Luke 17-20

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

Some Sayings of Jesus

17 Jesus^[a] said to his disciples, “Occasions for sin^[b] are bound to come, but woe to anyone through whom they come!^{(A) 2} It would be better for you if a millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea than for you to cause one of these little ones to sin.^{[c](B) 3} Be on your guard! If a brother or sister sins, you must rebuke the offender, and if there is repentance, you must forgive.^{(C) 4} And if the same person sins against you seven times a day and turns back to you seven times and says, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive.”^(D)

⁵ The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”^{(E) 6} The Lord replied, “If you had faith the size of a^[d] mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.^(F)

⁷ “Who among you would say to your slave who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here at once and take your place at the table’? ⁸ Would you not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me; put on your apron and serve me while I eat and drink; later you may eat and drink’?^{(G) 9} Do you thank the slave for doing what was commanded? ¹⁰ So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, ‘We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!’ ”

Jesus Cleanses Ten Men with a Skin Disease

¹¹ On the way to Jerusalem Jesus^[e] was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee.^{(H) 12} As he entered a village, ten men with a skin disease approached him. Keeping their distance,^{(I) 13} they called out, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” ¹⁴ When he saw them, he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were made clean.^{(J) 15} Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice.^{(K) 16} He prostrated himself at Jesus’s^[f] feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan.^{(L) 17} Then Jesus asked, “Were not ten made clean? So where are the other nine? ¹⁸ Did none of them return to give glory to God except this foreigner?” ¹⁹ Then he said to him, “Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.”^(M)

The Coming of the Kingdom

²⁰ Once Jesus^[g] was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, and he answered, “The kingdom of God is not coming with things that can be observed, ²¹ nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There it is!’ For, in fact, the kingdom of God is among^[h] you.”^(N)

²² Then he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.^{(O) 23} They will say to you, ‘Look there!’ or ‘Look here!’ Do not go; do not set off in pursuit.^{(P) 24} For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day.^{[i](Q) 25} But first he must endure much suffering and be rejected by this generation.^{(R) 26} Just as it was in the days of Noah, so, too, it will be in the days of the Son of Man.^{(S) 27} They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage until the day Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed all of them. ²⁸ Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot, they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building,^{(T) 29} but on the day that Lot left Sodom it rained fire and sulfur from heaven and destroyed all of them; ³⁰ it will be like that on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. ³¹ On that day, anyone on the housetop who has belongings in the house must not come down to take them away, and likewise anyone in the field must not turn back. ³² Remember Lot’s wife. ³³ Those who try to make their life secure will lose it, but those who lose their life will keep it. ³⁴ I tell you, on that night there will be two in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. ³⁵ There will be two women grinding meal together; one will be taken and the other left.”^{[j] 37} Then they asked him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the eagles will gather.”

The Parable of the Widow and the Unjust Judge

18 Then Jesus^[k] told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. ² He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. ³ In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Grant me justice against my accuser.’ ⁴ For a while he refused, but later he said to himself, ‘Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, ⁵ yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.’ ”^{[l] 6} And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. ⁷ And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? ⁸ I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector

⁹ He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: ¹⁰ “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.’^{(U) 13} But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven but was beating his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’^{(V) 14} I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other, for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”^(W)

Jesus Blesses Little Children

¹⁵ People were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them, and when the disciples saw it, they sternly ordered them not to do it. ¹⁶ But Jesus called for them and said, “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. ¹⁷ Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.”^(X)

The Rich Ruler

¹⁸ A certain ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”^{(Y) 19} Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. ²⁰ You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery. You shall not murder. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness. Honor your father and mother.’ ”^{(Z) 21} He replied, “I have kept all these since my youth.” ²² When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “There is still one thing lacking. Sell all that you own and distribute the money^[m] to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.”^{(AA) 23} But when he heard this, he became sad, for he was very rich. ²⁴ Jesus looked at him^[n] and said, “How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!^{(AB) 25} Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

²⁶ Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” ²⁷ He replied, “What is impossible for mortals is possible for God.”^(AC)

²⁸ Then Peter said, “Look, we have left our homes and followed you.”^{(AD) 29} And he said to them, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God ³⁰ who will not get back very much more in this age and in the age to come eternal life.”^(AE)

A Third Time Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

³¹ Then he took the twelve aside and said to them, “Look, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished.^{(AF) 32} For he will be handed over to the gentiles, and he will be mocked and insulted and spat upon.^{(AG) 33} After they have flogged him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise again.” ³⁴ But they understood nothing about all these things; in fact, what he said was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said.^(AH)

Jesus Heals a Blind Beggar Near Jericho

³⁵ As he approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. ³⁶ When he heard a crowd going by, he asked what was happening. ³⁷ They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth^[o] is passing by.” ³⁸ Then he shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”^{(AI) 39} Those who were in front sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he shouted even more loudly, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”^{(AJ) 40} Jesus stood still and ordered the man to be brought to him, and when he came near, he asked him, ⁴¹ “What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me see again.” ⁴² Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has saved you.”^{(AK) 43} Immediately he regained his sight and followed him, glorifying God, and all the people, when they saw it, praised God.^(AL)

Jesus and Zacchaeus

19 He entered Jericho and was passing through it.^{(AM) 2} A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. ³ He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. ⁴ So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way.^{(AN) 5} When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.” ⁶ So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. ⁷ All who saw it began to grumble and said, “He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.”^{(AO) 8} Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.”^{(AP) 9} Then Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham.^{(AQ) 10} For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.”

The Parable of the Ten Pounds

¹¹ As they were listening to this, he went on to tell a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately.^{(AR) 12} So he said, “A nobleman went to a distant region to receive royal power for himself and then return.^{(AS) 13} He summoned ten of his slaves and gave them ten pounds and said to them, ‘Do business with these until I come back.’ ¹⁴ But the citizens of his country hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to rule over us.’ ¹⁵ When he returned, having received royal power, he ordered these slaves to whom he had given the money to be summoned so that he might find out what they had gained by doing business. ¹⁶ The first came forward and said, ‘Lord, your pound has made ten more pounds.’ ¹⁷ He said to him, ‘Well done, good slave! Because you have been trustworthy in a very small thing, take charge of ten cities.’^{(AT) 18} Then the second came, saying, ‘Lord, your pound has made five pounds.’ ¹⁹ He said to him, ‘And you, rule over five cities.’ ²⁰ Then the other came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your pound. I wrapped it up in a piece of cloth, ²¹ for I was afraid of you, because you are a harsh man; you take what you did not deposit and reap what you did not sow.’^{(AU) 22} He said to him, ‘I will judge you by your own words, you wicked slave! You knew, did you, that I was a harsh man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow?^{(AV) 23} Why, then, did you not put my money into the bank? Then when I returned, I could have collected it with interest.’ ²⁴ He said to the bystanders, ‘Take the pound from him and give it to the one who has ten pounds.’ ²⁵ (And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten pounds!’) ²⁶ ‘I tell you, to all those who have, more will be given, but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.^{(AW) 27} But as for these enemies of mine who did not want me to rule over them—bring them here and slaughter them in my presence.’ ”

Jesus’s Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem

²⁸ After he had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.^(AX)

²⁹ When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, ³⁰ saying, “Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. ³¹ If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ just say this, ‘The Lord needs it.’ ” ³² So those who were sent departed and found it as he had told them.^{(AY) 33} As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?” ³⁴ They said, “The Lord needs it.” ³⁵ Then they brought it to Jesus, and after throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. ³⁶ As he rode along, people kept spreading their cloaks on the road.^{(AZ) 37} Now as he was approaching the path down from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the deeds of power that they had seen, ³⁸ saying,

³⁹ Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, order your disciples to stop.”^{(BB) 40} He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.”^(BC)

Jesus Weeps over Jerusalem

⁴¹ As he came near and saw the city, he wept over it,^{(BD) 42} saying, “If you, even you, had only recognized on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. ⁴³ Indeed, the days will come upon you when your enemies will set up ramparts around you and surround you and hem you in on every side.^{(BE) 44} They will crush you to the ground, you and your children within you, and they will not leave within you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.”^[p](BF)

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

⁴⁵ Then he entered the temple and began to drive out those who were selling things^[q] there, ⁴⁶ and he said, “It is written,

⁴⁷ Every day he was teaching in the temple. The chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people kept looking for a way to kill him,^{(BH) 48} but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were spellbound by what they heard.

The Authority of Jesus Questioned

20 One day as he was teaching the people in the temple and proclaiming the good news, the chief priests and the scribes came with the elders^{(BI) 2} and said to him, “Tell us, by what authority are you doing these things? Who is it who gave you this authority?”^{(BJ) 3} He answered them, “I will also ask you a question, and you tell me: ⁴ Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?” ⁵ They discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why did you not believe him?’ ⁶ But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ all the people will stone us, for they are convinced that John was a prophet.”^{(BK) 7} So they answered that they did not know where it came from. ⁸ Then Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”

The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

⁹ He began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard and leased it to tenants and went away for a long time.^{(BL) 10} When the season came, he sent a slave to the tenants in order that they might give him his share of the produce of the vineyard, but the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ¹¹ Next he sent another slave; that one also they beat and insulted and sent away empty-handed. ¹² And he sent still a third; this one also they wounded and threw out. ¹³ Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ ¹⁴ But when the tenants saw him, they discussed it among themselves and said, ‘This is the heir; let us kill him so that the inheritance may be ours.’ ¹⁵ So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? ¹⁶ He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” When they heard this, they said, “Heaven forbid!”^{(BM) 17} But he looked at them and said, “What then does this text mean:

¹⁸ “Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.”^{(BO) 19} When the scribes and chief priests realized that he had told this parable against them, they wanted to lay hands on him at that very hour, but they feared the people.^(BP)

The Question about Paying Tribute

²⁰ So they watched him and sent spies who pretended to be honest, in order to trap him by what he said and then to hand him over to the jurisdiction and authority of the governor. ²¹ So they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you are right in what you say and teach, and you show deference to no one but teach the way of God in accordance with truth.^{(BQ) 22} Is it lawful for us to pay tribute to Caesar or not?” ²³ But he perceived their craftiness and said to them, ²⁴ “Show me a denarius. Whose head and whose title does it bear?” They said, “Caesar’s.” ²⁵ He said to them, “Then give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s.”^{(BR) 26} And they were not able in the presence of the people to trap him by what he said, and being amazed by his answer they became silent.

The Question about the Resurrection

²⁷ Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to him^{(BS) 28} and asked him a question: “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies leaving a wife but no children, the man^[s] shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother.^{(BT) 29} Now there were seven brothers; the first married a woman and died childless; ³⁰ then the second^{[t] 31} and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. ³² Finally the woman also died. ³³ In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her.”

³⁴ Jesus said to them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage, ³⁵ but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. ³⁶ Indeed, they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection.^{(BU) 37} And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.^{(BV) 38} Now he is God not of the dead but of the living, for to him all of them are alive.”^{(BW) 39} Then some of the scribes answered, “Teacher, you have spoken well.” ⁴⁰ For they no longer dared to ask him another question.^(BX)

The Question about David’s Son

⁴¹ Then he said to them, “How can they say that the Messiah^[u] is David’s son? ⁴² For David himself says in the book of Psalms,

⁴⁴ “David thus calls him Lord, so how can he be his son?”

Jesus Denounces the Scribes

⁴⁵ In the hearing of all the people he said to the disciples, ⁴⁶ “Beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes and who love respectful greetings in the marketplaces and the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets.^{(BZ) 47} They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”