Luke 18
King James Version
18 And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
2 Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:
3 And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.
4 And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
5 Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.
6 And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.
7 And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
8 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:
10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
15 And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them.
16 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.
17 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.
18 And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
19 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God.
20 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother.
21 And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.
22 Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
23 And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich.
24 And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!
25 For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
26 And they that heard it said, Who then can be saved?
27 And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.
28 Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee.
29 And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake,
30 Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.
31 Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished.
32 For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on:
33 And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again.
34 And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.
35 And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging:
36 And hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant.
37 And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by.
38 And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.
39 And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the more, Thou son of David, have mercy on me.
40 And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him,
41 Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight.
42 And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.
43 And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.
Luke 18
International Children’s Bible
God Will Answer His People
18 Then Jesus used this story to teach his followers that they should always pray and never lose hope. 2 “Once there was a judge in a town. He did not care about God. He also did not care what people thought about him. 3 In that same town there was a widow who kept coming to this judge. She said, ‘There is a man who is not being fair to me. Give me my rights!’ 4 But the judge did not want to help the widow. After a long time, he thought to himself, ‘I don’t care about God. And I don’t care about what people think. 5 But this widow is bothering me. I will see that she gets her rights, or she will bother me until I am worn out!’”
6 The Lord said, “Listen to what the bad judge said. 7 God’s people cry to him night and day. God will always give them what is right, and he will not be slow to answer them. 8 I tell you, God will help his people quickly! But when the Son of Man comes again, will he find those on earth who believe in him?”
Being Right with God
9 There were some people who thought that they were very good and looked down on everyone else. Jesus used this story to teach them: 10 “One day there was a Pharisee and a tax collector. Both went to the Temple to pray. 11 The Pharisee stood alone, away from the tax collector. When the Pharisee prayed, he said, ‘God, I thank you that I am not as bad as other people. I am not like men who steal, cheat, or take part in adultery. I thank you that I am better than this tax collector. 12 I give up eating[a] twice a week, and I give one-tenth of everything I earn!’
13 “The tax collector stood at a distance. When he prayed, he would not even look up to heaven. He beat on his chest because he was so sad. He said, ‘God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, when this man went home, he was right with God. But the Pharisee was not right with God. Everyone who makes himself great will be made humble. But everyone who makes himself humble will be made great.”
Who Will Enter God’s Kingdom
15 Some people brought their small children to Jesus so that he could touch them. When the followers saw this, they told the people not to do this. 16 But Jesus called the little children to him and said to his followers, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them, because the kingdom of God belongs to people who are like these little children. 17 I tell you the truth. You must accept God’s kingdom like a little child, or you will never enter it!”
A Rich Man’s Question
18 A Jewish leader asked Jesus, “Good Teacher, what must I do to get the life that continues forever?”
19 Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? Only God is good. 20 You know the commands: ‘You must not be guilty of adultery. You must not murder anyone. You must not steal. You must not tell lies about your neighbor in court. Honor your father and mother.’”[b]
21 But the leader said, “I have obeyed all these commands since I was a boy!”
22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “But there is still one more thing you need to do. Sell everything you have and give the money to the poor. You will have a reward in heaven. Then come and follow me!” 23 But when the man heard this, he became very sad because he was very rich.
24 When Jesus saw that the man was sad, he said, “It will be very hard for rich people to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It would be easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God!”
Who Can Be Saved?
26 When the people heard this, they asked, “Then who can be saved?”
27 Jesus answered, “The things impossible for men are possible for God.”
28 Peter said, “Look, we left everything we had and followed you!”
29 Jesus said, “I tell you the truth. Everyone who has left his house, wife, brothers, parents, or children for God’s kingdom 30 will get much more than he left. He will receive many times more in this life. And after he dies, he will live with God forever.”
Jesus Will Rise from Death
31 Then Jesus talked to the 12 apostles alone. He said to them, “Listen! We are going to Jerusalem. Everything that God told the prophets to write about the Son of Man will happen! 32 He will be turned over to the non-Jewish people. They will laugh at him, insult him, and spit on him. 33 They will beat him with whips and then kill him. But on the third day after his death, he will rise to life again.” 34 The apostles tried to understand this, but they could not; the meaning was hidden from them.
Jesus Heals a Blind Man
35 Jesus was coming near the city of Jericho. There was a blind man sitting beside the road, begging for money. 36 When he heard the people coming down the road, he asked, “What is happening?”
37 They told him, “Jesus, the one from Nazareth, is coming here.”
38 The blind man cried out, “Jesus, Son of David! Please help me!”
39 The people who were in front, leading the group, told the blind man to be quiet. But the blind man shouted more and more, “Son of David, please help me!”
40 Jesus stopped and said, “Bring the blind man to me!” When he came near, Jesus asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?”
He said, “Lord, I want to see again.”
42 Jesus said to him, “Then see! You are healed because you believed.”
43 At once the man was able to see, and he followed Jesus, thanking God. All the people who saw this praised God.
Notas al pie
- 18:12 give up eating This is called “fasting.” The people would give up eating for a special time of prayer and worship to God. It was also done to show sadness.
- 18:20 ‘You . . . mother.’ Quotation from Exodus 20:12–16; Deuteronomy 5:16–20.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
