Luke 13
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
13 Just at that time there [arrived] some people who informed Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices.
2 And He replied by saying to them, Do you think that these Galileans were greater sinners than all the other Galileans because they have suffered in this way?
3 I tell you, No; but unless you repent ([a]change your mind for the better and heartily amend your ways, with abhorrence of your past sins), you will all likewise perish and be lost [b]eternally.
4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them—do you think that they were more guilty offenders (debtors) than all the others who dwelt in Jerusalem?
5 I tell you, No; but unless you repent ([c]change your mind for the better and heartily amend your ways, with abhorrence of your past sins), you will all likewise perish and be lost [d]eternally.
6 And He told them this parable: A certain man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it, but did not find [any].
7 So he said to the vinedresser, See here! For these three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree and I find none. Cut it down! Why should it continue also to use up the ground [to [e]deplete the soil, intercept the sun, and take up room]?
8 But he replied to him, Leave it alone, sir, [just] this one more year, till I dig around it and put manure [on the soil].
9 Then perhaps it will bear fruit after this; but if not, you can cut it down and out.
10 Now Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.
11 And there was a woman there who for eighteen years had had an [f]infirmity caused by a spirit ([g]a demon of sickness). She was [h]bent completely forward and utterly unable to straighten herself up or to [i]look upward.
12 And when Jesus saw her, He called [her to Him] and said to her, Woman, you are released from your infirmity!
13 Then He laid [His] hands on her, and instantly she was made straight, and she [j]recognized and thanked and praised God.
14 But the [k]leader of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the crowd, There are six days on which work ought to be done; so come on those days and be cured, and not on the Sabbath day.(A)
15 But the Lord replied to him, saying, You playactors (hypocrites)! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or his donkey from the stall and lead it out to water it?
16 And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?
17 Even as He said this, all His opponents were put to shame, and all the people were rejoicing over all the glorious things that were being done by Him.
18 This led Him to say, What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it?
19 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his own garden; and it grew and became a tree, and the wild birds [l]found shelter and roosted and nested in its branches.
20 And again He said, To what shall I liken the kingdom of God?
21 It is like leaven which a woman took and hid in three measures of wheat flour or meal until it was all leavened (fermented).
22 [Jesus] journeyed on through towns and villages, teaching, and making His way toward Jerusalem.
23 And someone asked Him, Lord, will only a few be saved (rescued, delivered from the penalties of the last judgment, and made partakers of the salvation by Christ)? And He said to them,
24 Strive to enter by the narrow door [force yourselves through it], for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able.
25 When once the Master of the house gets up and closes the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door [again and again], saying, Lord, open to us! He will answer you, I do not know where [[m]what household—certainly not Mine] you come from.
26 Then you will begin to say, We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.
27 But He will say, I tell you, I do not know where [[n]what household—certainly not Mine] you come from; depart from Me, all you wrongdoers!
28 There will be weeping and grinding of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves being cast forth (banished, driven away).
29 And [people] will come from east and west, and from north and south, and sit down (feast at table) in the kingdom of God.
30 And behold, there are some [now] last who will be first [then], and there are some [now] first who will be last [then].
31 At that very hour some Pharisees came up and said to Him, Go away from here, for Herod is determined to kill You.
32 And He said to them, Go and tell that fox [sly and crafty, skulking and cowardly], Behold, I drive out demons and perform healings today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish (complete) My course.
33 Nevertheless, I must continue on My way today and tomorrow and the day after that—for it will never do for a prophet to be destroyed away from Jerusalem!
34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who continue to kill the prophets and to stone those who are sent to you! How often I have desired and yearned to gather your children together [around Me], as a hen [gathers] her young under her wings, but you would not!
35 Behold, your house is forsaken (abandoned, left to you destitute of God’s help)! And I tell you, you will not see Me again until the time comes when you shall say, Blessed (to be celebrated with praises) is He Who comes in the name of the Lord!(B)
Footnotes
- Luke 13:3 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Luke 13:3 Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausett and David Brown, A Commentary on the Old and New Testaments.
- Luke 13:5 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Luke 13:5 Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausett and David Brown, A Commentary on the Old and New Testaments.
- Luke 13:7 Johann Bengel, cited by Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
- Luke 13:11 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
- Luke 13:11 Hermann Cremer, Biblico-Theological Lexicon.
- Luke 13:11 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Luke 13:11 Alexander Souter, Pocket Lexicon.
- Luke 13:13 Johann Bengel, cited by Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
- Luke 13:14 Alexander Souter, Pocket Lexicon.
- Luke 13:19 James Moulton and George Milligan, The Vocabulary.
- Luke 13:25 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
- Luke 13:27 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
Luke 13
Living Bible
13 About this time he was informed that Pilate had butchered some Jews from Galilee as they were sacrificing at the Temple in Jerusalem.
2 “Do you think they were worse sinners than other men from Galilee?” he asked. “Is that why they suffered? 3 Not at all! And don’t you realize that you also will perish unless you leave your evil ways and turn to God?
4 “And what about the eighteen men who died when the Tower of Siloam fell on them? Were they the worst sinners in Jerusalem? 5 Not at all! And you, too, will perish unless you repent.”
6 Then he used this illustration: “A man planted a fig tree in his garden and came again and again to see if he could find any fruit on it, but he was always disappointed. 7 Finally he told his gardener to cut it down. ‘I’ve waited three years and there hasn’t been a single fig!’ he said. ‘Why bother with it any longer? It’s taking up space we can use for something else.’
8 “‘Give it one more chance,’ the gardener answered. ‘Leave it another year, and I’ll give it special attention and plenty of fertilizer. 9 If we get figs next year, fine; if not, I’ll cut it down.’”
10 One Sabbath as he was teaching in a synagogue, 11 he saw a seriously handicapped woman who had been bent double for eighteen years and was unable to straighten herself.
12 Calling her over to him Jesus said, “Woman, you are healed of your sickness!” 13 He touched her, and instantly she could stand straight. How she praised and thanked God!
14 But the local Jewish leader in charge of the synagogue was very angry about it because Jesus had healed her on the Sabbath day. “There are six days of the week to work,” he shouted to the crowd. “Those are the days to come for healing, not on the Sabbath!”
15 But the Lord replied, “You hypocrite! You work on the Sabbath! Don’t you untie your cattle from their stalls on the Sabbath and lead them out for water? 16 And is it wrong for me, just because it is the Sabbath day, to free this Jewish woman from the bondage in which Satan has held her for eighteen years?”
17 This shamed his enemies. And all the people rejoiced at the wonderful things he did.
18 Now he began teaching them again about the Kingdom of God: “What is the Kingdom like?” he asked. “How can I illustrate it? 19 It is like a tiny mustard seed planted in a garden; soon it grows into a tall bush and the birds live among its branches.
20-21 “It is like yeast kneaded into dough, which works unseen until it has risen high and light.”
22 He went from city to city and village to village, teaching as he went, always pressing onward toward Jerusalem.
23 Someone asked him, “Will only a few be saved?”
And he replied, 24-25 “The door to heaven is narrow. Work hard to get in, for the truth is that many will try to enter but when the head of the house has locked the door, it will be too late. Then if you stand outside knocking, and pleading, ‘Lord, open the door for us,’ he will reply, ‘I do not know you.’
26 “‘But we ate with you, and you taught in our streets,’ you will say.
27 “And he will reply, ‘I tell you, I don’t know you. You can’t come in here, guilty as you are. Go away.’
28 “And there will be great weeping and gnashing of teeth as you stand outside and see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the prophets within the Kingdom of God— 29 for people will come from all over the world to take their places there. 30 And note this: some who are despised now will be greatly honored then; and some who are highly thought of now will be least important then.”
31 A few minutes later some Pharisees said to him, “Get out of here if you want to live, for King Herod is after you!”
32 Jesus replied, “Go tell that fox that I will keep on casting out demons and doing miracles of healing today and tomorrow; and the third day I will reach my destination. 33 Yes, today, tomorrow, and the next day! For it wouldn’t do for a prophet of God to be killed except in Jerusalem!
34 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem! The city that murders the prophets. The city that stones those sent to help her. How often I have wanted to gather your children together even as a hen protects her brood under her wings, but you wouldn’t let me. 35 And now—now your house is left desolate. And you will never again see me until you say, ‘Welcome to him who comes in the name of the Lord.’”
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