Luke 14 Study Notes
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14:1-4 These verses continue the theme (see 6:1-11) of the Pharisees seeking to trap Jesus. Swollen with fluid describes a condition known as “dropsy,” the major symptom of which was swollen limbs. Jesus performed five miracles on the Sabbath in Luke (vv. 1-4; 4:31,38; 6:6; 13:10,14). The probable reason the scribes (law experts) and Pharisees refused to answer Jesus’s question about whether it was lawful to heal on the Sabbath was that others had been humiliated previously when they tried to debate Jesus on this topic (see note at 13:17).
14:5-6 The commandment not to work on the Sabbath day (Dt 5:12-14) should not have been taken to mean that rescue efforts (for people or animals) were forbidden on the Sabbath.
14:7-10 The best places at a dinner were next to the host. Jesus’s parable made the point that the danger of arrogantly taking the best place at a banquet was that the person who invited you—here representing God—could ask you to move to the lowest place at the banquet table, causing humiliation rather than honor. It was wiser to sit in the seat of the humble and then be asked to move up to a seat of higher honor.
14:11 The principle that arrogance leads to humiliation appears repeatedly in the OT Wisdom Literature, especially Proverbs. That humility can lead to exaltation is a common theme in the NT (18:14; Jms 4:10; 1Pt 5:6).
14:12-14 True hospitality (hosting a dinner or a banquet) will be blessed by the Lord if you invite those who cannot return the favor. The resurrection of the righteous is the positive side of the resurrection mentioned in Dn 12:2 and Jn 5:28-29. It is probably the same thing as “the first resurrection” mentioned in Rv 20:5-6.
14:15 The statement about being blessed to eat bread in the coming kingdom of God is true. However, the person who said this probably assumed (wrongly) that many at the table in the Pharisee’s home (v. 1) would experience this blessing. The story Jesus told next (vv. 16-24) reflected a different reality.
14:16-20 This story symbolizes being invited to the messianic banquet in the future kingdom of God (v. 15). Those who were initially invited (the religious leaders of the Jewish people) all made excuses about why they could not attend.
14:21-24 After being rejected by those who symbolized the religious leaders, the unfortunate ones to whom Jesus came to minister (Is 61:1) were invited. However, there was still room for others. So a wider group (those from the highways and hedges) was also invited. These stand for Gentiles. Non-Jewish participation in the gospel is a common theme in Luke’s Gospel.
14:25-26 Hate his own here hyperbolically expresses the same principle found in Mt 10:37, where Jesus says, “The one who loves a father or mother more than me is not worthy of me.” Both Luke and Matthew convey the same point. Disciples must love Jesus more than they love their own family members.
14:27 On bearing a cross, see note at 9:23.
14:28-32 It is necessary to calculate the cost to be a disciple of Christ. Like a person who does not foresee the full cost of building a tower and suffers ridicule for starting something he cannot finish, a disciple must understand what it will take to complete the Christian life before he makes the commitment. Similarly, a king must soberly consider the odds before deciding between war and peace.
miseo
| Greek pronunciation | [mih SEH oh] |
| CSB translation | hate |
| Uses in Luke’s Gospel | 7 |
| Uses in the NT | 40 |
| Focus passage | Luke 14:26 |
The Greek verb miseo means to hate, the antonym of love (agapao). The essence of love is caring more about others than about self, even to the point of great sacrifice—including death (Jn 15:13). Hate, on the other hand, cares little or nothing about others and actually wishes them harm or even death (Mt 24:9). With only one exception (Lk 1:71), miseo in the Gospels is always used by Jesus. By far the most difficult occurrence of miseo is Lk 14:26—difficult both to understand and to practice. In this passage Jesus seems to demand hatred, even toward one’s parents, wife, children, and siblings—those whom we are specifically told elsewhere in Scripture to honor, protect, and love. Jesus’s statement is best understood as the willingness to love him above all else. The context is Jesus’s challenge to measure the cost of being his disciple (see 14:26-35).
14:33 The essence of being a disciple of Christ is unreserved commitment to him. This involves holding loosely the material things of this world.
14:34-35 Most salt of the ancient world was impure and lost its taste easily, making it unfit to use even as fertilizer or as a catalyst for burning manure. The danger for a person who lets his witness become “unsalty” is that he may be discarded from the Lord’s service. On ears to hear, see note at 8:4-8.