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18:1 And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
18:2 Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:
18:3 And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.
18:4 And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
18:5 Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.
18:6 And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.
18:7 And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
18:8 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
18:9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:
18:10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
18:11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
18:12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
18:13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
18:14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
18:15 And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them.
18:16 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.
18:17 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.
18:18 And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
18:19 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God.
18:20 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother.
18:21 And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.
18:22 Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
18:23 And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich.
18:24 And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!
18:25 For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
18:26 And they that heard it said, Who then can be saved?
18:27 And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.
18:28 Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee.
18:29 And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake,
18:30 Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.
18:31 Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished.
18:32 For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on:
18:33 And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again.
18:34 And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.
18:35 And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging:
18:36 And hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant.
18:37 And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by.
18:38 And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.
18:39 And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the more, Thou son of David, have mercy on me.
18:40 And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him,
18:41 Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight.
18:42 And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.
18:43 And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.

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Everything King James Bible:Luke

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
back to: Luke
Book: Luke
Chapter: 18

Overview:
The Parable of the importunate widow. (1-8) The Pharisee and
the Publican. (9-14) Children brought to Christ. (15-17) The
ruler hindered By his riches. (18-30) Christ foretells his
Death. (31-34) A Blind Man restored to sight. (35-43)

1-8 All God's people are praying people. Here Earnest
steadiness in Prayer for spiritual mercies is taught. The
widow's earnestness prevailed even with the unjust Judge: she
might fear lest it should set him more against her; but our
Earnest Prayer is pleasing to our God. Even to the End there
will still be ground for the same complaint of weakness of
Faith.

9-14 This Parable was to convince some who trusted in
themselves that they were righteous, and despised others. God
sees with what disposition and design we come to him in holy
ordinances. What the Pharisee said, shows that he trusted to
himself that he was righteous. We may suppose he was free from
gross and scandalous sins. All this was very Well and
commendable. Miserable is the condition of those who come short
of the Righteousness of this Pharisee, yet he was not accepted;
and why not? He went up to the Temple to pray, but was full of
himself and his own Goodness; the favour and Grace of God he did
not think worth asking. Let us beware of presenting proud
devotions to the Lord, and of despising others. The Publican's
address to God was full of Humility, and of Repentance for Sin,
and desire toward God. His Prayer was short, but to the purpose;
God be merciful to me a sinner. Blessed be God, that we have
this short Prayer upon record, as an answered Prayer; and that
we are sure that he who prayed it, went to his House justified;
for So shall we be, if we pray it, as he did, through Jesus
Christ. He owned himself a sinner By nature, By practice, guilty
before God. He had No dependence but upon the Mercy of God; upon
that alone he relied. And God's Glory is to resist the proud,
and give Grace to the humble. Justification is of God in Christ;
therefore the self-condemned, and not the self-righteous, are
justified before God.

15-17 None are too little, too young, to be brought to Christ,
who knows how to show kindness to those not capable of doing
service to him. It is the mind of Christ, that little children
should be brought to him. The promise is to us, and to our seed;
therefore He will bid them welcome to him with us. And we must
receive his kingdom as children, not By purchase, and must Call
it our Father's Gift.

18-30 Many have a great Deal in them very commendable, yet
perish for lack of some one thing; So this ruler could not Bear
Christ's terms, which would part between him and his estate.
Many who are loath to leave Christ, yet do leave him. After a
long struggle between their convictions and their corruptions,
their corruptions carry the Day. They are very sorry that they
cannot serve both; but if one must be quitted, it shall be their
God, not their worldly gain. Their boasted obedience will be
found mere outside show; the Love of the world in some form or
other lies at the root. Men are apt to speak too much of what
they have left and lost, of what they have done and suffered for
Christ, as Peter did. But we should rather be ashamed that there
has been any regret or difficulty in doing it.

31-34 The Spirit of Christ, in the Old Testament prophets,
testified beforehand his sufferings, and the Glory that should
follow, 1Pe 1:11. The disciples' prejudices were So strong,
that they would not understand these things literally. They were
So intent upon the prophecies which spake of Christ's Glory,
that they overlooked those which spake of his sufferings. People
run into mistakes, because they read their Bibles By halves, and
are only for the smooth things. We are as backward to learn the
proper lessons from the sufferings, Crucifixion, and
Resurrection of Christ, as the disciples were to what he told
them as to those events; and for the same reason; self-Love, and
a desire of worldly objects, close our understandings.

35-43 This Poor Blind Man sat By the wayside, begging. He was
not only Blind, but Poor, the fitter emblem of the world of
mankind which Christ came to heal and save. The Prayer of Faith,
guided By Christ's encouraging promises, and grounded On them,
shall not be in vain. The Grace of Christ ought to be thankfully
acknowledged, to the Glory of God. It is for the Glory of God if
we follow Jesus, as those will do whose eyes are opened. We must
praise God for his mercies to others, as Well as for mercies to
ourselves. Would we rightly understand these things, we must
come to Christ, like the Blind Man, earnestly beseeching him to
open our eyes, and to show us clearly the excellence of his
precepts, and the value of his Salvation.

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