Luke 18
English Standard Version
The Parable of the Persistent Widow
18 And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought (A)always to pray and not (B)lose heart. 2 He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who (C)neither feared God nor respected man. 3 And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ 4 For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, (D)‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’” 6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says. 7 And (E)will not God give justice to (F)his elect, (G)who cry to him day and night? (H)(I)Will he delay long over them? 8 I tell you, he will give justice to them (J)speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, (K)will he find faith on earth?”
The Pharisee and the Tax Collector
9 He also told this parable to some (L)who trusted (M)in themselves that they were righteous, (N)and treated others with contempt: 10 “Two men (O)went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, (P)standing by himself, prayed[a] (Q)thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 (R)I fast twice a week; (S)I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, (T)standing far off, (U)would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but (V)beat his breast, saying, ‘God, (W)be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For (X)everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Let the Children Come to Me
15 (Y)Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they (Z)rebuked them. 16 But Jesus called them to him, saying, (AA)“Let the children come to me, and (AB)do not hinder them, (AC)for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 17 (AD)Truly, I say to you, whoever does not (AE)receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”
The Rich Ruler
18 (AF)And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to (AG)inherit eternal life?” 19 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. 20 You know the commandments: (AH)‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’” 21 And he said, (AI)“All these I have kept from my youth.” 22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. (AJ)Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have (AK)treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 23 (AL)But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. 24 Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, (AM)“How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter (AN)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 (AO)the kingdom of God.” 26 Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” 27 But he said, (AP)“What is impossible with man is possible with God.” 28 And Peter said, “See, (AQ)we have left our homes and followed you.” 29 And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, (AR)there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers[b] or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, 30 who will not receive (AS)many times more (AT)in this time, and in (AU)the age to come eternal life.”
Jesus Foretells His Death a Third Time
31 (AV)And taking the twelve, he said to them, “See, (AW)we are going up to Jerusalem, and (AX)everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. 32 For he will be (AY)delivered over to the Gentiles and will be (AZ)mocked and shamefully treated and (BA)spit upon. 33 And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on (BB)the third day he will rise.” 34 (BC)But they understood none of these things. (BD)This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said.
Jesus Heals a Blind Beggar
35 (BE)As he drew near to Jericho, (BF)a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant. 37 They told him, (BG)“Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” 38 And he cried out, “Jesus, (BH)Son of David, have mercy on me!” 39 And those who were in front (BI)rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 40 And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him, 41 (BJ)“What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me recover my sight.” 42 And Jesus said to him, “Recover your sight; (BK)your faith has (BL)made you well.” 43 And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, (BM)glorifying God. And (BN)all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.
Footnotes
- Luke 18:11 Or standing, prayed to himself
- Luke 18:29 Or wife or brothers and sisters
Luke 18
New Living Translation
Parable of the Persistent Widow
18 One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up. 2 “There was a judge in a certain city,” he said, “who neither feared God nor cared about people. 3 A widow of that city came to him repeatedly, saying, ‘Give me justice in this dispute with my enemy.’ 4 The judge ignored her for a while, but finally he said to himself, ‘I don’t fear God or care about people, 5 but this woman is driving me crazy. I’m going to see that she gets justice, because she is wearing me out with her constant requests!’”
6 Then the Lord said, “Learn a lesson from this unjust judge. 7 Even he rendered a just decision in the end. So don’t you think God will surely give justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will grant justice to them quickly! But when the Son of Man[a] returns, how many will he find on the earth who have faith?”
Parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector
9 Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: 10 “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer[b]: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other people—cheaters, sinners, adulterers. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! 12 I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’
13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ 14 I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Jesus Blesses the Children
15 One day some parents brought their little children to Jesus so he could touch and bless them. But when the disciples saw this, they scolded the parents for bothering him.
16 Then Jesus called for the children and said to the disciples, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. 17 I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.”
The Rich Man
18 Once a religious leader asked Jesus this question: “Good Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?”
19 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him. “Only God is truly good. 20 But to answer your question, you know the commandments: ‘You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. Honor your father and mother.’[c]”
21 The man replied, “I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was young.”
22 When Jesus heard his answer, he said, “There is still one thing you haven’t done. Sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
23 But when the man heard this he became very sad, for he was very rich.
24 When Jesus saw this,[d] he said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God! 25 In 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!”
26 Those who heard this said, “Then who in the world can be saved?”
27 He replied, “What is impossible for people is possible with God.”
28 Peter said, “We’ve left our homes to follow you.”
29 “Yes,” Jesus replied, “and I assure you that everyone who has given up house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the Kingdom of God, 30 will be repaid many times over in this life, and will have eternal life in the world to come.”
Jesus Again Predicts His Death
31 Taking the twelve disciples aside, Jesus said, “Listen, we’re going up to Jerusalem, where all the predictions of the prophets concerning the Son of Man will come true. 32 He will be handed over to the Romans,[e] and he will be mocked, treated shamefully, and spit upon. 33 They will flog him with a whip and kill him, but on the third day he will rise again.”
34 But they didn’t understand any of this. The significance of his words was hidden from them, and they failed to grasp what he was talking about.
Jesus Heals a Blind Beggar
35 As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind beggar was sitting beside the road. 36 When he heard the noise of a crowd going past, he asked what was happening. 37 They told him that Jesus the Nazarene[f] was going by. 38 So he began shouting, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
39 “Be quiet!” the people in front yelled at him.
But he only shouted louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
40 When Jesus heard him, he stopped and ordered that the man be brought to him. As the man came near, Jesus asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?”
“Lord,” he said, “I want to see!”
42 And Jesus said, “All right, receive your sight! Your faith has healed you.” 43 Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus, praising God. And all who saw it praised God, too.
Footnotes
- 18:8 “Son of Man” is a title Jesus used for himself.
- 18:11 Some manuscripts read stood and prayed this prayer to himself.
- 18:20 Exod 20:12-16; Deut 5:16-20.
- 18:24 Some manuscripts read When Jesus saw how sad the man was.
- 18:32 Greek the Gentiles.
- 18:37 Or Jesus of Nazareth.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
