Luke 14
Living Bible
14 1-2 One Sabbath as he was in the home of a member of the Jewish Council, the Pharisees were watching him like hawks to see if he would heal a man who was present who was suffering from dropsy.
3 Jesus said to the Pharisees and legal experts standing around, “Well, is it within the Law to heal a man on the Sabbath day, or not?”
4 And when they refused to answer, Jesus took the sick man by the hand and healed him and sent him away.
5 Then he turned to them: “Which of you doesn’t work on the Sabbath?” he asked. “If your cow falls into a pit, don’t you proceed at once to get it out?”
6 Again they had no answer.
7 When he noticed that all who came to the dinner were trying to sit near the head of the table, he gave them this advice: 8 “If you are invited to a wedding feast, don’t always head for the best seat. For if someone more respected than you shows up, 9 the host will bring him over to where you are sitting and say, ‘Let this man sit here instead.’ And you, embarrassed, will have to take whatever seat is left at the foot of the table!
10 “Do this instead—start at the foot; and when your host sees you he will come and say, ‘Friend, we have a better place than this for you!’ Thus you will be honored in front of all the other guests. 11 For everyone who tries to honor himself shall be humbled; and he who humbles himself shall be honored.” 12 Then he turned to his host. “When you put on a dinner,” he said, “don’t invite friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors! For they will return the invitation. 13 Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. 14 Then at the resurrection of the godly, God will reward you for inviting those who can’t repay you.”
15 Hearing this, a man sitting at the table with Jesus exclaimed, “What a privilege it would be to get into the Kingdom of God!”
16 Jesus replied with this illustration: “A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations. 17 When all was ready, he sent his servant around to notify the guests that it was time for them to arrive. 18 But they all began making excuses. One said he had just bought a field and wanted to inspect it, and asked to be excused. 19 Another said he had just bought five pair of oxen and wanted to try them out. 20 Another had just been married and for that reason couldn’t come.
21 “The servant returned and reported to his master what they had said. His master was angry and told him to go quickly into the streets and alleys of the city and to invite the beggars, crippled, lame, and blind. 22 But even then, there was still room.
23 “‘Well, then,’ said his master, ‘go out into the country lanes and out behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full. 24 For none of those I invited first will get even the smallest taste of what I had prepared for them.’”
25 Great crowds were following him. He turned around and addressed them as follows: 26 “Anyone who wants to be my follower must love me far more than he does[a] his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, or sisters—yes, more than his own life—otherwise he cannot be my disciple. 27 And no one can be my disciple who does not carry his own cross and follow me.
28 “But don’t begin until you count the cost.[b] For who would begin construction of a building without first getting estimates and then checking to see if he has enough money to pay the bills? 29 Otherwise he might complete only the foundation before running out of funds. And then how everyone would laugh!
30 “‘See that fellow there?’ they would mock. ‘He started that building and ran out of money before it was finished!’
31 “Or what king would ever dream of going to war without first sitting down with his counselors and discussing whether his army of 10,000 is strong enough to defeat the 20,000 men who are marching against him?
32 “If the decision is negative, then while the enemy troops are still far away, he will send a truce team to discuss terms of peace. 33 So no one can become my disciple unless he first sits down and counts his blessings—and then renounces them all for me.
34 “What good is salt that has lost its saltiness?[c] 35 Flavorless salt is fit for nothing—not even for fertilizer. It is worthless and must be thrown out. Listen well if you would understand my meaning.”
Footnotes
- Luke 14:26 must love me far more than he does, literally, “must hate.”
- Luke 14:28 But don’t begin until you count the cost, implied in v. 33.
- Luke 14:34 salt that has lost its saltiness. Perhaps the reference is to impure salt; when wet, the salt dissolves and drains out, leaving a tasteless residue (Matthew 5:13).
Luke 14
New King James Version
A Man with Dropsy Healed on the Sabbath
14 Now it happened, as He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath, that they watched Him closely. 2 And behold, there was a certain man before Him who had dropsy. 3 And Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, (A)“Is it lawful to heal on the [a]Sabbath?”
4 But they kept silent. And He took him and healed him, and let him go. 5 Then He answered them, saying, (B)“Which of you, having a [b]donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?” 6 And they could not answer Him regarding these things.
Take the Lowly Place
7 So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them: 8 “When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; 9 and he who invited you and him come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man,’ and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place. 10 (C)But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you. 11 (D)For whoever exalts himself will be [c]humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
12 Then He also said to him who invited Him, “When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid. 13 But when you give a feast, invite (E)the poor, the [d]maimed, the lame, the blind. 14 And you will be (F)blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”
The Parable of the Great Supper(G)
15 Now when one of those who sat at the table with Him heard these things, he said to Him, (H)“Blessed is he who shall eat [e]bread in the kingdom of God!”
16 (I)Then He said to him, “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, 17 and (J)sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’ 18 But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.’ 19 And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.’ 20 Still another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ 21 So that servant came and reported these things to his master. 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 here the poor and the [f]maimed and the lame and the blind.’ 22 And the servant said, ‘Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’ 23 Then the master said to 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 to you (K)that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.’ ”
Leaving All to Follow Christ(L)
25 Now great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them, 26 (M)“If anyone comes to Me (N)and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, (O)yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. 27 And (P)whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 28 For (Q)which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it— 29 lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see 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, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace. 33 So likewise, whoever of you (R)does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.
Tasteless Salt Is Worthless(S)
34 (T)“Salt is good; but if the salt has lost its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? 35 It is neither fit for the land nor for the [g]dunghill, but men throw it out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
Footnotes
- Luke 14:3 NU adds or not
- Luke 14:5 NU, M son
- Luke 14:11 put down
- Luke 14:13 crippled
- Luke 14:15 M dinner
- Luke 14:21 crippled
- Luke 14:35 rubbish heap
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
