BibleStudyIt Luke 18
- Luke Chapter 18
18 Then Jesus told his disciples a story. He wanted to teach them that they must go on praying always. They must not get tired. 2 He said to them, ‘In a certain city, there was a judge. [ a ] He was not afraid of God. He did not respect people.
3 A woman lived in that same city. Her husband had died. She came to the judge many times with a problem. “Somebody is doing bad things against me. Please keep me safe from that person,” she was saying. 4 For a long time, the judge would not do anything to help her. Later, he thought, “I am not afraid of God. Nor do I respect people. 5 But this woman causes me trouble. If I do not do anything for her, she will continue to come to me again and again. She will make me ill. So I will help her to be safe. I will say that she is right.” ’
6 Jesus then said, ‘This judge was not a good man. But you should think about what he said. He helped the woman because she caused him trouble. 7 But as for God, he always helps those that he has chosen to be his children. When they continue to ask him for help, in the day and in the night, he will answer them. He will not wait. 8 I tell you this. He will show that they are right. He will help them quickly. I, the Son of Man, will return to earth. But will I find many people that still believe in me then, or not?’
9 Jesus told a story to teach other people. These people thought that they were very good in front of God. They thought that they were much better than other people.
10 Jesus said, ‘One day, two men went into the temple to pray. One man was a Pharisee. The other man took taxes from people. 11 The Pharisee stood there by himself. He prayed like this: “Thank you, God, that I am different from all these other people. They are bad people. They rob other people. They have sex with women who are not their wife. Thank you, God, that I am not like this man who takes taxes on behalf of the government. 12 I fast for two days of each week. I give to you one tenth of all the things and money that I receive.”
13 But the other man stood far away. He would not even look up towards heaven. He was hitting his body with his hands to show how sorry he was. He prayed like this: “Please, God, be kind to me. I have done many bad things.” ’
14 Jesus then said, ‘Let me tell you about these men when they went home. The man that took taxes from people was now right with God. But the Pharisee was still guilty. Some people lift themselves up to be important. But God will bring all of them down low. Other people are humble. God will lift up those people to a good place.’
15 People were also bringing babies to Jesus. They wanted him to put his hands on each child's head. But Jesus' disciples did not like this. They told the people that they should not do it.
16 Then Jesus told the children to come to him. He said to his disciples, ‘Let the children come to me. Do not try to stop them. People must become like these children so that God can rule their lives. That is what the kingdom of God is like. 17 I tell you this: A person must become like a little child for God to rule in his life. If he does not become like a child, he will not come into the kingdom of God.’
18 A Jewish ruler came to Jesus and asked him, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do so that I can live with God for ever?’
19 Jesus asked him, ‘Why do you say that I am good? Only God is good. Nobody else. 20 You know God's rules: “Do not have sex with anyone who is not your wife. Do not kill anyone. Do not rob anyone. Do not say things that are not true about people. Love your father and your mother, and obey them.” ’
21 The man replied, ‘I have obeyed all these laws since I was a young man.’
22 Jesus heard what he said and he replied, ‘There is still just one thing that you must do. You must sell everything that you have. Then give the money to poor people. If you do that, you will have many valuable things in heaven. Then come back and be my disciple.’
23 When the ruler heard this, he became very sad. This was because he was a very rich man.
24 Jesus saw that the ruler had become sad. He said, ‘It is very difficult for rich people to let God rule in their lives. 25 The hole in a needle is very small. A camel cannot go through it! But it is even more difficult than that for a rich person to let God rule in their life.’
26 The people who were listening to Jesus said, ‘So perhaps God will not save anyone!’ 27 Jesus replied, ‘God can do things that are impossible for people to do.’
28 Peter then said to Jesus, ‘Look! We have left everything that we had. Now we are your disciples.’
29 Jesus said to them, ‘I tell you this: Some people have left their homes. Or they may have left their wife or their brothers. Or they may have left their parents or their children. They have done this to work for the kingdom of God. 30 Now, in this world, God will give these people many more things than they have left behind. And in the future world they will live for ever with God.’
31 Jesus took the 12 disciples away from the other people. ‘Listen!’ he said to them. ‘We are going to Jerusalem. There, many bad things will happen to me. All the things that God's prophets wrote down long ago about the Son of Man will now happen to me. 32 The Jewish leaders will deliver me to people that are not Jews. They will laugh at me. They will say bad things against me. They will spit at me. 33 They will hit me with whips and then they will kill me. But after three days, I will become alive again.’
34 The 12 disciples did not understand any of these things. What Jesus said did not mean anything to them. So they did not know what Jesus was talking about.
35 When Jesus was getting near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the side of the road. He was asking people to give him money. 36 Then he heard a large crowd of people as they went along the road. So he asked the people near him what was happening. 37 They told him, ‘Jesus from Nazareth is walking past.’
38 The man began to shout out. ‘Jesus! Son of David! Please be kind to me and help me.’ 39 The people who were walking at the front of the crowd were angry with him. They told him that he should be quiet. But he started to shout even louder, ‘Son of David! Please help me!’
40 Then Jesus stopped. He said to the people, ‘Bring that man to me.’ When the man came near, Jesus asked him, 41 ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ ‘Sir,’ the blind man replied, ‘I want to see again.’
42 Jesus said to him, ‘See again! You are well now because you believed in me.’ 43 Immediately, the man could see again. He started to follow Jesus along the road. He was praising God.
Many people saw what had happened. They also praised God.
18 Then Jesus taught the followers that they should always pray and never lose hope. He used this story to teach them: 2 “Once there was a judge in a town. He did not care about God. He also did not care what people thought about him. 3 In that same town there was a woman whose husband had died. She came many times to this judge and said, ‘There is a man who is doing bad things to me. Give me my rights!’ 4 But the judge did not want to help the woman. After a long time, the judge thought to himself, ‘I don’t care about God. And I don’t care about what people think. 5 But this woman is bothering me. If I give her what she wants, then she will leave me alone. But if I don’t give her what she wants, she will bother me until I am sick.’”
6 The Lord said, “Listen, there is meaning in what the bad judge said. 7 God’s people shout to him night and day, and he will always give them what is right. He will not be slow to answer them. 8 I tell you, God will help his people quickly. But when the Son of Man comes again, will he find people on earth who believe in him?”
9 There were some people who thought they were very good and looked down on everyone else. Jesus used this story to teach them: 10 “One time there was a Pharisee and a tax collector. One day they both went to the Temple to pray. 11 The Pharisee stood alone, away from the tax collector. When the Pharisee prayed, he said, ‘O God, I thank you that I am not as bad as other people. I am not like men who steal, cheat, or commit adultery. I thank you that I am better than this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week, and I give a tenth of everything I get!’
13 “The tax collector stood alone too. But when he prayed, he would not even look up to heaven. He felt very humble before God. He said, ‘O God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, when this man finished his prayer and went home, he was right with God. But the Pharisee, who felt that he was better than others, was not right with God. People who make themselves important will be made humble. But those who make themselves humble will be made important.”
15 Some people brought their small children to Jesus so that he could lay his hands on them to bless them. But when the followers saw this, they told the people not to do this. 16 But Jesus called the little children to him and said to his followers, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them, because God’s kingdom belongs to people who are like these little children. 17 The truth is, you must accept God’s kingdom like a little child accepts things, or you will never enter it.”
18 A religious leader asked Jesus, “Good Teacher, what must I do to get eternal life?”
19 Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? Only God is good. 20 And you know his commands: ‘You must not commit adultery, you must not murder anyone, you must not steal, you must not tell lies about others, you must respect your father and mother ….’ [ a ] ”
21 But the leader said, “I have obeyed all these commands since I was a boy.”
22 When Jesus heard this, he said to the leader, “But there is still one thing you need to do. Sell everything you have and give the money to those who are poor. You will have riches in heaven. Then come and follow me.” 23 But when the man heard Jesus tell him to give away his money, he was sad. He didn’t want to do this, because he was very rich.
24 When Jesus saw that the man was sad, he said, “It will be very hard for rich people to enter God’s kingdom. 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter God’s kingdom.”
26 When the people heard this, they said, “Then who can be saved?”
27 Jesus answered, “God can do things that are not possible for people to do.”
28 Peter said, “Look, we left everything we had and followed you.”
29 Jesus said, “I can promise that everyone who has left their home, wife, brothers, parents, or children for God’s kingdom 30 will get much more than they left. They will get many times more in this life. And in the world that is coming they will get the reward of eternal life.”
31 Then Jesus talked to the twelve apostles alone. He said to them, “Listen, we are going to Jerusalem. Everything that God told the prophets to write about the Son of Man will happen. 32 He will be handed over to the foreigners, who will laugh at him, insult him, and spit on him. 33 They will beat him with whips and then kill him. But on the third day after his death, he will rise to life again.” 34 The apostles tried to understand this, but they could not; the meaning was hidden from them.
35 Jesus came near the city of Jericho. There was a blind man sitting beside the road. He was begging people for money. 36 When he heard the people coming down the road, he asked, “What is happening?”
37 They told him, “Jesus, the one from Nazareth, is coming here.”
38 The blind man was excited and said, “Jesus, Son of David, please help me!”
39 The people who were in front leading the group criticized the blind man. They told him to be quiet. But he shouted more and more, “Son of David, please help me!”
40 Jesus stopped there and said, “Bring that man to me!” When he came close, Jesus asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?”
He said, “Lord, I want to see again.”
42 Jesus said to him, “You can see now. You are healed because you believed.”
43 Then the man was able to see. He followed Jesus, thanking God. Everyone who saw this praised God for what happened.
18 And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
2 Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:
3 And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.
4 And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
5 Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.
6 And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.
7 And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
8 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:
10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
11 The 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.
12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
13 And 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.
14 I 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.
15 And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them.
16 But 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.
17 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.
18 And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
19 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God.
20 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother.
21 And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.
22 Now 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.
23 And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich.
24 And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!
25 For 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.
26 And they that heard it said, Who then can be saved?
27 And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.
28 Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee.
29 And 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,
30 Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.
31 Then 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.
32 For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on:
33 And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again.
34 And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.
35 And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging:
36 And hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant.
37 And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by.
38 And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.
39 And 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.
40 And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him,
41 Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight.
42 And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.
43 And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.
18 Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ( A ) ought to pray and not ( B ) become discouraged, 2 saying, “In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not ( C ) respect any person. 3 Now there was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me justice against my [ a ] opponent.’ 4 For a while he was unwilling; but later he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor ( D ) respect any person, 5 yet ( E ) because this widow is bothering me, I will give her justice; otherwise [ b ] by continually coming she will ( F ) wear me out.’” 6 And ( G ) the Lord said, “Listen to what the unrighteous judge *said; 7 now, will God not ( H ) bring about justice for His ( I ) elect who cry out to Him day [ c ] and night, and will He ( J ) delay long for them? 8 I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, ( K ) will He find [ d ] faith on the earth?”
9 Now He also told this parable to some people who ( L ) trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and ( M ) viewed others with contempt: 10 “Two men ( N ) went up into the [ e ] temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee ( O ) stood and began praying this in regard to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, crooked, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I ( P ) fast twice a week; I ( Q ) pay tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, ( R ) standing some distance away, ( S ) was even unwilling to raise his eyes toward heaven, but ( T ) was beating his chest, saying, ‘God, be [ f ] merciful to me, the sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other one; ( U ) for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
15 ( V ) Now they were bringing even their babies to Him so that He would touch them; but when the disciples saw it , they began rebuking them. 16 But Jesus called for [ g ] the little ones, saying, “Allow the children to come to Me, and do not [ h ] forbid them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 17 Truly I say to you, ( W ) whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.”
18 ( X ) A ruler questioned Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 19 But Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me [ i ] good? No one is [ j ] good except God alone. 20 You know the commandments, ‘ ( Y ) Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not give false testimony, Honor your father and mother .’” 21 And he said, “All these things I have kept since my youth.” 22 Now when Jesus heard this , He said to him, “One thing you still lack; ( Z ) sell all that you possess and distribute the money to the poor, and you will have ( AA ) treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” 23 But when he had heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely wealthy. 24 And Jesus looked at him and said, “ ( AB ) How hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God! 25 For ( AC ) it is easier for a camel to [ k ] go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God!” 26 Those who heard Him said, “And so who can be saved?” 27 But He said, “ ( AD ) The things that are impossible with people are possible with God.”
28 Peter said, “Behold, ( AE ) we have left [ l ] our own homes and followed You.” 29 And He said to them, “Truly I say to you, ( AF ) there is no one who has left house, or wife, or brothers, or parents, or children for the sake of the kingdom of God, 30 who will not receive many times as much at this time, and in ( AG ) the age to come, eternal life.”
31 ( AH ) Now He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, ( AI ) we are going up to Jerusalem, and ( AJ ) all the things that have been written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished. 32 ( AK ) For He will be [ m ] handed over to the Gentiles, and will be ridiculed, and abused, and spit upon, 33 and after they have flogged Him, they will kill Him; and on the third day He will rise.” 34 [ n ] ( AL ) The disciples understood none of these things, and the meaning of this statement was hidden from them, and they did not comprehend the things that were said.
35 ( AM ) Now as [ o ] ( AN ) Jesus was approaching Jericho, a man who was blind was sitting by the road, begging. 36 But when he heard a crowd going by, he began inquiring what this was. 37 They told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. 38 And he called out, saying, “Jesus, ( AO ) Son of David, have mercy on me!” 39 Those who led the way were sternly telling him to be quiet; but he kept crying out all the more, “ ( AP ) Son of David, have mercy on me!” 40 And Jesus stopped and commanded that he be brought to Him; and when he came near, He asked him, 41 “What do you want Me to do for you?” And he said, “Lord, I want to regain my sight!” 42 And Jesus said to him, “Regain your sight; ( AQ ) your faith has [ p ] made you well.” 43 And immediately he regained his sight and began following Him, ( AR ) glorifying God; and when ( AS ) all the people saw it , they gave praise to God.
18 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. ( A ) 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice ( B ) against my adversary.’
4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’” ( C )
6 And the Lord ( D ) said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out ( E ) to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man ( F ) comes, ( G ) will he find faith on the earth?”
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness ( H ) and looked down on everyone else, ( I ) Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, ( J ) one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself ( K ) and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast ( L ) twice a week and give a tenth ( M ) of all I get.’
13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast ( N ) and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ ( O )
14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” ( P )
15 People were also bringing babies to Jesus for him to place his hands on them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. 16 But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 17 Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child ( R ) will never enter it.”
18 A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” ( T )
19 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 20 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’ [ a ] ” ( U )
21 “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.
22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, ( V ) and you will have treasure in heaven. ( W ) Then come, follow me.”
23 When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. 24 Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! ( X ) 25 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
26 Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?”
27 Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” ( Y )
28 Peter said to him, “We have left all we had to follow you!” ( Z )
29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said to them, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God 30 will fail to receive many times as much in this age, and in the age to come ( AA ) eternal life.” ( AB )
31 Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, ( AD ) and everything that is written by the prophets ( AE ) about the Son of Man ( AF ) will be fulfilled. 32 He will be delivered over to the Gentiles. ( AG ) They will mock him, insult him and spit on him; 33 they will flog him ( AH ) and kill him. ( AI ) On the third day ( AJ ) he will rise again.” ( AK )
34 The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about. ( AL )
35 As Jesus approached Jericho, ( AN ) a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. 37 They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” ( AO )
38 He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, ( AP ) have mercy ( AQ ) on me!”
39 Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” ( AR )
40 Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?”
“Lord, I want to see,” he replied.
42 Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” ( AS ) 43 Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God. ( AT )