57 And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.

58 And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.

59 And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.

60 Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.

61 And another also said, Lord, I will follow thee; but let me first go bid them farewell, which are at home at my house.

62 And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

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Exacting Discipleship

57 As they were going along the road, someone said to Him, “I will follow You wherever You go.”(A) 58 And Jesus told him, “Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.” 59 He said to another, “Follow Me [accepting Me as Master and Teacher].” But he said, “Lord, allow me first to go and [a]bury my father.”(B) 60 But He said to him, “Allow the [spiritually] dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and spread the news about the kingdom of God.” 61 Another also said, “I will follow You, Lord [as Your disciple]; but first let me say goodbye to those at my home.” 62 But Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back [to the things left behind] is fit for the kingdom of God.”

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 9:59 See note Matt 8:21.

57 As they were walking along someone said to Jesus, “I will always follow you no matter where you go.”

58 But Jesus replied, “Remember, I don’t even own a place to lay my head. Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but I, the Messiah,[a] have no earthly home at all.”

59 Another time, when he invited a man to come with him and to be his disciple, the man agreed—but wanted to wait until his father’s death.[b]

60 Jesus replied, “Let those without eternal life concern themselves with things like that.[c] Your duty is to come and preach the coming of the Kingdom of God to all the world.”

61 Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will come, but first let me ask permission of those at home.”[d]

62 But Jesus told him, “Anyone who lets himself be distracted from the work I plan for him is not fit for the Kingdom of God.”

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 9:58 the Messiah, literally, “the Son of Man.”
  2. Luke 9:59 but wanted to wait until his father’s death, literally, “but he said, ‘Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father,’” perhaps meaning that the man could, when his father died, collect the inheritance and have some security.
  3. Luke 9:60 Let those without eternal life concern themselves with things like that, or “Let those who are spiritually dead care for their own dead.”
  4. Luke 9:61 ask permission of those at home, literally, “bid them farewell at home.”