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Luke 14

Jesus goes to the house of a Pharisee

14 One Jewish day of rest, Jesus went into the house of a leader of the Pharisees. This man had asked him to come and to eat a meal with him. The people there were all watching him carefully. 2 A sick man came up to Jesus. His arms and legs had grown fat, because they were full of water. 3 So Jesus spoke to the Pharisees and to the teachers of God's Law. He asked them, ‘Is it right for us to make someone well on our day of rest, or not?’ 4 But they would not say anything. So Jesus took the sick man and he made him well again. Then he let him go away.

5 Then Jesus asked the people, ‘Maybe one of you has a son or an animal that falls into a well on our day of rest. What will you do? You will pull the child or the animal out of the well immediately.’ 6 When Jesus said this, they could not say anything else.

7 Jesus watched how people chose the best places to sit at the meal. [ a ] So he told this story to those who were sitting there:

8 ‘When someone asks you to come to a special meal, do not sit in the best place. A man that is more important than you may come later. 9 Then the man that asked you to the meal might say to you, “Give the best place to this man.” Then you will feel ashamed that you sat there. You will have to move to the lowest place and sit there. 10 Instead, when someone asks you to a meal, you should do this. Go and sit in the least important place. Then the man that asked you to the meal will see you there. And he may say to you, “My friend, move up here to a better place.” Everyone who is there at the meal will see this. So they will know that you are an important person. 11 It will be the same in the kingdom of God. Some people lift themselves up to be important. God will bring all of them down low. Other people are humble. God will lift up those people to a good place.’

12 Then Jesus said to the man who had asked him to the meal, ‘When you give a meal at midday or in the evening, do not ask your friends to come. Do not ask your brothers or your family. And do not ask the rich people that live near you to come. If you do, they will later ask you to eat at their house. This will pay you for the meal that you gave to them. 13 Instead, when you prepare a big meal, you should ask the poor people to come. Ask people that have lost an arm or a leg. Ask people that cannot walk very well, and people that cannot see. 14 Then God will make you happy. Those people cannot pay you for the meal you have given to them. Instead, God will pay you, on the day when he makes good people become alive again.’

A story about a big meal

15 The people who were sitting at the meal heard what Jesus said. One of them said to Jesus, ‘One day, there will be a big meal in the kingdom of God. How happy are those people who will eat together at that big meal.’

16 Jesus told this story to him: ‘One day an important man prepared a big meal. [ b ] He asked many people to come to eat in his house. 17 When the meal was ready, he sent his servant out to tell those people, “Come now, the meal is ready for you.” 18 But then each person gave a reason why he could not come to the meal. The first man said, “I have bought a field, so I must go out and see it. Please say that I am sorry. Tell your master that I cannot come to his meal.” 19 The next man said, “I have bought five pairs of oxen. So I am just going out to see if they work well together. Please say that I am sorry. Tell your master that I cannot come to his meal.” 20 The third man said, “I have just married a wife. That is why I cannot come to the meal.”

21 The servant went back to his master. He told him what everyone had said. Then the master of the house was very angry. “Go out quickly to every street in the town,” he said to his servant. “Bring the poor people here. Bring those that have lost an arm or a leg. And bring those that cannot walk well, and those that cannot see.” 22 The servant did that. Then he came back to his master. “Sir,” he said, “I have asked all those people to come to your meal. But there are still some places at the table.” 23 The master spoke to his servant again. “Go to the roads and fields outside the town, and look for people there. Command them all to come here, so that my house will be full. 24 But I tell you this. None of the people that I asked at the beginning will eat any of my food.” ’

What it will be like to obey Jesus

25 Crowds of many people were travelling with Jesus on his journey. So he turned and said to them, 26 ‘If someone wants to obey me, he must live like this: He must love me more than he loves his own father and mother. He must love me more than he loves his wife and his children. He must love me more than he loves his brothers and his sisters. He must even love me more than he loves himself. If he does not do that, he cannot be one of my disciples. 27 He must live like a person that carries his own cross to go and die. If he is not ready to die for me, he cannot be one of my disciples. [ c ]

28 Here is an example. Perhaps one of you wants to build a tall building. Before you start to build, you will sit down. You will decide how much it will cost. Then you need to know if you have enough money to finish the work. 29 If you do not do this, you may not have enough money. You may put the first stones in the ground, but then you cannot finish the building. If you have to stop, other people will laugh at you. They will say to each other, 30 “That man is a fool. He started to build, but he could not finish the work.” ’

31 Then Jesus gave them another example. ‘Perhaps a king wants to fight a war against another king. But before he goes to fight, he sits down. He thinks to himself. “Can I win this war? My army is large, with 10,000 men. But the other king has twice as many soldiers in his army. 32 No, I cannot do it. I know I cannot beat the other king.” So, while the stronger king is far away, he will send a man to him with a message. He will tell the other king that he does not want to fight. He will ask him what he can do so that they become friends together.’

33 Jesus then said, ‘It is like that for all of you, if you want to be my disciples. You must leave everything that you have behind you.

34 Remember this. Salt is good. But if it is not salty any more, it is no longer any good. You cannot make it salty again. 35 You would not even put it on your field. It cannot make the soil good. You would just throw it away. [ d ]

You have ears. So listen well to what I say.’

Footnotes

  1. 14:7 The best places were the seats nearest to the man that had asked them to come. The most important people sat there and they received their food first.
  2. 14:16 This big meal is like a picture. God asks all people to come to a big meal where he lives. They should be ready when he tells them to come. The people that said, ‘No’ were really saying ‘No’ to Jesus.
  3. 14:27 Jesus used this example to say how disciples should think about their lives. Disciples are those people that obey Jesus. They should say ‘No’ to everything except what Jesus wants. So then they can do what Jesus wants.
  4. 14:35 Those that obey Jesus are like salt. If we leave everything behind us, we are of use to him. But we might love other people or things more than we love him. And if we do, we are of no use to him.

Is It Right to Heal on the Sabbath Day?

14 On a Sabbath day, Jesus went to the home of a leading Pharisee to eat with him. The people there were all watching him very closely. 2 A man with a bad disease [ a ] was there in front of him. 3 Jesus said to the Pharisees and experts in the law, “Is it right or wrong to heal on the Sabbath day?” 4 But they would not answer his question. So he took the man and healed him. Then he sent the man away. 5 Jesus said to the Pharisees and teachers of the law, “If your son or work animal falls into a well on the Sabbath day, you know you would pull him out immediately.” 6 The Pharisees and teachers of the law could say nothing against what he said.

Don’t Make Yourself Important

7 Then Jesus noticed that some of the guests were choosing the best places to sit. So he told this story: 8 “When someone invites you to a wedding, don’t sit in the most important seat. They may have invited someone more important than you. 9 And if you are sitting in the most important seat, they will come to you and say, ‘Give this man your seat!’ Then you will have to move down to the last place and be embarrassed.

10 “So when someone invites you, go sit in the seat that is not important. Then they will come to you and say, ‘Friend, move up here to this better place!’ What an honor this will be for you in front of all the other guests. 11 Everyone who makes themselves important will be made humble. But everyone who makes themselves humble will be made important.”

You Will Be Rewarded

12 Then Jesus said to the Pharisee who had invited him, “When you give a lunch or a dinner, don’t invite only your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. At another time they will pay you back by inviting you to eat with them. 13 Instead, when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, and the blind. 14 Then you will have great blessings, because these people cannot pay you back. They have nothing. But God will reward you at the time when all godly people rise from death.”

A Story About People Invited to a Dinner ( A )

15 One of the men sitting at the table with Jesus heard these things. The man said to him, “It will be a great blessing for anyone to eat a meal in God’s kingdom!”

16 Jesus said to him, “A man gave a big dinner. He invited many people. 17 When it was time to eat, he sent his servant to tell the guests, ‘Come. The food is ready.’ 18 But all the guests said they could not come. Each one made an excuse. The first one said, ‘I have just bought a field, so I must go look at it. Please excuse me.’ 19 Another man said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of work animals; I must go and try them out. Please excuse me.’ 20 A third man said, ‘I just got married; I can’t come.’

21 “So the servant returned and told his master what happened. The master was angry. He said, ‘Hurry! Go into the streets and alleys of the town. Bring me the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’

22 “Later, the servant said to him, ‘Master, I did what you told me to do, but we still have places for more people.’ 23 The master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and country roads. Tell the people there to come. I want my house to be full! 24 I tell you, not one of those people I invited first will eat any of this food I prepared.’”

Decide if You Can Follow Me ( B )

25 Many people were traveling with Jesus. He said to them, 26 “If you come to me but will not leave your family, you cannot be my follower. You must love me more than your father, mother, wife, children, brothers, and sisters—even more than your own life! 27 Whoever will not carry the cross that is given to them when they follow me cannot be my follower.

28 “If you wanted to build a building, you would first sit down and decide how much it would cost. You must see if you have enough money to finish the job. 29 If you don’t do that, you might begin the work, but you would not be able to finish. And if you could not finish it, everyone would laugh at you. 30 They would say, ‘This man began to build, but he was not able to finish.’

31 “If a king is going to fight against another king, first he will sit down and plan. If he has only 10,000 men, he will try to decide if he is able to defeat the other king who has 20,000 men. 32 If he thinks he cannot defeat the other king, he will send some men to ask for peace while that king’s army is still far away.

33 “It is the same for each of you. You must leave everything you have to follow me. If not, you cannot be my follower.

Don’t Lose Your Influence ( C )

34 “Salt is a good thing. But if the salt loses its salty taste, you can’t make it salty again. 35 It is worth nothing. You can’t even use it as dirt or dung. People just throw it away.

“You people who hear me, listen!”

Footnotes

  1. Luke 14:2 disease The man had dropsy, a sickness that causes the body to swell larger and larger.

14 And it came to pass, as he went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread on the sabbath day, that they watched him.

2 And, behold, there was a certain man before him which had the dropsy.

3 And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day?

4 And they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go;

5 And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day?

6 And they could not answer him again to these things.

7 And he put forth a parable to those which were bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms; saying unto them.

8 When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him;

9 And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room.

10 But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee.

11 For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

12 Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompence be made thee.

13 But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind:

14 And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.

15 And when one of them that sat at meat with him heard these things, he said unto him, Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God.

16 Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and bade many:

17 And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready.

18 And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused.

19 And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused.

20 And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.

21 So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind.

22 And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room.

23 And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.

24 For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper.

25 And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them,

26 If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.

27 And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.

28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?

29 Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him,

30 Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.

31 Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?

32 Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace.

33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.

34 Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be seasoned?

35 It is neither fit for the land, nor yet for the dunghill; but men cast it out. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Jesus Heals on the Sabbath

14 It happened that when He went into the house of one of the [ a ] leaders of the Pharisees on the Sabbath to eat bread, ( A ) they were watching Him [ b ] closely. 2 And [ c ] there in front of Him was a man suffering from [ d ] edema. 3 And Jesus responded and said to the [ e ] ( B ) lawyers and [ f ] Pharisees, “ ( C ) Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” 4 But they kept silent. And He took hold of him and healed him, and sent him away. 5 And He said to them, “ [ g ] ( D ) Which one of you will have a son or an ox fall into a well, and will not immediately pull him out on a Sabbath day?” 6 ( E ) And they could offer no reply to this.

Parable of the Guests

7 Now He began telling a parable to the invited guests when He noticed how ( F ) they had been picking out the places of honor at the table , saying to them, 8 “Whenever you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, ( G ) do not [ h ] take the place of honor, for someone more distinguished than you may have been invited by him, 9 and the one who invited you [ i ] both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this person,’ and then ( H ) in disgrace you will proceed to occupy the last place. 10 But whenever you are invited, go and [ j ] take the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, ( I ) move up higher’; then you will have honor in the sight of all who are [ k ] dining at the table with you. 11 ( J ) For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

12 Now He also went on to say to the one who had invited Him, “Whenever you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor wealthy neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you to a meal in return, and that will be your [ l ] repayment. 13 But whenever you give a [ m ] banquet, invite people who are poor, who have disabilities, who are limping, and people who are blind; 14 and you will be blessed, since they [ n ] do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at ( K ) the resurrection of the righteous.”

15 Now when one of those who were reclining at the table with Him heard this, he said to Him, “ ( L ) Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!”

Parable of the Dinner

16 But He said to him, “ ( M ) A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many; 17 and at the dinner hour he sent his slave to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, because everything is ready now.’ 18 And yet they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I purchased a field and I need to go out to look at it; [ o ] please consider me excused.’ 19 And another one said, ‘I bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; [ p ] please consider me excused.’ 20 And another one said, ‘ ( N ) I took a woman as my wife, and for that reason I cannot come.’ 21 And the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the head of the household became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in here those who are poor, those with disabilities, those who are blind, and those who are limping.’ 22 And later the slave said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ 23 And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the roads and the hedges and press upon them to come in, so that my house will be filled. 24 For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my dinner.’”

Discipleship Tested

25 Now [ q ] large crowds were going along with Him, and He turned and said to them, 26 “ ( O ) If anyone comes to Me and does not [ r ] hate his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. 27 Whoever does not ( P ) carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 28 For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it ? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who are watching it will begin to ridicule him, 30 saying, ‘This person began to build, and was not able to finish!’ 31 Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and ( Q ) consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to face the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 Otherwise, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and requests terms of peace. 33 So then, none of you can be My disciple who ( R ) does not [ s ] give up all his own possessions.

34 “Therefore, salt is good; but ( S ) if even salt has become tasteless, with what will it be [ t ] seasoned? 35 It is useless either for the soil or the manure pile, so it is thrown out. ( T ) The one who has ears to hear, [ u ] let him hear.”

Footnotes

  1. Luke 14:1 I.e., members of the Sanhedrin
  2. Luke 14:1 Or maliciously
  3. Luke 14:2 Lit behold
  4. Luke 14:2 I.e., extreme swelling
  5. Luke 14:3 I.e., experts in Mosaic Law
  6. Luke 14:3 Lit Pharisees, saying
  7. Luke 14:5 Lit Whose son of you...will fall
  8. Luke 14:8 Lit recline at
  9. Luke 14:9 Lit and him
  10. Luke 14:10 Lit recline at
  11. Luke 14:10 Lit reclining
  12. Luke 14:12 Or reward
  13. Luke 14:13 Or reception
  14. Luke 14:14 Or are unable to
  15. Luke 14:18 Lit I request of you
  16. Luke 14:19 Lit I request of you
  17. Luke 14:25 Lit many
  18. Luke 14:26 I.e., in comparison to his love for Me
  19. Luke 14:33 Or renounce
  20. Luke 14:34 Or salted
  21. Luke 14:35 Or hear ! Or listen !

Jesus at a Pharisee’s House ( A )

14 One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, ( B ) he was being carefully watched. ( C ) 2 There in front of him was a man suffering from abnormal swelling of his body. 3 Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law, ( D ) “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” ( E ) 4 But they remained silent. So taking hold of the man, he healed him and sent him on his way.

5 Then he asked them, “If one of you has a child [ a ] or an ox that falls into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull it out?” ( F ) 6 And they had nothing to say.

7 When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, ( G ) he told them this parable: 8 “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. 9 If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. 10 But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. 11 For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” ( H )

12 Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, ( I ) 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” ( J )

The Parable of the Great Banquet ( K )

15 When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast ( L ) in the kingdom of God.” ( M )

16 Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’

18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’

19 “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’

20 “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’

21 “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ ( N )

22 “‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’

23 “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. 24 I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’” ( O )

The Cost of Being a Disciple

25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. ( P ) 27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. ( Q )

28 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? 29 For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, 30 saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’

31 “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. 33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples. ( R )

34 “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? ( S ) 35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out. ( T )

“Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” ( U )

Footnotes

  1. Luke 14:5 Some manuscripts donkey
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