Luke 6:48

48 "If you work the words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who dug deep and laid the foundation of his house on bedrock. When the river burst its banks and crashed against the house, nothing could shake it; it was built to last.

Luke 6:48 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 6:48

He is like a man which built an house
That is, intended to build one, having drawn the scheme of it in his mind, and provided materials, and fixed upon the spot of ground:

and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock;
that is, he dug deep in the earth, till he came at a rock, and there, and then, he laid the foundation of his house; in which he acted the part of a wise man, as he is called in Matthew: so a sensible sinner, desirous of building his soul, and the salvation of it, on a sure bottom, digs deep into the Scriptures, diligently searches them, till he finds out the scheme of salvation by Christ; which lies deep in God's counsel and covenant, was ordained before the world began, and was hid in God till revealed in the Gospel: and finding Christ to be the rock of ages, in whom is everlasting strength, and the foundation which God has laid, nor is there another; he makes use of him as such, and builds the hope of his eternal salvation on him:

and when the flood arose;
an inundation, a multitude of waters, the swelling of the sea; or rather "when it was tide", as the word here used signifies F11:

the stream beat vehemently upon the house;
or the river, up which the tide came, dashed and broke against it; by which may be signified the temptations of Satan, the persecutions of the world, the corruptions of men's hearts, and the errors and heresies of false teachers:

and could not shake it;
as none of these can so shake as to move a soul, thus built on Christ, off of him the foundation:

for it was founded upon a rock;
(See Gill on Matthew 7:24). (See Gill on Matthew 7:25).


FOOTNOTES:

F11 Vid. Rivinum de Venilia Salacia p. 681, 632.

Luke 6:48 In-Context

46 "Why are you so polite with me, always saying 'Yes, sir,' and 'That's right, sir,' but never doing a thing I tell you?
47 These words I speak to you are not mere additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundation words, words to build a life on.
48 "If you work the words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who dug deep and laid the foundation of his house on bedrock. When the river burst its banks and crashed against the house, nothing could shake it; it was built to last.
49 But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are like a dumb carpenter who built a house but skipped the foundation. When the swollen river came crashing in, it collapsed like a house of cards. It was a total loss."
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.