Luke 14
Go Out to the Roads and Compel Them to Come In
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He Went into the House of a Ruler
14:1And it happened that He went into the house of one of the leaders of the Pharisees on a Sabbath to eat bread, and they were watching Him closely.
14:2And behold, a certain man suffering from dropsy was before Him.
14:3Jesus spoke to the experts in the Law and the Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?”
14:4But they were silent. And He took hold of the man, healed him, and sent him away.
14:5And He said to them, “Which of you, if his son or ox falls into a well, will not pull him out at once on the Sabbath day?”
14:6And they were unable to answer these things.
He Told a Parable to Those Who Were Invited
14:7He told a parable to those who had been invited, noticing how they chose the foremost places at table. He said to them,
14:8“When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not recline in the foremost place, lest someone more honored than you has been invited by him,
14:9and the one who invited both you and him comes and says to you, ‘Give this man your place.’ Then you will begin, with shame, to occupy the last place.
14:10But when you are invited, go and recline in the last place, so that when the one who invited you comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will have honor before all who recline at table with you.
14:11For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Invite the Poor
14:12He also said to the one who had invited Him, “When you give a midday meal or a supper, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you receive repayment.
14:13But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the disabled, the lame, and the blind.
14:14And you will be blessed, because they have nothing with which to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
The Parable of the Great Supper
14:15When one of those reclining at table heard these things, he said to Him, “Blessed is whoever shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!”
14:16But He said to him, “A certain man was giving a great supper, and he invited many.
14:17At the hour of the supper he sent his slave to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, because things are now ready.’
14:18And they all alike began to excuse themselves. The first said to him, ‘I bought a field, and I need to go out and see it. I ask you, have me excused.’
14:19And another said, ‘I bought five pairs of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you, have me excused.’
14:20And another said, ‘I married a wife, and for this reason I cannot come.’
14:21The slave returned and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring the poor, the disabled, the blind, and the lame in here.’
14:22And the slave said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and there is still room.’
14:23And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the roads and along the fences, and compel people to come in, so that my house may be filled.
14:24For I tell you, none of those men who were invited will taste my supper.’”
The Cost of Discipleship
14:25Now great crowds were traveling with Him. He turned and said to them,
14:26“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.
14:27Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.
Counting the Cost
14:28For which of you, wanting to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the expense, whether he has enough to finish it?
14:29Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is unable to complete it, all who see it may begin to mock him,
14:30saying, ‘This man began to build and was unable to finish.’
14:31Or what king, going to meet another king in war, will not first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet the one coming against him with twenty thousand?
14:32And if not, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.
14:33So, therefore, every one of you who does not renounce all his own possessions cannot be My disciple.
Salt That Loses Its Taste
14:34Salt, then, is good. But if even the salt becomes tasteless, with what will it be seasoned?
14:35It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure heap; they throw it outside. Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”
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Saints Translation · Liturgical reading edition · V1 · working draft awaiting specialist review.