Luke 6:30 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back.

NIV: Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.

NASB: Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back.

CSB: Give to everyone who asks you, and from someone who takes your things, don't ask for them back.

NLT: Give to anyone who asks; and when things are taken away from you, don’t try to get them back.

KJV: Give to every man that asketh of thee; and of him that taketh away thy goods ask them not again.

NKJV: Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back.

Jesus continues to explain that His followers (John 14:15) will live contrary to the pattern of the world (Luke 6:27–29). Whenever someone asks for a loan or steals, His followers will not demand to be repaid. As with any command from Christ, these lessons are not meant to be applied in immature or caricatured ways. Yet they represent a deep challenge to human nature.

The person who "begs" could be a reference to those who do so literally: the destitute and homeless who ask for help. Those who need help to survive are unlikely to be able to repay in the first place. More likely, Jesus is speaking to the wealthy in His audience who engage in the patronage system. This was a construct Luke and the Gentiles he is writing to would know well. A wealthy man would do favors for someone in need, often by lending money, and the recipient would be on-call to perform favors for the patron. Jesus is saying that His wealthy followers should give to those in need with no strings attached.

This does not mean Christians are to be naïve, ignorant, or foolish in giving charity. We need to be good stewards of the blessings God has given us. The New Testament includes verses contradicting the idea of irresponsible generosity. If someone can work, but refuses to work, they should not be supported by others (2 Thessalonians 3:10). Not even the church should receive our money if it is needed for our elderly parents (Mark 7:1–13). "Take," on the other hand, means to seize by force. Matthew applies this to lawsuits (Matthew 5:40). It can just as easily refer to theft.

We should take all those factors into consideration. Most important, though, is the context of the verse, itself. The emphasis of the verse is not on lawsuits versus begging versus loaning, nor is it advocating charity to the point of carelessness. The passage is about how we should treat our enemies. The last half of the verse, about compensation, informs the character of our generosity. Still, the lesson is that we should be willing to help our enemies as much as our friends—a point made clearer in Luke 6:32–33.

The instruction about not demanding repayment doesn't mean we can't ask people to return things they've borrowed. Nor does it mean we're obligated to do nothing, at all, when others steal, in every situation. Rather, we should carefully consider whether demanding recompense—even to the point of taking the person to court—would best illustrate the love of Christ. Considering the free gift of grace He's given us and the promise of eternal life in paradise (1 Peter 2:21–24), we should be very sure that what we're demanding back is worth "demanding," at all.

Luke 6:27–36 continues Jesus' teaching to a crowd about how His followers should live. He's explained how those who are burdened in this life due to faithfulness will find relief and those who are satisfied due to their unfaithfulness will find eternal hardship (Luke 6:20–26). Here, He commands His followers to love their enemies, a theme He will expound upon when He speaks about judging others (6:37–42). This is possible if the promises of Luke 6:22–23 are true. After explaining that our actions come from our hearts, Jesus will invite the crowd to base their identity in Him (Luke 6:43–49). Matthew 5:38–48 also speaks of loving one's enemies.

Luke 6 contains two main sections of teaching and calls to discipleship. Luke 6:1–16 continues the pattern of Luke 5. The two ways in which Jesus sets aside tradition—this time by taking authority over the Sabbath—are paired with His call for the Twelve disciples. Luke 6:17–49 records Jesus' teaching on the ''level place,'' or His ''Sermon on the Plain,'' and a call to a crowd for general discipleship. Much of this material has parallels in Matthew 5 through 7, but it's not clear if the two accounts are of the same event. As a travelling teacher, Christ likely gave the same general message multiple times.

Luke 6 completes Jesus' call for disciples and followers that started in Luke 5. Luke 5:1—6:16 consists of three calls for disciples, each paired with two revolutionary teachings about Jesus' authority that increasingly infuriate the religious leaders. Luke 6:17–49 continues the theme with a general call for followers and a description of their responsibilities. In Luke 7:1—8:3, Jesus interacts with the other: Gentiles, women, and even the dead. This is followed by another general call (Luke 8:4–21), a series of miracles (Luke 8:22—9:17), and a final call for the Twelve to follow Him even more deeply (Luke 9:18–50).

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.