Luke — Chapter 18
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1And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
2Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:
3And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.
4And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
5Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.
6And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.
7And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
8I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
9And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:
10Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
11The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
12I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
13And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
14I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
15And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them.
16But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.
17Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.
18And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
19And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God.
20Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother.
21And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.
22Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
23And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich.
24And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!
25For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
26And they that heard it said, Who then can be saved?
27And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.
28Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee.
29And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God’s sake,
30Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.
31Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished.
32For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on:
33And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again.
34And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.
35And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging:
36And hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant.
37And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by.
38And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
39And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the more, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
40And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him,
41Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight.
42And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.
43And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.
1And he spake a parable unto them to the end that they ought always to pray, and not to faint;
2saying, There was in a city a judge, who feared not God, and regarded not man:
3and there was a widow in that city; and she came oft unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.
4And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
5yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest she wear me out by her continual coming.
6And the Lord said, Hear what the unrighteous judge saith.
7And shall not God avenge his elect, that cry to him day and night, and [yet] he is longsuffering over them?
8I say unto you, that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
9And he spake also this parable unto certain who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and set all others at nought:
10Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
11The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as the rest of men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
12I fast twice in the week; I give tithes of all that I get.
13But the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote his breast, saying, God, be thou merciful to me a sinner.
14I say unto you, This man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be humbled; but he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
15And they were bringing unto him also their babes, that he should touch them: but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them.
16But Jesus called them unto him, saying, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for to such belongeth the kingdom of God.
17Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall in no wise enter therein.
18And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
19And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, [even] God.
20Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor thy father and mother.
21And he said, All these things have I observed from my youth up.
22And when Jesus heard it, he said unto him, One thing thou lackest yet: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
23But when he heard these things, he became exceeding sorrowful; for he was very rich.
24And Jesus seeing him said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!
25For it is easier for a camel to enter in through a needle`s eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
26And they that heard it said, Then who can be saved?
27But he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.
28And Peter said, Lo, we have left our own, and followed thee.
29And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or wife, or brethren, or parents, or children, for the kingdom of God`s sake,
30who shall not receive manifold more in this time, and in the world to come eternal life.
31And he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all the things that are written through the prophets shall be accomplished unto the Son of man.
32For he shall be delivered up unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and shamefully treated, and spit upon:
33and they shall scourge and kill him: and the third day he shall rise again.
34And they understood none of these things; and this saying was hid from them, and they perceived not the things that were said.
35And it came to pass, as he drew nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging:
36and hearing a multitude going by, he inquired what this meant.
37And they told him that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by.
38And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.
39And they that went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried out the more a great deal, Thou son of David, have mercy on me.
40And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him,
41What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight.
42And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight; thy faith hath made thee whole.
43And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.
1Then Jesus told them a parable to show them they should always pray and not lose heart.
2He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected people.
3There was also a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’
4For a while he refused, but later on he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor have regard for people,
5yet because this widow keeps on bothering me, I will give her justice, or in the end she will wear me out by her unending pleas.’”
6And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unrighteous judge says!
7Won’t God give justice to his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he delay long to help them?
8I tell you, he will give them justice speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
9Jesus also told this parable to some who were confident that they were righteous and looked down on everyone else.
10“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
11The Pharisee stood and prayed about himself like this: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: extortionists, unrighteous people, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.
12I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of everything I get.’
13The tax collector, however, stood far off and would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, be merciful to me, sinner that I am!’
14I tell you that this man went down to his home justified rather than the Pharisee. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
15Now people were even bringing their babies to him for him to touch. But when the disciples saw it, they began to scold those who brought them.
16But Jesus called for the children, saying, “Let the little children come to me and do not try to stop them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.
17I tell you the truth, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.”
18Now a certain leader asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
19Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.
20You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’”
21The man replied, “I have wholeheartedly obeyed all these laws since my youth.”
22When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
23But when the man heard this, he became very sad, for he was extremely wealthy.
24When Jesus noticed this, he said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!
25In fact, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
26Those who heard this said, “Then who can be saved?”
27He replied, “What is impossible for mere humans is possible for God.”
28And Peter said, “Look, we have left everything we own to follow you!
29Then Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, there is no one who has left home or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of God’s kingdom
30who will not receive many times more in this age—and in the age to come, eternal life.”
31Then Jesus took the twelve aside and said to them, “Look, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished.
32For he will be handed over to the Gentiles; he will be mocked, mistreated, and spat on.
33They will flog him severely and kill him. Yet on the third day he will rise again.”
34But the twelve understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what Jesus meant.
35As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the road begging.
36When he heard a crowd going by, he asked what was going on.
37They told him, “Jesus the Nazarene is passing by.”
38So he called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
39And those who were in front scolded him to get him to be quiet, but he shouted even more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
40So Jesus stopped and ordered the beggar to be brought to him. When the man came near, Jesus asked him,
41“What do you want me to do for you?” He replied, “Lord, let me see again.”
42Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.”
43And immediately he regained his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they too gave praise to God.
1He also spoke a parable to them that they must always pray, and not give up,
2saying, “There was a judge in a certain city who didn’t fear God, and didn’t respect man.
3A widow was in that city, and she often came to him, saying, ‘Defend me from my adversary!’
4He wouldn’t for a while, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God, nor respect man,
5yet because this widow bothers me, I will defend her, or else she will wear me out by her continual coming.’”
6The Lord said, “Listen to what the unrighteous judge says.
7Won’t God avenge his chosen ones, who are crying out to him day and night, and yet he exercises patience with them?
8I tell you that he will avenge them quickly. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
9He spoke also this parable to certain people who were convinced of their own righteousness, and who despised all others.
10“Two men went up into the temple to pray; one was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector.
11The Pharisee stood and prayed to himself like this: ‘God, I thank you, that I am not like the rest of men, extortionists, unrighteous, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
12I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I get.’
13But the tax collector, standing far away, wouldn’t even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’
14I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
15They were also bringing their babies to him, that he might touch them. But when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them.
16Jesus summoned them, saying, “Allow the little children to come to me, and don’t hinder them, for God’s Kingdom belongs to such as these.
17Most certainly, I tell you, whoever doesn’t receive God’s Kingdom like a little child, he will in no way enter into it.”
18A certain ruler asked him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
19Jesus asked him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good, except one—God.
20You know the commandments: ‘Don’t commit adultery,’ ‘Don’t murder,’ ‘Don’t steal,’ ‘Don’t give false testimony,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.’”
21He said, “I have observed all these things from my youth up.”
22When Jesus heard these things, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have, and distribute it to the poor. You will have treasure in heaven. Come, follow me.”
23But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was very rich.
24Jesus, seeing that he became very sad, said, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter into God’s Kingdom!
25For it is easier for a camel to enter in through a needle’s eye, than for a rich man to enter into God’s Kingdom.”
26Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?”
27But he said, “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.”
28Peter said, “Look, we have left everything, and followed you.”
29He said to them, “Most certainly I tell you, there is no one who has left house, or wife, or brothers, or parents, or children, for God’s Kingdom’s sake,
30who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the world to come, eternal life.”
31He took the twelve aside, and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all the things that are written through the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be completed.
32For he will be delivered up to the Gentiles, will be mocked, treated shamefully, and spit on.
33They will scourge and kill him. On the third day, he will rise again.”
34They understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they didn’t understand the things that were said.
35As he came near Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the road, begging.
36Hearing a multitude going by, he asked what this meant.
37They told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by.
38He cried out, “Jesus, you son of David, have mercy on me!”
39Those who led the way rebuked him, that he should be quiet; but he cried out all the more, “You son of David, have mercy on me!”
40Standing still, Jesus commanded him to be brought to him. When he had come near, he asked him,
41“What do you want me to do?” He said, “Lord, that I may see again.”
42Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight. Your faith has healed you.”
43Immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God. All the people, when they saw it, praised God.
Summary
Jesus teaches persistent prayer through the parable of the Unjust Judge, contrasts the Pharisee and Tax Collector's prayers, blesses children, challenges the rich ruler, predicts His death, and heals a blind man near Jericho.
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- Near Jericho (v.35): The blind man was healed as Jesus approached Jericho — the last major city before the ascent to Jerusalem.
- The Temple (v.10): The Pharisee and the tax collector prayed in the Temple in Jerusalem — the parable may reference a recent visit.
- Jerusalem (v.31): Jesus tells the twelve they are going up to Jerusalem, where He will be crucified.
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik examines the persistent widow, the Pharisee and tax collector, Jesus and children, the rich ruler, and blind Bartimaeus.
- Charles Spurgeon: Sermon: "The Pharisee and the Publican" on vv.9-14 (MTP Vol. 10, No. 578) "God be merciful to me a sinner — that is the whole Gospel in seven words. Not 'God, I thank thee that I am not as other men.' Not 'God, look at my record.' Just — mercy. For a sinner. That man went home justified. The other went home condemned. The difference? One knew he needed mercy; the other thought he didn't." Sermon: "Pray and Not Faint" on v.1 (MTP Vol. 22, No. 1312) "Always to pray, and not to faint. Those are the two options — pray or faint. There is no third. When you stop praying, you start fainting. When you start praying again, you stop fainting. Prayer is not optional equipment; it is the engine."
Reflection
- 1. "Men ought always to pray, and not to faint" (v.1). Which are you doing more of — praying or fainting? What prayer have you given up on that you need to return to with persistence?
- 2. The Pharisee compared himself to others and felt good about himself (v.11). The tax collector compared himself to God's standard and was broken (v.13). Which comparison do you make? Who is your reference point — other people or God's holiness?
- 3. "God be merciful to me a sinner" (v.13). Can you pray that prayer honestly — without qualification, without excuse, without comparison? Just "I am a sinner and I need mercy"? When did you last approach God with that kind of raw honesty?
- 4. The rich ruler "was very sorrowful: for he was very rich" (v.23). His wealth owned him — he couldn't let go. What owns you? What would make you "very sorrowful" if Jesus asked you to surrender it?
- 5. The unjust judge responded to persistence, not justice (v.5). God responds to persistence AND He is just. If even an unjust judge can be moved by persistence, how much more will your loving Father respond to your cries? What does this tell you about God's character?
- 6. "When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?" (v.8). Jesus connects persistent prayer to faith. Will He find you praying when He returns — or will He find you fainting?
- 7. Jesus said "Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein" (v.17). What does childlike faith look like? What adult qualities — self-sufficiency, pride, skepticism — do you need to lay down?
- 8. The disciples were "exceedingly amazed" that a rich man couldn't easily be saved (v.26). They assumed wealth = God's blessing = easy salvation. What assumptions about who is "in" and who is "out" do you carry?
- 9. Blind Bartimaeus cried out despite the crowd telling him to be quiet (v.39). He refused to let others silence his need for Jesus. What is silencing your cry to Christ — pride, social pressure, the noise of daily life?