Luke 14
Expanded Bible
Healing on the Sabbath
14 On a Sabbath day, when Jesus went to eat at the home of a leading Pharisee, ·the people [L they; C probably religious leaders] were watching Jesus very closely. 2 And [L Look; T Behold] in front of him was a man with ·dropsy [C swelling caused by bodily fluids; also called edema]. 3 Jesus said to the Pharisees and experts on the law, “Is it ·right or wrong [permitted; lawful] to heal on the Sabbath day?” 4 But they ·would not answer his question [L kept silent]. So Jesus ·took [touched; took hold of] the man, healed him, and sent him away. 5 Jesus said to ·the Pharisees and teachers of the law [L them], “If your child[a] or ox falls into a ·well [or pit] on the Sabbath day, will you not pull him out ·quickly [immediately; right away; Ex. 21:33–34]?” 6 And they could not answer him.
Don’t Make Yourself Important
7 When Jesus noticed that some of the guests were choosing the ·best places [places of honor] to sit [C seats were assigned according to social status], he told this ·story [parable]: 8 “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, don’t take the ·most important seat [place of honor], because someone more ·important [distinguished; honorable] than you may have been invited. 9 The host, who invited both of you, will come to you and say, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then you will be ·embarrassed [humiliated; disgraced; shamed] and will have to move to the ·last [least; lowest] place. 10 ·So [L But] when you are invited, go ·sit in a seat that is not important [L recline in the last/lowest place; 7:36]. When the host comes to you, he may say, ‘Friend, move up here to a ·more important [better; higher] place.’ Then ·all the other guests will respect you [L you will be honored in the presence of all the guests]. 11 [L For; Because] All who ·make themselves great [exalt themselves] will be made humble, but those who make themselves humble will be ·made great [exalted].”
You Will Be Rewarded
12 Then Jesus said to the man who had invited him, “When you give a lunch or a dinner, don’t invite only your friends, your ·family [near relatives; L brothers; siblings], your other relatives, and your rich neighbors. At another time they will invite you to eat with them, and ·you will be repaid [or that will be your only payment]. 13 Instead, when you give a ·feast [banquet], invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. 14 Then you will be blessed, because they have nothing and cannot pay you back [C something given was typically repaid with goods, favors, or honor]. ·But [For] you will be repaid ·when the good people rise from the dead [L at the resurrection of the righteous].”
A Story About a Big Banquet(A)
15 One of those ·at the table [L reclining; see 5:29] with Jesus heard these things and said to him, “·Blessed [Happy] are the people who will ·share in the meal [L eat bread] in God’s kingdom [C an allusion to the messianic banquet at the end of time; see 13:29; Is. 25:6–8].”
16 Jesus said to him, “A man gave a ·big [great] banquet and invited many people. 17 When it was time to eat, the man sent his ·servant [slave] to tell the guests [C who had accepted the invitation], ‘Come. Everything is ready.’
18 “But all the guests [one after another; or in a similar manner] began to make excuses [C a great offense in that culture]. The first one said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go look at it. Please excuse me.’ 19 Another said, ‘I have just bought five ·pairs [L yoke] of oxen; I must go and try them. Please excuse me.’ 20 A third person said, ‘I just got married; I can’t come [C while newly married men were exempt from certain duties (Deut. 24:5), that is not a valid excuse for offending the host].’ 21 So the ·servant [slave] returned and told his master what had happened. Then the master [L of the household] became angry and said, ‘Go at once into the ·streets [squares] and ·alleys [lanes] of the town, and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’ 22 ·Later [L And] the ·servant [slave] said to him, ‘Master, I did what you commanded, but we still have room.’ 23 The master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the roads and ·country lanes [hedgerows], and ·urge [compel] the people there to come so my house will be full [C those outside the city may refer to the Gentiles, who will come into the kingdom (see Acts 10—11)]. 24 [L For] I tell you, none of ·those [L those men; C referring to the three who refused] whom I invited first will ·eat with me [L taste my banquet/dinner].’”
The Cost of Being Jesus’ Follower(B)
25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and he turned and said to them, 26 “If anyone comes to me but ·does not hate [or loves more than me; C Jesus is using hyperbole to emphasize his point] his father, mother, wife, children, brothers, or sisters—or even ·life [life itself; or his own life]—he cannot be my ·follower [disciple]. 27 Whoever ·is not willing to [L does not] carry his own cross and follow me cannot be my ·follower [disciple]. 28 ·If you want [L For which of you who wants…?] to build a tower, you first sit down and ·decide [calculate; figure out] how much it will cost, to see if you have enough money to finish the job. 29 If you don’t, you might lay the foundation, but you would not be able to finish. Then all who would see it would ·make fun of [mock; ridicule] you, 30 saying, ‘This person began to build but was not able to finish.’
31 “If a king is going to ·fight [meet in battle; wage war against] another king, first ·he will [L will he not…?] sit down and plan. He will decide if he and his ten thousand soldiers can ·defeat [L engage/meet in battle] the other king who has twenty thousand soldiers. 32 If he can’t, then while the other king is still far away, he will send ·some people [an embassy; a messenger] to speak to him and ask for [terms of] peace. 33 In the same way, you must give up everything you have to be my ·follower [disciple].
Don’t Lose Your Influence(C)
34 “Salt is good, but if it loses its salty taste, ·you cannot make it salty again [L how can it be seasoned?]. 35 It is no good for the soil or for ·manure [the manure pile]; it is thrown away.
“·Let those with ears use them and listen [L The one who has ears to hear, let him hear].”
Footnotes
- Luke 14:5 child Some Greek copies read “donkey.”
Luke 14
Amplified Bible
Jesus Heals on the Sabbath
14 It happened one Sabbath, when He went for a meal at the house of one of the ruling Pharisees, that they were watching Him closely and carefully [hoping to entrap Him]. 2 And there in front of Him was a man who had [a]dropsy (extreme swelling). 3 And Jesus asked the lawyers and the Pharisees, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” 4 But they kept silent. Then He took hold of the man and healed him, and sent him on his way. 5 Then He said to them, “Which one of you, having a son or an ox that falls into a well, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?” 6 And they were unable to reply to this.
Parable of the Guests
7 Now Jesus began telling a parable to the invited guests when He noticed how they had been selecting the places of honor at the table, saying to them, 8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down [to eat] at the place of honor, since a more distinguished person than you may have been invited by the host,(A) 9 and he who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this man your place,’ and then, in disgrace you proceed to take the last place. 10 But when you are invited, go and sit down [to eat] at the last place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’; and then you will be honored in the presence of all who are at the table with you. 11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled [before others], and he who habitually humbles himself (keeps a realistic self-view) will be exalted.”
12 Jesus also went on to say to the one who had invited Him, “When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or wealthy neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you in return and that will be your repayment. 13 But when you give a banquet or a reception, invite the poor, the disabled, the lame, and the blind, 14 and you will be blessed because they cannot repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the [b]righteous (the just, the upright).”
15 When one of those who were reclining at the table with Him heard this, he said to Him, “Blessed (happy, prosperous, to be admired) is he who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!”
Parable of the Dinner
16 But Jesus said to him, “A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many guests; 17 and at the dinner hour he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, because everything is ready now.’ 18 But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have purchased a piece of land and I have to go out and see it; please consider me excused.’ 19 Another one said, ‘I have purchased five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’ 20 And another said, ‘I have [recently] married a wife, and for that reason I am unable to come.’(B) 21 So the servant came back and reported this to his master. Then [his master,] the head of the household, became angry [at the rejections of his invitation] and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and the lanes of the city and bring in here the poor and the disabled and the blind and the lame.’ 22 And the servant [after returning] said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ 23 Then the master told the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled [with guests]. 24 For I tell you, not one of those who were invited [and declined] will taste my dinner.’”
Discipleship Tested
25 Now large crowds were going along with Jesus; and He turned and said to them, 26 “If anyone comes to Me, and does not [c]hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life [in the sense of indifference to or relative disregard for them in comparison with his attitude toward God]—he cannot be My disciple. 27 Whoever does not carry his own cross [expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come] and follow after Me [believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me] cannot be My disciple. 28 For which one of you, when he wants to build a watchtower [for his guards], does not first sit down and calculate the cost, to see if he has enough to finish it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is unable to finish [the building], all who see it will begin to ridicule him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish!’ 31 Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to encounter the one who is coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 Or else [if he feels he is not powerful enough], while the other [king] is still a far distance away, he sends an envoy and asks for terms of peace. 33 So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not [carefully consider the cost and then for My sake] [d]give up all his own possessions.
34 “Therefore, salt is good; but if salt has become tasteless, with what will it be seasoned? 35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear and heed My words.”
Footnotes
- Luke 14:2 Or Edema, an abnormal accumulation of serous fluid in the connective tissue, causing swelling.
- Luke 14:14 The death of Christ paid the penalty for the sins of believers.
- Luke 14:26 An exaggerated figure of speech indicating a lesser degree of love, not actual hostility or aversion toward one’s earthly family.
- Luke 14:33 Jesus probably is referring to a willingness and commitment to do so when necessary. Discipleship does not require poverty.
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