Luke Chapter 13
Showing all 35 verses for Luke Chapter 13.
The People's Bible is written by people, for the people. Each verse below shows:
"There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. "
"Some people in the crowd told Jesus about Galileans whom Pilate had killed while they were offering sacrifices, so that their blood mixed with the sacrifices."
Notice how you explain other people's suffering. I want you to resist the urge to assume tragedy is proof of someone's hidden guilt.
"And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? "
"Jesus replied, "Do you think these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered this?""
I ask you the same question - don't judge someone's character by the misfortune that happens to them. Suffering isn't a scoreboard of who deserved it.
"I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. "
""No, I tell you - but unless you change your ways, you will all perish just as they did.""
I'm not trying to scare you with fate - I'm asking you to actually look at your own life now, rather than waiting for a crisis to force the question.
"Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that in Jerusalem? "
💡 Highlighted words feature Jacobean 1611 tooltips to clarify shifted 17th-century English terms.
""Or those eighteen people killed when the tower in Siloam fell on them - do you think they were more guilty than everyone else living in Jerusalem?""
Stop ranking people's worth by what happens to them, whether it's violence done to them or simple bad luck - it tells you nothing about their character.
"I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. "
""No, I tell you - but unless you change your ways, you will all perish in the same way.""
I say it twice because I mean it - don't let today slip by assuming you have unlimited tomorrows. Use the life you actually have to change what needs changing.
"He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. "
"Then Jesus told this story: "A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard. He came looking for fruit on it and found none.""
What is your life actually producing? Not how good you look, but what real fruit - kindness, honesty, change - is visible when someone comes looking closely.
"Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground? "
""So he said to the man who tended the vineyard, 'Look, for three years I've come looking for fruit on this fig tree and found none. Cut it down - why should it use up the soil?'""
I don't demand instant results, but I do ask for honesty about whether your life is bearing anything real over time - patience has limits, and that should motivate you, not just comfort you.
"And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: "
""But the gardener replied, 'Sir, leave it one more year. Let me dig around it and put manure on it.'""
I don't just wait for you to bear fruit on your own - I actively work to give you what you need to grow, even when things look hopeless from the outside.
"And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down. "
""'And if it bears fruit next year, good. If not, then you can cut it down.'""
I leave the ending open because it's genuinely up to you - the extra time you've been given is real, so use it rather than assuming it will always be there.
"And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. "
"Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath."
I taught wherever people already gathered, in their own familiar spaces - real help meets people where they are, not somewhere separate from ordinary life.
"And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself. "
"There was a woman there who had been crippled by a weakening spirit for eighteen years; she was bent double and could not straighten up at all."
I notice the person everyone else has stopped seeing - a suffering that's gone on for years doesn't become invisible to me just because it's become normal to everyone around it.
"And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. "
"When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said, "Woman, you are freed from your sickness.""
I don't wait for you to work up the courage to ask - when I see genuine need, I move towards it. You don't have to earn my attention by demanding it.
"And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. "
"He placed his hands on her, and instantly she straightened up and praised God."
I use presence and touch, not just words from a distance - real care is often close and physical, and its aim is someone able to stand tall again, literally and otherwise.
"And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day. "
"But the synagogue leader was indignant that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, and told the crowd, "There are six days for work - come and be healed on one of those, not on the Sabbath.""
Watch for this in yourself - when a rule or routine matters more to you than the suffering person in front of you, something has gone wrong with your priorities.
"The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering? "
"The Lord answered him, "You hypocrites! Doesn't each of you untie your ox or donkey from its stall on the Sabbath and lead it out to drink water?""
I call out inconsistency, especially when someone claims principle but is really just uncomfortable with mercy in action. Be honest with yourself about which one is actually driving your objections.
"And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day? "
""And shouldn't this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen years, be freed from this on the Sabbath?""
People, especially those written off or overlooked, deserve at least the basic consideration you'd give an animal - and honestly, far more. Don't let a technicality become an excuse to withhold compassion.
"And when he had said these things, all his adversaries were ashamed: and all the people rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by him. "
"When he said this, all his opponents were humiliated, but the whole crowd was delighted at all the wonderful things he was doing."
I'd rather bring joy to ordinary people than win an argument with the powerful. Notice whose reaction you trust more: the delight of people who were actually helped, or the offence of people who weren't.
"Then said he, Unto what is the kingdom of God like? and whereunto shall I resemble it? "
"Then Jesus said, "What is the kingdom of God like? What can I compare it to?""
I ask you to picture something small and easy to dismiss, because that's often where real, lasting change actually begins.
"It is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and cast into his garden; and it grew, and waxed a great tree; and the fowls of the air lodged in the branches of it. "
""It's like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a large tree, and the birds nested in its branches.""
Don't underestimate small, quiet acts of good - I'm telling you that what looks insignificant now can grow into something that genuinely shelters other people.
"And again he said, Whereunto shall I liken the kingdom of God? "
"Again he said, "What can I compare the kingdom of God to?""
I use more than one picture because different people need different doors into the same truth - I keep trying fresh ways to help it land for you.
"It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. "
""It's like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.""
I compare my work to something you can't watch happening - trust that quiet, ordinary faithfulness is doing something real, even when you can't see the results yet.
"And he went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. "
"Jesus went on through towns and villages, teaching, as he made his way towards Jerusalem."
I kept moving with purpose even while stopping to teach and heal along the way - a meaningful life holds both: a clear direction and genuine attention to the people you meet on the road there.
"Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, "
"Someone asked him, "Lord, will only a few people be saved?" And he said to them,"
I don't answer curiosity questions about other people's fate - I turn the question back to what you, personally, are doing about your own life right now.
"Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. "
""Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and won't be able to.""
I want your genuine effort, not passive assumption that things will work out - a life that matters takes real, deliberate commitment, not just showing up when it's convenient.
"When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are: "
""Once the master of the house gets up and shuts the door, and you stand outside knocking, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open up for us,' he will answer, 'I don't know where you're from.'""
I'm warning you honestly: don't put off the things that matter, assuming the door will always be open. Respond while there's still time, not once the moment has already passed.
"Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. "
""Then you will say, 'We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.'""
Being near me, knowing about me, or having heard my words isn't the same as letting them change how you actually live. Don't mistake familiarity for genuine relationship.
"But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. "
""But he will reply, 'I tell you, I don't know where you're from. Get away from me, all you who do wrong.'""
What you actually do with your life carries more weight with me than any claim of connection to me. Let your actions, not just your words or associations, be what defines you.
"There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. "
""There will be weeping and grinding of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out.""
Don't assume your background, upbringing, or inherited identity guarantees you anything - what matters is your own genuine response, not the reputation of those who came before you.
"And they shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God. "
""People will come from east and west, from north and south, and sit down to feast in the kingdom of God.""
I welcome people from every direction, background, and origin - not because of where they're from, but because of how they respond. No one is excluded on the basis of nationality or heritage.
"And, behold, there are last which shall be first, and there are first which shall be last. "
""And take note: there are some who are last now who will be first, and some who are first now who will be last.""
I flip the usual scoreboard - don't measure your worth by status, rank, or how impressive you look to others now. What matters is the reality of your life, which often looks nothing like public rankings suggest.
"The same day there came certain of the Pharisees, saying unto him, Get thee out, and depart hence: for Herod will kill thee. "
"That same day, some Pharisees came to Jesus and said, "Leave this place and go somewhere else - Herod wants to kill you.""
Not everyone who disagrees with me is automatically my enemy, and I don't assume the worst of everyone who comes with a warning - stay discerning rather than simply hostile towards those who challenge you.
"And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected. "
"He replied, "Go tell that fox, 'Look, I am driving out demons and healing people today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will reach my goal.'""
I don't let intimidation or powerful people dictate my schedule or my mission - stay focused on doing good, even when someone with authority tries to scare you off it.
"Nevertheless I must walk to day, and to morrow, and the day following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem. "
""Even so, I must go on my way today, tomorrow, and the next day - because it just isn't possible for a prophet to die outside Jerusalem.""
I chose to keep going towards what I knew was coming, rather than run from it - real courage sometimes means continuing on the path you know is right, even when it costs you everything.
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not! "
""Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you - how often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not let me.""
I grieve over rejection rather than retaliate against it - I wanted to shelter and protect, even those who refused me, and that same open invitation still stands for you.
"Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. "
""Look, your house is left abandoned to you. And I tell you, you will not see me again until the time you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'""
Even after being rejected, I leave the door open for recognition to come later - I don't force acceptance, but I hold out hope that it can still happen, in its own time.