Luke 18
Christian Standard Bible
The Parable of the Persistent Widow
18 Now he told them a parable on the need for them to pray(A) always and not give up.(B) 2 “There was a judge in a certain town who didn’t fear God(C) or respect people. 3 And a widow(D) in that town kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’
4 “For a while he was unwilling, but later he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or respect people, 5 yet because this widow keeps(E) pestering me,[a] I will give her justice, so that she doesn’t wear me out[b] by her persistent coming.’”
6 Then the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 Will not God grant justice(F) to his elect(G) who cry out to him day and night?(H) Will he delay(I) helping them?[c] 8 I tell you that he will swiftly grant them justice. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes,(J) will he find faith on earth?”
The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector
9 He(K) also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves(L) that they were righteous(M) and looked down(N) on everyone else: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray,(O) one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee was standing(P) and praying like this about himself: [d] ‘God, I thank you that I’m not like other people—greedy,(Q) unrighteous,(R) adulterers,(S) or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast(T) twice a week; I give a tenth[e](U) of everything I get.’
13 “But the tax collector, standing far off,(V) would not even raise his eyes to heaven(W) but kept striking his chest(X) and saying, ‘God, have mercy on me,[f](Y) a sinner!’ (Z) 14 I tell you, this one went down to his house justified(AA) rather than the other, because everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”(AB)
Blessing the Children
15 People(AC) were bringing infants to him so that he might touch them, but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. 16 Jesus, however, invited them: “Let the little children come to me,(AD) and don’t stop them, because the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 17 Truly I tell you,(AE) whoever does not receive(AF) the kingdom of God like a little child(AG) will never enter it.”
The Rich Young Ruler
18 A(AH) ruler(AI) asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (AJ)
19 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him. “No one is good except God alone. 20 You know the commandments: Do not commit adultery; do not murder; do not steal; do not bear false witness; honor your father and mother.”[g](AK)
21 “I have kept all these from my youth,” he said.
22 When Jesus heard this, he told him, “You still lack one thing: Sell all you have and distribute it to the poor,(AL) and you will have treasure in heaven.(AM) Then come, follow me.”(AN)
23 After he heard this, he became extremely sad,(AO) because he was very rich.
Possessions and the Kingdom
24 Seeing that he became sad,[h] Jesus said, “How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! 25 For 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.”
26 Those who heard this asked, “Then who can be saved?” (AP)
27 He replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”(AQ)
28 Then Peter said, “Look, we have left what we had and followed(AR) you.”
29 So he said to them, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left a house, wife or brothers or sisters, parents or children because of the kingdom of God, 30 who will not receive many times more at this time,(AS) and eternal life in the age to come.”
The Third Prediction of His Death
31 Then(AT) he took the Twelve aside and told them, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem.(AU) Everything that is written(AV) through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished.(AW) 32 For he will be handed over to the Gentiles,(AX) and he will be mocked,(AY) insulted, spit(AZ) on; 33 and after they flog him, they will kill him, and he will rise on the third day.”(BA)
34 They understood none of these things.(BB) The meaning of the saying[i](BC) was hidden(BD) from them, and they did not grasp what was said.
A Blind Man Receives His Sight
35 As(BE) he approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the road begging. 36 Hearing a crowd passing by, he inquired what was happening. 37 “Jesus of Nazareth(BF) is passing by,” they told him.
38 So he called out,(BG) “Jesus, Son of David,(BH) have mercy(BI) on me!” 39 Then those in front told him to keep quiet,[j] but he kept crying out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
40 Jesus stopped and commanded that he be brought to him. When he came closer, he asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?”
“Lord,” he said, “I want to see.”
42 “Receive your sight,”(BJ) Jesus told him. “Your faith has saved you.”(BK) 43 Instantly he could see, and he began to follow him, glorifying God.(BL) All the people,(BM) when they saw it, gave praise to God.
Footnotes
- 18:5 Lit widow causes me trouble
- 18:5 Or doesn’t ruin my reputation
- 18:7 Or Will he put up with them?
- 18:11 Or by himself
- 18:12 Or give tithes
- 18:13 Or God, turn your wrath from me
- 18:20 Ex 20:12–16; Dt 5:16–20
- 18:24 Other mss omit he became sad
- 18:34 Lit This saying
- 18:39 Or those in front rebuked him
Luke 18
Names of God Bible
God Will Help His People
18 Yeshua used this illustration with his disciples to show them that they need to pray all the time and never give up. 2 He said, “In a city there was a judge who didn’t fear God or respect people. 3 In that city there was also a widow who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice.’
4 “For a while the judge refused to do anything. But then he thought, ‘This widow really annoys me. Although I don’t fear God or respect people, 5 I’ll have to give her justice. Otherwise, she’ll keep coming to me until she wears me out.’”
6 The Lord added, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge thought. 7 Won’t God give his chosen people justice when they cry out to him for help day and night? Is he slow to help them? 8 I can guarantee that he will give them justice quickly. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
A Pharisee and a Tax Collector
9 Yeshua also used this illustration with some who were sure that God approved of them while they looked down on everyone else. 10 He said, “Two men went into the temple courtyard to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood up and prayed, ‘God, I thank you that I’m not like other people! I’m not a robber or a dishonest person. I haven’t committed adultery. I’m not even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my entire income.’
13 “But the tax collector was standing at a distance. He wouldn’t even look up to heaven. Instead, he became very upset, and he said, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’
14 “I can guarantee that this tax collector went home with God’s approval, but the Pharisee didn’t. Everyone who honors himself will be humbled, but the person who humbles himself will be honored.”
Jesus Blesses Children(A)
15 Some people brought infants to Yeshua to have him hold them. When the disciples saw this, they told the people not to do that.
16 But Yeshua called the infants to him and said, “Don’t stop the children from coming to me! Children like these are part of the kingdom of God. 17 I can guarantee this truth: Whoever doesn’t receive the kingdom of God as a little child receives it will never enter it.”
Eternal Life in the Kingdom(B)
18 An official asked Yeshua, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
19 Yeshua said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God. 20 You know the commandments: Never commit adultery. Never murder. Never steal. Never give false testimony. Honor your father and your mother.”
21 The official replied, “I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was a boy.”
22 When Yeshua heard this, he said to him, “You still need one thing. Sell everything you have. Distribute the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then follow me!”
23 When the official heard this, he became sad, because he was very rich. 24 Yeshua watched him and said, “How hard it is for rich people to enter the kingdom of God! 25 Indeed, 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.”
26 Those who heard him asked, “Who, then, can be saved?”
27 Yeshua said, “The things that are impossible for people to do are possible for God to do.”
28 Then Peter said, “We’ve left everything to follow you.”
29 Yeshua said to them, “I can guarantee this truth: Anyone who gave up his home, wife, brothers, parents, or children because of the kingdom of God 30 will certainly receive many times as much in this life and will receive eternal life in the world to come.”
For the Third Time Jesus Foretells That He Will Die and Come Back to Life(C)
31 Yeshua took the twelve apostles aside and said to them, “We’re going to Jerusalem. Everything that the prophets wrote about the Son of Man will come true. 32 He will be handed over to foreigners. They will make fun of him, insult him, spit on him, 33 whip him, and kill him. But on the third day he will come back to life.”
34 But they didn’t understand any of this. What he said was a mystery to them, and they didn’t know what he meant.
Jesus Gives Sight to a Blind Man(D)
35 As Yeshua came near Jericho, a blind man was sitting and begging by the road. 36 When he heard the crowd going by, he tried to find out what was happening. 37 The people told him that Yeshua from Nazareth was passing by. 38 Then the blind man shouted, “Yeshua, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 39 The people at the front of the crowd told the blind man to be quiet. But he shouted even louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
40 Yeshua stopped and ordered them to bring the man to him. When the man came near, Yeshua asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?”
The blind man said, “Lord, I want to see again.”
42 Yeshua told him, “Receive your sight! Your faith has made you well.” 43 Immediately, he could see again. He followed Yeshua and praised God. All the people saw this, and they, too, praised God.
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The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.