Luke 11
1 One day Jesus was somewhere praying. When he finished [praying], one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us [what to say when] we [(exc)] pray, as John [the Baptizer] taught his disciples!”
And it happened that, while he was in a certain place praying, when he ceased, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”
2 He said to them, “When you pray, say [things like this]: ‘Father, we want you [(sg)] [MTY] to be honored/revered. [We want people to let you(sg)] [MTY, MET] rule over their lives.
And he said to them: “When you are praying, say: Father, may your name be kept holy. May your kingdom come.
3 Give us [(exc)] each day the food [SYN] that we need.
Give us this day our daily bread.
4 Forgive us [for] the wrong things that we have done, because we forgive people for the wrong things that they do to us. Do not let us do wrong things when we are tempted {[someone or something] tempts us}.’”
And forgive us our sins, since we also forgive all who are indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.”
5 Then he said to them, “Suppose that one of you goes to the house of a friend at midnight. Suppose that you [(sg) stand outside and] call out to him, ‘My friend, please lend me three buns!
And he said to them: “Which of you will have a friend and will go to him in the middle of the night, and will say to him: ‘Friend, lend me three loaves,
6 Another friend of mine who is traveling has just arrived [at my house], but I have no food [ready] to give to him!’
because a friend of mine has arrived from a journey to me, and I do not have anything to set before him.’
7 Suppose that he answers you from inside [his house], ‘Do not bother me! The door has been locked {[We(exc)] have locked the door} and all my family are in bed. [So] I cannot get up and give you [(sg)] anything!’
And from within, he would answer by saying: ‘Do not disturb me. The door is closed now, and my children and I are in bed. I cannot get up and give it to you.’
8 I will tell you that even if he does not [want to] get up and give you [any food], to avoid being ashamed [for not helping you] because you are his friend (OR, if without being ashamed you continue asking him to do that), he certainly will get up and give you whatever you need.
Yet if he will persevere in knocking, I tell you that, even though he would not get up and give it to him because he is a friend, yet due to his continued insistence, he will get up and give him whatever he needs.
9 So I tell you this: Keep asking [God for what you need]. If you do that, [he] will give it to you [(pl)]. Confidently keep expecting [God to give you the things that you need], and [he] will give them to you [MET]. [It will be like] looking for what you need and finding it. Keep on [praying urgently to God. Then God will answer you. It will be like] knocking [on a door] so that [God] will open [the way] for you [to get what you pray for].
And so 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 Remember that [God] will give things to everyone who continues to ask [him for them]. [He] will give things to whoever confidently keeps asking. [He] will open [the way] for people [to get the things that they keep urgently praying for].
For everyone who asks, receives. And whoever seeks, finds. And whoever knocks, it shall be opened to him.
11 If one of you had a son who asked you [(sg)] for a fish [to eat], (you [(sg)] certainly would not give him a [poisonous] snake instead!/would you give him a [poisonous] snake instead?) [RHQ]
So then, who among you, if he asks his father for bread, he would give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he would give him a serpent, instead of a fish?
12 If he asked you for an egg, (you [(sg)] certainly would not give him a scorpion!/would you give him a scorpion?) [RHQ]
Or if he will ask for an egg, he would offer to him a scorpion?
13 Even though you people are evil, you know how to give good things to your children. So your Father in heaven will certainly [give good things] to those who ask him, [including] giving the Holy Spirit, [who is the best gift].”
Therefore, if you, being evil, know how to give good things to your sons, how much more will your Father give, from heaven, a spirit of goodness to those who ask him?”
14 [One day there was a man there who, because a demon controlled him] [MTY], was unable to speak. After [Jesus expelled] the demon, the man [began to] talk. [Most of] the people [there] were amazed.
And he was casting out a demon, and the man was mute. But when he had cast out the demon, the mute man spoke, and so the crowds were amazed.
15 But some of them said, “It is Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons, who enables [this man] to expel demons!”
But some of them said, “It is by Beelzebub, the leader of demons, that he casts out demons.”
16 Other [people there] asked Jesus to perform a miracle [to prove (he was the Messiah/that he had come] from God) [MTY/EUP]. They wanted to trap him [into not being able to perform a miracle or into doing something ridiculous].
And others, testing him, required a sign from heaven of him.
17 But Jesus knew what they were thinking. So he said to them, “If [the people in] one nation fight against each other, their nation will be destroyed {[they] will destroy their nation}. If [the people in] [MTY] one house are divided, they will cease to remain as one [family].
But when he perceived their thoughts, he said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself will become desolate, and house will fall upon house.
18 [Similarly], if Satan [and his demons] were fighting against each other, (his rule over them would [certainly] not last!/how would his rule over them last?) [RHQ] [I say this] because you are saying that I am expelling demons by [the power of] the ruler of [his own demons]
So then, if Satan is also divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that it is by Beelzebub that I cast out demons.
19 Furthermore, if [it is true that] Satan enables me to expel demons, [is it also true that] your disciples [who] expel demons [do so] by [Satan’s] power [RHQ]? [No, that is not true]. So they will show that you [are not thinking logically].
But if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your own sons cast them out? Therefore, they shall be your judges.
20 But because it is by the power [MTY] of God [that I expel demons], I am showing you [that the power of] God to [MET] rule [people’s lives] has come to you.”
Moreover, if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then certainly the kingdom of God has overtaken you.
21 Then, [to show that by expelling evil spirits he was making it clear that he was much more powerful than Satan, Jesus said] [MET], “When a strong man who has many weapons guards his own house, no one can steal the things in his house.
When a strong armed man guards his entrance, the things that he possesses are at peace.
22 But when someone else who is stronger attacks that man and subdues him, he is able to take away the weapons in which the man trusted. Then he can take from that man’s house anything he [wants to].
But if a stronger one, overwhelming him, has defeated him, he will take away all his weapons, in which he trusted, and he will distribute his spoils.
23 [No one can be neutral]. Those who do not help me [are opposing] me, and those who do not gather [people to become] my [disciples] are causing [those people] to go away [from me].”
Whoever is not with me, is against me. And whoever does not gather with me, scatters.
24 [Then Jesus said this]: “[Sometimes when] an evil spirit leaves someone, it wanders around in desolate areas seeking [someone in whom it can] rest. If it does not find anyone, it says [to itself], ‘I will return to the person in whom I used to live!’
When an unclean spirit has departed from a man, he walks through waterless places, seeking rest. And not finding any, he says: ‘I will return to my house, from which I departed.’
25 So it goes back and finds that [the Spirit of God is not in control of that person’s life. The person’s life is like] a house that has been {that someone has} swept clean and everything put {put everything} in order, [but a house that is empty].
And when he has arrived, he finds it swept clean and decorated.
26 Then [this evil spirit] goes and gets seven other spirits that are [even] more evil than it is. They [all] enter [that person] and [begin] living there. [So], [although] that person’s condition [was bad] before, it became much worse.”
Then he goes, and he takes in seven other spirits with him, more wicked than himself, and they enter and live there. And so, the end of that man is made worse than the beginning.”
27 When Jesus said that, a woman who was listening called out [to him], “[God is] pleased with the woman who gave birth to you [(sg)] and let you nurse [at her breasts]!”
And it happened that, when he was saying these things, a certain woman from the crowd, lifting up her voice, said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts that nursed you.”
28 But he replied, “God [is] much more pleased with those who hear his message and obey it!”
Then he said, “Yes, but moreover: blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.”
29 When the group of people around [Jesus] got larger, he said, “[Many of] you people who have been observing my ministry are evil. You want [me to perform] a miracle [to prove that I have come from God], but the only miracle that [I] will perform for you is one [like happened to] Jonah.
Then, as the crowds were quickly gathering, he began to say: “This generation is a wicked generation: it seeks a sign. But no sign will be given to it, except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
30 [After Jonah was inside a huge fish for three days, God performed] a miracle [to restore] Jonah. [Jonah then went and testified about that] to the people in Nineveh [city. God will perform] a similar miracle [for me], the one who came from heaven. [When you people have seen that miracle, you will believe my message].
For just as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of man be to this generation.
31 [Long ago the] queen from [Sheba], [far] south [of Israel, traveled a long distance to hear Solomon speak many] wise things. But now [I, a man] who [is much] greater [and wiser] than Solomon, am here, [but you have not listened to what I have told you]. Therefore, at the time when [God] judges [all people], the queen from [Sheba] will stand there, [along] with you people, and will condemn you.
The queen of the South will rise up, at the judgment, with the men of this generation, and she will condemn them. For she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon. And behold, more than Solomon is here.
32 The people who lived in Nineveh [city] turned from their sinful ways when Jonah preached to them. But now I, who am greater than Jonah, have come [and preached to you], [but you have not turned from your sinful ways]. Therefore, at the time when God judges [all people], the people who lived in Nineveh will stand there with you and condemn you.”
The men of Nineveh will rise up, at the judgment, with this generation, and they will condemn it. For at the preaching of Jonah, they repented. And behold, more than Jonah is here.
33 [Then, to show them that they did not need more miracles, but that they needed only to understand better what he had already told them, he said to them] [MET], “People who light a lamp do not then hide it, or put it under a basket. Instead, they put it on a lampstand so that those who enter [their house] can see [things from] its light. [Similarly, I have not concealed God’s truth. I have revealed it to you].
No one lights a candle and places it in hiding, nor under a bushel basket, but upon a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light.
34 Your eyes [MET] are like a lamp for your body, because they enable you to see things. If your eyes are healthy, you are able to see everything well [MET]. [Similarly, if you(sg) accept my teaching, you will be able to know all that God wants you to know]. But if your eyes are bad, you are not able to see anything. It is like being in darkness [MET]. [And similarly, if you(pl) do not accept what I teach, you will not be able to know all the things that God wants you to know].
Your eye is the light of your body. If your eye is wholesome, your entire body will be filled with light. But if it is wicked, then even your body will be darkened.
35 Therefore, [you(pl) do not need to see more miracles. You need to think carefully about what I have already] told you, so that the things that you have heard from others do not cause you to remain in spiritual darkness [MET].
Therefore, take care, lest the light that is within you become darkness.
36 If you [live completely according to God’s truth, you will be able to know everything that God wants you to know. It will be like] being in a room with a lamp shining brightly, enabling you to see everything clearly.”
So then, if your entire body becomes filled with light, not having any part in darkness, then it will be entirely light, and, like a shining lamp, it will illuminate you.”
37 While Jesus finished saying those things, a Pharisee invited him to eat a meal with him. So Jesus went to [his house] and ate with him.
And as he was speaking, a certain Pharisee asked him to eat with him. And going inside, he sat down to eat.
38 The Pharisee was surprised when he saw that Jesus did not follow the Pharisees’ ritual by washing his hands before eating. [The Pharisees washed their hands in a certain way to be cleansed from anything that might have contaminated them. They were afraid that God might reject them if they] had [touched something unacceptable to God].
But the Pharisee began to say, thinking within himself: “Why might it be that he has not washed before eating?”
39 The Lord [Jesus] said to him, “You Pharisees are [concerned about things that are outside your bodies, not with what is in your] ([inner beings/hearts]) [MET]. You wash the outside of cups and dishes [before you eat because you think that doing that will make you acceptable to God], but within yourselves you are very greedy and wicked.
And the Lord said to him: “You Pharisees today clean what is outside the cup and the plate, but what is inside of you is full of plunder and iniquity.
40 You foolish people! [God] is concerned about things that are outside [our bodies], but (he is certainly also concerned about our inner [beings]!/isn’t he also concerned about our hearts?) [RHQ]
Fools! Did not he who made what is outside, indeed also make what is inside?
41 Give [money] to those who are poor. [Give according to what you know within] your (inner [/heart]) [that you should give]. Then you [will be surprised to realize that] you will be acceptable [to God without having to perform all those rituals about washing].
Yet truly, give what is above as alms, and behold, all things are clean for you.
42 But there will be terrible punishment for you Pharisees! You give to God a tenth of [all you produce, even] the various herbs that you grow, but you do not [remember that you must act] justly [toward others] and love God! It is good to [give a tenth of your income to God], but you ought to do these other things also!
But woe to you, Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, but you ignore judgment and the charity of God. But these things you ought to have done, without omitting the others.
43 There will be terrible punishment for you Pharisees, because you like [to sit in] the best seats in our worship places [so that people will think highly of you], and you like people to greet you [respectfully] in the marketplaces.
Woe to you, Pharisees! For you love the first seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the marketplace.
44 There will be terrible punishment for you, because you are like ground where there is no marker [to indicate that there is a] grave [underneath]. People walk there, but they cannot see [what is rotten down below] [MET]! [Similarly, people who see you do not realize how polluted you are within yourselves].”
Woe to you! For you are like graves that are not noticeable, so that men walk over them without realizing it.”
45 One of those who taught the [Jewish] laws replied, “Teacher, by saying this you [(sg)] are criticizing us [also]!”
Then one of the experts in the law, in response, said to him, “Teacher, in saying these things, you bring an insult against us as well.”
46 Jesus said, “It will be terrible also for you who teach the [Jewish] laws! You require people [to obey many rules that are difficult to obey] [MET]. [That is like making them] carry heavy burdens on their backs. But you yourselves do not obey the laws [that you require others to obey]. (OR, you do not do anything to help [others to obey the laws].)
So he said: “And woe to you experts in the law! For you weigh men down with burdens which they are not able to bear, but you yourselves do not touch the weight with even one of your fingers.
47 There will be terrible punishment for you! You decorate the tombs of the prophets whom your ancestors killed, [but you do not live according to what the prophets taught].
Woe to you, who build the tombs of the prophets, while it is your fathers who killed them!
48 So you are declaring that you approve of what your ancestors did. They killed the prophets, and you [are not honoring the prophets! You just] decorate their tombs!
Clearly, you are testifying that you consent to the actions of your fathers, because even though they killed them, you build their sepulchers.
49 So God, who is very wise [PRS], said, ‘I will send prophets and apostles [to you Jews]. [You] will kill some of them and cause some of them to suffer greatly.
Because of this also, the wisdom of God said: I will send to them Prophets and Apostles, and some of these they will kill or persecute,
50 [As a result, I] will consider that many of you people [who have observed my Son’s ministry] will be guilty [MTY] [of murder, as if you had] killed all the prophets that other people have killed, from the time I created the world,
so that the blood of all the Prophets, which has been shed since the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation:
51 starting from [Adam’s son Cain] killing [his brother] Abel and continuing until they killed the prophet Zechariah [in the holy place] between the altar and the temple.’ Yes, what I am saying [is true] [MTY]. [God] will punish you people who have observed my ministry, you people whom [he] considers to be guilty [MTY] for [killing] all those prophets!
from the blood of Abel, even to the blood of Zachariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. So I say to you: it will be required of this generation!
52 There will be terrible punishment for you men who teach the [Jewish] laws, because you have [not let people] know [God’s truth] [MET]! [It is as though you are] taking away a key [to a house]. You are not going into [the house] yourselves, and you are not letting other people enter it, either.”
Woe to you, experts in the law! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You yourselves do not enter, and those who were entering, you would have prohibited.”
53 After Jesus finished saying those things, he left there. Then the men who taught the [Jewish] laws and the Pharisees began to act in a very hostile way toward him. They tried to make him say what he thought about many things.
Then, while he was saying these things to them, the Pharisees and the experts in the law began to insist strongly that he restrain his mouth about many things.
54 They kept waiting for him to say something [wrong] for which they could accuse him.
And waiting to ambush him, they sought something from his mouth that they might seize upon, in order to accuse him.
