18 Also [Jesus] told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not to ^[a]turn coward (faint, lose heart, and give up).

² He said, In a certain city there was a judge who neither reverenced and feared God nor respected or considered man.

³ And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, Protect and defend and give me justice against my adversary.

⁴ And for a time he would not; but later he said to himself, Though I have neither reverence or fear for God nor respect or consideration for man,

⁵ Yet because this widow continues to bother me, I will defend and protect and avenge her, lest she give me ^[b]intolerable annoyance and wear me out by her continual coming or ^[c]at the last she come and rail on me or ^[d]assault me or ^[e]strangle me.

⁶ Then the Lord said, Listen to what the unjust judge says!

⁷ And will not [our just] God defend and protect and avenge His elect (His chosen ones), who cry to Him day and night? Will He ^[f]defer them and ^[g]delay help on their behalf?

⁸ I tell you, He will defend and protect and avenge them speedily. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find [^[h]persistence in] faith on the earth?

³² And what shall I say further? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets,^(A)

³³ Who by [the help of] faith subdued kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promised blessings, closed the mouths of lions,^(B)

²⁵ And there was a woman who had had a flow of blood for twelve years,

²⁶ And who had endured much ^[a]suffering under [the hands of] many physicians and had spent all that she had, and was no better but instead grew worse.

²⁷ She had heard the reports concerning Jesus, and she came up behind Him in the throng and touched His garment,

²⁸ For she kept saying, If I only touch His garments, I shall be restored to health.

²⁹ And immediately her flow of blood was dried up at the source, and [^[b]suddenly] she felt in her body that she was healed of her [^[c]distressing] ailment.