Luke 10 Read This Chapter

(Bible quotes are from the New Revised Standard Version, unless otherwise noted)

This passage follows one where Jesus has given thanks to God for revealing truth to ‘infants’ ( NEB: ‘the simple’, NIV: ‘little children’, NLT: ‘childlike’) and for hiding truth from those who think they are wise and learned, those who trust in their own wisdom, which is what the Pharisees did. [verse 21] The ‘heroes’ of Luke’s gospel are the poor and lowly people. Jesus then comments on the authority given to him by the Father and the fact that the only people who will recognise God are those chosen by the Son to receive that revelation. Now, Luke moves on to an illustration of people who are wise and learned, but who do not recognise him for who he is.

25. Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he said, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

NEB: ...a lawyer came forward to put a test question

NIV: ...an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus.

NLT: ... an expert in religious law stood up to test ...

(Message) .. a religious scholar ... a question to test ...

The person who confronted Jesus was probably a Pharisee and his main purpose was to try to get Jesus to say something incriminating. The Pharisees saw Jesus as a threat and wanted to get rid of him.

Baker Theological Dictionary, p 209: Eternal life – The divinely bestowed gift of blessedness in God’s presence that endures without end. This relates especially to the quality of life in this age, and to both the quality and duration of life in the age to come.

The idea of life after death was a burning issue between Pharisees and Saducees. The Saducees did not believe in it and the Pharisees did. Perhaps this lawyer wanted to test Jesus to see where he stood on this issue.

…to inherit eternal life (NRSV, NIV, NEB); to receive eternal life (NLT); To get eternal life (The Message). The Greek verb Luke used here (klhronomew) means ‘I receive, gain possession of, share in, or am given something.’ The related Greek noun means ‘one who receives what God has promised to his people; or, heir’

The Pharisee understands that eternal life is not something to be earned by personal action, but a gift of God. He wants to know what Jesus says that a person needs to do to quality for that gift. (cf Luke 18:18, where the same verb is used)

26, 27. He said to him, "What is written in the law? What do you read there?" He answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbour as yourself."

Jesus answered the question with a question, “What does the Law say? How do you interpret what the Law says?” This is the Pharisee’s own language! The Law he is referring to is the Mosaic Law that the Pharisee knows well. He replies, referring to Deuteronomy 6:5 ( You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might) and Leviticus 19: 18b (…you shall love your neighbour as yourself. I am the Lord)

Jesus is talking to the Pharisee in a way he understands, the Pharisee is used to this kind of discussion about the meaning of the Law. Jesus does not try to argue with him or oppose him, but deals with him in a respectful way. Even if the Pharisee is there to try to trap Jesus, Jesus still treats him with respect, not attempting to put him down in any way.

28. And he said to him, "You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live."

“You’re right”, says Jesus. Then he quotes another verse of Scripture that the Pharisee would know well, Leviticus 18:5: You shall keep my dictates and my ordinances; by doing so one shall live. I am the Lord. (NEB: You shall observe my institutions and my laws: the man who keeps them shall have life through them. I am the Lord.) Jesus is still not entering into any discussion on the issue. He just quotes the Scripture that the Pharisee knows, a good way to defuse opposition and aggression.

29. But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbour?"

The Pharisee is not satisfied. He came for a good argument and Jesus is not arguing! The Pharisee wanted a debate that he could win. So he asks another question to try to get a debate started. (The Greek says he wished to make himself right, or to prove himself to be right. The Greek verb used is dikaow ) The Pharisee’s next question is “Who is my neighbour?”

30 – 35. Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while travelling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, "Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.'

Again, rather than giving a direct reply and participating in a debate, Jesus tells the story of a man beaten up on the Jericho road by robbers (which was probably something that happened fairly frequently on that road, so the situation of the story would have been familiar), the people who passed him by and the one who rescued him and saved his life. To a Pharisee who believed that only the Jews were God’s special people and that Samaritans were not worthy to be mixed with, this must have been a shocking story.

36, 37. Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?" He said, "The one who showed him mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."

Jesus then threw the question back at the Pharisee, “Who in this story behaved like a true neighbour?” The answer was obvious, so whether he liked it or not the Pharisee has to nominate the hated Samaritan as the ‘good neighbour’. He fell into his own trap.

Jesus then gave him a challenge, “Go and do the same”. The Pharisee would have understood, because he has said it himself, that a ‘neighbour’ is not necessarily ‘one of us’. The idea of ‘us’ and ‘them’ is not one Jesus subscribes to. To a Jew who thought of himself as one of God’s chosen or ‘elite’, this would have been a shocking idea. By his own admission, non-Jews could be ‘neighbours’ and therefore, to qualify for eternal life, according to the Mosaic Law, he would have to treat non-Jews as if they were Jews.

Luke does not tell us what the Pharisee did after that. He must have gone away puzzled and troubled, with his convictions challenged. Or he would have gone away angry with Jesus for daring to suggest that the Law could apply to non-Jews, and be more convinced that Jesus needed to be removed.

When we follow Jesus, we cannot assume that our pre-conceived ideas and values are right. God, through the Holy Spirit continually challenges us to open our minds and look with new eyes on the world and the people around us.