*Luke 18:1-14
Jesus tells a parable about a persistent widow who teaches perseverance in prayer, contrasted with a boastful Pharisee.
- Parable of the Persistent Widow:
- Jesus shares a parable to teach the importance of persistent prayer.
- He tells of a judge who neither fears God nor cares for people.
- A widow repeatedly seeks justice from the judge against an adversary.
- Initially refusing, the judge eventually grants her request due to her persistence, lest she wear him out.
- Jesus emphasizes that if an unjust judge responds to persistence, how much more will God, the just judge, grant justice to his chosen ones who cry out to him day and night.
- Encouragement to Faithfulness:
- Jesus assures that God will deliver justice quickly to those who seek him.
- He ends the parable with a challenge: “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
- Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector:
- Jesus tells a parable aimed at those who are confident in their own righteousness and look down on others.
- He describes a Pharisee and a tax collector going to the temple to pray.
- The Pharisee prays about his good deeds, thanking God that he isn’t like others, including the tax collector nearby.
- The tax collector, standing far off and unable to lift his eyes, humbly pleads for God’s mercy, confessing himself as a sinner.
- Jesus states that the tax collector, not the Pharisee, goes home justified before God.
- He emphasizes that those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Luke 18:1-14 teaches us two important lessons: to keep praying and to stay humble. Jesus tells a story about a widow who never gives up asking for justice, showing us that we should keep praying and trusting God, even when answers seem delayed. He also warns against pride by telling of a Pharisee who bragged about his goodness while a humble tax collector simply asked for mercy. God listens to those who come to Him with sincere hearts, not those who think they are better than others. This reminds us to pray with faith and approach God with humility.
Luke 18:1-14 (WEB)
18:1 He also spoke a parable to them that they must always pray and not give up, 2 saying, “There was a judge in a certain city who didn’t fear God and didn’t respect man. 3 A widow was in that city, and she often came to him, saying, ‘Defend me from my adversary!’ 4 He wouldn’t for a while; but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, 5 yet because this widow bothers me, I will defend her, or else she will wear me out by her continual coming.’ ”6 The Lord said, “Listen to what the unrighteous judge says. 7 Won’t God avenge his chosen ones who are crying out to him day and night, and yet he exercises patience with them? 8 I tell you that he will avenge them quickly. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”9 He also spoke this parable to certain people who were convinced of their own righteousness, and who despised all others: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray; one was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed by himself like this: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of men: extortionists, unrighteous, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing far away, wouldn’t even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his chest, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”