Repent or Perish

13 Now at the same time some had come to tell him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. And he answered and[a] said to them, “Do you think that these Galileans were sinners worse than all the Galileans, because they suffered these things? No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all perish as well! Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them—do you think that they were sinners worse than all the people who live in Jerusalem? No, I tell you, but unless you repent, you will all perish as well!”

The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree

And he told this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it and did not find any.[b] So he said to the gardener, ‘Behold, for three years[c] I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree and did not find any.[d] Cut it down![e] Why should it even exhaust the soil?’ But he answered and[f] said to him, ‘Sir, leave it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put manure on it.[g] And if indeed it produces fruit in the coming year, so much the better,[h] but if not, you can cut it down.’”

A Woman with a Disabling Spirit Healed

10 Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11 And behold, a woman was there[i] who had a spirit that had disabled her[j] for eighteen years, and she was bent over and not able to straighten herself up completely.[k] 12 And when he[l] saw her, Jesus summoned her[m] and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability!” 13 And he placed his[n] hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and glorified God. 14 But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, answered and[o] said to the crowd, “There are six days on which it is necessary to work. Therefore come and[p] be healed on them, and not on the day of the Sabbath!” 15 But the Lord answered and said to him, “Hypocrites! Does not each one of you untie his ox or his[q] donkey from the feeding trough on the Sabbath and lead it[r] away to water it?[s] 16 And this woman, who is a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan bound eighteen[t] long years—is it not necessary that she be released from this bond on the day of the Sabbath?” 17 And when[u] he said these things, all those who opposed him were humiliated, and the whole crowd was rejoicing at all the splendid things that were being done by him.

The Parable of the Mustard Seed

18 Therefore he said, “What is the kingdom of God like, and to what shall I compare it? 19 It is like a mustard seed that a man took and[v] sowed in his own garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the sky nested in its branches.”

The Parable of the Yeast

20 And again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? 21 It is like yeast that a woman took and[w] hid in[x] three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened.”

The Narrow Door

22 And he was going throughout towns and villages, teaching and making his journey toward Jerusalem. 23 And someone said to him, “Lord, are there only[y] a few who are saved?” And he said to them, 24 “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able to, 25 when once the master of the house has gotten up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock on the door, saying, ‘Lord, open the door[z] for us!’ And he will answer and[aa] say to you, ‘I do not know where you are from!’ 26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets!’ 27 And he will reply, saying to you, ‘I do not know where you are from! Go away from me, all you evildoers!’[ab] 28 In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but yourselves thrown outside! 29 And they will come from east and west, and from north and south, and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God. 30 And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”

The Lament over Jerusalem

31 At that same hour some Pharisees came up and[ac] said to him, “Go out and depart from here, because Herod wants to kill you!” 32 And he said to them, “Go and[ad] tell that fox, ‘Behold, I am expelling demons and performing healings today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will complete my work.’[ae] 33 Nevertheless, it is necessary for me to be on the way today and tomorrow and on the next day, because it is not possible for a prophet to perish outside Jerusalem.

34 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How many times I wanted to gather your children together the way[af] a hen gathers[ag] her own brood under her[ah] wings, and you were not willing! 35 Behold, your house has been left to you! And I tell you, you will never see me until the time[ai] will come when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’”[aj]

Footnotes

  1. Luke 13:2 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“answered”) has been translated as a finite verb
  2. Luke 13:6 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  3. Luke 13:7 Literally “three years from which”
  4. Luke 13:7 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  5. Luke 13:7 Some manuscripts have “Therefore cut it down!”
  6. Luke 13:8 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“answered”) has been translated as a finite verb
  7. Luke 13:8 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  8. Luke 13:9 *The phrase “so much the better” is not in the Greek text but is implied
  9. Luke 13:11 The phrase “was there” is not in the Greek text but is supplied in keeping with English style
  10. Luke 13:11 Literally “of weakness”
  11. Luke 13:11 Or “at all”
  12. Luke 13:12 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“saw”) which is understood as temporal
  13. Luke 13:12 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  14. Luke 13:13 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  15. Luke 13:14 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“answered”) has been translated as a finite verb
  16. Luke 13:14 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“come”) has been translated as a finite verb
  17. Luke 13:15 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  18. Luke 13:15 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  19. Luke 13:15 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  20. Luke 13:16 Literally “ten and eight”
  21. Luke 13:17 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“said”)
  22. Luke 13:19 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“took”) has been translated as a finite verb
  23. Luke 13:21 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“took”) has been translated as a finite verb
  24. Luke 13:21 Some manuscripts have “put into”
  25. Luke 13:23 Literally “if”
  26. Luke 13:25 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  27. Luke 13:25 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“answer”) has been translated as a finite verb
  28. Luke 13:27 Literally “workers of unrighteousness”
  29. Luke 13:31 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“came up”) has been translated as a finite verb
  30. Luke 13:32 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“go”) has been translated as a finite verb
  31. Luke 13:32 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  32. Luke 13:34 Literally “in the manner in which”
  33. Luke 13:34 Here the term “gathers” is not in the Greek text but is implied
  34. Luke 13:34 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  35. Luke 13:35 The words “the time” are not in the Greek text but are implied
  36. Luke 13:35 A quotation from Ps 118:26

Repent or Perish

13 Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate(A) had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way?(B) I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam(C) fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent,(D) you too will all perish.”

Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any.(E) So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down!(F) Why should it use up the soil?’

“‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”

Jesus Heals a Crippled Woman on the Sabbath

10 On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues,(G) 11 and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years.(H) She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. 12 When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.” 13 Then he put his hands on her,(I) and immediately she straightened up and praised God.

14 Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath,(J) the synagogue leader(K) said to the people, “There are six days for work.(L) So come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath.”

15 The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Doesn’t each of you on the Sabbath untie your ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water?(M) 16 Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham,(N) whom Satan(O) has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?”

17 When he said this, all his opponents were humiliated,(P) but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing.

The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast(Q)(R)

18 Then Jesus asked, “What is the kingdom of God(S) like?(T) What shall I compare it to? 19 It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree,(U) and the birds perched in its branches.”(V)

20 Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? 21 It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds[a] of flour until it worked all through the dough.”(W)

The Narrow Door

22 Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem.(X) 23 Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?”

He said to them, 24 “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door,(Y) because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25 Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’

“But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’(Z)

26 “Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’

27 “But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’(AA)

28 “There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth,(AB) when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. 29 People will come from east and west(AC) and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. 30 Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last.”(AD)

Jesus’ Sorrow for Jerusalem(AE)(AF)

31 At that time some Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, “Leave this place and go somewhere else. Herod(AG) wants to kill you.”

32 He replied, “Go tell that fox, ‘I will keep on driving out demons and healing people today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will reach my goal.’(AH) 33 In any case, I must press on today and tomorrow and the next day—for surely no prophet(AI) can die outside Jerusalem!

34 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings,(AJ) and you were not willing. 35 Look, your house is left to you desolate.(AK) I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’[b](AL)

Footnotes

  1. Luke 13:21 Or about 27 kilograms
  2. Luke 13:35 Psalm 118:26