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11 And so it was that as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray as John also taught his disciples.”

And He said to them, “When you pray, say, ‘Our Father, Who are in Heaven, hallowed be Your Name. Your Kingdom come. Let Your will be done even on Earth, as in Heaven.

‘Give us our daily bread each day.

‘And forgive us our sins. As we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into trial. But deliver us from the evil one.’”

Moreover He said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go to him at midnight, and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves.

‘For a friend of mine has come out of the way to me, and I have nothing to set before him.’

“And the one inside answers, and says, ‘Do not trouble me. The door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot rise and give them to you!’

“I say to you that though he would not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet he would undoubtedly rise and give him as many as he needed because of his persistence.

“And I say to you, ask, and it shall be given to you. Seek, and you shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened to you.

10 “For everyone who asks, receives. And the one who seeks, finds. And to the one who knocks, it shall be opened.

11 “If a son shall ask for bread from any of you who is a father, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead?

12 “Or if he asks for an egg, will he give him a scorpion?

13 “If you, then, who are evil, can give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father give the Holy Ghost to those who desire Him?

14 Then He cast out a demon who was dumb. And when the demon had gone out, the dumb spoke, and the people wondered.

15 But some of them said, “He casts out demons through Beelzebub, the chief of the demons.

16 And others tempted Him, seeking a sign from Heaven from Him.

17 But He knew their thoughts, and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself, shall be desolate. And a house divided against a house, falls.

18 So, if Satan is also divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons through Beelzebub?

19 If I cast out demons through Beelzebub, by whom do your children cast them out? Therefore, they shall be your judges.

20 But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, doubtless the Kingdom of God has come to you.

21 When a strong man, fully armed, guards his house, the things that he possesses are in peace.

22 But when someone stronger comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes away all the armor in which he had trusted and divides his spoils.

23 “Whoever is not with Me, is against Me. And whoever does not gather with Me, scatters.

24 “When the unclean spirit has gone out of a man, he walks through dry places, seeking rest. And when he finds none, he says, ‘I will return to the house from where I came out.’

25 “And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order.

26 “Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits worse than himself. And they enter in, and dwell there. So, the last state of that man is worse than the first.”

27 And it happened that as He said these things, a certain woman in the crowd lifted up her voice, and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which You have sucked.”

28 But He said, “On the contrary. Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.”

29 And when the people were thickly gathered together, He began to say, “This is a wicked generation! They seek a sign. And no sign shall be given to them, except the sign of Jonah the Prophet.

30 “For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also shall the Son of Man be to this generation.

31 “The Queen of the South shall rise in judgment with the men of this generation and shall condemn them. For she came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon. And behold, a Greater than Solomon is here.

32 “The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation and shall condemn it. For they repented at the preaching of Jonah. And behold, a Greater than Jonah is here.

33 “No one, when he has lit a candle, puts it in a private place, or under a bushel, but on a candlestick. So that those who come in may see the light.

34 “The light of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is sound, then your whole body is light. But if your eye is evil, then your body is dark.

35 “Take care, therefore, that the light which is in you is not darkness.

36 “Therefore, if your whole body is full of light - having no part darkness - then all shall be light (just as when a candle lights you with its brightness).”

37 And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him. And He went in and sat down at the table.

38 And when the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner.

39 And the Lord said to him, “Indeed you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and the platter clean, but the inward part is full of plundering and wickedness.

40 “You fools. Did not He Who made that which is outside also make that which is inside?

41 “Therefore, give alms from those things which you have. And behold, all things shall be clean to you.

42 “But woe to you, Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and all kinds of herbs but pass over judgment and the love of God. These you ought to have done while not leaving the other undone.

43 “Woe to you, Pharisees! For you love the uppermost seats in the synagogues and greetings in the markets.

44 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees! Hypocrites! For you are as unseen graves, and the men who walk over them are unaware.”

45 Then one of the lawyers answered, and said to Him, “Master, by saying this, You insult us also.”

46 And He said, “Woe to you also, you lawyers! For you load man with heavy burdens to bear. And you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.

47 “Woe to you! For you build the sepulchers of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.

48 “Truly you bear witness and approve the deeds of your fathers. For they killed them, and you build their sepulchers.

49 “Therefore the wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles. And of them they shall kill and persecute,’

50 “so that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation,

51 “from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah (who was killed between the altar and the Temple) truly I say to you, it shall be required of this generation.

52 “Woe to you, lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter in yourselves, and those who came in you hindered.”

53 And as He said these things to them, the scribes and Pharisees began to plead with Him angrily, and to provoke Him to speak of many things,

54 lying in wait for Him, seeking to catch something from His mouth by which they might accuse Him.

Jesus’ Teaching on Prayer(A)(B)

11 One day Jesus was praying(C) in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord,(D) teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

He said to them, “When you pray, say:

“‘Father,[a]
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom(E) come.[b]
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
    for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.[c](F)
And lead us not into temptation.[d]’”(G)

Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity[e] he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.(H)

“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you;(I) seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

11 “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for[f] a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Jesus and Beelzebul(J)(K)

14 Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed.(L) 15 But some of them said, “By Beelzebul,(M) the prince of demons, he is driving out demons.”(N) 16 Others tested him by asking for a sign from heaven.(O)

17 Jesus knew their thoughts(P) and said to them: “Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will fall. 18 If Satan(Q) is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand? I say this because you claim that I drive out demons by Beelzebul. 19 Now if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your followers drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 20 But if I drive out demons by the finger of God,(R) then the kingdom of God(S) has come upon you.

21 “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. 22 But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up his plunder.

23 “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.(T)

24 “When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ 25 When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. 26 Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first.”(U)

27 As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, “Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you.”(V)

28 He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God(W) and obey it.”(X)

The Sign of Jonah(Y)

29 As the crowds increased, Jesus said, “This is a wicked generation. It asks for a sign,(Z) but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.(AA) 30 For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation. 31 The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the people of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom;(AB) and now something greater than Solomon is here. 32 The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah;(AC) and now something greater than Jonah is here.

The Lamp of the Body(AD)

33 “No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, so that those who come in may see the light.(AE) 34 Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy,[g] your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy,[h] your body also is full of darkness. 35 See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness. 36 Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be just as full of light as when a lamp shines its light on you.”

Woes on the Pharisees and the Experts in the Law

37 When Jesus had finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to eat with him; so he went in and reclined at the table.(AF) 38 But the Pharisee was surprised when he noticed that Jesus did not first wash before the meal.(AG)

39 Then the Lord(AH) said to him, “Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.(AI) 40 You foolish people!(AJ) Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also? 41 But now as for what is inside you—be generous to the poor,(AK) and everything will be clean for you.(AL)

42 “Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth(AM) of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God.(AN) You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.(AO)

43 “Woe to you Pharisees, because you love the most important seats in the synagogues and respectful greetings in the marketplaces.(AP)

44 “Woe to you, because you are like unmarked graves,(AQ) which people walk over without knowing it.”

45 One of the experts in the law(AR) answered him, “Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us also.”

46 Jesus replied, “And you experts in the law, woe to you, because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them.(AS)

47 “Woe to you, because you build tombs for the prophets, and it was your ancestors who killed them. 48 So you testify that you approve of what your ancestors did; they killed the prophets, and you build their tombs.(AT) 49 Because of this, God in his wisdom(AU) said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and others they will persecute.’(AV) 50 Therefore this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the beginning of the world, 51 from the blood of Abel(AW) to the blood of Zechariah,(AX) who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, this generation will be held responsible for it all.(AY)

52 “Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.”(AZ)

53 When Jesus went outside, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law began to oppose him fiercely and to besiege him with questions, 54 waiting to catch him in something he might say.(BA)

Footnotes

  1. Luke 11:2 Some manuscripts Our Father in heaven
  2. Luke 11:2 Some manuscripts come. May your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
  3. Luke 11:4 Greek everyone who is indebted to us
  4. Luke 11:4 Some manuscripts temptation, but deliver us from the evil one
  5. Luke 11:8 Or yet to preserve his good name
  6. Luke 11:11 Some manuscripts for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for
  7. Luke 11:34 The Greek for healthy here implies generous.
  8. Luke 11:34 The Greek for unhealthy here implies stingy.