Luke 14
1 One (Jewish day of rest/Sabbath day), Jesus went to eat [SYN] at the house of an important Pharisee. Some [men who studied the Jewish] laws and other Pharisees who were there were watching him carefully [to see if he would do something for which they could accuse him].
One Sabbath Jesus went to have a meal at the home of one of the leaders of the Pharisees where they watched him closely.
2 Unexpectedly, there was a man in front of Jesus whose arms and legs were swollen.
A man was there whose arms and legs were swollen.
3 Jesus said to them, “Is it permitted in [our(inc)] Jewish laws to heal [someone] (on our Jewish rest day/on the Sabbath), or not?”
So Jesus asked the experts in religious law and the Pharisees, “Does the law allow healing on the Sabbath, or not?”
4 [They knew that their laws permitted it, but they thought that healing was work, which they thought was wrong to do] (on the Sabbath/on the Jewish rest day) (OR, [they knew that their laws permitted it, but they did not want to admit it]). So they did not reply. Then Jesus put his hands on the man and healed him. Then he told him to go [home].
But they kept quiet. Jesus touched the man, healed him, and sent him on his way.
5 Then he said to the rest of them, “If you had a son or an ox that fell into a well on a (Sabbath/our day of rest), would you immediately [work to] pull him out, [or would you(sg) let him stay there until the next day]?”
Then Jesus said to them, “If your son or your ox happened to fall into a well on the Sabbath, wouldn't you go and pull him out immediately?”
6 [They knew that they would immediately work to pull him out, even on their day of rest, so they could not justly say that Jesus did wrong by healing the man on that day. So] they said nothing in reply to Jesus.
They weren't able to give an answer.
7 Jesus noticed that those people who had been {whom [the Pharisee] had} invited [to the meal] chose [to sit in] the places where important [people usually sit]. Then he gave [this advice] to them:
So he told a story to the guests, noticing how they'd chosen to sit in places of honor.
8 “When one of you [(sg)] is invited by someone {someone invites one of you [(sg)]} to a wedding feast, do not sit in a place where important people sit. Perhaps the man [giving the feast] has invited a man more important than you [(sg)].
“When you're invited to a wedding reception, don't take the place of honor, because someone more important than you may have been invited,” he began.
9 [When that man comes], the man who invited both of you will come to you [(sg)] and say to you, ‘Let this man take your seat!’ Then you [(sg)] will have to take the most undesirable seat, and you will be ashamed.
“Your host who invited you both will come and tell you, ‘Give this man your place.’ Then in embarrassment you'll have to move to whatever place is left.
10 Instead, when you are invited {[someone] invites one of you} [to a feast], go and sit in the most undesirable seat. Then when the man who invited everyone comes, he will say to you [(sg)], ‘Friend, sit in a better seat!’ Then all the people who are eating with you [(sg)] will see that he is honoring you.
Instead, when you're invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes in, he'll tell you, ‘My friend, please move to a better seat.’ Then you'll be honored before all the guests sitting with you.
11 Also, [remember this]: [God] will humble those who exalt themselves. And [he] will exalt those who humble themselves.”
For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
12 [Jesus] also said to [the Pharisee] who had invited him to the meal, “When you [(sg)] invite people to a midday or evening meal, do not invite your friends or your family or your other relatives or your rich neighbors. They can later invite you [(sg) for a meal]. In that way they will repay you.
Then he said to the man who had invited him, “When you give a lunch or a dinner, don't invite your friends, or your brothers, or your relatives, or your rich neighbors, for they may invite you back, and then you'd be repaid.
13 Instead, when you [(sg)] give a feast, invite poor [people], crippled [people], lame [people], or blind [people].
Instead, when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,
14 They will be unable to repay you. [But God will bless you! He] will repay you [at the time] when [he causes] righteous people to become alive again.”
and you will be blessed, for they have nothing to repay you with, and you'll be rewarded at the resurrection of the good.”
15 One of those who were eating with Jesus heard him say that. He said to Jesus, “God [has truly] blessed [us Jews] who will eat [with the Messiah] when he starts to rule!”
When one of them eating at the table with Jesus heard this, he said to Jesus, “How wonderful it will be for those who feast in the kingdom of God!”
16 But [to show that many Jews whom God had invited would not accept God’s invitation] [MET], Jesus replied to him, “One time a man [decided] to prepare a large feast. He invited many people to come.
“Once there was a man who prepared a great banquet, and invited many guests,” Jesus replied.
17 When it was the day for the feast, he sent his servant to tell those who had been {whom he had} invited, ‘Come [now] because everything is ready!’
“When it was time to eat he sent his servant out to tell everyone who had been invited, ‘Come, because the banquet's ready.’
18 But [when the servant did that], all of the people [whom he had invited] began to say why they did not want to come. The first [man the servant went to] said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please [ask your master to] forgive me for not coming!’
But they all started to make excuses. The first said, ‘I've just bought a field and I have to go and see it. Please excuse me.’
19 Another person said, ‘I have just bought five pair of oxen, and I must go to examine them. Please [ask your master to] forgive me for not coming!’
Another said, ‘I've just bought five pairs of oxen and have to go and try them out. Please excuse me.’ Still another said,
20 Another person said, ‘I have just been married. So I cannot come.’
‘I've just got married, so I can't come.’
21 So the servant returned to his master and reported what [everyone had said]. The owner of the house was angry [when he heard the reasons they gave for not] coming. He said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and alleys of the city [and find] poor and crippled and blind and lame [people, and bring] them here into [my house]!’
The servant returned and told his master what they'd said. The home-owner became angry and told his servant, ‘Quickly, go out into the streets and alleys of the town, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’
22 [After the servant went and did that], he [came back and] said, ‘Sir, I have done what you [(sg)] told me to do, but there is still room [for more people].’
Then the servant said, ‘Master, I did what you told me, but there are still empty places.’
23 [So] his master said to him, ‘Then go [outside the city]. Search for people along the highways. Search also along the narrow roads with hedges beside them [where homeless people may be staying]. Strongly urge the people in those places to come to [my house]. I want it to be full of [people]!’”
So the master told the servant, ‘Go out on the country roads and lanes, and make people come—I want my house to be full.
24 [Then Jesus said], “I tell you [(pl)] this: Very few of you [Jewish] people will enjoy my feast, even though [I] invited you [first to eat it with me when I become king].”
I tell you, not a single one of those people I invited will get a taste of my banquet.’”
25 Large groups of people were traveling with [Jesus]. He turned and said to them,
A large crowd was accompanying Jesus. He turned to them and said,
26 “If anyone comes to me who loves his father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters [more than] [HYP] [he loves me], he cannot be my disciple. He must even love me more than he loves his own life!
“If you want to follow me but you don't hate your father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters—even your own life—you can't be my disciple.
27 [People who are ready to execute a prisoner make] him carry his cross [MET] [to the place where others will nail him] on it. Only those who are willing [to allow others to hurt them and disgrace them] like that because of being my disciples, and who are willing to obey what I teach, can be my disciples.
If you don't carry your cross and follow me, you can't be my disciple.
28 [I will illustrate] [MET]. If one of you desired to build a (tower/big house), (you would surely first sit down and determine how much it would cost!/would you not first sit down and determine how much it would cost?) [RHQ] Then you would determine whether you had enough money to complete it.
If you planned to build a tower, wouldn't you first work out how much it would cost, and see if you had enough money to complete it?
29 [If you did not do that], if you laid the foundation and were not able to finish [the rest of the tower], everyone who saw it would make fun of you.
Otherwise, if after laying the foundation you weren't able to finish it, everyone who saw it would laugh at you, saying,
30 They would say, ‘This man started to build [a tower], but he was not able to finish it!’
‘Look at him: he started building but he couldn't finish it.’
31 Or, if a king decided to [send his army to] war against another king, (he would surely first sit down [with those who] advised [him]./would he not first sit down [with those who] advised [him]?) [RHQ] They would determine whether [his army], which had only 10,000 soldiers, could defeat the [other army], which had 20,000 soldiers, and was about to attack his [army].
What king goes to war with another king without first sitting down with his advisors to work out whether he and his ten thousand can defeat the one marching against him with twenty thousand?
32 If he [decided] that his army could not [defeat that army], he would send messengers to [the other king] while the other army was still far away. He would tell the messengers to say to that king, ‘What things must I do to have peace with your country?’
If he can't, he'll send representatives to ask for peace while the other king is still a long way off.
33 So, similarly, if any one of you does not first decide that you [(sg)] are [willing to] give up all that you have, you cannot be my disciple.”
In the same way every one of you who doesn't give up everything can't be my disciple.
34 [Jesus also said, “You are like] [MET] salt, which is useful [to put on food]. But (salt certainly cannot be made {[you] certainly cannot make salt} to taste salty again if it stops tasting salty!/can salt be made {can [you] make salt} to taste salty again if it quits tasting salty?) [RHQ]
Salt is good, but if it loses its taste, how can you make it salty again?
35 [If salt does not taste salty any more], it is not good for the soil or even for the manure heap. [People] throw it away. [The same thing will happen to you if you become useless to God]. If you want to understand what I just said [IDM], you must consider [carefully] what you have heard!”
It's no good for the soil or for fertilizer—you just toss it out. Whoever has ears, then listen!”
