a demon and made a long-time mute able to speak.

That great miracle should have given Jesus a very wide audience. However, it did not.

Luke 11:15–16 But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Be‛elzebul, the ruler of the demons,” and others, trying Him, were seeking from Him a sign from heaven.

Apparently some in the crowd were skeptical. They did not see Jesus as a man from God. Therefore, they had to explain what might be taking place. “This man casts out demons by the power of Beelzebul!” This accusation is completely without foundation, but a number of people made it (this was not simply a voice from the crowd).

The parallel passage in Matthew informs us that this misinformation was being spread by several pharisees. What this suggests to me is, several pharisees previously met and discussed the Jesus problem. They came to the conclusion that Jesus had His power from Satan. Instead of just one man rising up and saying this, the pharisees made this claim as individuals in the crowd (at least three of them made this assertion). Even though these men apparently colluded, it was more convincing when several people stood up and said, “He casts out demons by the power of Beelzebul.” That was enough to turn the crowd. The people in this crowd were beginning to consider Who Jesus is, having just observed Him casting out a demon.

Luke 11:17 And He, knowing their thoughts, said to them, “Every reign divided against itself is laid waste, and a house divided against a house falls.

Knowing their thoughts could also be translated, understanding their reasoning. Since Jesus understands their reasoning, He is able to develop a counter-argument which is on point.

Jesus does not have to read their minds in order to understand their reasoning. He knows what they saw, He can see the expressions on their faces, and He heard what the pharisees asserted. Jesus’ logical argument stands in clear opposition to the pharisees.

Luke 11:18 “So if Satan also is divided against himself, how shall his reign stand? Because you say I cast out demons by Be‛elzebul.

Jesus begins with an assumption which is false. “If Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?” Jesus asks. Then He adds, “I say this because you say I am casting out demons by Beelzebul.”

Luke 11:19 “Now if I cast out demons by Be‛elzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Because of this they shall be your judges.

Then Jesus takes another approach. “If I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Your sons will judge you!”

Who are the sons of these men and what are they doing casting out demons? To answer this, we should first recognize that casting out demons was not a thing which has been regularly done. Jesus did it, some Apostles did it, and some disciples appear to have done this. This actual act is quite rare, and certainly never done by the religious types.

Who are the sons of these critics? The sons of Jesus’ critics would be people who have believed in Jesus. And if they have believed, some of them will have sign gifts (which gifts continued up to about a.d. 90). By their gift and by their faith, the sons of the religious types there would stand as judges against them. They will cast out demons by the power of God, and that is the same power employed by Jesus.

Luke 11:20 “But if I cast out demons by the finger of Elohim,^a then the reign of Elohim has come upon you.

Next Jesus states a conditional sentence. “If I cast out demons by the finger of God (and I do), then the kingdom of God has come to you.” It is true that Jesus casts out demons by the finger of God; then it is true that the kingdom of God has come to His people. The Kingdom of God has come to this people in the form of Jesus Christ, their True King.

As an aside, the finger of God indicates very little work is required of God to cast out a demon.

Luke 11:21 “When a strong man, having been well armed, watches over his own court, his possessions are in peace.

Now Jesus sets up a parable or an analogy. If a well-armed strong man watches over his home and possessions, then these things are safe. Everyone who hears Jesus understand what He just said and they know it to be a true statement.

When Jesus speaks in parables, the basic story is immediately understood, and if an opinion is called for, most everyone comes to the same conclusion. However, there is always more to a parable than the superficial story.

Luke 11:22 “But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armour in which he trusted, and divides his booty.

Then Jesus adds a second statement. “What would happen if a stronger man comes along and he beats down the one standing guard? Obviously, this stronger man takes the armor of the weaker man guarding, and he divides up his possessions.

Every person standing there knows what Jesus said. They understand the analogy that Jesus is making on its surface. However, they do not understand what He meant. They all understand the analogy on the surface. Strong man, able to guard his stuff until someone stronger comes along and takes his stuff from him. Sure, that makes sense.

What they do not understand is, who is the strong man and who is the stronger man? These parables would stick with people for awhile. They would remember them. Many people remembered these parable teachings of Jesus, and so these things were recorded in His biographies. Fewer people understand what Jesus was really saying.

The strong man is Satan, and he is here on earth protecting what he has. Now, all that Satan has was taken by deceit. Therefore, he must guard his stuff constantly. He exerts his power sometimes through possession (that is, the demon possession of some man). However, when a stronger man comes along (Jesus), that stronger man plunders the weaker man (Satan); and the stronger man takes all that Satan has and distributes these things to His Own royal family (this is us, by the way).

Satan is the strong man and he has his possessions guarded, but when Jesus chooses to, He will take from Satan all that he has.

Luke 11:23 “He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.

Those who are with Jesus are His followers, His disciples, those who have believed in Him. Those who are against Jesus are those teachers of the law and their lawyers. They are the scribes and the pharisees. They do not gather with Jesus, they scatter. They prevent people from coming to Jesus.

Luke 11:24 “When the unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest. And finding none, he says, ‘I shall return to my house from which I came.’

We have some limited understanding of how massive the universe is. However, Satan’s demon corps cannot separate themselves from earth, where man is. And if a demon is used to functioning inside of a human being, living anywhere else is like being in a desert where it is dry and nothing refreshes.

There are certainly some nuances here which Jesus does not explain. Can demons come and go at will? If Jesus casts them out, can they return later? Jesus does not explain further, but this certainly implies that, in some cases, a demon can reenter a man and repossess him. This is a potential occurrence is Jesus casts out a demon from a man, but that man does not believe in Jesus as a result. If one believes in Jesus, he cannot be possessed by a demon ever again.

Luke 11:25–26 “And when he comes, he finds it swept and decorated, then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last state of that man becomes worse than the first.”

Without the demon, the man is able to clean up his life and live normally. In the example given, a demon deprived the man of his ability to speak. Without the demon, he could speak again. We have seen many other cases of severely anti-social behavior (living naked among the tombs). All of this changes with the removal of the demon. However, if the demon goes back into the man, and takes with him seven more demons, then this man’s later state is worse than it was previously.

How does a person keep this from happening? That person must place his faith in Jesus in order to be saved. The believer cannot be possessed ever again. It is very likely that Jesus was going to say this, but then He gets interrupted.

Luke 11:27 And it came to be, as He was saying this, a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which You sucked!”

There is a woman in the crowd, and she has already heard a number of pharisees just start talking and giving their opinion. She figures that she can just speak up and do the same. Jesus, apparently ready to complete his possession by demons account with the gospel message, is interrupted.

The woman is saying, “Now, let’s give credit where credit is due. You are here speaking to us, and the reason this is taking place is, you had a mother who gave birth to you and her breasts gave you nourishment.”

Luke 11:28 But He said, “Blessed rather are those hearing the Word of Elohim and watching over it!”^b

What Jesus says is far stronger than the word rather. He is saying, “Au contraire (on the contrary), happinesses are to those who are hearing the Word of God and guarding it.”

This should be your focus right now, Jesus is telling this woman, that you concentrate on the Word of God, which I am speaking to you right now. Leave My mother out of it.

Luke 11:29 And while the crowds were thronging, He began to say, “This generation is wicked. It seeks a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of Yonah [= Jonah] the prophet.

The crowds were increasing in numbers and they were asking for another sign from Jesus (Luke 11:16), so that they can better come to a decision about Him. Jesus tells them, “You are not going to be given another sign from Me except for the sign of Jonah.”

Jesus is able to look at this crowd, see these men face-by-face, and know what is in their minds. He is not looking at 1000 people on the cusp of believing in Him. Jesus is not thinking, “Hmmm, may just one more sign and they will believe.”

Jesus tells them, “This is the sign you will get from Me, which is the sign of Jonah.”

Luke 11:30 “For as Yonah became a sign to the Ninewites [= Ninevites], so also the Son of Aam [= Son of Man] shall be to this generation.

Luke does not record what this sign would be, but Matthew does. Jesus did explain this to the crowd.

Matthew 12:40 “For as Yonah was three days and three nights in the stomach of the great fish, Jonah 1:17 so shall the Son of Aam be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. (the Scriptures 2009)

“As Jonah was three days and three nights on the hollow region or cavity of the great fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”

Then Jesus would rise up from the dead, after three days. That would be the sign to this people.

Why didn’t Jesus at least try to give this people another miracle right then and there? Because He perceived that they were already negative toward Him, and no matter what He did, the pharisees could always make the accusation, “He is acting from the power of Beelzebul.”

God’s plan does not call for Jesus to perform miracles if the end result is, no one believes in Him. It is the negative volition of the people before Him that Jesus will address.

Luke 11:31 “The sovereigness of the South [= the Queen of Sheba] shall rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and shall condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Shelomoh, and look, a greater than Shelomoh is here.

Jesus is speaking of the Queen of Sheba here. The entire narrative is found in 1Kings 10:1–13. She came up to meet Solomon and she observed all that he had going on and all that he had to say, and she was amazed by his wisdom.

She will condemn that people listening to Jesus because she believed in Solomon’s God and was saved; yet these people are listening to Solomon’s God and they are not believing.

Luke 11:32 “The men of Ninewěh [= Nineveh] shall rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Yonah, and look, a greater than Yonah is here.

Jonah spoke to the Assyrians in Nineveh, and they believed his message and they believed in his God. At the resurrection, they will judge this generation of Jews, who are not receiving Jesus Christ as their Lord. They believed, but this generation of Jews, as a whole, has not believed.

Luke 11:33 “And no one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a hidden place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in shall see the light.

This general teaching about the lamp and where to put it is found several times in the gospels, so Jesus taught this more than once.

Jesus is the Light of the World. He is the Lamp unto the world. However, not everyone is able to look at Jesus and recognize this. Why is that?

Luke 11:34 “The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, all your body also is enlightened. But when your eye is evil,^c your body also is darkened.

^cThis is Hebrew idiom – a good eye means to be generous, while an evil eye means to be stingy. Also see Proverbs 22:9, Proverbs 23:6 and Proverbs 28:22 [Kukis: These are footnotes from the Scriptures 2009; these are not my notes.]

What a person sees and how they perceive it is related to their soul. These people to whom Jesus is speaking, are in the presence of the Son of the living God. Yet, they are unable to recognize this fact. Their eye is evil, and their body is darkened by this evil. In other words, the people to whom Jesus is speaking have scar tissue on their souls. It is so heavy upon their souls that they cannot recognize truth. This scar tissue makes it impossible for them to recognize Who Jesus is.

Luke 11:35 “See to it therefore that the light which is in you is not darkness.

The believer is to use his light against the darkness. The light is truth and God; the darkness is one’s soul being covered with scar tissue. This scar tissue makes it impossible for a person to see Jesus, as it were.

Luke 11:36 “If then all your body is enlightened, having no part dark, all shall be enlightened, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light.”

When your soul is right, the light reveals the truth. What you see is the truth. You understand what it is that you see. If your soul is covered with scar tissue, then you are unable to see truth. If your soul is not covered with scar tissue (that is, if your eye is good), then you are able to see Jesus Christ and understand Who He is (this is true, whether it is related to actually seeing Jesus in the flesh; or whether we hear about Jesus and believe).

Interestingly enough, all it takes is the smallest amount of positive volition to believe in Jesus Christ. When a person does that and is regenerated, he begins this new life without any scar tissue.

You may know someone who used drugs or was a drunk; and that person turned to Christ and believed in Him. Suddenly, they stop using drugs or they stop drinking. How is that possible? This is because believers begin the new life (the born-again life) without any scar tissue on their souls.

As an aside, this happens only once in a person’s life. There is only one one-shot decision that you can make in your life which changes everything. That one-shot decision is exercising faith in Jesus Christ for the first time. All believers begin their born-again lives without any scar tissue. However, you can, after salvation, return to your bad habits by normal acts of volition and build up that scar tissue again, layer by layer.

You may be familiar with people who have recently been saved to come up and give their testimonies. Once and awhile, a new believer will say, “I was the biggest drunk in town, but now that I have Jesus, I no longer want to drink.” Or, “I was a drug addict and strung out on pot and psychedelics and cocaine, but since I believed in Jesus, I no longer want these things.” What these people are talking about is, they have begun the new life, the born-again life, without any scar tissue. When it comes to alcoholism or drug addiction, they start back at square one. If they choose, by a simple act of volition, not to re-engage with these substances, then they remain drug-free or alcohol free.

Luke 11:37 And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him, so He went in and sat down to eat.

While Jesus is teaching, a certain pharisee kept on saying, “Dine with me.” At some point, Jesus agreed to this, despite being alerted to their negative volition (the pharisees who saw the miracle of the man having the demon thrown out of him ascribed that power to Satan).

What logically makes sense is, Jesus perceived that there were some religious types who were open to His teachings (which turns out to be the case).

Luke 11:38 And when the Pharisee saw it, he marvelled that He did not first wash before dinner.

The pharisees and religious types watch Jesus carefully for any breech of the Law, real or imagined.

Prior to this meal, Jesus did not wash his hands. They did not have clean running water as we have today, so washing one’s hands might in a bowl used by twenty others may not result in cleaner hands. I hesitate to tell you that there was no toilet paper in the ancient world.

In any case, the pharisee who invited Jesus saw that He did not wash His hand and he spoke to Him about it, publically.

Luke 11:39 And the Master said to him, “Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is filled with greed and wickedness.

Jesus speaks to them about their inner selves. “You are filled with greed and wickedness,” Jesus tells them, implying, isn’t that a much greater problem?

Luke 11:40 “Mindless ones! Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?

Jesus said, you are not thinking this through. God made the outside of man but He made the inside as well. That is, God made the body of man, but He also made the soul. We should be more concerned with the soul than with the body.

These men that Jesus is confronting are filled with mental attitude sins. If they were unsure about Jesus before, now they feel hatred toward Him. These men have mental attitude sins are the ones who are defiled.

Luke 11:41 “But give in kindness of that which is within, and see, all are clean to you.

Jesus is trying to explain to these pharisees that, what is on the outside is not as important as what is on the inside. This pharisee has invited Jesus to a meal, which should have been an act of generosity or of giving. However, this act came from his inner nature, which was corrupt. Therefore, this supposed act of kindness was not kind.

This pharisee was ready to pick Jesus apart for any sort of infraction; so when he saw that Jesus did not wash His hands, that is what he complained about. If the pharisee had offered this meal from real agapê love within, then Jesus would have been clean in his sight.

Luke 11:42 “But woe to you Pharisees, because you tithe the mint and the rue and every plant, and pass by the right-ruling [lit., justice] and the love of Elohim. These you should have done, without leaving the others undone.

The key to man’s relationship with God is justice and agapê love. God is motivated by agapê love, but His justice must be satisfied in order for Him to have a relationship with us.

The religious types would tithe on the most minor of things, but they did not understand the justice and agapê love of God and how these two things work together. They did not understand their relationship with God (or lack of relationship). God is able to love us only because His justice is satisfied. God’s justice is satisfied by Christ dying for our sins.

Luke 11:43 “Woe to you Pharisees, because you love the best seats in the congregations and the greetings in the market-places.

The pharisees received a certain amount of approbation due to their position in Jewish society. They enjoyed this. It was a perk of their profession.

Then Jesus says, “Let Me tell you what is really going on!” Jesus says this:

Luke 11:44 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you are like the unseen tombs, and the men walking over them do not know.”

The idea is, what cannot be seen is a decaying rotted corpse (the sin nature of man). This is hidden under a clean exterior. Just as we can walk over an unmarked grave and be unaware of the rotting body below, so it is with the rotted interior of a pharisee who rejects God’s Son.

Luke 11:45 And one of those learned in the Torah, answering, said to Him, “Teacher, when You say this You insult us too.”

Someone other than a pharisee speaks up, saying, “You insult us as well, Jesus, with Your words.” This man would be known as a lawyer—he was educated in the Law of Moses and in the traditions of the rabbis.

Luke 11:46 And He said, “Woe to you also, you learned in the Torah, because you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.

Jesus points out that these men specifically place burdens on others, burdens which they do not place on themselves.

Luke 11:47 “Woe to you, because you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.

“You may build tombs and monuments to the prophets, but it is your fathers who killed them,” is what Jesus is saying.

The inference of Jesus’ words is, “You think like your fathers. Your fathers killed the prophets and you will look to kill Me (Israel’s greatest prophet). Building tombs and monuments to dead prophets is an act of hypocrisy.”

Luke 11:48 “So you bear witness that you approve of the works of your fathers, because they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs [or, monuments].

Luke 11:49–51 “And because of this the wisdom of Elohim said, ‘I shall send them prophets and emissaries, and some of them they shall kill and persecute,’ so that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world shall be required of this generation, from the blood of Heel [= Abel] to the blood of Zearyah [= Zechariah] who perished between the slaughter-place and the Dwelling Place. Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation.

The persistent negative volition of previous generations and of this generation will now face the justice of God. This perpetuated negative volition will end in disaster for the Jews who do not believe in Jesus.

Jesus speaks to these pharisees as a prophet of God. “For this reason, the wisdom of Elohim (God) said,... Jesus will not quote the Bible, but He speaks directly to these men as a prophet of God: ‘I shall send them prophets and emissaries, and some of them they shall kill and persecute, so that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world shall be required of this generation...Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation.’ These are the prophetic words of Jesus.

God continually send His prophets to the Jewish people (in fact, to all people), and these prophets were rejected and killed from the beginning. Abel, a man of God, was the first person to be killed (Cain, his brother, a man of works, killed Abel). His is the first death recorded in the Scriptures.

Zechariah is killed in 2Chronicles 24:20-22. In the Hebrew Bible, 2Chronicles is the last book. So Jesus is taking the first death recorded in the Bible and the last death recorded in the Bible.

Jesus is laying the responsibility for these deaths at the feet of the very pharisees who invited Him to this meal. Jesus says this, because these very men will seek His death.

How will this generation pay? In a.d. 70, Roman soldiers will march into Jerusalem, destroy the Temple and kill a million Jews.

Luke 11:52 “Woe to you learned in the Torah, because you took away the key of knowledge. You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered.”

The key of knowledge is Jesus. In order to understand the thinking of God, a person must first believe in Jesus Christ. Without this, they cannot understand God.

I frequent a FB where there is debates between Christians and atheists. Despite explaining very specific passages on several occasions, the atheists there continue to make the same mistake when it comes to understanding the Scriptures and the plan of God. They will post a meme, which has been explained to them previously; and then they will post it again; and three weeks later, post it again. No matter how many times this is explained to them, they are unable to understand.

For instance, Christians are routinely accused of grabbing onto the beliefs of Christianity and trying to be good because they are afraid to burn in hell. I have explained to them on many occasions that, once a person has believed in Jesus, then he is no longer in danger of hell—no matter what. Yet, every few weeks, someone will post a meme about Christians being afraid of hell.

True knowledge has a key and a foundation: that is Jesus. These pharisees are looking right at the key and foundation of all truth.

Luke 11:53–54 And as He was saying this to them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to oppose Him fiercely, and to draw Him out on many subjects, watching Him, and seeking to catch Him in whatever He says, so as to accuse Him.

What we are studying here took place early in the Lord’s ministry. His interaction with the religious types caused many of them to search out any way that they might oppose Him in the future. They were clearly negative toward Jesus in this situation, but they became more aggressively negative after this.

Postscript: I have previously stated that Jesus agreed to attend this meal with the pharisees because He sensed that there was some positive volition. How do I know this, because this is not stated explicitly in Luke? First of all, Jesus is not going to speak to a people where there is no positive volition at all. Secondly, we have this narrative recorded in the book of Luke. How does Luke know that this happened? Someone had to have been there and that person told Luke about it. Who was there? Pharisees and other religious types. So, at least one person at that meal listened to Jesus Christ and believed in Him.

In the chapter study of Luke 12, the linked vocabulary words will have a target. I add a linked dictionary of terms to the second draft of any chapter study. These words do not have a target in the emailed study (which is what you are reading right now). Adding such a dictionary would simply be impractical.

Introduction to Luke 12: Luke 12, like all of the middle section of Luke, is primarily Jesus speaking and teaching. Only two of the 59 verses are narrative, and seven verses have a portion which are narrative (such as v. 54a, And he said also to the multitudes... Revised Young’s Literal Translation).

This middle section (Luke 11–18a) ought to be titled, and these are other things which Jesus taught during His earthly ministry. Everything before and after this middle section is in chronological order in Luke. Since Matthew and Peter were there for the Lord’s ministry, their gospels (Matthew and Mark) are in chronological order. Luke was not there, so the bulk of his book is in chronological order, but he had all of these additional teachings of Jesus which were untethered to time, so that became his middle section. Knowing this fixes about 90–95% of the chronology problems of the synoptic gospels (which are the first three gospels).

In Luke 12, thousands of people come to Jesus, presumably to hear Him teach (Luke 12:1, 13, 54). However, it is clear that there are a number of religious types in this crowd who are antagonistic to Him (which antagonism, Jesus only alludes to in vv. 1–5). Jesus somehow takes His disciples aside and teaches them. They are joined by the thousands, but this appears to take place over a period of time. Vv. 1–34 appear to be directed primarily to the disciples. It is apparent that others have also come into the periphery of the Lord, little by little, from around v. 35 and forward (I am basing this upon vv. 41 & 54). The problem with this chapter is, it is not clear when Jesus is speaking to His disciples and when He is speaking to a large crowd. However, as far as we are concerned, 2100 years later, it does not matter much to whom Jesus is specifically speaking to. If it is obvious, we will take note of it. There are portions of this chapter where it is clear that Jesus is speaking to those who have already believed in Him and that they have accepted His authority.

I had considered dividing this chapter into two large sections: Jesus Speaks to His Disciples and Jesus Speaks to the Assembled Crowd. However, there is no clear delineation between this change of focus (v. 1 suggests that Jesus is speaking directly to His disciples; v. 13 has someone from the crowd asking Jesus a direct question; v. 22 is Jesus speaking directly to His disciples; and v. 54 is the first time that Luke specifically writes of Jesus addressing a crowd). Let me quickly add that when we are told that Jesus is speaking to His disciples, this is not necessarily only to the twelve disciples, as many people followed Jesus, and those people would be considered His disciples as well.

Although it appears that Jesus taught all of this at one sitting (so to speak), Luke 12 contains nine different short topics and parables. Although there seems to be some connections between these various topics, it would be hard to put an umbrella title over this entire series of topics. My attempt to sum these up would be: the relationship of the disciples to God and to Jesus (and the Holy Spirit); followed by their relationships to their fellow man (which is more a description than a title). In any case, this off-the-cuff summation is so broad that it might be applicable to any of the middle chapters of Luke (which chapters are devoted primarily to teaching).

From time to time, it is important to note exactly to whom the Lord is speaking, as He will say things like, “Sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor. Make yourselves wallets that don’t wear out—a dependable treasure in heaven, where no thief can get close and no moth can destroy anything. Because where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Luke 12:33–34; ISV) If this applies to every believer today, then there is hardly a person in this world who is doing what Jesus says. Surely the people living in homeless encampments are not the only people truly following Jesus today.

I realize that many people believe, “Jesus said it and so, I will do it.” However, we have to be careful when interpreting the teachings of Jesus. Not everything applies to you and me in year 2025 (or, whenever). In fact, there are a number of sections in this chapter which emphatically do not apply directly to us. We need to be careful to correctly divide the Word of God (meaning that we need to take into account the Lord’s audience and the time frame of the teaching).

For instance, there are times when Jesus is simply teaching the Law of Moses (which was not being taught correctly by the religious authorities of the day). There are times when Jesus speaks to His disciples about persecutions which they will suffer in particular over the next 30+ years. There is even a section in John when Jesus teaches specifically about Church Age doctrine. Let me put this in another way: there are things which Jesus will teach that do not apply to us at all in the Church Age. We need to rightly divide the Word of Truth to figure this out.

In chapters 8–11, we have done a very careful examination of the text, of various incidents, and have come to the conclusion that this center section of Luke (chapters 11–18) is not in chronological order. This is confirmed by comparing the time period of Luke 9–10 (which take place within a few months of His final entrance into Jerusalem) and some specific teachings of Luke 11 which certainly took place early on in the Lord’s public ministry (such as answering the disciples’ question, How should we pray?

Whatever we can place in chronological order will be based upon the incident found here and how it compares to texts elsewhere. There are some incidents that we may place into a reasonable time frame; and there will be other incidents—particularly the unique incidents—which we cannot.

We should understand that Jesus taught during a unique time. He was not teaching to Church Age believers. There was no church until the Day of Pentecost which took place after His crucifixion, resurrection and ascension. Hence, Jesus was not teaching Church Age believers (although the disciples would be the first teachers in the Church Age). I realize that some new believers may find this to be really confusing. People who do not understand dispensations will also be confused by this. How many Christians out there think that the Christian way of life is figuring out, what would Jesus do?

Luke 12:1a In the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together.... (ESV; capitalized)

Isn’t this every preacher’s dream, to have a packed crowd? People have heard about Jesus, they have heard about the controversies, they have heard about the healings, and they began to show up to wherever Jesus was, coming there in very large groups.

Let me suggest that the overwhelming majority of people are friendly to the Lord. Most of them are on positive signals (or they are willing to give Him a listen). But this is not necessarily true of every crowd in every environment. You will recall in the previous chapter, Jesus was invited to the house of a pharisee and nearly everyone there was negative toward Him and His teaching. See Luke 11 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

There was no space for anyone, as they were such a large crowd. They stepped on one another in order to find a place. Although this would certainly suggest positive volition, that is not always the case. Quite a number of people were drawn to the Lord for a variety of reasons; and many of those who came to Jesus to hear Him would not believe in Him.

Jesus, rather than addressing this massive crowd, Jesus instead speaks to His Own disciples. This is a fascinating thing because most celebrities, when in a small group, and are surrounded by fans, speak first to the large crowd.

I have made the assumption that, because the word first is used here that Jesus would speak to the large crowd after some time.

There is no indication that Jesus took the disciples to a more private setting in order to teach them, but He apparently addresses them directly, in spite of the large crowds. Although He does not tune out the large crowd (as some of His teaching includes references to some who are in this crowd), Jesus is not teaching the crowd specifically for most of this chapter.

We have just begun the twelfth chapter of Luke. As before, the definition links in this document go nowhere. When all of this information is integrated back into Luke 12 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD), the links will have an informative in-document destination.

Luke 12:1a-c In the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that they were trampling one another, He began to say to His disciples first,... (ESV; capitalized)

So many people came to hear Jesus, but a large percentage had not believed in Him. Therefore, with those people, there was no foundation upon which to build. With His disciples they had a foundation upon which He could build (with teaching). That foundation was, they believed in Him.

Luke 12:1d ..."Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus warns His disciples about the leaven of the pharisees, which leaven is hypocrisy. In the previous chapter—Luke 11 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) (which is continued here)—Jesus spoke harshly to the pharisees and other religious types, explaining to them exactly how they were hypocritical.

Based upon two sections of this chapter—when Jesus says He brings division onto the earth and when He presses His listeners to discern the time—we would assume that there are some religious types in this audience. Jesus has done nothing to encourage the religious hierarchy to come to Him with their preconceived traditions and anti-Biblical thinking. However, on many occasions during His ministry, they show up—often to ask pointed questions, hoping to catch Him in an untruth. On other occasions, they would complain about His actions as going against their traditions.

It is reasonable to suppose that Jesus looked out to the crowd, recognized some scribes or pharisees, and He warns His disciples not to become like them.

Jesus’ teaching was very organic. What He taught was based upon situations, questions, and/or who is in the crowd. Even though God the Father knew where Jesus would travel to and whom He would teach, Jesus did not know this Himself. He confined Himself to His human attributes during His public ministry, so He never knew what each day would bring.

The chief problem with the religious hierarchy throughout Judæa and Galilee is this: they are supposed to be teaching the Jewish people accurate doctrine. The truth is clearly laid out in the Law and the Prophets. Instead, the religious hierarchy has concentrated on superficial adherence to the Law—but they did not really adhere to the Law. They have substituted their traditions for the accurate teaching of the Old Testament.

Now, how do I know this? These religious types had a million rules for the Sabbath day (which was based upon their traditions), and yet they ignored their Sabbath years. God never told them to make up a bunch of extra rules for the Sabbath; nor did He tell them to ignore the Sabbath years.

Most importantly, these scholars of the Scriptures should be teaching the people about the coming Messiah, but when confronted by Jesus, they do not know Who He is. They knew, for the most part, the messianic passages from the Old Testament, but they were unable to associate these with Jesus. They did not match what they should have known with the Person of Jesus.

The hypocrisy of the pharisees is this: they do not keep the Law themselves, but they hold others to keep the traditions which the pharisees and previous so-called scholars have themselves developed.

This hypocrisy is called leaven because it began affecting a small number of Old Testament scholars, and it continued until all of them had become corrupt (this corruption reaching a peak in the first century a.d.). This corruption explains the fifth cycle of discipline being applied to nation Israel in 70 a.d. The people became so negative to the teachings of Moses and the Prophets that they did not even recognize their own Savior.

Luke 12:1 In the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that they were trampling one another, He began to say to His disciples first, "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. (ESV; capitalized)

So, even though there are many people gathered into this general area, Jesus spoke primarily to the disciples at first.

After reading a few references to yeast (leaven), it would be easy to get the idea that God simply hates French bread. However, that is not what is being taught. When the Israelites left Egypt in a hurry, they did not have time to allow their bread to rise, so, for a couple of weeks each year, the Israelites, under God’s dictation, would not use any yeast. This was all about remembering and looking back on that time period.

Jesus and Paul both spoke of yeast in a negative way, not because they both hated French bread, but simply because it represented something evil. That is, a small amount of yeast (evil) would permeate the entire roll of bread (the whole), just as the leaven of the pharisees would impact the entire Law. When the pharisees began to make a few minor adjustments to the Law, they eventually corrupted all of it.

The Translation for Translators does a nice job with this first verse: While they were doing that, many thousands of people gathered around Jesus. There were so many that they were stepping on each other. Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Beware of becoming hypocrites like the Pharisees. Their evil influence [MET] spreads to others like yeast spreads its influence in dough.

Jesus and His disciples would encounter the pharisees many times during His earthly ministry, and he made them aware of the fact that they acted as a leaven with regards to the Law of Moses.

Luke 12:2a Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed,... (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus then warns His disciples—and all others: there is nothing that is private. Whatever you have concealed, it will be uncovered. It will be made known to all.

Jesus then says, “Whatever you think you have hidden from others, it will become known.” You cannot cover up something which you have done in the past; and you cannot hide any of your past misdeeds either. This is just as true of human good and evil as it is of sin.

So many believers hustle like nobody’s business, and yet they are doing nothing but producing wood, hay and straw, all of which will be burned up in a massive bonfire before the Judgment Seat of Christ (this bonfire takes place immediately after the rapture of the church).

Luke 12:2 Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. (ESV; capitalized)

What the pharisees have been doing and will continue to do—plot against Jesus Christ—will become known. They may stand before God and claim to be His servants but all of their plots against His Son will be known. They will have no excuse. All that they did to follow the Law will be meaningless when placed side-by-side their evil plots. Don’t misunderstand me—I am not saying that they are judged for their evil plots; but they reject Jesus as the Messiah and as their Savior. That is what cannot be forgiven.

Luke 12:3a Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light,... (ESV; capitalized)

“Whatever you speak to someone else in the dark, that will be heard in the light,” Jesus warns His disciples. These would be evil plans and plots, hatched and often done at night. All of these things will be revealed.

Luke 12:3b ...and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus adds, “You might whisper something to someone else in a private room, separated from everyone else; but those words will be shouted from the rooftops.”

Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge on rooftops: The houses in Judea being flat-roofed, with a balustrade round about, were used for the purpose of taking the air, sleeping, and prayer, and, it seems, for announcing things in the most public manner.

Even though Jesus is speaking to His disciples here, it should be clear that His message is also for those of the religious hierarchy who are gathered around. In many places where Jesus spoke, there are pharisees and other religious types watching Him carefully, looking for any misstep that they might bring to the Sanhedrin to convict the Lord of.

Apparently, these religious groups would meet and discuss the Lord and what He both said and did. Sometimes they coordinated their attacks against Him. Remember when we studied Jesus casting out a demon, and then several pharisees claimed that He did this by the power of Satan (I believe they used the term Beelzebul). This is an example of a coordinated attack. Had one man simply stood up and said this, it may have not had much impact. However, when a number of religious types stood up and made this claim, the claim seems to be more palatable.

Illustration: We have a fascinating illustration of this with the mainstream media (or the legacy media). For instance, at one time, Hunter Biden, the son of Joe Biden, a presidential candidate in 2020, had left his laptop behind at a repair shop and he never picked it up. As a result, some of the contents of this laptop became known. There was a lot on this laptop which could have ruined Biden’s presidential run. So, media began to run stories on how this laptop information bore all the earmarks of Russian disinformation (I recall that many people in the law enforcement field put out a statement to this effect and signed it). Rather than report on the contents of the laptop which were available and rather than review people who were familiar with the contents of the laptop, only people who signed that statement were interviewed. Dozens of major media outlets ran the story that this was Russian disinformation, and they ran it over and over again. It was enough to convince nearly half the interested public that there was nothing to this laptop story.

So, when Jesus cast a demon out of a man, and this act was undisputed, many men with credentials in the Mosaic Law stood up and said, “He did this by the power of Beelzebul.” Because this was the testimony of many experts in the Law, the crowd who actually observed Jesus do this was swayed.

This took place because these men met previously and came up with a plan of attack. What Jesus was able to do was becoming very clear to the pharisees and those aligned with them. They had to come up with a counter-narrative to sway the public, and this accusation was the result of one such meeting.

Luke 12:3b ...and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops. (ESV; capitalized)

In this case, the Bible has exposed them. They may have met privately and determined some evil plans, but this has been exposed and shouted from the rooftops, as it were.

Application: There are a great many apostate Christian organizations, denominations and churches. Generally speaking, I do not name names, nor do I concentrate on this or that organization and tell you what is wrong with them. I don’t secretly spy on their meetings and try to find some way that I can get them. What I focus on is an honest attempt to proclaim the truth of each passage, as accurately as I am able. I teach principles; and, on occasion, I might name a denomination or group as an example of how a particular passage or doctrine is misinterpreted by them. However, for the most part, I stick to principles. This is the correct way to understand this passage; and, this is a false interpretation of this passage. I leave it to the reader to make the application himself and to act upon that on his own.

Application: On occasion—and I try not to do this very often—I will read a commentator who really confuses a passage and gives the wrong understanding of that passage. I may quote that commentator (he may be living or dead) and explain why his interpretation of a passage is incorrect and why mine is correct. However, this careful examination is impersonal (I try for that, anyway); and if the commentator is generally accurate on other passages, I try to mention that as well, so that no one thinks that I am attacking that commentator or teacher directly or in general.

In any case, this was not the approach of the pharisees. Because they rejected Jesus, they found themselves filled with mental attitude sins against Him; and they spoke and acted on the basis of those mental attitude sins. The priests or pharisees, insofar as we know, did not teach in the fashion which I have described. That is, they did not take some of the principles taught by the Lord and say, “You may have heard this taught in this way, but that is incorrect, and here is why...” Their attacks upon the Lord were personal; and based primarily on their rejection of Him. Sometimes, they would cite their own regulations which were not written down by Moses. However, these religious types found it very difficult to debate the Lord on any point of doctrine. Jesus was always able to publically shut them down, and, for the most part, He would quote Scripture to make His point.

Luke 12:3 Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops. (ESV; capitalized)

I would suggest two applications for these words of our Lord. (1) Many things said in secret are exposed in time and made very public. (2) There will be an ultimate reckoning for all types of evil which were planned for in private.

Illustration: There are a great many prominent men with power and with great financial resources who believe in a global governance (which is absolutely evil). They have been nudging the world in this direction for many decades now. Many of their names are known, their public meetings are being better scrutinized, and very active opposition is rising up against this evil. Obviously, this thing has not yet played itself out, but the things which they have said in private are becoming known to the public. Kukis caveat: by making mention of this, I am not suggesting that any one get intensely involved in a counter-movement. Our focus needs to be far more localized and involve the learning of Bible doctrine under well-qualified pastor-teachers.

Luke 12:1–3 The crowd of people continued to grow, to the point where they were stepping on one another. Nevertheless, Jesus began to teach His disciples directly, before speaking to the crowd. “You need to be warned about the leaven of the pharisees, which is hypocrisy. There is nothing that they or anyone else will conceal which will not be uncovered. Whatever is hidden now, will be known in the future. Whatever things you speak quietly in the darkness, will be heard by all in the light. Even if you whisper to someone in a private room, that information will be proclaimed from the rooftop. (Kukis paraphrase)

The point that Jesus is making is, the hypocrisy of the pharisees is based upon things which they hide from others; but, Jesus is warning, that will not continue to be the case.

The inclusion of these words in the Scriptures make this the widely known of exposed secrets. Inclusion in the Word of God is the equivalent of proclaiming these things from the rooftops.

Jesus speaks with great earnest to His disciples, calling them friends. “I keep on telling you this...” He says to them.

Category #3 love, which is friendship, is very important. Jesus, in His humanity, had such friendships established. His disciples were not simply His followers; many of them were also His friends.

“Don’t fear the one who simply kills the body,” He warns, “and nothing else.” Here, we could be speaking of all manner of men (and the Christians for the next 200 to 300 years would be viciously persecuted, and many would die).

Luke 12:4c ...and after that have nothing more that they can do. (ESV; capitalized)

Once the body is dead, then man and demon has no power beyond that. After the your death, their persecution ends. Don’t fear such a one.

Luke 12:4 "I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. (ESV; capitalized)

In the future, the disciples will be confronted by governmental officials and religious authorities; and some of the disciples will be killed by these people. Jesus is telling them, “This is the most that they can do to you; they cannot do more than this.”

There is life beyond the grave, and even if the believer is pursued and killed for his faith, that believer has eternity to look forward to, and an eternity without any persecution. At the same time, most of their persecutors will spend eternity in hell, separated from God.

What happens on earth takes place just for an instant (in the grand scheme of things); but our lives here on earth directly affect our existence in eternity.

Although Jesus does not teach that these rulers and officials cannot kill them if it is not God’s will, He sets that aside for the moment and tells them who should be feared.

Luke 12:5b ...fear Him Who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell.. (ESV; capitalized)

Whereas, before the Lord said to not to fear, here He says, “Fear.” Imperative mood. Whom should be fear? God, of course. We should fear and respect God.

Jesus tells them the reason: “After killing you, God has the authority to cast you into hell.”

The word used here is Geennna (Γέεννα) [pronounced GHEH-ehn-nah]. On the outskirts of town, there was a dump where there was a constant fire going; and things which were deemed to be trash were hauled there and thrown into the fire. This became one of the words which referred to hell, where God’s judgment is placed upon a man for eternity. Strong’s #1067. The constant fire, which was kept going in this ancient refuse station, was illustrative of eternal hellfire.

Although Jesus is specifically teaching His disciples, insofar as we know, only Judas is really facing that particular danger (it is disputed whether or not he ever believed in the Lord). However, there are people listening in to the Lord’s teaching at this point in time; and they need to fear the final judgment.

We as believers have no reason to fear our eternal destiny. Jesus took upon Himself the burden of our sins, so that we are now spotless before the Lord. It is not that you or I live spotless lives—we do not—but it is what Jesus Christ did for us on the Roman cross which makes us acceptable to God.

Jesus, at this point, doubles down on what He just said. “Fear that One,” He repeats. “The One Who can cast you into the everlasting fire.”

There is only One Entity which can condemn us to an eternal hell, and that is God.

Luke 12:5 But I will warn you Whom to fear: fear Him who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear Him! (ESV; capitalized)

We are to fear God. However, once we have believed in Jesus Christ, we are confident that God will not cast us into the Lake of Fire.

Luke 12:4–5 I keep on telling all of you, My friends, do not fear the one who kills the body, yet, after this, is unable to do any more. I keep on warning all of you Whom you+ should be afraid of—fear the [One] who, after killing [you], [then] has the authority to cast [you] into Gehenna [fire]. Indeed, I keep saying to you+, fear that [One]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The enemies of the disciples are going to become more and more prominent. Christians throughout the world will be persecuted. Christians in the Roman Empire will face great persecution over the next few hundred years. Jesus is saying, do not fear your earthly enemies, but fear God instead.

Jesus has spoken of the concept of throwing one’s soul into Gehenna. So, to provide some balance—and so that His disciples do not freak out with fear—Jesus speaks to them of God’s care for them.

Jesus then asks His disciples to consider the sparrows. “Aren’t five of them sold for the two smallest Roman coins?” He asks. The implication is, sparrows are very cheap. When it comes to living things, sparrows are quite inexpensive.

Nevertheless, God knows all of the sparrows. There is not a single sparrow that God does not know about. As we will find out, God does not simply know about every sparrow, but He has made perfect provision for every sparrow.

God’s knowledge is perfect and complete. During any given year, a father might know the presents that he personally bought for his son’s birthday, and perhaps why he thought that was a good present. But, over a period of 10 years, the father is not going to remember more than 3 or 4 presents which he got his son. God would remember all of them. God knows all of the details and motivations behind each one. There is nothing unknown to God. We have limits to our knowledge; God does not have any limits to His knowledge.

Luke 12:6 Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. (ESV; capitalized)

Despite the fact that sparrows are very insignificant in the scheme of things, and are of little value, God keeps track of them all.

From Google’s AI overview: Sparrows primarily eat seeds and grains, with insects, fruits, and other small invertebrates making up a smaller part of their diet. Insects are particularly important for young sparrows and during the breeding season.

God sees to it that they have seeds and grains, insects, fruits and small invertebrates to eat. This is true of all animals. There is an amazing balance of nature. I have always been a sucker for various nature shows, particularly those narrated by David Attenborough. For every one of the animals that Attenborough presents, God knows about them—every single one of them—and He has made provision for them.

Luke 12:7a Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. (ESV; capitalized)

God knows far more about us than being able to distinguish Charlie Brown from Lucy. God knows, at any given instant, how many hairs are on your head. His knowledge is beyond what we know about ourselves.

The concept of fear weighs heavily into this part of Jesus’ teaching. In the previous passage, He told us who to fear. Here, His disciples are being told not to fear. Not to be anxious.

We need to understand this as believers in our relationship with God. The unbeliever has a great deal to fear in this life, but the believer does not.

Quite obviously, the believer faces many fearful things in life; many irritating things in life; many hardships. We have to weigh this against being loved by a righteous God; and that we have a purpose in life which, from time to time, requires great exposure to very unpleasant and sometime difficult things.

Interestingly enough, there are two primary meanings given to this verb by translators: being worth more, being of greater value.

This is actually a very difficult verb. It is the 2^nd person plural, present active indicative of diaphérō (διαφέρω) [pronounced dee-ahf-EHR-oh], which means, to bear or carry (through any place); to carry (in different ways; in different directions, to different places); to differ, to test, to prove (the good things that differ); to distinguish (between good and evil, lawful and unlawful), to approve of things that excel, to differ from one; to excel, surpass one; impersonally, it makes a difference, it matters, it is of importance. Strong’s #1308.

We are certainly distinguished from sparrows. In fact, God sees us as excelling over many sparrows. We far surpass the sparrows in God’s estimation.

God knows about every single sparrow; and yet, we are far more important than these sparrows to God. Our life in the devil’s world, with all of its difficulties and problems, should not be a life of fear and anxiety. This is because God has handled these things from the very beginning.

Problems and difficulties belong to every person’s life. Now, we may have various periods of time, when these things are less pressing, but the life of the mature believer should not be marked by anxiety, fear, depression or distress (these are all mental attitude sins which require you to rebound when you suffer from any one of them).

When it comes to fear, God makes it simple. We should only fear Him. And, if we have a relationship with God through His Son, then we do not have to fear Him in eternity. Despite the lives that we live here, we have an assured eternity in God’s presence. Obviously, you and I are not going to stand before God because we are really great people—we’re not! But when God sees us, He sees His Son, because we are in Christ for exercising faith in Christ. Our other fears—even the greatest of them—should be set aside, because, when all is said and done, God is paying more attention to us that He does to all the sparrows.

Luke 12:7 Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows. (ESV; capitalized)

God knows us so well that He even knows the number of hairs on our heads. Jesus takes care of the sparrows, so He tells us, we are of a greater value to Him than these sparrows.

Luke 12:6–7 [Are] not five sparrows being bartered for two [Roman] coins? Yet, not one of them is forgotten before God. Yet, even the hairs of your+ head are all numbered. Do not fear! You (all) are superior to many sparrows! (Kukis mostly literal translation)

If God takes care of the sparrows—and He does—then how much more will He take care of us, as we are of far more value to Him than the sparrows.

God knows the most trivial information about us, such as the number of hairs on our heads (90,000 to 150,000). If He knows such minute information about each one of us, and if He takes care of the needs of sparrows, then we can trust that He is aware of all lives and all that is happening, and that He has made provision for us.

Luke 12:8a "And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges Me before men,.., (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus is speaking to His disciples; but, by extension, He is also speaking to us.

Don’t get this confused with works for salvation. Some believers will speak about Jesus as a result of being saved and growing spiritually. However, some do not.

Luke 12:8b ...the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God, (ESV; capitalized)

Acknowledging such a one before the angels is not salvation, but reward. Some believers will be rewarded for their lives on this earth. This is a form of recognition which God gives to us.

This is a good reason to stay in fellowship and to understand the gospel and as much spiritual information as is possible (which information is learned one day at a time).

A situation like this occurring, when you are in a difficult spot, but you acknowledge the Lord—this might even be seen as evidence testing. As a result, God acknowledges you before His angels. This might better be said, God recognizes some of us before His angels.

Luke 12:8 "And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges Me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God,... (ESV; capitalized)

This does not mean that you are an unsaved person, and then you get into a tight spot and you must confess Jesus as your Savior, and you are saved. We are all saved by exercising faith in Jesus Christ. Easy believism, as it is called, and for us, it is easy. We are not saved because we confess Jesus Christ before men.

This verse does not mean that you are saved, but when you get into a tight spot, and it is appropriate to say that you belong to Jesus—but you don’t—then you lose your salvation. Once we have believed in the Lord, we are saved and we remain saved. Our salvation is based upon what Jesus did for us on the Roman cross, it is not based upon our mediocre lives after salvation.

Luke 12:8 I keep telling all of you, all who will acknowledge Me before men, the Son of Man will acknowledge him before the angels of God. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

This verse means that, those who acknowledge the Lord before men receive reward and recognition (believers during this era were persecuted for believing in Jesus or speaking about Jesus).

The example of Peter denying Jesus:

One of the men listening to Jesus would deny Him later (Peter). But, there are some who will never witness to men about Jesus; will never admit to believing in Him. And worse, under some circumstances, some will deny the Lord Jesus Christ.

Peter did not lose his salvation; and, when he acknowledged his sin to God, it was forgiven (any sin that we commit is forgiven temporally when we name it to God). Now, Peter had a strong emotional reaction to committing this sin of denial, but he was not temporally forgiven because of this strong emotional reaction. He was forgiven because he recognized before God that he had sinned (For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged—1Corinthians 11:31, Webster).

In order to prove this point, think about Peter and his state of mind. He denies the Lord, after spending a concentrated three or four years under His teaching. What happened right after Peter denied the Lord? He lost fellowship with God the Father. If he is out of fellowship with God the Father, is he controlled by the Holy Spirit? Is he producing any divine good at this moment right after his denial? No, obviously not. Now, from this state of mind (being out of fellowship with God, which is being out of step with God), does his deep-felt regret count as anything? Does God look down, see Peter, his contrite and regretting heart and say, “Listen, Peter, you’re alright. Because you keep on regretting your denial—while in the flesh—I am going to declare things a-okay and you are back in fellowship again!” God does not say that. In fact, God cannot say that. Why? Because all of this comes from Peter while he is out of fellowship! Peter cannot produce any divine good when out of fellowship. So, how does he get restored to fellowship? Peter is restored to fellowship apart from any works, apart from working up any emotion. He uses 1John 1:9 (If we admit [or name] our sins, He [God] is faithful [He does it every time] and righteous [God does not violate His character to forgive us] to forgive us these sins [the ones that we named] and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [the sins which we did not name]). He acknowledges his sin of denial to God. Then he is back in fellowship with God. There is nothing spiritual that Peter can produce when he is out of fellowship, no matter how much he regrets his wrongdoing. He must get back into fellowship for any action to count of divine good.

What am I saying to you? You CANNOT produce any divine good while you are in the flesh, even if you truly, truly regret the sin that took you out of fellowship. Your works when out of fellowship count for nothing. One thing and one thing only gets you back into fellowship, and that is to name your sin. Then, what you produce after that—assuming that you have some knowledge of Bible doctrine—can count as divine good.

So, are you getting this? Maybe you regret the sin (s) you committed and maybe you don’t. That is irrelevant. Peter truly regretted denying the Lord. He was deeply saddened by his response to this pressure, as he was trying to keep himself out of danger. But his emotions do not get him back into fellowship; nor do his emotions count as anything after he is back in fellowship (in fact, his emotions can take him right out of fellowship again because, whatever is not of faith is sin). Sometimes we feel things; and sometimes, when we think we should, we feel nothing or very little. How you feel is spiritually insignificant. What you think, what you say and what you do are significant.

How many of you have committed a sin, realize that you did, and then try to work up some kind of emotion because you committed that sin? You keep thinking about it until you feel some sort of regret. Does that give you God’s temporal forgiveness? It does not! When you recognize that you committed this sin, then you are forgiven.

The believer can be in one of two statuses: in fellowship or out of fellowship. What puts you out of fellowship is committing a sin (mental, verbal, or overt); what gets you back into fellowship is naming your sin (s) to God. When you are out of fellowship, there is nothing you can do to please God because of your status. When your status is out of fellowship, then there is nothing you can do to please God.

Now, when you are in fellowship, you are able to please God, because of your status and what you understand of His Word in your soul.

When you are out of fellowship, there are no emotions that you can work up in the flesh strong enough to gain some sort of reinstatement with God. But those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:8a) So, no matter how strong your emotions are while you are out of fellowship, they do nothing for you.

We do not please God by working up our emotions.

Now, as an aside, you and I react very differently to different sins. We may commit the exact same sin, but have a different emotional response. I may have no emotional response and you may be filled with deep regret. We are both forgiven the same way, by admitting that we sinned to God and naming it (verbally or in the mind when speaking to God). You are not more forgiven because you regret what you did; and I am not less forgiven because I had no emotional response.

I am not saying that you should sin. I am saying that if you do sin—no matter how you feel about that sin—make sure you name it to God.

Throughout human history, believers are persecuted. Not in every instance and not for every Christian, but some believers in some places are severely tested. At this time in history, the Roman Empire persecuted those who believed in Jesus. They were killed and tortured in the most exquisite ways. It is because hundreds of thousands of Christians still testified to Jesus under enormous pressure, that the testimony of Jesus gained steam and continues to this day.

Such a person will be denied rewards before the angels. Such a person will be denied recognition before the angels.

Our lives are lived before elect and fallen angels as a part of the Angelic Conflict. They observe us and they observe our relationship with God. From this, they draw conclusions as to God’s character and essence. If God blesses us, it must be consistent with His character; if He saves us, it must be consistent with His character. And if He denies us reward, this must be consistent with His character. Everything that God does must be consistent with His perfect character.

Luke 12:9 ...but the one who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God. (ESV; capitalized)

The believer who denies his relationship with Jesus Christ will be denied reward and recognition in eternity future.

Luke 12:8–9 I keep telling all of you, all who will acknowledge Me before men, the Son of Man will acknowledge him before the angels of God. But the one who disavows Me before men, he will be denied [rewards] before the angels of God. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

This is all about rewards and recognition; this is not about being saved or not saved. Acknowledging God and not denying God is properly a work. Typically, this is not something the unsaved man would do (even with my imagination, it is hard to come up with a scenario in which an unbeliever would confess Jesus).

This is all about rewards and recognition; this is not about being saved or not saved. Acknowledging God and not denying God is properly a post-salvation work. Typically, this is not something the unsaved man would do (even with my imagination, it is hard to come up with a scenario in which an unbeliever would confess Jesus).

Luke 12:10a And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven,.... (ESV; capitalized)

There will be those who speak out against Jesus, but, at some point will change their minds. Their speaking against Him, will be forgiven. In fact, to be clear, all sins will be forgiven when Jesus dies on the cross (future from the time of this narrative). However, one must take advantage or lay hold of what God offers. When presented with the gospel message, the unbeliever must accept or reject it.

Luke 12:10b ...but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. (ESV; capitalized)

When God brings the gospel message to an individual, it is revealed to that individual by means of God the Holy Spirit. As unbelievers, we have no human spirit. Whether it is shut down, inaccessible or nonexistent, I don’t know; but we do not have access to the human spirit (wherein information about God is stored).

Therefore, when divine information is revealed to the unbeliever (that divine information being the gospel message), the Holy Spirit acts as a person’s human spirit, so that the information that he hears becomes real and understandable to him. For instance, you might hear 100 times the words, Jesus died for your sins, and it makes no impact upon your life. They are just words. For you, they are some sort of a religious slogan, but nothing else. However, when God the Holy Spirit reveals these words to the unbeliever, they become real, and there is a limited amount of understanding which suddenly takes residence within the soul of the unbeliever. There is enough knowledge in the human spirit for the unbeliever to understand that he has a life choice to make at this point in time. That choice is to believe that Jesus died for his sins and to accept this gift—or to reject it, which is tantamount to blaspheming the Holy Spirit.

It is a combination of the words of the gospel message and the revelation of the Holy Spirit which sets up a potential salvation experience. These two things work in tandem when the gospel is presented to the unbeliever.

I have seen the evangelist Gary Horton give the gospel message to perhaps a thousand teens. It was an amazing thing to behold. He spoke and they listened. He spoke the truth about Jesus Christ and they both heard and understood what he was saying. That was the power of the Holy Spirit.

Now, the person who rejects the free gift of God, revealed to him by the Holy Spirit, is lost and that sin will not be forgiven him. When gospel information is provided for the unbeliever and when the unbeliever is given the ministry of the Holy Spirit to make that message clear, if he rejects that message, he is blaspheming the Holy Spirit.

Luke 12:10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. (ESV; capitalized)

Now, to the untrained reader, this verse appears appears to say that you can reject Jesus, but you had better not reject God the Holy Spirit. That is not exactly what this passage means.

It is by verses like this that we better understand the difference between God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Most people will, at some point in their lives, sin against the Son of God. We might use His name in a blasphemous way; we may belittle those who believe in Him, etc. (most of these sins will be committed by an unbeliever; but a believer can also sin against Jesus; the example of Peter denying the Lord comes to mind).

The unbeliever, however, has a much different relationship with the Holy Spirit. The unbeliever must go through Jesus Christ to get to God the Father. Salvation is based entirely upon exercising faith in Christ. Prior to that point, the unbeliever may sin against the Lord many times and in many ways.

Now, the Holy Spirit interacts with the unbeliever in one way only (notice I said, unbeliever). The Holy Spirit makes the gospel understandable to the unbeliever. The Holy Spirit makes it possible for the unbeliever to understand—to a limited degree—one piece of Bible doctrine; that is, the salvation message (believe in Jesus Christ and you are saved; reject Jesus Christ and God will reject you). When the unbeliever understands the gospel message and rejects it, then he is blaspheming against the Holy Spirit. This is the one sin which stands between man and God. The unbeliever can either accept the witness of the Holy Spirit and be saved; or he can reject this witness and continue in a state of unbelief. If he perpetuates this state of disbelief, he will spend eternally separated from God.

Luke 12:10 It is possible to speak negatively against the Son of Man and still be forgiven; but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, that act will not be forgiven. (Kukis paraphrase)

Jesus, in His humanity, worked through the power of God the Holy Spirit. For instance, when Jesus touched a person and healed him, this was not through the Lord’s Deity; nor was this some sort of magic that Jesus was capable of. The Holy Spirit made the healing come to pass; and that healing would be immediate and complete (there was never any rehabilitation time involved).

Luke 12:8–10 I keep telling all of you, all who will acknowledge Me before men, the Son of Man will acknowledge him before the angels of God [this is a reward]. But the one who disavows Me before men, he will be denied [rewards] before the angels of God. Now, anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, [that] will be forgiven him; but the [one who] blasphemes the Holy Spirit, [that] will not be forgiven. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Prior to salvation, the unbeliever can reject Jesus in a number of different ways. I suggested that the unbeliever can blaspheme Him. If the person has believed in the Lord, he is saved, whether this blasphemy (or whatever) takes place when he is a believer or not.

There is also the act of acknowledging Jesus before other men. This is not something that the unbeliever would do, but this would be something that the believer would do. The believer who does this will be recognized before the angels of God, which indicates reward. If that person denies the Lord before others, he will be denied rewards.

It is by means of the Holy Spirit, that Jesus revealed Himself to unbelievers in that day. The Holy Spirit worked miracles through the hands of Jesus. People would see that and they would believe in the Lord. The unbeliever who witnessed such a thing and rejected it—for instance, he attributes that great work to Satan—that unbeliever is rejecting Jesus Christ as his Savior. The Holy Spirit witnessed to the Lord through these miracles, and rejecting this revelation was tantamount to rejecting the Person of Christ, and thereby, rejecting salvation.

Interestingly enough, this passage which we have just studied is presented in conjunction with Jesus performing a miracle, and yet those who witness the miracle attribute this power to Satan. See Matthew 12:22–32 Mark 3:22–30. By witnessing a great miracle (the casting out of a demon) and attributing that power to Satan, they are rejecting the power of God the Holy Spirit, Who expelled that demon. As a result of having this opinion, they cannot be saved.

Let’s move forward in history to Pentecost, where the Holy Spirit is given to the Apostles of Jesus. Peter speaks to the gathered crowds in the power of the Spirit; people could either accept or reject his message. That message was made real to them by God the Holy Spirit. If they rejected that gospel message, they were blaspheming against the Holy Spirit.

Luke 12:11a And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities,... (ESV; capitalized)

In the near future, the movement of Christ would be persecuted. This was true then and it is true today. When the message of Jesus began to be made known throughout Palestine, there was a strong negative reaction from the Jews and from Rome (often as a result of being stirred up by the Jews).

Large portions of the book of Acts will be given over to persecution of the early church.

Today, there are nations—communist and Islamic nations specifically—which outlaw Christianity. Their persecution of Christians can be quite vicious.

Even in the United States and Canada, places where you would think there would be no problems for believers in Jesus Christ, there are (although it is certainly much more dangerous for the believer in an Islamic or communist government).

Karl Marx on Atheism (a quotation). Not sure where this meme came from (although these individual quotes can be found on AZ quotes).

Illustration: In some states, due to COVID concerns, people were not allowed to meet in churches or to meet in homes. They were often given some arbitrary restriction, like a maximum number of 10 might be applied. These very same states might put up with demonstrators or even looters; but some states actually arrested church goers or shut down churches for assembling. This took place in the United States, where freedom of religion is a fundamental right.

Illustration: In other countries, churches might be closed down as illegal or even burned down. Countries where it is very difficult to be a Christian are often among the worst countries in the world.

Illustration: As of late (I wrote some of this in 2020), the government of Canada has become quite hostile to Christianity, locking up some of the pastors of churches there.

Illustration: One website dedicates itself to revealing the number of attacks and number of killings which take place by Islamic terrorists. Many of those attacked are against Christians or those who are believed to be Christian.

Let’s return to the passage that we are studying and move to the next portion of v. 11:

Luke 12:11b ...do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say,... (ESV; capitalized)

When under pressure, when faced with being killed for one’s faith, it is normal to feel upset and panicked and to forget how to give a reason for the hope that is in you. Jesus tells His disciples not to become panicked about what they will say.

Let’s say a disciple is fearful or anxious because he is brought before leaders by reason of his Christian faith. What does that person need to do? He needs to, in his thinking, confess this sin to God. He is upset, so he must go from being out of fellowship back to being in fellowship.

We know that many of the disciples of Jesus were hauled in before unforgiving authorities.

Luke 12:11 And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say,... (ESV; capitalized)

In this passage, Jesus is specifically speaking to His disciples, and it is about what is going to be taking place in the very near future. At that point in time, believers would be hauled in before synagogues and others before Roman authorities.

This sort of persecution has occurred throughout time in many different countries.

Luke 12:12 ...for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say." (ESV; capitalized)

This is a fascinating thing for Jesus to say, and the way that most understand what He is saying, I believe, is incorrect. Most people think of this as a reference to some believer who has been grabbed up and finds himself speaking to some local authority (or even to a regional authority). And, he is just able to say exactly the right thing, like God is speaking right through him.

In the realm of the spiritual life, as presented in both the Old and New Testaments, there does not appear to be the teaching that, a person can just “open up” or “make himself available to the Holy Spirit” and, boom, out comes divine information delivered perfectly, just exactly what God wants you to say. There is the gift of prophecy, but that is not carefully quantified in Scripture (maybe it allowed for that, maybe not).

I think that it is better to understand these words of Jesus to mean, you learn Bible doctrine; you make certain that you are filled with the Holy Spirit. If you find yourself being anxious, nervous or afraid, then you rebound that fear (that is, you confess it to God). And then you use your mind, your frame of reference, and you say what is pertinent, coming from a soul filled with doctrine.

Luke 12:12 ...for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say." (ESV; capitalized)

Believers need to recognize that they will face great difficulties in the near future (this is not all believers, but believers throughout the Roman Empire). There are believers in this and every generation who face concentrated evil head on, but that does not occur in the lives of most Christians (at least, not today). It appears to be a major issue for believers in the first few centuries; but, not necessarily a universal problem.

Luke 12:11–12 You will be persecuted in the future, and you will be brought into the synagogues and you will stand before various rulers and authorities. However, do not be anxious with regards to how you might come off or what you might say; for the Holy Spirit will teach you what you need to say at that time.” (Kukis paraphrase)

As an aside, I want you to notice the stream of consciousness which the Lord uses to teach. He is teaching one topic or one thing; but what He says brings in other considerations or other topics, and so He teaches those.

I have had the situation in my writing where, I might be teaching something, which either suggests another topic or a tangent; and then I will go on that tangent (which sometimes leads me to another tangent). Although the Lord obviously has a soul filled with Bible doctrine, that does not mean that He walks before a group of people with the intent of teaching X, Y and then Z. He may have an idea what to teach, but circumstances, situations and interactions may move Him in a different direction. He may start by teaching X, but then start teaching W instead of Y (depending upon the response of the hearers and whatever questions they might ask).

At the beginning of this chapter, Jesus was speaking specifically to His disciples. Assuming that Jesus in in front of the same people, someone in the crowd speaks up, apropos of nothing previously taught.

There was someone in the crowd, and he apparently had a very important thing on his mind. We do not know all that preceded this. Did we go immediately from the teaching of the Holy Spirit in the previous verse to this? Did Jesus take a breath to let His teaching sink in and this man just spoke up? Whatever the case, what this man has to say is certainly unrelated to what Jesus has been teaching (according to what we have studied). Perhaps he knew of some people who brought their problems to Jesus, and this was his problem.

Jesus is often referred to a Rabbi, (Matthew 26:49 Mark 9:5 John 1:38) which means, my master, teacher. In that era, rabbis often mediated disputes between neighbors or family members. So perhaps what the man is asking is not unusually abnormal. Nevertheless, this man from the crowd does not really understand Who Jesus is and why He is here. The Lord’s teaching is not quite reaching him.

Luke 12:13b ..."Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me." (ESV; capitalized)

Interestingly enough, this man from the crowd does not simply ask Jesus if He would do this for him; he demands this of Jesus, using the imperative mood.

What appears to be the case is, their father passed and left an inheritance behind, but assigned all or most of it to the other brother. No doubt, there is a story behind this, a backstory which we are not privy to. I prefer to think that the father did this in his right mind and made an informed decision when writing his will. However, the backstory could be different from what I just assumed. The father could have been swindled into doing this; or there may have been no will, so that it fell to the eldest son. We really don’t know. So, this may be a real injustice to the son or this decision may represent the justice of his father.

It is also possible that his older brother simply received the double portion, as was done according to the Mosaic Law; and the man believed that to be unfair.

Regarding the latter possibility, this is actually somewhat of an interesting question, from a legal standpoint. That a double portion was generally given to the eldest son, this is actually implied more than stated outright in Genesis 25:5–6 27:36–37 48:22 (remember that, strictly speaking, Genesis is not really a part of the Mosaic Law). Now, we read in Deuteronomy 21:16–17 ...when that man assigns his inheritance to his sons he must not appoint the son of the beloved wife as the firstborn over the son of the unloved wife. Instead, he must acknowledge the firstborn, the son of his unloved wife, by giving him a double portion of all that he has. For that son is the firstfruits of his father’s strength; the right of the firstborn belongs to him. (Berean Standard Bible) This is often cited as proof that the Mosaic Law requires that a double portion be given to the firstborn son, no matter what (even if the father has remarried and likes his new wife more). However, what really appears to be the case is, Moses is presupposing the tradition of the double portion, and sticking with that tradition. He is then saying that this tradition ought to be followed, even if there are two wives involved. The right of the firstborn is simply accepted here and given a further application in Moses’ final sermons to Israel.

What might be taking place at this point in time is, the Jews of this generation were accepting and taking on the Greek and Roman culture, where the double portion given to the firstborn was not necessarily the norm.

Luke 12:13 Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me." (ESV; capitalized)

On the one hand, Jesus could address this as an expert in Jewish law and its application; and, on the other, Jesus could approach this from the viewpoint of material things and the believer (taking this conversation a step beyond the Mosaic Law).

In any case, this demand appears to come out of left field. Jesus takes a breath while teaching, and suddenly, this man stands up and makes this demand.

This tells us that, either Jesus has moved toward the crowd, or they came toward Him. Previously, He had been speaking to His disciples (although it appears that many in the crowd could hear what Jesus was saying). Now someone else had come before Him.

Remember that the original scene was, there were hundreds, if not thousands of men, coming to hear or see Jesus. However, He first began to speak directly to His disciples.

If we are still in that same circumstance, then Jesus’ audience, to whom He is speaking, is apparently growing.

Luke 12:14b ..."Man, who made Me a judge or arbitrator over you?" (ESV; capitalized)

This man has come out of nowhere with this request. “Make my brother share our inheritance with me,” he demands of Jesus.

This would suggest that he was hearing little of what Jesus had to say. Jesus certainly was not suggesting that He ought to be considered to mediate matters between others. Jesus has been far more often dealing with God and heavenly matters; and the relationship between man and God. This man’s request appears to be very much out of synch with what the Lord was teaching.

Interestingly enough, Jesus does not say, "Man, who made Me a judge or arbitrator over you (specifically)?" Jesus actually says, "Man, who made Me a judge or arbitrator over (any of) you?" The word found here is the plural accusative humas (ὑμάς) [pronounced hoo-MOSS], which means, you [all], all of you. Strong’s #5209, from Strong’s #5210; which is a form of Strong’s #4771

Luke 12:14 But He said to him, "Man, who made Me a judge or arbitrator over [any of] you?" (ESV; capitalized, with my insertion)

Jesus answers, “Listen, mister, how exactly did I become a judge or an arbiter over you and your brother? Is this Who you think I am? I am not here to be an arbitrator over any of you.”

Jesus is saying, “This is not My decision; this is not under My purview. I am not here to mediate affairs between men.” Jesus did not come to this earth to make it a better place to live.

Luke 12:13 But one out of the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, speak to my brother [and tell him] to divide [our] inheritance with me.” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Maybe the man making the request is in the right, maybe he isn’t; and maybe this is not a clearcut case.

Luke 12:14 The [Jesus] said to him, “Man, who placed Me [as] a judge or arbiter over you+?” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

This man has spoken up to Jesus and has asked Jesus to render a legal decision. However, this is not Jesus’ purpose. He was not called to settle all matters of dispute between men. He had not come to whitewash the devil’s world.

It is not completely clear whether Jesus is speaking to His disciples now, or to this gathering crowd (the crowd has been there, despite the text suggesting that Jesus is specifically teaching His disciples—Luke 12:1, 22). If the first 34 verses refer to a single event, then it appears that Jesus is specifically teaching His disciples, but allowing the crowd to listen in.

In the alternative, Jesus had focused His teaching on His disciples, but now goes wider, speaking to the people gathering around Him. Obviously, the people there would have heard the man’s question and Jesus’ answer.

Luke 12:15b ..."Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness,... (ESV; capitalized)

The present active imperative of horaô (ὁράω) [pronounced hoe-RAW-oh] means, look, take heed, beware; pay heed to. He is telling those hearing Him to listen carefully; this is an important consideration. Strong’s #3708.

Jesus then uses the present middle imperative of phulassô (φμλάσσω) [pronounced foo-LAHS-soh]. That word means, to keep, to guard, to watch; to observe. Strong’s #5442.

This man spoke to Jesus using an imperative, so Jesus gives him two imperatives.

What the man needs to pay heed to is the feminine singular noun pleonexía (πλεονεξία) [pronounced pleh-ohn-ex-EE-ah], which means, insatiable lust, greed, constant desire to have more, materialistic desire, greediness, covetous(-ness) (practices), avarice. Strong’s #4124.

Those hearing the Lord were to guard themselves from every materialistic desire; from greed, from covetousness. In other words, obey the tenth commandment.

Was the man who came to Jesus speaking from his desire for material wealth? That appears to be the case, whether he is in the right or not. Essentially, his approach is, “Listen, Jesus, I just want more money than what I am given. Work this out for me, will You?”

Jesus does not let the request of this man go to waste. Jesus is going to take what this man wanted mediated and use this desire to speak about covetousness. That is what the man’s request is really about.

Even though what this man says comes completely out of left field, Jesus uses what he says as a jumping off point for His teaching.

Luke 12:15c ...for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” (ESV; capitalized)

The word life here is zôê (ζωή) [pronounced dzoh-AY], and I believe the idea is, in this context, this word refers to quality of life. Strong’s #2222. You cannot measure the quality of your life based upon how many possessions that you have.

Many of us have the pleasant memory of a Christmas or a birthday, and we have received, say, four or more presents (some might receive ten or twenty presents), and there is that intense high and excitement, and you open them up and play with them, and, an hour later or three hours later, the excitement has all worn out. Even when you are very young, you might even become bored with playing with your presents.

Even though I am 74 years old, I can still recall that, after receiving a plethora of great presents, there would come a time—generally on Christmas day—when the thrill was gone. I had all of these great gifts in front of me, but I was tired of playing with them.

As adults, this may be our experience with a new car or a new house. There is a great thrill or great excitement, but it does wear off. And this cannot be matched by retail therapy. Even if you have the money to buy everything that you want (as Donald Trump or George Soros have), there is a limit to what you want to purchase; and the thrill of buying a new this or that results in a steep decline of ecstatic feelings.

Drugs and drunkenness are similar. The first time might seem like the greatest experience ever; but the time after that is not quite as great; and the time after that is even less memorable. There will come a point in time when you are hooked on the drug and its experience, but your actual happiness level is now far less than it was originally.

Luke 12:15 And He said to them, "Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." (ESV; capitalized)

The man who put the original question to Jesus may or may not be the victim of some sort of swindle. We don’t know, nor is that an important factor in relation to what Jesus is teaching. The man seems to believe that if Jesus rules in his favor and, somehow, as a result, his brother gives him some or all of the property in question, that he will be better off. He is not going to be any happier. And, spiritually, he will not have advanced an inch.

We live in a rather unique period of time in human history in the United States. Our lives are not consumed with dawn to dusk working (unless we choose to), and we are not working for just food and shelter. We have many other possessions open to us—nearly unheard of in most other cultures. Besides this, many people are able to pursue professions in the United States which give them great personal satisfaction. There are many places in the world today where this is not true. So many people have work that is pure drudgery. So many people are barely able to feed themselves and their family (sometimes, not even that).

The basis for this great environment is God’s grace. Technically speaking, what the United States has enjoyed is blessing by association. There have been many people who have believed in Jesus Christ; and a number who moved to spiritual maturity; and we have basked in the grace of those people (that is, we have received blessings by our association with them).

Furthermore, these things have been true for most of my life. I was able to see my father transition from a job that he hated (not at all unusual at the time) to a job that he loved very much. From his work—the work he hated and the work he loved—he was able to provide more for his family than basic food, shelter and clothing. We were not rich, but compared to other average families throughout the world, we were very well off.

What I am saying is, we were very blessed in these conditions, and so are many other people in the United States. However, it is always the case that there are people who are richer than you are and people who are poorer than you. That fact will never change. Therefore, your life cannot be all about your possessions. That would be a serious mistake.

Because of a request or demand which a man had made of Jesus, Jesus is speaking about materialism and the spiritual life. This tells us that sometimes Jesus allowed a question or some recent situation act as a stepping-off point for His teaching. The question a man asked about his inheritance was obviously very important to that man. When Jesus said, “I am not going to mediate between you and your brother over your inheritance” (which is what Jesus said, in so many words), it became apparent to Jesus that money and material things were of great interest to those who had gathered to hear Him teach (which group possibly included even the Lord’s Own disciples).

I believe that there is now a larger crowd gathered around the Lord. Previously, He had been teaching just His disciples (probably more than the 12, but principally those who have been with Him for a lengthy period of time).

A man had come up to Jesus and essentially he said, “Listen, Jesus, I have a real-life problem here. No pie in the sky. I got screwed out of my rightful inheritance and I need Your help.”

Interestingly enough, Jesus does not give this story to the man who came to Him with the original problem; He speaks to those who are there—perhaps only His disciples, but I think a larger crowd now—and Jesus is going to help them understand what this man was asking about and why Jesus gave him the response that He did.

The word used here is parabolê (παραβολή) [pronounced par-ab-ol-AY], which word is transliterated, parable. However, it means more than simply, a parable; this word also means, proverb, similitude; a fictitious narrative (of common life conveying a moral), apothegm, adage; a comparison, figure. Strong’s #3850. So, even though this is the Greek word which is transliterated parable, it does not always mean parable. A parable, as we understand it today, refers to a story which has two meanings. There is the surface meaning, which most everyone understands, and agrees to; but there is also this underlying story of the parable which is more important. A true parable actually represents something else. Often there is a conclusion that is required for the surface story, and that conclusion is something that the hearers would all agree to. However, the spiritual reality represented by the parable might be something far more controversial.

Interestingly enough, much of the time, a parable is not immediately and fully understood. The surface meaning is generally obvious, and most people come to the same exact conclusion about the surface story. However, very often, the underlying meaning is not so apparent. There are some parables given by the Lord that, even today, there are disagreements as to what they really mean.

However, in this instance, the story that Jesus will tell is the whole story. There is no underlying meaning to decipher. It means exactly what He says. So, it is not a parable, as per the English definition of the term. However, it is clearly a parabolê (παραβολή), as per the Greek definition of the term (which definition is not limited to the English concept of parable). .

To take this discussion one step further, there are a number of Greek words which have come to mean something very specific in the English, but that meaning is not always the correct translation. A good example of this is the feminine singular noun apostasia (ἀποστασία) [pronounced ahp-os-tahs-EE-ah]. When you see the English transliteration, you think to yourself, I know that word; it should be translated, apostasy. However, that is not what the Greek word actually means. The Greek word apostasia (ἀποστασία) actually means, a falling away, a defection, a departure, a forsaking, an abandonment. Even though the English transliteration is apostasy, that is not necessarily the only way to understand this word. Just as parable is not always the correct translation of parabolê (παραβολή).

Interestingly enough, it is the less literal translations which correctly translated this first phrase of Luke 12:16:

In e-sword, the way it is set up on my computer, provides me with six very literal translations for whatever verse I am examining. So, the most literal translations for Luke 12:16a are this:

So, of the six very literal translations to which I refer, none of them got it right. But four of the least literal translations were more correct.

Luke 12:16b ..."The land of a rich man produced plentifully,... (ESV; capitalized)

Most of the time, an inheritance is a farm or a piece of land (given the era in which this all took place) is commonplace and well understood. However, Jesus now speaks of the land of a very rich man. Although those listening to Him do not have this exact experience in their own lives, this is certainly something which they are able to imagine. In fact, how many of these people have imagined such a thing? How many of them have had such a financial fantasy?

Jesus emphasizes about how the land brings forth a great crop this season. This is a record-breaking crop, in fact. This man has had a very successful year, which came to pass after many prevous successful years.

Luke 12:16 And He told them a parable, saying, "The land of a rich man produced plentifully,... (ESV; capitalized)

The hearers will certainly be able to relate to such a story. Some of them own property and they have had good years as well. They were not themselves rich, but they could relate to what Jesus was saying.

Originally, in the land of promise, all of Israel was given land. We do not necessarily know about the circumstances at this point in the history of the Hebrew people (when Jesus is teaching). Doubtless, some owned land and some did not.

The man then considers all that he has; and, in particular, this crop which was just harvested. That bountiful harvest is going to lead him to consider his many financial options.

Luke 12:17b ...'What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?' (ESV; capitalized)

He is talking to himself about his crop production—that he has so much, that there is not enough additional space for him to store this crop. He has harvested a record crop. He is growing storable crops (like grains), as we will soon see.

This man is not discussing things with his wife or brother or father. He is determining his own future. He appears to have absolute control over his own land and what he is producing. We might say, he is the captain of his ship or the master of his destiny (or so he thinks).

Luke 12:17 and he thought to himself, 'What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?' (ESV; capitalized)

The protagonist in this story has had a very good year and his biggest problem is, he has a record-breaking crop. He needs to figure out how or where to store it.

Luke 12:16–17 Then He spoke an illustrative narrative directly to them, saying, “The land of a certain rich man brought forth [great] abundance. He deliberated this within himself, saying, ‘What should I do, [as] I keep on having no place to gather [all] my production.’ (Kukis mostly literal translation)

What we are studying is an illustrative narrative, not a parable. There will be no underlying meaning for us to sort out. We can take this man and his prosperity exactly as Jesus explains it.

After considering his various options, the successful farmer comes up with a business plan.

The year a.d. 28 seems to have been a very successful year for this man, and now he needs to make some longer-range business plans. He is going to plan for a.d. 29, 30 and many more years into the future.

It is reasonable to assume that this guy is an excellent businessman. He has done well to this point in time; and we may assume that he makes excellent business decisions which have brought him to this point in his life.

He has decided that his current barns are too small. This is an interesting approach. He does not decide to build simply new barns or additional storage next to his existing storage; he is going to remove what is there and replace them. He is going to completely redo his storage facilities. He is not upgrading or simply improving his existing storage, he is going to build brand new. This would suggest to me that this guy is really well off.

We may read into this that, this bumper crop is going to allow him to build new and larger storage barns. The man is simply taking a hold of his personal business and expanding it.

He will replace his small barns with larger ones. So, this guy is going all out. The fact that this is his approach suggests that he is very wealthy, and he can afford this level of investment.

There are many neighborhoods in and around downtown Houston. Some of them have a very good reputation, even though the homes were originally quite modest (according to today’s standards). Because of the location, people would pay a very large sum of money for a home in a near downtown location, but, as soon as they take possession of the property, they would tear that home down and construct a very large two or even three-story home, that fills up the lot as much as is legally possible. Such people were wealthy enough to buy a house on a lot, tear down that house, and build another house 4x (or more) larger. Such a person is very successful and they might devote a year or more to this grand project. Had Jesus been teaching in West University Meyerland, the Heights in the 1990s, He may have taught this story instead.

Luke 12:18d ...and there I will store all my grain and my goods. (ESV; capitalized)

This smart businessman-farmer will gather all of his grains and whatever else he has grown and store all of it in his newer, larger barns.

Essentially, he is making some very substantial upgrades to the business which he has. If you have ever owned a business and came to a point where it was time to expand, then you understand what this man is thinking and doing.

Luke 12:18 And he said, 'I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. (ESV; capitalized)

This man has a business which is doing well (in this case, he is a farmer, and he has a bumper crop). He is going to build larger storage facilities to handle the excess harvest. His business is doing great, and he has determined that it is time to expand and upgrade.

You can see how this man’s story is quite interesting to the people there, because which one of them would not like to have his own business and have that business prosper and thrive?

Luke 12:18 He then decided [lit., said], ‘This is [what] I will do—I will take down my barns and build larger [ones in their stead]. Then I will gather there [into the new larger barns] all of my grain and goods.’ (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Jesus is not talking about sin; He is not talking about illegal business practices. He is simply talking about a successful businessman who is upgrading his business.

When we think, our ideas and notions are being considered within our souls (the immaterial portion of our being). We all have souls and each of us communicates with our inner being. The soul is the place where we think about the things of this world.

Also, it is the soul that is what is made in God’s image (our physical bodies are not made in God’s image).

After this great year, the rich man has done some serious thinking. By serious thinking, I mean that he is considering his future plans regarding his business.

The man is thinking about the future, thinking within his own soul, the soul designed by God.

Now this man begins to think about other things beyond his business expansion plan.

Luke 12:19b ..."Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years;... (ESV; capitalized)

He recognizes that he has been carefully saving for many years, and that he now has enough put aside to retire. He realizes that he has come to a point where he is set for life. He has come to a point where he is doing his final expansion, which is building new and larger storage facilities.

In the United States, there are a huge number of people who spend a great deal of effort planning out their retirement. They save, they invest, they monitor their investments. Let me point out that none of this is inherently sinful. It is not wrong to have a business, for this business to do well, and then for you to decide, what is my next step?

This man has decided what he is going to do next. He has come to the realization of what his next step in life should be.

The rich man has decided that his plans are going to include taking life easy; devoting more time to the simple pleasures of eating and drinking and having fun. In other words, he has decided, “It is time for me to retire.” Or, semi-retire. “I will oversee this next expansion, and then take some more time for myself. It is time for me to enjoy the ample fruits of my labor.”

Jesus is not speaking of anything which is inherently sinful or wrong. It is normal to consider the next step in our life and what we should do.

Luke 12:19 And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry."' (ESV; capitalized)

“I’ve worked hard all of my life. I have planned and I have prepared for the future. It is time for me to relax and enjoy my time.” If you have any older friends, you may have heard them speak about life in this way.

This man has been successful in his business. He has determined that he has brought his business to a point when he can kick back and enjoy life.

Luke 12:16–19 Then [lit., and, but] He spoke a parable directly to them, saying, “The land of a certain rich man brought forth [great] abundance. He deliberated this within himself, saying, ‘What should I do, [as] I keep on having no place to gather [all] my production.’ He then decided [lit., said], ‘This is [what] I will do—I will take down my barns and build larger [ones in their stead]. Then I will gather there [into the new larger barns] all of my grain and goods.’ Finally, I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, I keep on having many goods laid up for many years. Take [life] easy—eat, drink and have fun [lit., rejoice].’ ” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

You will note that this man is concerned with his own basic life; with his own successful business. There is nothing inherently sinful in what he is doing or planning. Jesus’ audience is listening carefully, even imagining themselves being in the place of this successful farmer. What a great dream to have!

The problem is, none of his concerns appear to go any deeper than that. He has developed a sound business plan and he has determined that he can really enjoy his life, projecting into the future.

Recognize that Jesus is not disparaging this man for having a business or for having a successful business. He is not talking about a man who drinks to excess or cheats on his wife or is guilty of bad business practices.

The problem is this: in all that Jesus has said, this man apparently gives no thought to his Creator. Where is God in all of this?

Let me point out an important fact of business: you do not succeed apart from God’s blessing, no matter how brilliant you are. God may be blessing you by association and God may be blessing your own spiritual advance, but people advance materially in this world by more than their own efforts.

Similarly, we live in a great nation of freedom and prosperity, but this comes to us by the blessing of God. It is not the result of us being really great people. If you know anything about the United States, you know that great sins are taking place in every state and in very city. We actually have groups of people who rally around their own favorite sins and they take pride in committing these sins, as if their sinful excess is something to be admired.

It ought to be clear that God does not look down at the United States and say, “This is a good, decent people. I need to send them more blessings.” If you or I were in charge, we may have leveled several major cities by this point in time. However, at least at the time of writing (mid 2025), the United States still has great material blessings. Even more importantly, we have great freedom here.

Let me add that, most Americans have no concept of what life is like in other countries. There are people who work hard, day and night, and they will never get ahead. There are people who experience warfare right where they live—sometimes for most or all of their lives. In America, there are so many people who do not appreciate their heritage or their current state of life.

Luke 12:16–19 Then Jesus told His disciples a story, saying, “A certain rich man enjoyed a great year of crops and his land kept on producing many grains which might be stored. He considered his overabundance of produce and calculated that his existing storage was not great enough to match his production. He then decided, ‘I know what I will do—I will tear down my small barns and build much larger barns to store all of the grain that my lands have produced.’ Then he said to himself, ‘I am set for life. It is time for me to consider the next phase of my life. I need to take life easy now and eat, drink and just have fun.’ ” (Kukis paraphrase)

Jesus is not talking about a man whose life is filled with sin and debauchery. He’s worked hard all of his life; he has planned well for the future; and now he considers cutting back some on his work and taking a little more time for himself.

Now, even though this man seems to have given little thought to his relationship with God, God has something to say to this man.

Suddenly, God speaks to this man, the shrewd businessman, whose every decision appears to have been about wealth and accumulating earthly wealth for himself. He’s worked hard and he has planned ahead. He is coming to a point in his life when he can do pretty much as he pleases.

God addresses him with the masculine singular adjective áphrōn (ἄφρων) [pronounced AF-rohn]. This word means, without reason; senseless, foolish, stupid; ignorant without reflection or intelligence, acting rashly; mindless. Strong’s #878. As a vocative, this would be, you person without reason, you senseless man, you fool, you stupid man.

I don’t know quite how to take this particular phrase. I would have expected, this night, I, God, will require your soul from you. However, the verb is a 3^rd person plural. The verb in question is the 3^rd person plural, present active indicative of aiteô (αἰτέω) [pronounced ahee-TEH-oh]. This word means, to ask, to beg, to call for; to crave, to desire; to require. Strong’s #154.

The phrase literally means, In this night, they require your soul from you.’ (Kukis mostly literal translation)

From the Cambridge Greek Testament: “They demand your soul of you.” Who are “they”? Some say God (Job 27:8), or His death-angels (Job 33:22), or robbers whom they suppose to attack the rich man on the night that his wealth has flowed in. There is however no definite pronoun, the phrase is impersonal, as often in Hebrew. It is the same “categoric plural” as in Luke 12:11 and Luke 16:9, Luke 23:31.

E. W. Bullinger: [This refers] to some unknown invisible agencies which carry out God's judgments or Satan's will. Compare Psalm 49:15. Job 4:19; Job 18:18; Job 19:26; Job 34:20. In a good sense compare Isaiah 60:11.

The NET Bible makes the very interesting observation: Or “required back.” This term, ἀπαιτέω (apaitew), has an economic feel to it and is often used of a debt being called in for repayment (BDAG 96 s.v. 1).

Perhaps these are demons who have been wanting to take the life of this man, and finally, that day has come. Another person to die without God!

If you were reading carefully, you may have noticed that I gave one verb, but the NET Bible specified a different verb. For my own translation, I primarily follow the Westcott Hort text. However, I often consult other ancient Greek texts (the Byzantine Greek text, the Scrivener Textus Receptus and Tischendorf’s Greek text) and these other texts have a slightly different verb (the verb found in the NET Bible’s comment).

The morphology is the same. These other three texts have the 3^rd person plural, present active indicative of apaiteô (ἀπαιτέω) [pronounced ap-AHee-teh-oh], which means, to ask [again, back], to demand back, to require, to exact something due. Strong’s #523. What appears to have happened is, a couple of letters dropped out of the original text, giving us the verb from the Westcott Hort text.

Also, there is some question as to where the single quotation mark should be (that is, when does God stop speaking, and Jesus start?). Because the 2^nd person masculine singular continues in v. 20c, many would place that quotation mark at the end of 20c.

Luke 12:20c ...and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ (ESV; capitalized)

This man has spent all of his life thinking about his earthly goods. That has been the foremost thought on his mind. He has reached an age where he can semi-retire and just enjoy his life, but this night, his soul is required from him. All of this stuff that he has acquired and set aside—to whom does it really belong?

This is true of every person. Whether you have accumulated a lot or very little, how much of it will you retain personally? At death, none of it.

What you will retain is your soul. Do you understand how important Bible doctrine is? That is the one thing that you take with you when you die.

Luke 12:20 But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?' (ESV; capitalized)

Is God speaking to the man in v. 20b-c? Or does the quote end with your soul from you? My interpretation is, in this second sentence, Jesus could either be concluding the quote from God or He could be speaking directly to those around Him.

Jesus looks up at those around Him, His eyes scanning every attentive face, and He says, “But what have you prepared and for whom is it prepared?” This could be a very clever way of God speaking to this successful farmer; and Jesus is simultaneously speaking to those around Him, asking them the exact same question. What is being said and how it is being said is very clever, even though punctuation is quite difficult to place as a result.

Luke 12:20 But God said to this man, 'You fool! This night your soul is required of you;’ and Jesus paused briefly and look directly at His audience. He continues, ‘and the things you have prepared, to whom do they belong now?' (Kukis, somewhat freeform)

Jesus now speaks directly to the crowd and explains, if you will, the moral of the story.

Luke 12:21a So is the one who lays up treasure for himself... (ESV; capitalized)

Throughout this story, this rich man seems to have no relations—no wife or children—who are referred to. Remember, when he was deciding what to do, he queried himself. He didn’t talk to his wife about his plans (if he even had a wife).

The idea is, just setting aside things for yourself for your entire life is rather empty. There will come the day when you leave this world; and all that you have accumulated will be left behind.

Again, the problem is not having good business acumen. The problem is, this is his primary focus in life. This successful farmer is not thinking beyond his own sensory world.

This man is rich toward himself; he is rich toward his business; but he is not rich toward God. So that is the problem—he has not been rich toward God. He has not been preparing for life with God.

How are you rich towards God? This begins by a daily intake of Bible doctrine. This is how you grow. Bible doctrine is food for the soul, and no believer grows without it. That means, you need to find a well-qualified pastor-teacher who teaches the Bible regularly. There are electronic means which may be employed, but getting face to face teaching within the confines of a church auditorium is the best approach. We all need the impersonal approach of a well-qualified pastor-teacher, who is teaching perhaps five or ten or a hundred or a thousand believers.

Rule of thumb: if you see more than half the congregants taking notes, that might indicate a good place for Bible doctrine. This suggests that the pastor-teacher is not just teaching the same old, same old day after day, night after night.

When we die, we take with us only what is in our soul and spirit. The personal possessions—the stuff we accumulated—all stays behind. God does not even put it into storage for us for our eternal existence. Nobody is given a go-bag.

Application: What takes place after you take in doctrine? Well, first off, taking in Bible doctrine is a lifelong process. It never ends. Secondly, you will learn from Bible doctrine, which is mixed into your soul, what your life should be. It is different for every believer. We all have different gifts, as sovereignly bestowed upon us by God the Holy Spirit. On a personal note, I began exercising my gift before I knew what my gift was.

Luke 12:21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God." (ESV; capitalized)

The protagonist in this story was not inherently sinful; he was not getting ahead in business by swindling others. He worked hard and he built his business up. Unfortunately, that is all that he built up. He did not build up any riches in his soul.

Luke 12:20–21 But God said to him, ‘[You] fool! In this night, they require your soul from you. But what you have prepared, to whom will it be?’ Accordingly, he is laying up treasure for himself, yet not being rich towards God.” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Application: Even though all believers are in full-time Christian service, not every believer is engaged in what we often consider to be full time Christian service (being a pastor-teacher, an evangelist or a missionary). Nor would it be practical for every believer to be so engaged. Most believers will be teachers, military types, linemen, truck drivers, or in business or even in public service positions. There is no call in Scripture for the new believer to suddenly quit his job and enter into a spiritual calling. Most believers are going to have a family—a spouse and children. As we are told elsewhere in the Scriptures, we cannot neglect our family.

Application: We all have different paths in life, and for some, this includes material blessings; for others, other types of blessings. We should not be jealous of other believers on account of what they have; nor should we be judgmental. Every servant stands before his own master.

We need to understand this with more nuance than, physical possessions bad, spiritual life good. It is a matter of focus. The man in this story was focused entirely on himself and what he would do with regards to his material possessions. However, there will come a time for every single one of us where our soul is demanded. The key question is, what is in your soul? What will you take with you into eternity?

Luke 12:15 Then He said directly to them, “Listen and guard [yourselves] from every materialistic desire, for [the quality of] one’s life is not from the abundance of [material] possessions [lit., his possessions].” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Luke 12:16–19 Then He spoke an illustrative narrative directly to them, saying, “The land of a certain rich man brought forth [great] abundance. He deliberated this within himself, saying, ‘What should I do, [as] I keep on having no place to gather [all] my production.’ He then decided [lit., said], ‘This is [what] I will do—I will take down my barns and build larger [ones in their stead]. Then I will gather there [into the new larger barns] all of my grain and goods.’ Finally, I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, I keep on having many goods laid up for many years. Take [life] easy—eat, drink and have fun [lit., rejoice].’ ” (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Application: God has greatly blessed me; but I have to bear in mind that, this is not my permanent state of being. I will die; and the material things which I have accumulated will remain here. They are not going with me. I cannot even pack a small go-bag. Therefore, I should not become overly concerned about the things which I own.

Application: This does not mean that having your own business is somehow bad; or that making future plans for your business is somehow wrong. In fact, making plans for your retirement is not necessarily wrong or bad. What is key is, have you believed in Jesus Christ? Do you have a spiritual life? Are you growing in your spiritual life? Do you actually know what is involved in spiritual growth?

Application: What do we take with us when we die? Each one of us was issued a soul at birth and a human spirit at our second birth. So we stand before God with, one each, a soul and a spirit. This is what the believer must pack for the future.

We do not know if Jesus is continuing from this previous story or whether the teaching that follows occurred at another time. We are dealing with similar material, but these discourses could be separated by seconds, days or even months. Maybe this discourses are connected by time; and maybe they are placed together based upon the similarity of topic.

We are in the center section of Luke where the Lord’s teachings are the focus. They are not presented in any order and the time and the place of each teaching is subject to speculation.

Jesus is going to make certain that His disciples understand what He is teaching and how much they understand about what He is saying.

I do not believe that Jesus used the omniscience of His deity and looked into their souls, deciding, they just are not getting this. However, I do believe that Jesus looked into their eyes and could tell by their expressions whether they understood what He was teaching (something which most good teachers are able to do).

I grew up under the teaching of R. B. Thieme, Jr. and it was very apparent to me that he carefully watched his audience while he taught and that he seemed to have a feel for when they were getting it or not. Take the Assyrian Crisis, for instance. This was a study culled from a number of different passages and it involved a lot of isagogics (Bob was, to some degree, teaching ancient history). My memory of this study is, I cannot imagine any other teacher doing what Bob did. Given the scope and the background for this series, it would be easy to get lost in all of it. However, Bob did not let that happen. He was always on point and provided the right amount of repetition that I stayed with the series throughout. I never had the experience of, what the hell is he talking about now?

Jesus, the greatest teacher of all time, is constantly looking at His audience and evaluating the expressions on their face as He teaches.

At this point, we recognize a possible link between the previous story that Jesus has taught the disciples (about the successful businessman who realizes that he can soon retire) and what He is about to teach them.

The first word is, diá (διά) [pronounced dee-AH], and that word means, through; with; in; of time; throughout; during; by the means of; by reason of; on account of; because of, for this reason; therefore; on this account. Strong’s #1223.

This is followed by the demonstrative singular pronoun; neuter singular; accusative case toúto (τούτο) [pronounced TOO-toh]. This means, this [thing], that [thing], this one. Strong’s #5124 (Neuter, singular, nominative or accusative of #3778). Sometimes a particular form of a word is used so often as to warrant its own Strong’s #.

Literally, this means, because of this thing. Elsewhere, these two words are variously translated: therefore, because of this, for this reason, on account of this, on this account, thus then, wherefore, this is why, what follows, So here is the comparison.

This is the kind of phrasing one would do if building directly upon teaching which had just been given. It would be my opinion that Jesus taught vv. 22–34 immediately after teaching about the rich man about to retire (vv. 16–21).

These two words are followed by the 1^st person singular, present active indicative of légô (λέγω) [pronounced LEH-goh], which means, to speak, to say; affirm over, maintain; to teach; to tell; to exhort. Strong’s #3004. Therefore, I keep on speaking...

Jesus has taught these same principles to His disciples on previous occasions. In fact, He has taught this so much that, here, He says, “Based upon what I have just taught you, I keep on saying to all of you...” (It takes 16 English words to properly translate these four Greek words). However, it is possible to reduce the verbiage somewhat:

Luke 12:22b ...“Because of this, I keep saying to you+,... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Anxious is the 2^nd person plural, present active imperative of the word merimnaô (μεριμνάω) [pronounced mer-im-NAH-oh]. It means, in the imperative, be anxious, be stressed; be (overly) troubled with cares; care for, look out for. Strong’s #3309. This word is paired with the negative, so it means, do not be anxious, do not be stressed, do not be overly troubled with your cares or situation in life.

This is followed by the definite article and the locative of psuchê (ψυχή) [pronounced psoo-KHAY], which means, breath [of life]; [eternal, immortal, rational, living] soul; life. Strong’s #5590. Many times, the definite article in the Greek can stand in for the personal pronoun. This gives us: ...stop being anxious in [your] souls,... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Jesus is telling His disciples, do not be anxious or stressed or troubled in your souls...

There are two Greek words here. First the neuter singular pronoun; interrogative particle of ti (τί) [pronounced tee], which means, who, what [one], which. Strong’s #5101. This is followed by the 2^nd person plural, aorist active subjunctive of phagô (φάγω) [pronounced FAHG-oh], which means, to eat; to consume (a thing); to take food. Strong’s #5315.

Jesus is specifically speaking to His disciples, but this applies to us as well. “You need to stop being anxious or upset or worried about what you might eat.” (and, perhaps, some of the disciples are feeling hungry right at this moment)

“You also need to stop worrying about what you might wear,” Jesus tells them.

This is interesting, because most people in the ancient world did not have a great closet filled with a variety of clothing to wear. I am not even aware if the average person even had a true change of clothes.

Possibly, some of the disciples were concerned about the wear and tear on their clothing, as they traveled with Jesus. Perhaps they were concerned about a myriad of basic issues, which included clothing.

Luke 12:22 And He said to His disciples, "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus speaks about two of life’s basics: eating and wearing clothing. Jesus says, “Don’t be anxious about your life...or about your body.”

Jesus will tell His disciples: “Listen, God has taken care of these things for you.”

“There is more to your soul,” Jesus tells His disciples, “than just the food that you eat.”

“There is more to you body,” Jesus explains, “than simply what you wear.”

Luke 12:23 For [soul-] life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. (ESV; capitalized; I added the word soul)

Jesus is telling His disciples, “There is much more to life than the food that you eat or the clothes that you wear.”

Luke 12:22–23 He said directly to His disciples, “Because of this, I keep saying to you+, stop being anxious in [your] souls, [concerning] what you+ might eat; and [stop being anxious] for the body [concerning] what you+ might wear. [This is] because the soul is greater than the food [you consume] and the body [is greater than] the clothing [that you wear]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

I heard a story the other day—I believe that it was on NPR—and a woman in her 70s was in some sort of a rest home. When she was a young woman, she used to love to drive fast, sporty muscle cars. NPR made it sound like she enjoyed some sort of a wish-fulfillment when she was picked up at the old folks home and taken for a ride in a fast muscle car, similar to what she used to drive when young (maybe it was a convertible). What kind of a life is it, when this is seen as a highlight for an aging woman? Again, I have no idea how she really felt about this, but NPR was making quite a big deal out of this.

I would hope for some people, as they move closer to death, what they are going to do in eternity might interest them more than trying to relive something from 50 years ago.

This does not mean that you cannot plan a meal, or that you cannot think about what you are going to wear. It is okay to do these things. However, your life on this earth is much greater than that. There is much more to life than simply what you eat and what you wear.

Luke 12:22–23 Then He said to His disciples, “Because of this, I keep on saying to you, stop being anxious within your souls concerning what you might eat and concerning what you might wear. There is no need to be anxious, because your soul is more than what you eat and your body is greater than the clothing that you choose to wear. (Kukis paraphrase)

Application: It is too easy to read this and the passage which follows and conclude, I no longer need to work for my food and clothing. I will just grab a bench at the local park and hang out there all day, waiting for God to feed and clothe me. Heck, I just might even go there naked! That is certainly not what Jesus is teaching.

Application: Part of the universal judgment of mankind is work (which is not necessarily a bad thing). We work and we are remunerated. Now, it is easy to over-think this; and it is easy, like the man in the previous story, to get too hung up on planning and preparing for life; and then taking life easy in retirement. This is what Jesus taught about the successful business-farmer whose soul was called for at a very inopportune time.

Application: The believer is to live a normal life, which includes work; and, from time to time, even includes pre-planning and even retirement (or a cutting back on one’s work). However, this should not be the primary focus of the believer’s life; nor should the believer get all worried about what is taking place in his life. You can get too hung up on the necessities of life. God provides logistical grace for all believers.

Jesus has given His disciples a narrative about the rich man who thought only of himself and what he was going to accomplish in his life. Here He is going to give them a comparative illustration. He is going to take two things—the disciples and ravens—and discuss how God thinks about them and treats them. This is a true parable, where one thing is described, but it illustrates something else.

Jesus asks those listening to Him to think about the raven (this is possibly a crow).

Ravens do not farm. They do not sow seed and they do not reap. Man does this; animals do not.

Remember how much of this was precipitated by the story of a wealthy and successful man who needed to rebuild his barn even larger; and then he would retire after that.

Man has found that he needs to take his grain and store it for periods of time, just in case. It is very difficult for many to survive through a winter, through a dry season, or through a depression, unless he puts grain (or money) aside for difficult times.

This is not true of ravens. They are going to eat and they are going to survive, even through winters, dry seasons and depressions. This does not mean that every raven survives a hard winter, but, every Spring presents the world with a new crop of ravens. There is this amazing balance in nature of an incredibly diverse group of animals and plant life which continues to grow and interact on this planet. Everything necessary for a raven to survive is provided by God. And all those things necessary for the raven, have every means of their survival provide for as well.

Despite the raven’s lack of farming skills (to say nothing of its ineptitude when it comes to designing and building a barn), God still feeds them. God makes certain that, even here, in this fallen world, that there is food for them.

Now Jesus’ message to His disciples is not, “Now return home and raze your barns and storage facilities. Be like the ravens!” If you think that is happening, then you are not getting this.

Jesus asks His disciples, “Are you not more important to God than these birds?” That should elicit a positive answer from a normal person. We are, after all, made in God’s image.

Luke 12:24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus tells His disciples to think about the ravens, who they watch fly around, going from tree to tree. Somehow, they manage to eat, build nests, have baby birds, and continue the cycle of life. Despite their lack of preplanning, God has provided them with everything that they need. If God does that for them; how much more will He see to our needs.

Luke 12:24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! (ESV; capitalized)

Jesus has been teaching His disciples about the ravens and about how God is taking care of them.

God taking care of the ravens (and other types of animals) is grace; and God’s care of us is logistical grace.

Luke 12:25 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? (ESV; capitalized)

Man spends a great deal of his time worrying. I hate to admit it, but I have had many circumstances in my life about which I have worried. I knew that was sin, and I would rebound it, but then, sometimes, I would just start worrying again.

I found that life’s difficulties, if they kept me from sleeping, gave me time to listen to the Word of God being taught. That has helped me immeasurably. Now and again, you will be unable to sleep. If that is the case, then listen to an hour of teaching. Find a place in the house where you will not disturb others and take in a lesson of teaching from the Word of God (I have my notes and the lessons on a computer, so I can usually find a place to do this, no matter where I am).

Luke 12:25 So who from among you+ being anxious is able to add a cubit to his stature? (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Now, Jesus suggests here, “Let’s say you want to worry about your height...how much is that going to increase your height?” The correct answer, is, by 0.0 inches.

As people get older, they tend to get shorter; and there are ways to deal with that. But, Jesus makes certain that no one over thinks His illustration here. “Can you worry enough to add 18 inches to your height?” No, you cannot; and there is no method by which you can.

Luke 12:25 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? (ESV; capitalized)

At what point will we die? When God decides. There are ways to increase our lifespan, but it is not by worrying. Being upset, anxious or worrying will not add any time to your life. In fact, from a naturalistic point of view, you may reduce your life through the wrong mental attitude.

Luke 12:26a If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that,... (ESV; capitalized)

No matter how much a person worries, he cannot add the slightest amount to his height.

If you cannot increase your height by worrying, why do you worry about anything else? Worry is one of the least productive things of life!

Luke 12:26 If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? (ESV; capitalized)

If you cannot increase your height from worry, then why spend your life being anxious about anything?

Many translations use the word lily (lilies) here. I believe that this might be better translated wildflower (s).

Jesus first asked His disciples to consider ravens; now He asks them to consider the wildflowers.

Even though the disciples were not famous for their knowledge of flowers, they no doubt had seen the wildflowers out in the field. Jesus and His disciples walked all over the land of promise, and it was a better-watered region then than now. Jesus asks them to consider, for a time, the beauty of wildflowers—beauty which they themselves had probably seen on numerous occasions.

The flowers do not expend any effort to grow. They do not sew themselves beautiful clothes to wear. They are just there and they grow and they look wonderfully beautiful.

Luke 12:27d ...yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. (ESV; capitalized)

Think about the wildflowers and now think about Solomon. Solomon, having a great deal of wealth, did not look as spectacular as a field of wildflowers. No matter what he did, he lacked their color and beauty.

Luke 12:27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. (ESV; capitalized)

Most of us have seen a field of wildflowers, and they are often beautiful and even breathtaking.

Luke 12:28a But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven,... (ESV; capitalized)

Consider these flowers. They are only around for a short time. Here today, gone tomorrow. At some point, they would be thrown only a burn pile; or used as kindling material for a stove.

God provides great color for these wildflowers—these flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow. Yet, they are fields of beauty.

When I was growing up, behind my house was about 3 or more acres of undeveloped land. Every Spring, the orangish-yellow poppies would grow and bloom, and it was a spectacular sight; acres of a rich almost orangish- yellow. It was a thing of beauty that I can recall, even 60 years later. No one watered these flowers; no one did anything to encourage them. They just grew, and the field was a thing of beauty for many years throughout my youth.

California Poppy Field (a photograph); from ABC News; accessed October 18, 2020. This field is actually very close to where I used to live.

The disciples, from time to time, no doubt worried about their clothes and how they looked, depending upon the venue of their appearance.

Luke 12:28 But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith! (ESV; capitalized)

Wildflowers bloom and they look spectacular for a few months, and then their blooms fall off and they look like ground cover. Many of those plants simply die off in winter. If God has set up a system where such flowers reappear, year after year; certainly He will take care of us.

One of the very common arguments offered up for the creation of the world by God is its natural beauty. No matter where you go on this earth, there are mountains, forests, vegetation and wildlife, all of which enjoys an intrinsic beauty.

Luke 12:27–28 Consider the wildflowers—how they grow, [yet] they do not tire nor do they spin [fabric]. And I keep on saying to you+ [that] Solomon, in all of his glory, was not clothed as these [flowers]. If this vegetation in the field is [here] today and cast into a furnace tomorrow, [yet] God so clothes [them], how much more [will God provide for you], [you] faithless ones? (Kukis mostly literal translation)

In many parts of Texas, we are well aware of the great beauty of the wildflower; and this great beauty is even greater than the majesty of Solomon. For God, this is a simple provision of dramatic beauty which is here today and gone tomorrow. If God so clothes wild growth, how much more will He provide clothing for us.

Wildflowers in Austin, Texas (a photograph); from Statesman; accessed May 9, 2025.

Luke 12:29a And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink,... (ESV; capitalized)

What appears to be the case is, the disciples have been overly concerned about what they might eat and what they might drink. They were apparently overly concerned about these matters.

So that there is no misunderstanding, what Jesus is not teaching is for us to simply sit in a lotus position and wait for God to rain down Big Macs and Shasta Orange Sodas on us. For the average believer, we need to work; that is a part of our life’s plan. Elsewhere, Paul wrote, If someone does not work, neither should he eat. So we must read and study what Jesus says, and, at the same time, keep in mind what Paul has written as well.

Recognize that the disciples were with Jesus; and they were done with their regular jobs. They did not necessarily know it, but their regular employment days—as fishermen or tax collectors—were over. Jesus had another calling for them. When they began to follow Him, they did not fully appreciate what they had signed up for (which is the normal experience for any Christian).

Particularly, the warning from Jesus is for them to not stress out over food and drink. We do not have actual examples of this, but the fact that Jesus is teaching this, suggests that there may have been incidents or discussions amongst the disciples.

Luke 12:29 Stop seeking for what you+ might eat and for what you+ might drink; and do not be stressed [over this]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

It is a good idea to keep in mind to whom Jesus is speaking—His disciples (v. 22). Their lives will be different from most. Not one of them is going to return to a normal existence. No one is going back to his previous life (although several of them will attempt to do this). It is not Jesus Who will spread the gospel in the first century, but His disciples.

Jesus’ ministry is unlike that of any other so-called religious leader. His period of public ministry is at most four years; and the region to which He speaks is not much more than 100 miles from north to south. East to west is about half that. Also, Jesus never wrote anything down. How many religious leaders never wrote anything down?

Jesus was clearly able to read; logically, He would have been able to write. However, He communicated everything verbally and trusted others to remember it. We are not aware of Jesus writing anything down (I have my doubts about the veracity of Him writing in the sand/dirt while men are talking about stoning an adulteress to death).

Three disciples (Matthew, Peter and John) took steps to write about Jesus, recording what He did and said. And Luke, who never met Jesus, spoke to people who observed Him and had very detailed memories of Him (I would estimate that Luke spoke with perhaps as few as five people, and no more than maybe twenty, and developed his gospel record from their recollections).

And when it came to the development of Church Age doctrines and practices, that is almost exclusively Paul, the twelfth Apostle.

When we consider the things that Jesus said, we should always be mindful of to whom He was speaking; and consider whether there is any actual application to believers today. In the passage that we are studying, Jesus is clearly speaking to His disciples and His disciples are fundamental to the spread of early Christianity. What words directed toward them are directly applicable to us. The majority of believers are not in full-time Christian service (in the conventional sense) (yes, we are all in full-time Christian service, but not in the conventional sense).

Luke 12:29 Stop seeking for what you+ might eat and for what you+ might drink; and do not be stressed [over this]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

We should not be overly anxious about providing the basic necessities for ourselves and family. This does not mean that we leave our job and wander from house to house looking for a handout. To balance this out, we also know that any man who does not provide for his own is worse than an infidel. Working and providing for one’s family is important. But that should never be all-consuming. Furthermore, there are limits. If the breadwinner (s) is not able to provide guidance and leadership and love at home, then he needs to rethink his priorities. This is a man’s job.

As the head of the family, the father has multiple responsibilities, and one should never downplay the spiritual ones.

Luke 12:29 And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. (ESV; capitalized)

Obviously, we have to determine what we are going to eat and drink; and, just as obviously, food and drink will not materialize out of nothing. When I go shopping for food, I have to think about what I am doing. When I prepare a meal, I have to think about what I am preparing. However, this should not be the focus of my existence. And I certainly should not worry about such things.

Luke 12:30a For all the nations of the world seek after these things,... (ESV; capitalized)

I think that this is better expressed using the term gentiles. The word used here is ethnos (ἔθνος, ους, τό) [pronounced EHTH-noss], and it means, Gentiles, pagans; peoples [as distinguished from Jews]; Gentile nations. Strong’s #1484.

Here is where time and place and audience are necessarily considered. Jesus is speaking to Jewish disciples. In the Jewish era, Jews were God’s people—God communicated to them through their prophets; and gentiles, for the most part, rejected God. So when Jesus speaks of gentiles seeking after these things (food and drink), He is indicating that Jews have a better understanding of truth and of their relationship with God. They should understand that life is not all about food and drink.

Luke 12:30a “For the gentiles of the world seek all these,... (Yah Scriptures)

Surprisingly few translations used gentiles in their translation, as that word is generally reserved for the underlying word Goiim. Interestingly enough, some used that word in this verse even though the word Goiim is not found in this verse.

Luke 12:30a For all these things the Goyim of the Olam Hazeh strive after,... (Orthodox Jewish Bible)

The term gentiles is actually best understood as a synonym for unbeliever. That is because the term is further modified by the word kósmos (κόσμος) [pronounced KOSS-moss]. A cosmos gentile is an unbeliever; one who has no spiritual dimension in their lives. Therefore, getting their basic needs is their life’s priority.

Jesus explains, “God the Father knows what you need. You are children of God, and as your Father, He knows your needs.”

For the most part, children do not worry about where their food comes from. It is meal time, the food appears on their plates, and obviously, their parents have something to do with this process (the children may or may not give it much thought).

How many parents withhold food from their children, and expect from them first praise and thanksgiving for what they have provided? Only the most psychologically unbalanced parent might do this.

Obviously, once a child becomes a teenager, it might be time to explain to him (or her) where that food comes from and how it ends up on the table in front of them. They might be bored with this information (if they are teens), but there is nothing wrong with instructing a child about this. The spiritual parent ought to speak on where this food comes from ultimately (from God, obviously).

External Links
Luke Lessons #1–100 (html)	Luke Lessons #1–100 (pdf)	Luke Lessons #1–100 (wpd)
Luke Lessons #101–200 (html)	Luke Lessons #101–200 (pdf)	Luke Lessons #101–200 (wpd)
Luke Lessons #201–300 (html)	Luke Lessons #201–300 (pdf)	Luke Lessons #201–300 (wpd)
Luke Lessons #301–400 (html)	Luke Lessons #301–400 (pdf)	Luke Lessons #301–400 (wpd)
Kukis Homepage	Exegesis	Doctrines


Various Incidents found in Matthew and in Luke 7 & 10	Public Ministry Length of Religious Figures	Satan’s Intent
Satan’s Five “I wills” Satan Cast from Heaven	A brief review of Luke 10:17–20	Republicans Going to Church (a liberal meme)
Jesus as a long-haired socialist (a political cartoon)	Jesus was not a long-haired hippie socialist	Science, Natural Patterns and God
The Fibonacci Sequence and Nature (a graphic)	The Head of a Flower (a graphic)	A Shell and the Golden Rectangle (a graphic)
The Golden Rectangle and the Fibonacci sequence together (a graphic)	Flower Petal Arrangements (a graphic)	A Spiral Galaxy (a graphic)
Quotes from Famous Scientists about God	Charles Darwin Quote (a graphic)	Louis Pasteur Quote (a graphic)
Neil deGrasse Tyson on the Empowerment of Science (a meme)	Two Examples	Messianic prophecies from the Old Testament
The angel Gabriel prophecies to Mary about Jesus	What is even greater than seeing Jesus Christ in person and hearing Him teach?	Today is the greatest time to be alive
Jesus and the Great Commandment	Jesus, the Law and Salvation (Luke 10:25–28)	A Summary of the Interaction Between Jesus and the Law Expert
The Good Samaritan Stops to Render Aid (a graphic)	A typical inn with buildings arranged round a courtyard (a graphic)	What About the Innkeeper (asks Gary North)
The Good Samaritan by Rembrandt (a graphic)	Socialist Citizens/Socialist Leaders (a graphic)	Jerusalem, Bethphage and Bethany (a map)
Galilee, Samaria and Judæa (a map)	A Profile of Martha (from Dan Hill)	Worries and Concerns in the Life of the Believer (from Dr. Dan Hill)
Mary, Martha and the Priorities of Life (Dr. Dan Hill)	A Brief Review of Luke 10	New Testament Map of Palestine (a graphic)
The Chronology of Luke 9–19	Harmony of the Gospels	Jesus Makes His Way to Jerusalem
Organizing the Book of Luke	The Basic Outline of the Book of Luke	An Outline of Luke 11
Outline for the Book of Luke	What About the Parallel Passage in Matthew?	Lincoln’s “House Divided” Speech (Abraham Lincoln, on June 16, 1858)
Beelzebub v. Beelzebul	Harmony of the Gospels from Life of Christ (Ken Palmer/Gary Kukis)	A Brief Exegesis of Matthew 12:22–30
A Brief Exegesis of Matthew 12:31–38	A Brief Exegesis of Matthew 12:43–45	The way μενονγε is used elsewhere
Links to Jonah Studies	What is the sign of Jonah? (from Got Questions?)	A Brief Exegesis of Matthew 12:39–42
A brief review of Luke 11:37–40	Sabbath Burdens (from Dr. D. Lance Waldie)	The Phrase "the Wisdom of God"
The Subsections of Luke 11	Nine teaching sections in Luke 12	Jesus Speaks Primarily to the Disciples
The example of Peter denying Jesus	Karl Marx on Atheism (a quotation)	Lenin on Atheism (a quotation)
California Poppy Field (a photograph)	Wildflowers in Austin, Texas (a photograph)

We find some discontinuity when it comes to the sequence of a series of events in Matthew and Luke. The ESV (capitalized) was used for the direct quotes below.
Various Incidents found in Matthew and in Luke 7 & 10
Matthew	Luke
John’s disciples come to Jesus to ask if He is the Messiah. Matthew 11:2–3	John’s disciples come to Jesus to ask if He is the Messiah. Luke 7:18–20
Jesus tells these disciples to observe what they see and take that information back to John. Matthew 11:4–6	Jesus tells these disciples to observe what they see and take that information back to John. Luke 7:21–23
Jesus speaks eloquently and at length about John the baptizer. Matthew 11:7–15	Jesus speaks eloquently and at length about John the baptizer. Luke 7:24–30
However, the next incident in Matthew 11 matches almost word-for-word for a passage in Luke 10.
Matthew 11:16–17 "But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their playmates, 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.'	Luke 7:31–32 "To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, "'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.'
Matthew 11:18–19 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look at Him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds."	Luke 7:33–35 For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, 'He has a demon.' The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look at Him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' Yet wisdom is justified by all her children."
We continue in Matthew 11, but we jump ahead a few chapters in Luke:
No match in Matthew.	(Jesus gives instructions to the 70 or 72 disciples sent forth. Luke 10:1–12)
Jesus speaks of Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum. Matthew 11:20–24	Jesus speaks of Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum. Luke 10:13-15
“Whoever receives you receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me.” Matthew 10:40	“The one who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me.” Luke 10:16
Although these are parallel teachings, they were not necessarily given at the same time. Jesus prayed something similar in John 12:44–50 13:20
No match in Matthew.	The 70 (or 72) return and give a report to Jesus. Luke 10:17–20
Jesus public prayer to the Father. Matthew 11:25–27	Jesus public prayer to the Father. Luke 10:21–22
Matthew 11:25–27 At that time Jesus declared, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was Your gracious will. All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.”	Luke 10:21–22 In that same hour He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was Your gracious will. All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows Who the Son is except the Father, or Who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him."
Jesus says, “Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden...” Matthew 11:28–30	No match in Luke.
Jesus tells His disciples: “But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” Matthew 13:16–17	Jesus tells His disciples: “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it." Luke 10:23–24
Notice that we have skipped ahead two chapters in Matthew.
A lawyer testing Jesus about the greatest commandment. Matthew 22:35–40	A lawyer testing Jesus about the eternal life. Luke 10:25–28
Although these incidents have parallels regarding the two great commandments (Love the Lord your God...love your neighbor...), they are clearly different incidents.
No match in Matthew.	The story of the good Samaritan (which is a follow-on to the previous event with the lawyer). Luke 10:29–37
No match in Matthew.	Martha and Mary. Luke 10:38–42

This passage and others often had parallel applications. That is, this often about a contemporary figure, but it is also about Satan at the same time. This begins as a warning to the king of Babylon (Isaiah 14:4), but the text becomes a diatribe against Satan.
Satan’s Five “I wills”/Satan Cast from Heaven
Scripture	Text/Commentary
Isaiah 14:13 You said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north;...	Vv. 13–14 are the five I wills of Satan. God, through Isaiah, is speaking to Satan, who said in his heart, “I will ascend into heaven.” The powers and abilities of angels must be quite amazing. He will set his throne on high, supplanting God, above the stars (angels) of God (Satan will rule over some of the angels).
Isaiah 14:14 ...I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.'	Satan asserts that he will ascend above the heights of the clouds, which is parallel to what was said in the previous verse. He says that he will make himself like the Most High, meaning that he will be like God, ruling over all things.
Isaiah 14:15 But you are brought down to Sheol, to the far reaches of the pit.	God warns him that he will be brought down to Sheol, which is the grave, into the far reaches of the pit. This is Satan’s everlasting future.
Isaiah 14:16 Those who see you will stare at you and ponder over you: 'Is this the man who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms,...	The other angels will see Satan and stare at him and think about him. “Is this the one who made the earth tremble, the one who shook the kingdoms?” Satan desires to make himself as the Most High, but he will be brought down to a completely defeated and humbled state of being.
Isaiah 14:17 ...who made the world like a desert and overthrew its cities, who did not let his prisoners go home?'	Satan is said to make the world like a desert. One might suggest from this that Satan is behind the green movement, which seeks to reduce CO₂ from our atmosphere and fill our open spaces with wind and solar farms, rather than with forests. Nothing would make this world into a desert faster doing these things.
Isaiah 14:18 All the kings of the nations lie in glory, each in his own tomb;...	The kings of the world, even after death, lie in a glorified state (meaning that their country gave them great honor at their burial).
Isaiah 14:19 ...but you are cast out, away from your grave, like a loathed branch, clothed with the slain, those pierced by the sword, who go down to the stones of the pit, like a dead body trampled underfoot.	Satan, despite having ruled over many nations, will not receive this sort of honor. For the evil that he has done, he will be loathed. An example of such a man is Hitler, who is loathed even by his own country. Satan is cast out, cast away, like a dead body trampled underfoot (as in war).
Isaiah 14:20 You will not be joined with them in burial, because you have destroyed your land, you have slain your people. "May the offspring of evildoers nevermore be named!	Throughout the centuries, Satan has had great power and great authority over various nations. However, he will not be honored as great kings of the earth because he destroyed his own land and killed his own people. Isaiah, in his inspired utterance, calls for those who followed Satan to never be named.
Isaiah 14:21 Prepare slaughter for his sons because of the guilt of their fathers, lest they rise and possess the earth, and fill the face of the world with cities."	All of those devoted to Satan would be slaughtered. No matter how great, nations who have followed Satan and soldiers who have followed him would be destroyed.

Let’s say that I wanted to convert to Judaism, and I googled the fundamentals for a convert to Judaism. Here are two articles which I uncovered.
Two Examples
BBC	Rabbi Eliezer Melamed
Article: Converting to Judaism	Article: The Laws Relating to Converts
How to convert Different forms of Judaism have different conversion mechanisms, but this outline of what is involved covers the basics for all:	What follows are the subtitles for this article:
• discuss possible conversion with a rabbi • study Jewish beliefs, history, rituals and practices • learn some Hebrew • get involved with Jewish community life • believe in G-d and the divinity of the Torah • agree to observe all 613 mitzvot (commandments) of the Torah • agree to live a fully Jewish life • circumcision (men only) • immersion in a mikveh or ritual bath • appear before a Bet Din (a religious court) and obtain their approval	1. Judaism's Positive Approach to Converts 2. Relating to Converts 3. The Conversion 4. How Much Must the Convert Learn Before Conversion? 5. The Essence of the Conversion 6. Conversion in Practice 7. Accepting the Commandments 8. Defining the Acceptance of the Commandments.

Let me be more specific about the narratives and their locations in Luke 11:
An Outline of Luke 11
Passage	Brief Description
Luke 11:1–4	The first thirteen verses in Luke 11 are about prayer and they are clearly out of chronological order. This is the sort of question that His disciples would have had early on in the Lord’s ministry, not one they would be wondering about in the final months. In Luke 11:1–4, the disciples ask the Lord how to pray and He responds giving them what we call, the Lord’s prayer.
Luke 11:5–13	In Luke 11:5–8, Jesus provides a parable about prayer. “If you keep asking Me for something, I might just give it to you.” In Luke 11:9–11, Jesus spells out the meaning of the parable. Interestingly enough, the first thirteen verses parallel Matthew 6:9–15 7:7–11, which passages are a part of the sermon on the mount. Whereas the teaching is the same, the circumstances are clearly different (there is no reason to assume that Jesus taught something brand new every time He opened His mouth). This appears to be the case for many of the teachings found in Luke 11.
Luke 11:14–20	This narrative is, a house divided against itself cannot stand (did you think that Abraham Lincoln thought that up on his own?). Luke 11:21–22 is about the strong man; v. 23 is, if you are not with Me, you are against Me.
Luke 11:24–26	The unclean spirit that returns.
Luke 11:27–28	The horsey woman who interrupts Jesus.
Luke 11:29–32	The sign of Jonah.
Luke 11:33–36	The light that is in us (in believers).
Luke 11:37–54	Jesus denounces the pharisees and teachers of the Law. He is particularly harsh with them because they should know Who Jesus is, but they don’t.

Outline for the Book of Luke
I.	The Early Years of Jesus	Luke 1–2
II.	The Ministry of John the baptizer; Jesus Genealogy	Luke 3
III.	Jesus Public Ministry, from His Temptation to Samaria	Luke 4–10:37
IV.	The Teachings of Jesus (not presented chronologically)	Luke 10:38–18:14
V.	Jesus Entering Jerusalem; the Crucifixion; the Resurrection	Luke 18:15–24:53

The Berean Study Bible translation is used below. This is what we have just studied, but from Matthew’s point of view.
A Brief Exegesis of Matthew 12:22–30
Scripture	Text/Commentary
Matthew 12:22 Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to Jesus, and He healed the man so that he could speak and see.	Luke was not there. He spoke of the man being mute because that was how his source remembered the story. However, the man was both mute and blind.
Matthew 12:23 The crowds were astounded and asked, “Could this be the Son of David?”	Jesus casts out the demon in this man, and the people wonder among themselves, “Could this Man be the Son of David?”
Matthew 12:24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “Only by Beelzebul, the prince of the demons, does this man drive out demons.”	We find out in Matthew that it is several pharisees who make the argument that Jesus has cast out these demons by the prince of demons, Beelzebul.
Matthew 12:25 Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.	Jesus can hear what has been said. He is not reading their thoughts. He listened to them and He provides a strong counter-argument. “A kingdom divided against itself will not stand.”
Matthew 12:26 If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand?	Jesus reasons, “If Satan is against Satan, how does his kingdom continue?”
Matthew 12:27 And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons drive them out? So then, they will be your judges.	Then Jesus asks, “If I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons drive them out?” The pharisees believe that, at some point, their descendants will cast out demons. Can’t their descendants be accused of acting under the power of Beelzebul?
Matthew 12:28 But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.	Jesus straight out tells them, “If I am driving out these demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come to you.”
Matthew 12:29 How can anyone enter a strong man’s house and steal his possessions, unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house.	Then Jesus tells a parable. Everyone will understand the parable and its surface meaning. It will take some time before they think about and understand the points that Jesus is making. “If the strong man is guarding his home, how do you get past him unless you first subdue him and tie him up?” Once that is done, the man’s home can be plundered.
Jesus apparently gave two different strong man parables. Luke’s text is different.
Matthew 12:30 He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.	“Here is what you need to know,” Jesus says, “If you are not with Me, then you are against Me. If you are not gathering, then you are scattering.”