Verses 1-8: Persistent Prayer and the God Who Will Judge Justly

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?”

• Prayer is a commanded perseverance, not a last resort:

  Jesus explicitly frames the parable’s purpose: “they must always pray, and not give up.” Prayer is therefore not merely therapeutic or optional; it is part of faithful endurance, especially when justice seems delayed and circumstances tempt believers to stop asking, stop hoping, or stop trusting.

• God’s justice is certain even when his patience feels slow:

  The contrast between an “unrighteous judge” and God strengthens confidence: if even a corrupt official can be moved to act, how much more will God act with perfect righteousness. Yet the text also holds together two realities: God’s people “crying out…day and night,” and God who “exercises patience with them.” The chapter teaches believers to interpret delay not as indifference, but as patience that still ends in sure vindication.

• God’s people are both dearly owned and truly called to faithfulness:

  The phrase “his chosen ones” affirms God’s initiating love and covenant care toward those who belong to him. At the same time, Jesus’ closing question—“will he find faith on the earth?”—presses the human responsibility to continue in trusting loyalty until the Son of Man comes. The text refuses two distortions at once: despair that God will not act, and presumption that faith can be discarded without spiritual consequence.

Verses 9-14: Humble Repentance and the Gift of Justification

⁹ He spoke also 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 to 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 breast, 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.”

• Self-trust corrodes worship and poisons community:

  Jesus targets people “convinced of their own righteousness” and therefore willing to “despise all others.” The Pharisee’s prayer showcases how religious achievements (fasting, tithing) can be turned into a platform for comparison and contempt. Theologically, this warns that external religious practices—good in themselves—cannot safely function as the ground of a person’s standing before God or as a license to dehumanize neighbors.

• Justification is granted to the repentant who plead for mercy:

  The tax collector offers no résumé, only confession: “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” Jesus’ verdict is decisive: “this man went down to his house justified.” The chapter therefore links being put right with God to humble repentance and appeal to divine mercy, not to self-assertion. This safeguards both God’s gracious initiative (justification is received, not seized) and the genuine human posture God requires (humble turning rather than proud self-defense).

• God overturns pride and raises the lowly:

  Jesus states a general principle with broad theological reach: “everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.” God’s judgment is not merely about rule-keeping; it exposes hearts. The Kingdom operates with a moral reversal: pride collapses under God’s truth, while humility is honored by God’s grace.

Verses 15-17: The Kingdom Received Like a Child

¹⁵ They were also bringing their babies to him, that he might touch them. But when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. ¹⁶ Jesus summoned them, saying, “Allow the little children to come to me, and don’t hinder them, for God’s Kingdom belongs to such as these. ¹⁷ Most certainly, I tell you, whoever doesn’t receive God’s Kingdom like a little child, he will in no way enter into it.”

• Jesus welcomes the seemingly insignificant and forbids spiritual gatekeeping:

  The disciples’ rebuke suggests an instinct to manage access to Jesus based on perceived importance or usefulness. Jesus corrects this: “don’t hinder them.” Theologically, this teaches that God’s Kingdom does not operate by worldly status. The community of faith is called to remove obstacles, not create them, especially for those who cannot repay, impress, or advocate for themselves.

• Entrance into the Kingdom requires receptive dependence, not self-sufficiency:

  “Whoever doesn’t receive God’s Kingdom like a little child” highlights the manner of receiving: open-handed trust, dependence, and willingness to be given what one cannot earn. This fits with the chapter’s earlier emphasis on mercy and later insistence that salvation is humanly impossible but divinely possible.

Verses 18-30: The Rich Ruler, the Impossibility of Self-Salvation, and the Reward of Discipleship

¹⁸ A certain ruler asked him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” ¹⁹ Jesus asked him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good, except one: God. ²⁰ You know the commandments: ‘Don’t commit adultery,’ ‘Don’t murder,’ ‘Don’t steal,’ ‘Don’t give false testimony,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.’ ” ²¹ He said, “I have observed all these things from my youth up.” ²² When Jesus heard these things, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have, and distribute it to the poor. Then you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” ²³ But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was very rich. ²⁴ Jesus, seeing that he became very sad, said, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter into God’s Kingdom! ²⁵ For it is easier for a camel to enter in through a needle’s eye than for a rich man to enter into God’s Kingdom.” ²⁶ Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” ²⁷ But he said, “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.” ²⁸ Peter said, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” ²⁹ He said to them, “Most certainly I tell you, there is no one who has left house, or wife, or brothers, or parents, or children, for God’s Kingdom’s sake, ³⁰ who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the world to come, eternal life.”

• Jesus exposes the true meaning of “good” and the God-centered nature of eternal life:

  Jesus’ response—“No one is good, except one: God”—shifts the ruler from flattering religious language to the reality of God’s unique goodness. Eternal life is not a commodity earned by moral effort; it is bound up with God himself—his character, his authority, and his saving power.

• God’s commands reveal both responsibility and hidden idolatries:

  Jesus cites recognizable commandments, affirming that God’s moral will matters and that human life is accountable to it. Yet when the ruler claims lifelong observance, Jesus identifies what is “lacking” by confronting his attachment to wealth. The call to “sell,” “distribute,” and “follow me” is not presented as a generic purchase-price for salvation, but as a heart-revealing summons to unreserved allegiance, where possessions no longer rule the person.

• Wealth can become a spiritual barrier that makes Kingdom entry humanly impossible:

  Jesus does not romanticize riches: “How hard it is…,” intensifying it with the needle’s eye image. The disciples’ question—“Then who can be saved?”—shows that the issue is larger than one rich man; it exposes the universal inability of humans to rescue themselves. Jesus’ answer grounds hope where it belongs: “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.” Salvation is therefore genuinely beyond human capacity and yet truly granted by God’s power.

• Following Jesus is costly, but God is faithful to reward and restore:

  Peter’s statement about leaving everything is met with a promise: sacrifices “for God’s Kingdom’s sake” will not be forgotten. Jesus holds together present and future dimensions: “many times more in this time,” and “in the world to come, eternal life.” Theologically, discipleship is not a transaction that earns God’s favor, but neither is it empty: God honors costly obedience with real provision, deeper family in the people of God, and final life in the age to come.

Verses 31-34: The Son of Man’s Promised Suffering and Resurrection

³¹ He took the twelve aside, and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all the things that are written through the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be completed. ³² For he will be delivered up to the Gentiles, will be mocked, treated shamefully, and spit on. ³³ They will scourge and kill him. On the third day, he will rise again.” ³⁴ They understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they didn’t understand the things that were said.

• Jesus’ passion is the fulfillment of Scripture, not an accident of history:

  Jesus frames his coming suffering as the completion of “all the things that are written through the prophets.” The chapter therefore teaches continuity between the prophetic Scriptures and Jesus’ mission: the cross and resurrection unfold within God’s long-promised plan, even as they involve real human actions (betrayal, shame, violence) for which people are responsible.

• The resurrection is a concrete promise at the heart of the gospel:

  Jesus foretells not only death but victory: “On the third day, he will rise again.” This anchors Christian hope in a real divine act that answers injustice, validates Jesus’ identity and mission, and grounds the promise of “eternal life” just mentioned.

• Understanding is ultimately a gift, yet disciples are still taught and led:

  The disciples “understood none of these things” and the saying “was hidden from them.” Luke 18 thus portrays spiritual comprehension as something God must grant in his timing, while also showing Jesus patiently instructing his followers. This protects humility in doctrine and encourages dependence on God for illumination without excusing neglect of Jesus’ teaching.

Verses 35-43: Crying for Mercy, Receiving Sight, and Following with Praise

³⁵ As he came near Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the road, begging. ³⁶ Hearing a multitude going by, he asked what this meant. ³⁷ They told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. ³⁸ He cried out, “Jesus, you son of David, have mercy on me!” ³⁹ Those who led the way rebuked him, that he should be quiet; but he cried out all the more, “You son of David, have mercy on me!” ⁴⁰ Standing still, Jesus commanded him to be brought to him. When he had come near, he asked him, ⁴¹ “What do you want me to do?” He said, “Lord, that I may see again.” ⁴² Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight. Your faith has healed you.” ⁴³ Immediately he received his sight and followed him, glorifying God. All the people, when they saw it, praised God.

• Faith perseveres in mercy-seeking despite opposition:

  The blind man’s repeated cry—intensified when rebuked—embodies the chapter’s earlier call to “always pray, and not give up.” His persistence is not entitlement but dependence: “have mercy on me!” In Luke 18, persevering prayer is shown not only in a parable but in a lived encounter where obstacles cannot silence true need brought to Jesus.

• Jesus responds personally and powerfully, honoring faith as the means of reception:

  Jesus stops, calls the man near, and draws out his desire: “What do you want me to do?” The healing word—“Receive your sight. Your faith has healed you.”—highlights that the man receives rather than achieves. Theologically, faith is presented as real trust and appeal toward Jesus that truly matters, while the saving power remains in Jesus’ authority and compassion.

• Grace produces discipleship and public worship:

  The healed man “followed him, glorifying God,” and the crowd responds with praise. Luke 18 ends with the pattern the chapter has been shaping: mercy received leads to a transformed life oriented around Jesus, and God is publicly honored as the source of saving power.

Conclusion: Luke 18 forms believers in a wholehearted life before God: persevering prayer rooted in God’s just character, humility that seeks mercy rather than self-approval, childlike reception of the Kingdom, surrender of rival allegiances such as wealth, confidence that salvation is God’s possible work where human ability fails, trust in the scriptural fulfillment of Christ’s death and resurrection, and a faith that cries for mercy, receives Christ’s help, follows him, and glorifies God.