Luke 17 · WEB
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Luke 17

Stumbling, forgiveness, faith and duty

He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no occasions of stumbling should come, but woe to him through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, rather than that he should cause one of these little ones to stumble. Be careful. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him. If he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in the day, and seven times returns, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”

The Lord said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you would tell this sycamore tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. But who is there among you, having a servant plowing or keeping sheep, that will say when he comes in from the field, ‘Come immediately and sit down at the table’? Wouldn’t he rather tell him, ‘Prepare my supper, clothe yourself properly, and serve me while I eat and drink. Afterward you shall eat and drink’? Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded? I think not. Even so you also, when you have done all the things that are commanded you, say, ‘We are unworthy servants. We have done our duty.’”

Jesus warns his disciples that it would be better to be thrown into the sea with a millstone round one's neck than to cause one of these little ones to stumble. They must rebuke a brother who sins and forgive him whenever he repents, even seven times in a day. When the apostles ask for more faith, he says faith like a mustard seed could uproot a tree, and that servants who have only done their duty deserve no special thanks.

What does this mean?

"Offences" (KJV) or "occasions of stumbling" are things that cause someone to sin or lose faith. The "sycamine" is the black mulberry, a tree with deep roots. "Unprofitable servants" (KJV) means servants who have done only what was required and earned no special credit.

Historical context

A millstone was a heavy stone used for grinding grain. Slaves were expected to serve their masters after a day's labour, without thanks.

Why does it matter?

"Little ones" probably means vulnerable or new believers. The saying about faith concerns its kind rather than its quantity: even a tiny, genuine faith is powerful. The closing parable warns against treating reward from God as a debt owed.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Ten lepers are healed; one returns

As he was on his way to Jerusalem, he was passing along the borders of Samaria and Galilee. As he entered into a certain village, ten men who were lepers met him, who stood at a distance. They lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”

When he saw them, he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” As they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice. He fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks; and he was a Samaritan.

Jesus answered, “Weren’t the ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there none found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Get up, and go your way. Your faith has healed you.”

On his way to Jerusalem, between Samaria and Galilee, Jesus is met by ten men with leprosy who call to him from a distance for mercy. He tells them to go and show themselves to the priests, and on the way they are cleansed. One of them, a Samaritan, comes back praising God and thanks Jesus, who asks where the other nine are and tells him that his faith has made him well.

What does this mean?

"Made thee whole" (KJV) translates a word that can also mean "saved you." "Stranger" (KJV) or "foreigner" (WEB) marks the Samaritan as an outsider. The KJV has Jesus passing "through the midst of" Samaria and Galilee; the WEB has "along the borders."

Historical context

People with such skin diseases had to keep their distance and call out a warning (Leviticus 13:45–46). Showing oneself to a priest was the required step for being declared clean (Leviticus 14). Samaritans had their own priesthood, so it is unclear where this man would have gone.

Why does it matter?

As in the parable of the good Samaritan (10:30–37), the grateful outsider is a Samaritan. All ten are healed, but only the one who returns hears that his faith has saved him, a distinction many interpreters draw between healing and a fuller salvation. Only Luke records this story.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

The coming kingdom and the day of the Son of Man

Being asked by the Pharisees when God’s Kingdom would come, he answered them, “God’s Kingdom doesn’t come with observation; neither will they say, ‘Look, here!’ or, ‘Look, there!’ for behold, God’s Kingdom is within you.”

He said to the disciples, “The days will come when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. They will tell you, ‘Look, here!’ or ‘Look, there!’ Don’t go away or follow after them, for as the lightning, when it flashes out of one part under the sky, shines to another part under the sky, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first, he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. As it was in the days of Noah, even so it will also be in the days of the Son of Man. They ate, they drank, they married, and they were given in marriage until the day that Noah entered into the ship, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise, even as it was in the days of Lot: they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but in the day that Lot went out from Sodom, it rained fire and sulfur from the sky and destroyed them all. It will be the same way in the day that the Son of Man is revealed. In that day, he who will be on the housetop and his goods in the house, let him not go down to take them away. Let him who is in the field likewise not turn back. Remember Lot’s wife! Whoever seeks to save his life loses it, but whoever loses his life preserves it. I tell you, in that night there will be two people in one bed. One will be taken and the other will be left. There will be two grinding grain together. One will be taken and the other will be left.” Verse 36 appears only in a translator’s note: Some Greek manuscripts add: “Two will be in the field: the one taken, and the other left.”

They, answering, asked him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the body is, there the vultures will also be gathered together.”

Asked by Pharisees when God's kingdom will come, Jesus says it does not come with signs to be watched for, because it is already "within" or "among" them. He then tells his disciples that the day of the Son of Man will come suddenly, like lightning, after he has first suffered and been rejected. People will be going about ordinary life, as in the days of Noah and of Lot, and one will be taken and another left.

What does this mean?

The Greek in verse 21 can mean "within you" (KJV, WEB) or "among you" or "in your midst"; many modern scholars prefer the second, since Jesus is speaking to opponents, but interpreters differ. "Eagles" (KJV) or "vultures" (WEB) gathering at a body is a proverb for something unmistakable and inevitable.

Historical context

Verse 36 ("Two men shall be in the field...") appears in the KJV but is missing from the oldest manuscripts; the WEB gives it only in a footnote. Noah's flood and the destruction of Sodom (Genesis 6–7; 19) were classic examples of sudden judgment, and Lot's wife was turned to salt when she looked back (Genesis 19:26).

Why does it matter?

Christians interpret "taken" differently: some as taken to safety, others as taken away in judgment, as in the flood. The passage holds together a kingdom already present in Jesus and a future day still to come.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Translation

KJVTraditional biblical languageWEBContemporary English

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Translation

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In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

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