Ark of the Covenant - Bible History Online
Bible History
Picture Study Bible with Maps and Background Information

Luke 18

1 - He also spoke a parable to them that they must always pray, and not give up,
2 - saying,"There was a judge in a certain city who didn't fear God, and didn't respect man.
3 - A widow was in that city, and she often came to him, saying, 'Defend me from my adversary!'
4 - He wouldn't for a while, but afterward he said to himself, 'Though I neither fear God, nor respect man,
5 - yet because this widow bothers me, I will defend her, or else she will wear me out by her continual coming.'"
6 - The Lord said,"Listen to what the unrighteous judge says.
7 - Won't God avenge his chosen ones, who are crying out to him day and night, and yet he exercises patience with them?
8 - I tell you that he will avenge them quickly. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?"
9 - He spoke also this parable to certain people who were convinced of their own righteousness, and who despised all others.
10 - "Two men went up into the temple to pray; one was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector.
11 - The Pharisee stood and prayed to himself like this: 'God, I thank you, that I am not like the rest of men, extortionists, unrighteous, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
12 - I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I get.'
13 - But the tax collector, standing far away, wouldn't even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!'
14 - I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted."
15 - They were also bringing their babies to him, that he might touch them. But when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them.
16 - Jesus summoned them, saying,"Allow the little children to come to me, and don't hinder them, for God's Kingdom belongs to such as these.
17 - Most certainly, I tell you, whoever doesn't receive God's Kingdom like a little child, he will in no way enter into it."
18 - A certain ruler asked him, saying, "Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
19 - Jesus asked him,"Why do you call me good? No one is good, except one-God.
20 - You know the commandments: 'Don't commit adultery,' 'Don't murder,' 'Don't steal,' 'Don't give false testimony,' 'Honor your father and your mother.'"Exodus 20:12-16; Deuteronomy 5:16-20
21 - He said, "I have observed all these things from my youth up."
22 - When Jesus heard these things, he said to him,"You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have, and distribute it to the poor. You will have treasure in heaven. Come, follow me."
23 - But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was very rich.
24 - Jesus, seeing that he became very sad, said,"How hard it is for those who have riches to enter into God's Kingdom!
25 - For it is easier for a camel to enter in through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into God's Kingdom."
26 - Those who heard it said, "Then who can be saved?"
27 - But he said,"The things which are impossible with men are possible with God."
28 - Peter said, "Look, we have left everything, and followed you."
29 - He said to them,"Most certainly I tell you, there is no one who has left house, or wife, or brothers, or parents, or children, for God's Kingdom's sake,
30 - who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the world to come, eternal life."
31 - He took the twelve aside, and said to them,"Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all the things that are written through the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be completed.
32 - For he will be delivered up to the Gentiles, will be mocked, treated shamefully, and spit on.
33 - They will scourge and kill him. On the third day, he will rise again."
34 - They understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they didn't understand the things that were said.
35 - As he came near Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the road, begging.
36 - Hearing a multitude going by, he asked what this meant.
37 - They told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by.
38 - He cried out, "Jesus, you son of David, have mercy on me!"
39 - Those who led the way rebuked him, that he should be quiet; but he cried out all the more, "You son of David, have mercy on me!"
40 - Standing still, Jesus commanded him to be brought to him. When he had come near, he asked him,
41 - "What do you want me to do?"He said, "Lord, that I may see again."
42 - Jesus said to him,"Receive your sight. Your faith has healed you."
43 - Immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God. All the people, when they saw it, praised God.
Luke Images and Notes

The Book of Luke

Luke 1:1-4 - Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.

Luke 2:49 - And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?

Luke 19:42 - Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things [which belong] unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.

Luke in The New Testament - A Brief Overview

Luke by El Greco 1605
Painting of St. Luke by El Greco - 1605

Introduction to The Gospel of Luke

The Word Gospel. The third book of the English Bible that most of us read from is the Gospel of Luke. Luke is the third of the four gospel writings, yet there is only one gospel about Jesus Christ and there are four different writers: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The word "Gospel" means "good news", and the good news is about Jesus Christ dying on the cross and then 3 days later conquering death and rising from the dead, offering salvation to all mankind, this is the Gospel.

Summary of The Book of Luke

Brief Summary. Jesus was the most perfect man of all men, the perfect Son of God. Completely devoted to everyone, especially the weak. He was the most humble man that ever lived, and not only a servant, but the lowest slave. He completely put others first before He thought of Himself, the Son of man.

Purpose. Luke seems to portray Jesus as an ideal man, very appealing to the Greek culture which exalted reason, philosophy, the human mind, and beauty. Luke's writings were orderly and classical. he mentions that Jesus spent the whole night in prayer before He chose His apostles (Luke 6:12-16), unlike the other Gospel accounts. There are also statements in Luke that speak of His purity more clearly, like when the centurion said "certainly this was a righteous man" (Luke 23:47). The other Gospel accounts seem to have a different focus in their portrayal of Christ. Luke also seems to reveal Christianity as a religion for all mankind and not just the Jews. For example, the lineage of Jesus is traced past Abraham all the way back to Adam the first man. Jesus is seen in Luke as a friend of sinners and a savior to anyone who would believe in Him. When considering both of Luke's works it is clear that he traces the origin, heart, and description of the Christian movement from Bethlehem to Jerusalem, to Antioch, to Macedonia, to Achaia, to Ephesus, and finally to Rome, the capital of the world. He examined eyewitnesses, knew personally and had close contact with the main followers of Christ like Mark and James, the brother of the Lord, Paul. Silas (a member of the Jerusalem Church) and no doubt many others.

Audience. Luke addressed his account of the life of Christ and the Acts of the Apostles to a man named Theophilus, yet it possesses a style that would appeal to all intelligent gentiles and would certain appeal to any believer. Theophilus could have been a gentile convert to Christianity who desired to know more of the facts surrounding the life of Jesus Christ, possibly a wealthy contributor to Christianity, no one can say for certain. The name Theophilus means "lover of God" and has been supposed by many to be a euphemism for all lovers of God in Christ.

Authorship. The gospel of Luke does not proclaim who the author is within the document, yet the historical information we have from the first two centuries of the Christian Era was unanimous in concluding that the writer was Luke. Luke also wrote the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 1:1) as a continuing document, from the birth of John the Baptist and Jesus to Paul's imprisonment and ministry in Rome.

Date. Since the Book of Acts was written while Paul was in Rome, the date of Acts would be around 62 AD, and since the Gospel of Luke was mentioned as a "former 'treatise," Luke must have been written a few years earlier.

Place. It cannot be determined with certainty where the Gospel of Luke was written. Some of the early Church writers said it was written in Achaia. Many think Acts was most likely written in Rome and therefore Luke must have also. One common speculation is that the Gospel of Luke was written in Caesarea Maritima while Paul was in prison there a couple years before his journey to Rome.

The Man Luke. Luke was a gentile (non-Jew) and was not mentioned during the actual life of Jesus, but afterward he became a Christian under the influence of Paul the Apostle. Luke was described by Paul in his letter to the Church in Colossae as "the beloved physician" (Colossians 4:14). Luke was also mentioned as a companion of Paul on his missionary journeys, and on his third and last missionary journey he said that "only Luke is with me" (2 Timothy 4:11). Luke must have been an amazing man because he claims in the beginning of his account of the life of Christ that he "investigated everything carefully" (Luke 1 :1- 4). This would mean that he would have spoken with eyewitnesses to the miracles and events surround the ministry of Jesus. He was clearly persuaded by the facts that he was told and became a devoted follower of Christ and a companion of Paul until the end. There can be no doubt that Luke was a gentile believer, even his name "Luke" is a gentiloe name. Also in Colossians 4 it mentions the names Epaphras, Demas and Luke in contrast with those "of the circumcision." It is interesting to note that early Church leaders Irenaeus, Tertullian, Origen, and Eusebius mentioned in their writings that Luke was influenced by Paul when he wrote the third Gospel account.

Language. Luke was written in Greek, he was a gentile believer and uses a style similar to other important Greek documents. He uses a popular, non-literary Greek style, omitting Semitic and Latin "barbarisms"; yet, he manifests a rich vocabulary and a high degree of literary artistry, as seen in his ability to sketch the character of an individual in a few graphic strokes of the pen. A noted French philosopher and critic of the Bible called the book of Luke "the most beautiful book ever written."

Historical Trustworthiness. Throughout the history of the Church and especially during the 1800's their has been many targeted attacks on the historical trustworthiness of Luke's writings. As the science of archaeology increased technologically and archaeological discoveries from the first century were being uncovered, Luke's writings were emerged as extremely accurate. Luke has been heralded by many scholars as one of the ablest and most accurate historians of the ancient world.

Outline of the Book of Luke

His Birth, Childhood, Early Ministry - Chapters 1:1-4:13
His Ministry in Galilee - Chapters 4:14-9:50
His Journey to Jerusalem, Ministry - Chapters 9:51-21:38
His Rejection and Death - Chapters 22:1-23:56
His Resurrection and Ascension - Chapter 24:1-53

Jesus written in Hebrew
The Name Jesus In Ancient Hebrew Text
"Yeshua" in First Century Hebrew Text. This is how the name "Jesus" would have been written in ancient Hebrew documents. The four letters or consonants from right to left are Yod, Shin, Vav, Ayin (Y, SH, OO, A). Jesus is the Greek name for the Hebrew name Joshua or Y'shua which means "The LORD or Yahweh is Salvation".

Luke Resources

Outline of the Life of Jesus in Harmony
Simple Map of First Century Israel
Topographical Map of First Century Israel
Map of the Ministry of Jesus
Map of the Roads in Ancient Israel
Map of the Roman Empire