Luke 9:51-62

Easy-to-Read Version

A Samaritan Town

⁵¹The time was coming near when Jesus would leave and go back to heaven. He decided to go to Jerusalem. ⁵²He sent some men ahead of him. They went into a town in Samaria to make everything ready for him. ⁵³But the people there would not welcome Jesus because he was going toward Jerusalem. ⁵⁴James and John, the followers of Jesus, saw this. They said, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven and destroy those people?”^[a]

⁵⁵But Jesus turned and criticized them for saying this.^[b] ⁵⁶Then he and his followers went to another town.

Following Jesus^(A)

⁵⁷They were all traveling along the road. Someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you anywhere you go.”

⁵⁸He answered, “The foxes have holes to live in. The birds have nests. But the Son of Man has no place where he can rest his head.”

⁵⁹Jesus said to another man, “Follow me!”

But the man said, “Lord, let me go and bury my father first.”

⁶⁰But Jesus said to him, “Let the people who are dead bury their own dead. You must go and tell about God’s kingdom.”

⁶¹Another man said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me go and say goodbye to my family.”

⁶²Jesus said, “Anyone who begins to plow a field but looks back is not prepared for God’s kingdom.”

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Footnotes

Luke 9:54 Some Greek copies add “as Elijah did?”
Luke 9:55 Some Greek copies add “And he said, ‘You don’t know what kind of spirit you belong to. ⁵⁶The Son of Man did not come to destroy people’s lives but to save them.’”