1 On one occasion when Jesus
was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the
sabbath, they were watching him closely. 2 Just then, in front of him,
there was a man who had dropsy. 3 And Jesus asked the lawyers and
Pharisees, “Is it lawful to cure people on the sabbath, or not?” 4 But
they were silent. So Jesus took him and healed him, and sent him away. 5
Then he said to them, “If one of you has a child or an ox that has
fallen into a well, will you not immediately pull it out on a sabbath
day?” 6 And they could not reply to this.
7 When he noticed how the
guests chose the places of honor, he told them a parable. 8 “When you
are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not sit down at the
place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been
invited by your host; 9 and the host who invited both of you may come
and say to you, ‘Give this person your place,’ and then in disgrace you
would start to take the lowest place. 10 But when you are invited, go
and sit down at the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he may
say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’; then you will be honored in the
presence of all who sit at the table with you. 11 For all who exalt
themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be
exalted.” 12 He said also to the one who had invited him, “When you give
a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or
your relatives or rich neighbors, in case they may invite you in return,
and you would be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the
poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. 14 And you will be blessed,
because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the
resurrection of the righteous.”
15 One of the dinner guests, on
hearing this, said to him, “Blessed is anyone who will eat bread in the
kingdom of God!” 16 Then Jesus said to him, “Someone gave a great dinner
and invited many. 17 At the time for the dinner he sent his slave to say
to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for everything is ready now.’ 18
But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have
bought a piece of land, and I must go out and see it; please accept my
regrets.’ 19 Another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am
going to try them out; please accept my regrets.’ 20 Another said, ‘I
have just been married, and therefore I cannot come.’ 21 So the slave
returned and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house
became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and
lanes of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and
the lame.’ 22 And the slave said, ‘Sir, what you ordered has been done,
and there is still room.” 23 Then the master said to the slave, ‘Go out
into the roads and lanes, and compel people to come in, so that my house
may be filled. 24 For I tell you, none of those who were invited will
taste my dinner.’”
25 Now large crowds were
traveling with him; and he turned and said to them, 26 “Whoever comes to
me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and
sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. 27 Whoever
does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. 28 For
which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and
estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? 29
Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all
who see it will begin to ridicule him, 30 saying, ‘This fellow began to
build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, going out to wage
war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether
he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him
with twenty thousand? 32 If he cannot, then, while the other is still
far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace. 33 So
therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all
your possessions. 34 “Salt is good; but if salt has lost its taste, how
can its saltiness be restored? 35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for
the manure pile; they throw it away. Let anyone with ears to hear
listen!”
CONTINUE |