Luke 12:54

Interpreting the Present Time

54 Then Jesus said to the crowds, “As soon as you see a cloud rising in the west, you say, ‘A shower is coming,’ and that is what happens. ¹

Luke 12:54 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 12:54

And he said also to the people
For what Christ had before said, were chiefly, if not solely, directed to his disciples; but now he turned himself to the innumerable multitude that were about him, and particularly addressed himself to the Scribes and Pharisees that were among them:

when ye see a cloud rise out of the west;
the watery vapours being attracted by the heat of the sun, out of the Mediterranean Sea, which lies west of the land of Judea, and formed into a cloud, and drove by the wind:

straightway ye say there comes a shower;
as soon as it is seen, it is presently concluded and affirmed, that a very heavy shower will soon fall, it having been frequently observed so to do, when this has been the case:

and so it is;
for the most part, there commonly follows a large shower on such an appearance, and they were seldom mistaken in their conclusions.

Luke 12:54 In-Context

52 From now on, five in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three.

53 They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law. ”

54 Then Jesus said to the crowds, “As soon as you see a cloud rising in the west, you say, ‘A shower is coming,’ and that is what happens.

55 And when the south wind blows, you say, ‘It will be hot,’ and it is.

56 You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and sky. Why don’t you know how to interpret the present time?

Cross References

• 1. (Matthew 16:1–4; Mark 8:11–13)