Luke 14:25 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them,

NIV: Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said:

NASB: Now large crowds were going along with Him, and He turned and said to them,

CSB: Now great crowds were traveling with him. So he turned and said to them,

NLT: A large crowd was following Jesus. He turned around and said to them,

KJV: And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them,

NKJV: Now great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them,

Luke probably placed this story here to continue a theme: identifying those who can experience the blessings of God's sovereignty, authority, and character. There's no indication that this teaching directly followed His antagonistic meal at the home of the ruler of the Pharisees (Luke 14:1–24). That "great crowds" are involved indicates this is not during the earlier meal.

In previous stories, Jesus explained how the kingdom of God differs from cultural expectations of that era. In many cultures, even in the modern world, people interact by trying to win honor and avoid shame. For instance, when a group of men are invited for a meal, the one with the highest social standing should sit closest to the host. And the host only invites guests who improve his own social standing. In addition, groups such as the Pharisees enforce extra-biblical rules, like forbidding healing on the Sabbath.

In one meal, Jesus tore apart such extra-biblical rules and their social machinations. In the process, He showed how God favors those who take care of the weak, and how the least of these are more likely to accept God's invitation to join Him in paradise for eternity. It is good to heal people on the Sabbath. It is good to serve the poor and injured who cannot repay you. It's likely that the homeless and criminals will humbly accept God's grace before hypocritical religious leaders.

But Luke doesn't want to leave the message there. The invitation to citizenship in God's kingdom is always by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:1–10) but being a good citizen of the kingdom and living out one's devotion to God has a cost. Faithful disciples value Jesus more than their parents, their spouses, and their children—even more than their own lives. Those God invites to His kingdom need to carefully consider whether a promise of future paradise is worth submitting their lives now.

This section expands the message given in Matthew 10:37–38, reframes Luke 12:51–53, and repeats what Jesus told the disciples in Luke 9:23.

Luke 14:25–33 continues Jesus' lessons on who will experience the kingdom of God. Humble, generous, and responsive people will receive God's blessings (Luke 14:1–24). Those who would be Jesus' disciples must count the cost of dedicating their lives to Him and make sure they're willing to pay it. Entering God's kingdom is free, but being a useful citizen takes sacrifice. This section on the cost of discipleship resembles Matthew 10:37–38.

Luke 14 continues Jesus' doctrinal march to Jerusalem and the cross. Luke 14 and 15 contain the second grouping of one miracle and a series of discussions about the kingdom of God and salvation; Luke 13:10–35 is the first. Next will be a collection of warnings about rejecting God's kingdom (Luke 16:1—17:10) and two more sets of lessons about the kingdom and salvation, each beginning with a single miracle (Luke 17:11—18:34; 18:35—19:27). After this comes Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem.

Luke was a traveling companion of Paul (Acts 16:10) and a physician (Colossians 4:14). Unlike Matthew, Mark, and John, Luke writes his gospel as an historian, rather than as a first-hand eyewitness. His extensive writings also include the book of Acts (Acts 1:1–3). These are deliberately organized, carefully researched accounts of those events. The gospel of Luke focuses on the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. Luke's Gentile perspective presents Christ as a Savior for all people, offering both forgiveness and direction to those who follow Him.