The Gospel of Luke

by Pablo T. Gadenz

  Because of the context of Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem, a few scholars interpret these parables as applying in some way to Jesus.17 In Jerusalem, he will be acclaimed king (19:38) and will spend his time in the temple (19:47), which was often symbolized by a tower (see comment on 13:6–9). Although the details of such interpretations are difficult to sort out (e.g., which king in the parable would represent Jesus?), already the reference to the cross in the second condition of discipleship (14:27) suggests some connection to Jesus: it is because of the cross of Jesus that disciples are called to carry their own cross. Interestingly, the verb laugh at, or mock, in the first parable is elsewhere used in Luke only to refer to the mockery that Jesus experiences in his passion and on the cross (18:32; 22:63; 23:11, 36).

  [14:33]

  Jesus continues with the third condition of discipleship. A disciple is ready to renounce all his possessions. For example, among the early Christians, there were disciples who freely sold their property and possessions and gave the proceeds to the apostles for distribution among those in need (Acts 2:45; 4:34–37). More generally, Jesus calls all his disciples to be detached from their possessions (see Luke 12:15).

  [14:34–35]

  The final saying regarding salt that loses its taste and is thrown out may refer to those who fail to make the radical commitment just described. Such tasteless salt is like the seed that fails to produce fruit (8:7, 14). At the end of that parable (8:8) and at the end of these sayings on discipleship, Jesus gives the same warning: Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear.

  1. A Jewish work from around AD 100 expresses such a view: 4 Ezra 7.47; 8.1, 3; 9.15.

  2. David Ravens, Luke and the Restoration of Israel (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 1995), 100–102, notes that the parallel passage in Matthew only mentions east and west (Matt 8:11), whereas Luke also includes north and south. See Jer 3:11–12; 16:15.

  3. Jewish sources similarly use a banquet to describe life in the age to come; see, e.g., m. Avot 4:16.

  4. Josephus, Jewish Antiquities 17.188, 318.

  5. Plato, Republic 2.8 (365c).

  6. Neh 4:3 RSV.

  7. James R. Edwards, The Gospel according to Luke, PNTC (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2015), 405.

  8. See Yuzuru Miura, David in Luke-Acts: His Portrayal in Light of Early Judaism (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2007), 216–25.

  9. Josephus, Jewish Antiquities 20.200.

  10. See Vatican II, Nostra Aetate (Declaration on the Relation of the Church to Non-Christian Religions) 4.

  11. E.g., Polybius, Histories 13.2.2.

  12. Some manuscripts read “ass or ox,” the same animals as in 13:15.

  13. Ezek 21:26 RSV.

  14. That the master of the house is angry (in a rage) refers to the “wrathful judgment” (Luke 21:23) about which Jesus has repeatedly been warning the people (e.g., 13:35).

  15. Whereas the Pharisees here neglect to invite the poor and those with disabilities, the Essenes at Qumran went further in excluding from the community and from the messianic banquet the “paralyzed, . . . lame, blind, deaf, dumb,” etc.; see 1Q28a (Rule of the Congregation) II, 3–22, in The Dead Sea Scrolls Study Edition, ed. Florentino García Martínez and Eibert J. C. Tigchelaar, 2 vols. (Leiden: Brill; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000), 1:103.

  16. Kathryn Spink, Mother Teresa: An Authorized Biography, rev. ed. (New York: HarperCollins, 2011), 6.

  17. See, e.g., Crispin H. T. Fletcher-Louis, “Jesus Inspects His Priestly War Party (Luke 14:25–35),” in The Old Testament in the New Testament, ed. Steve Moyise (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 2000), 126–43, from which are also drawn several other ideas in the comment on Luke 14:28–32.

  Parables about Repentance and Riches

  Luke 15:1–17:10

  Jesus teaches mainly through parables in this next unit (15:1–17:10) of the central section (9:51–19:44). He alternately addresses the Pharisees (15:2–3; 16:14–15) and the disciples (16:1; 17:1) in the presence of one another, so that they both may learn what to do and what to avoid. In the three “lost and found” parables of Luke 15, he explains his outreach to sinners and reveals the Father’s mercy. Afterward, he gives instruction on the relationship between God and mammon.

  The Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin (15:1–10)

  1The tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to him, 2but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” 3So to them he addressed this parable. 4“What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it? 5And when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy 6and, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ 7I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.

  8“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one would not light a lamp and sweep the house, searching carefully until she finds it? 9And when she does find it, she calls together her friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’ 10In just the same way, I tell you, there will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

  OT: Isa 40:11; Ezek 18:23; 34:4, 11–12, 16

  NT: Luke 5:29–32; 7:34; 19:1–10. // Matt 18:12–14

  Catechism: Jesus eats with sinners and reveals God’s mercy, 545, 589, 1443, 1846; the sacrament of penance, 1465

  Lectionary: Luke 15:1–32: Twenty-Fourth Sunday Ordinary Time (Year C); Luke 15:3–7: Sacred Heart

  [15:1–2]

  Among those with “ears to hear” (14:35) are the tax collectors and sinners, who come to listen to (or “hear”) Jesus (see 5:1; 6:47; 9:35; 10:39). Ever since Levi’s banquet (5:29), Jesus has a reputation as “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (7:34). He calls them to repentance (5:32), and many who come are undoubtedly moved to repent (see 15:7, 10, 18, 21). They are the “sick” who “need a physician” (5:31). They are among the “poor,” “crippled,” “blind,” and “lame” who should be invited to a banquet (14:13, 21), which Jesus effectively does as he eats with them.

  However, as before (5:30), the Pharisees and scribes object to such table fellowship with those regarded as sinners. As members of “this generation” (7:31; 11:29–32), they complain or grumble (see 5:30; 19:7), just like Israel’s wilderness generation who grumbled against God and Moses (Exod 15:24; 16:7).

  [15:3–6]

  Jesus defends his outreach to sinners with a parable—probably referring to all three “lost and found” parables in Luke 15. The lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son correspond to the tax collectors and sinners. The man with the sheep, the woman with the coins, and the father with the two sons are used to describe how God reaches out to such sinners through Jesus’ ministry. Besides the image of finding something or someone lost (15:4, 8, 24, 32), what unites the three parables is the resulting joy (15:5–7, 9–10, 22–24, 32).

  In the Old Testament, God is frequently represented as a shepherd of his people (Gen 48:15; 49:24; Ps 23; Jer 23:3). A shepherd who searches for the lost sheep more specifically echoes the book of Ezekiel, where God denounces Israel’s leaders for failing in this regard—“You did not bring back the stray or seek the lost” (Ezek 34:4 [emphasis added])—and so promises to do it himself—“The lost I will search out” (Ezek 34:16 [emphasis added]). Moreover, he will set up a good shepherd for them, the Messiah: “I will appoint one shepherd over them to pasture them, my servant David” (Ezek 34:23). By his outreach to tax collectors (like Zacchaeus, Luke 19:1–10), Jesus is fulfilling this plan, “for the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (19:10 NIV [emphasis added]).

  The shepherd is determined to find the lost sheep. To him, it is not inconsequential compared to the ninety-nine.1 It is not just one of an anonymous herd. For h
im, every sheep counts! On finding it, he carries it on his shoulders, an image suggesting Israel’s return from exile (see Isa 40:11; 49:22). Indeed, by bringing back sinners, Jesus is accomplishing Israel’s true restoration. The resulting joy outweighs the time and effort involved. It is a contagious joy that must be shared with friends and neighbors: Rejoice with me!

  [15:7]

  Jesus applies the parable’s lesson to his ministry to tax collectors. A sheep cannot itself express repentance, so he explains that it represents the sinner who repents.2 In this context, the ninety-nine righteous people may correspond ironically to those like the Pharisees (15:2) who think they have no need of repentance (see 18:9).

  The celebration represents the joy in heaven of “the angels of God” (15:10) and of God himself: “Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, says the Lord GOD, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?” (Ezek 18:23 RSV).

  [15:8–9]

  Like the two earlier parables of the kingdom of God (Luke 13:18–21), the first parable here involved a man and now the second involves a woman. These parables also include male (15:6) and female (v. 9) friends and neighbors. The woman’s coins are Greek silver drachmas, each worth approximately the same value as the Roman denarius (7:41; 10:35; 20:24)—in other words, a day’s wage, something worth looking for! Her various actions again express the determination and diligence of the one searching, suggesting how God relentlessly seeks out the sinner. The joy when the lost coin is found is likewise to be shared: Rejoice with me!

  [15:10]

  As in verse 7, Jesus applies the parable to explain his outreach in calling sinners to repentance (5:32). The lost and found coin represents a sinner who repents. Again, there is also an emphasis on the rejoicing that takes place in heaven.

  The Compassionate Father and His Two Sons (15:11–32)

  11Then he said, “A man had two sons, 12and the younger son said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them. 13After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation. 14When he had freely spent everything, a severe famine struck that country, and he found himself in dire need. 15So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens who sent him to his farm to tend the swine. 16And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed, but nobody gave him any. 17Coming to his senses he thought, ‘How many of my father’s hired workers have more than enough food to eat, but here am I, dying from hunger. 18I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19I no longer deserve to be called your son; treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers.”’ 20So he got up and went back to his father. While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him. 21His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son.’ 22But his father ordered his servants, ‘Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23Take the fattened calf and slaughter it. Then let us celebrate with a feast, 24because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.’ Then the celebration began. 25Now the older son had been out in the field and, on his way back, as he neared the house, he heard the sound of music and dancing. 26He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean. 27The servant said to him, ‘Your brother has returned and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ 28He became angry, and when he refused to enter the house, his father came out and pleaded with him. 29He said to his father in reply, ‘Look, all these years I served you and not once did I disobey your orders; yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends. 30But when your son returns who swallowed up your property with prostitutes, for him you slaughter the fattened calf.’ 31He said to him, ‘My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. 32But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’”

  OT: Gen 33:4; 41:42; 46:29–30; Lev 11:7; Deut 14:8; 21:17; Jer 31:18–20

  NT: Matt 21:28–32; Luke 6:36

  Catechism: conversion and repentance, 1439, 2795; praying like the prodigal son, 2839; the Father’s mercy, 1700; the sacrament of penance, 1423, 1465, 1468

  Lectionary: Luke 15:1–32: Twenty-Fourth Sunday Ordinary Time (Year C); Luke 15:1–3, 11–32: Fourth Sunday Lent (Year C); Saturday Second Week of Lent

  Like the two previous parables, the familiar story of the “prodigal son” highlights the joy in heaven that results from even one sinner who repents. It thus justifies Jesus’ outreach and table fellowship with tax collectors (15:1–2). However, through the accompanying account of the older son, the parable also invites the Pharisees and scribes (15:2) to overcome their grumbling and join in the celebration. Moreover, through the figure of the compassionate father, the parable reveals the merciful Father (see 6:36) who desires all his children to come to the heavenly banquet.

  LIVING TRADITION

  Two Peoples

  St. Augustine is one of many Church Fathers who interpret the two sons in terms of Israel and the nations: “The man who has two sons is God who has two peoples; the elder son is the people of the Jews, the younger the people of the Gentiles.”a He reflects on the parable with the help of Paul: “A hardening has come upon Israel in part, until the full number of the Gentiles comes in, and thus all Israel will be saved” (Rom 11:25–26):

  When the fullness of the Gentiles has entered, therefore, his father will go out at the right time so that all of Israel may also be saved. Its blindness was partly caused as though in the case of him who was absent in the field, until the fullness of the younger son, who was living far away in the idolatry of the Gentiles, returned and entered to eat the calf. For the calling of the Jews to the salvation of the Gospel will eventually be manifest. He calls the disclosure of their calling the father’s going out to plead with the elder son.b

  a. Augustine, Sermon 112A.2, in Sermons, trans. Edmund Hill, 11 vols., WSA III/4 (Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 1990–97), 4:154.

  b. Augustine, Questions on the Gospels 2.33.5, in New Testament I and II, trans. Roland Teske, WSA I/15–I/16 (Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 2014), 396.

  Whereas the parable’s immediate context involves Pharisees and tax collectors, the broader context of Luke-Acts suggests another similar scenario that arose in the early Church when certain Jewish disciples objected to Peter’s table fellowship with Gentiles (Acts 11:2–3, 18). Applying the parable to this situation, one arrives at the frequent interpretation found among the Church Fathers, where the older son represents Israel (see Exod 4:22) and the younger son—living in a distant country, not observing the law, and tending swine—represents the Gentiles.

  [15:11]

  The man had two sons, and the parable in two parts deals with each individually (Luke 15:12–24, 25–32). In each part, there is a dialogue between one son and the father. The structure thus suggests a comparison between the two sons, but also puts the emphasis on the father, who has the last word.

  [15:12]

  An inheritance was typically distributed after death (Num 27:8–11), but it was possible, though not advised, to do so while a person was still alive (Sir 33:20–24). However, the younger son takes the initiative here with his demand: give me my share. For him, the father might as well be dead. Under no obligation and despite the shame incurred, the father nonetheless complies out of respect for the younger son’s free decision. Since the firstborn son would receive a double portion (Deut 21:17), the younger son apparently received a third of the property. The remaining two-thirds is destined for the older son, so the father does not exaggerate when he later says, “Everything I have is yours” (Luke 15:3
1).

  [15:13–16]

  The younger son leaves for a distant country. There, he squandered his inheritance, spending it on a life of dissipation—“with prostitutes” (v. 30), the older son will speculate. In order to survive when a famine strikes, he finds a job tending swine, an unclean animal for Jews (see 8:32–34; Lev 11:7; Deut 14:8). He is living like a Gentile: “far off” and “alienated from the community of Israel . . . without hope and without God in the world” (Eph 2:12–13).

  [15:17–19]

  Though he considered his father to be dead to him, now he realizes that he is the one dying or perishing. This is the same verb used six other times in the chapter with the meaning “lose” or “be lost” (Luke 15:4, 6, 8–9, 24, 32). Therefore, just as the sheep and coin were lost, the son is lost. The difference is that, coming to his senses, he is aware that he is lost. Thus, whereas the first two parables need Jesus’ explanation about the repentant sinner (15:7, 10), here the son in the parable can express repentance himself: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. This confession is rehearsed and then repeated (v. 21), giving it emphasis. It echoes confessions in the Old Testament that understand sins against individuals to be offenses ultimately against God (Exod 10:16; Ps 51:6). Though he feels unworthy to be called son, he nonetheless still plans to address his confession to his father. He remembers his father’s benevolence: even the hired workers have more than enough food (literally, “bread”). He resolves to get up (verb anistēmi) and go back. The verb “get up” (repeated in Luke 15:20) is one of the verbs used for Jesus’ resurrection (18:33; 24:7, 46). Thus, by his repentance, the “dead” son is already coming “to life again” (15:24, 32).