Lùjiāfúyīn 18

1 Yēsū shè yī gè bǐyù , shì yào rén chángcháng dǎogào , bùkĕ huīxīn .

2 Shuō , mǒu chéng lǐ yǒu yī gè guān , bú jùpà shén , yĕ bù zūnzhòng shìrén .

3 Nà chéng lǐ yǒu gè guǎfu , cháng dào Tānàli , shuō , wǒ yǒu yī gè duìtóu , qiú nǐ gĕi wǒ shēnyuān .

4 Tā duō rì bù zhǔn . hòulái xīnli shuō , wǒ suī bú jùpà shén , yĕ bù zūnzhòng shìrén .

5 Zhǐ yīn zhè guǎfu fánrǎo wǒ , wǒ jiù gĕi tā shēnyuān ba . miǎndé tā cháng lái chánmo wǒ .

6 Zhǔ shuō , nǐmen tīng zhè bú yì zhī guān suǒ shuō de huà .

7 Shén de xuǎn mín , zhòuyè hūyù tā , tā zòngrán wèi tāmen rĕn le duō shí , qǐbù zhōngjiǔ gĕi tāmen shēnyuān ma .

8 Wǒ gàosu nǐmen , yào kuaì kuaì de gĕi tāmen shēnyuān le , ránér Rénzǐ lái de shíhou , yù de jiàn shìshang yǒu xìn dé ma .

9 Yēsū xiàng nàxiē zhàng zhe zìjǐ shì yì rén , miǎoshì biérén de , shè yī gè bǐyù ,

10 Shuō , yǒu liǎng gèrén shàng diàn lǐ qù dǎogào . yī gè shì Fǎlìsaìrén , yī gè shì shuìlì .

11 Fǎlìsaìrén zhàn zhe , zìyánzìyǔ de dǎogào shuō , shén a , wǒ gǎnxiè nǐ , wǒ bú xiàng biérén , lèsuǒ , bú yì , jiānyín , yĕ bú xiàng zhège shuìlì .

12 Wǒ yī gè lǐbaì jìnshí liǎng cì , fán wǒ suǒ de de , dōu juān shàng shí fēn zhīyī .

13 Nà shuìlì yuǎn yuǎn de zhàn zhe , lián jǔmù wàng tiān yĕ bù gǎn , zhǐ chuí zhe xiōng shuō , shén a , kāiēn kĕliàn wǒ zhège zuì rén .

14 Wǒ gàosu nǐmen , zhè rén huí jiā qù , bǐ nà rén dàosuàn wéi yì le , yīnwei fán zì gāo de , bì jiàng wéi bēi , zìbēi de , bì shēng wéi gāo .

15 Yǒu rén bào zhe zìjǐ de yīnghái , lái jiàn Yēsū , yào tā mō tāmen , méntǔ kànjian jiù zébeì nàxiē rén .

16 Yēsū què jiào tāmen lái , shuō , ràng xiǎo háizi dào wǒ zhèlǐ lái , búyào jìnzhǐ tāmen , yīnwei zaì shén guó de , zhèng shì zhèyàng de rén

17 Wǒ shízaì gàosu nǐmen , fán yào chéngshòu shén guó de , ruò bú xiàng xiǎo háizi , duàn bùnéng jìn qù .

18 Yǒu yī gè guān wèn Yēsū shuō , shànliáng de fūzǐ , wǒ gāi zuò shénme shì , cái kĕyǐ chéngshòu yǒngshēng .

19 Yēsū duì tā shuō , nǐ wèishénme chēng wǒ shì liángshàn de , chúle shén yī wèi zhī waì , zaì méiyǒu liángshàn de .

20 Jièméng nǐ shì xiǎodé de , bùkĕ jiānyín , bùkĕ shārén , bùkĕ tōudào , bùkĕ zuò jiǎ jiànzhèng , dāng xiàojìng fùmǔ .

21 Nà rén shuō , zhè yīqiè wǒ cóng xiǎo dōu zūnshǒu le .

22 Yēsū tīngjian le , jiù shuō , nǐ hái quē shǎo yī jiàn , yào biànmaì nǐ yīqiè suǒyǒude , fēn gĕi qióngrén , jiù bì yǒu cáibǎo zaì tiān shàng . nǐ hái yào lái gēn cóng wǒ .

23 Tā tīngjian zhè huà , jiù shèn yōuchóu , yīnwei tā hĕn fùzú .

24 Yēsū kànjian tā jiù shuō , yǒu qiáncái de rén jìn shén de guó , shì hédĕng de nán nǎ .

25 Luòtuo chuānguò zhēn de yǎn , bǐ cáizhǔ jìn shén de guó , hái róngyi ne .

26 Tīngjian de rén shuō , zhèyàng , shuí néng déjiù ne .

27 Yēsū shuō , zaì rén suǒ bùnéng de shì , zaì shén què néng .

28 Bǐdé shuō , kàn nǎ , wǒmen yǐjing piē xià zìjǐ suǒyǒude gēn cóng nǐ le .

29 Yēsū shuō , wǒ shízaì gàosu nǐmen , rén wèi shén de guó , piē xià fángwū , huò shì qīzi , dìxiōng , fùmǔ , érnǚ ,

30 Méiyǒu zaì jīnshì bùdé bǎi beì , zaì láishì bùdé yǒngshēng de .

31 Yēsū daì zhe shí èr gè méntǔ , duì tāmen shuō , kàn nǎ , wǒmen shàng Yēlùsǎlĕng qù , xiānzhī suǒ xiĕ de yīqiè shì , dōu chéngjiù zaì Rénzǐ shēnshang .

32 Tā jiāngyào beì jiāo gĕi waìbāngrén , tāmen yào xìnòng tā , língrǔ tā , tǔ tuòmo zaì tā liǎn shàng .

33 Bìng yào biāndǎ tā , shāhaì tā , dì sān rì tā yào fùhuó .

34 Zhèxie shì méntǔ yíyàng yĕ bù dǒng de , yìsi nǎi shì yǐncáng de , tāmen bù xiǎodé suǒ shuō de shì shénme .

35 Yēsū jiāng jìn Yēlìgē de shíhou , yǒu yī gè xiāzi zuò zaì lùpáng tǎofàn .

36 Tīngjian xǔduō rén jīngguò , jiù wèn shì shénme shì .

37 Tāmen gàosu tā , shì Násǎlè rén Yēsū jīngguò .

38 Tā jiù hūjiào shuō , Dàwèi de zǐsūn Yēsū a , kĕliàn wǒ ba .

39 Zaì qiántou zǒu de rén , jiù zébeì tā , bù xǔ tā zuò shēng . tā què yuèfā hǎnjiào shuō , Dàwèi de zǐsūn , kĕliàn wǒ ba .

40 Yēsū zhàn zhù , fēnfu bǎ tā lǐng guò lái . dào le gēnqián , jiù wèn tā shuō ,

41 Nǐ yào wǒ wèi nǐ zuò shénme . tā shuō , Zhǔ a , wǒ yào néng kànjian .

42 Yēsū shuō , nǐ kĕyǐ kànjian . nǐde xìn jiù le nǐ le .

43 Xiāzi lìkè kànjian le , jiù gēnsuí Yēsū , yīlù guī róngyào yǔ shén . zhòngrén kànjian zhè shì , yĕ zànmĕi shén .

Lùjiāfúyīn 18 Commentary

Chapter 18

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 foreshows his death. (31-34) A blind man restored to sight. (35-43)

Verses 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.

Verses 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.

Verses 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.

Verses 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 loth 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 wordly 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.

Verses 31-34 The Spirit of Christ, in the Old Testament prophets, testified beforehand his sufferings, and the glory that should ( 1 Peter. 1:11 ) 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.

Verses 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.