Luke 18
18
The Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Judge
1 Now He was speaking to them a parable with the intention that they ought always to pray and not to grow weary, 2 saying, “There was a certain judge in a certain city who had no reverence for God and no regard for man. * 3 And there was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Administer justice to me against my adversary.’ 4 And he was not willing for a time, but after these things, he said within himself, ‘Even if I do not revere God or regard man, 5 yet because this widow is giving me trouble, I will administer justice to her, so that she does not ultimately tire me out by her frequent return.’ ” 6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge is saying. 7 And will not God certainly effect justice for His elect, * who cry out to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them? 8 I say to you that He will effect justice to them quickly. Moreover, when the Son of Man comes, then will He find faith on earth?”
The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector
9 And He also spoke this parable* to some who had confidence in themselves that they were righteous and despised others: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, the one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood and began to pray these things in regard to himself: * ‘God, I give thanks to You that I am not like the rest of mankind—rapacious, unrighteous, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I tithe all things I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing at a distance, would not even raise his eyes to heaven, but kept beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ 14 I say to you, this man went down to his house justified rather than that one. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Receiving the Kingdom of God Like a Child
Matt. 19:13-15; Mk. 10:13-16
15 Now they were bringing even their infants to Him, so that He might touch them. But when the disciples saw it, they began to rebuke them. 16 But Jesus called them to Himself, saying, “Permit the children to come to Me, and do not prevent them, for it is to such as these the kingdom of God belongs. 17 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.”
The Rich Ruler
Matt. 19:16-30; Mk. 10:17-31
18 And a certain ruler asked Him, saying, “Good Teacher, by doing what will I inherit eternal life?” 19 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except the One—God. 20 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery; Do not murder; Do not steal; Do not offer false evidence; Honour your father and mother.’ ” * 21 And he said, “All these requirements* I have kept from my youth.” 22 And having heard this, Jesus said to him, “One thing is still lacking in you. Sell all that you have, and distribute the proceeds * to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then, come, follow Me.” 23 But when he heard these things he became intensely sad, for he was exceedingly rich. 24 And Jesus, seeing that he had become intensely sad,* said, “How difficult it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! 25 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God!” 26 So those who heard it said, “Who then can be saved?” 27 And He said, “The things that are impossible with men * are possible with God.” 28 And Peter said, “See, we have left what was our own and followed You.” 29 Then He said to them, “Truly, I say to you that 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 receive many times more in this age and, in the age to come, eternal life.”
Jesus Speaks of His Death and Resurrection the Third Time
Matt. 20:17-19; Mk. 10:32-34
31 And taking aside the twelve, He said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all the things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be fulfilled. 32 For He will be handed over to the Gentiles, and will be derided and insulted * and spat upon, 33 and after flogging Him, they will kill Him, and on the third day, He will rise again” 34 But they understood none of these things; indeed, this saying was concealed from them, and they did not understand the things that were being said.
The Healing of a Blind Beggar Near Jericho
Matt. 20:29-34; Mk. 10:46-52
35 Now it occurred that, as He came near to Jericho, a certain blind man was sitting beside the road, begging. 36 And hearing a crowd going by, he began to inquire what this might be. 37 And they told him that Jesus the Nazarene was passing by. 38 And he shouted, saying, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 39 And those who were going before rebuked him, that he should keep quiet, but he kept calling out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 40 Then when He stopped, Jesus commanded him to be brought to Him. And when he came near, He asked him, 41 “What do you desire that I should do for you?” And he said, “Lord, grant* that I may recover my sight. 42 And Jesus said to him, “Recover your sight; your faith has healed you.” 43 And immediately, he recovered his sight and began to follow Him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.
Notes
2 Or people , as the term is understood in a generic sense. So also v. 4
7 Or chosen ones
9 One ancient Greek manuscript omits the noun phrase this parable
11 Or to himself
20 Quoted from Ex. 20:12-16; Deut. 5:16-20
21 Greek all these things
22 The noun phrase the proceeds is supplied to the text on contextual grounds for the purpose of clarification
24 Some ancient manuscripts omit the verb phrase become intensely sad
27 Or people, as the term is understood in a generic sense
32 Some ancient manuscripts omit the coordinate independent clause and will be insulted , harmonising the text with parallels in Matt. 20:18-19; Mk. 33-34, which do not include it
41 The word grant is supplied to the text on contextual grounds for the purpose of clarification
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Copyright © 2026 Michael Adeyemi Adegbola. This Scripture text is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).
