Luke 10:25 - Albert Barnes' Bible Commentary A CERTAIN LAWYER - One who professed to be well skilled in the laws of Moses, and whose business it was to explain them. STOOD UP - Rose - came forward to address him.
Full Answer
âOn the word âlawyerâ and its difference from the more generic âscribe,â see Note on Matthew 22:35. Here, as there, the âtemptingâ does not necessarily imply hostile purpose. It was simply a test-question to see if the new Teacher was sound in His view of the ethical obligations of the Law.
Luke 10:25- Luke 10:37. The lawyerâs first question was intended to âtemptâ Jesus, which here seems to mean, rather, âto testâ; that is, to ascertain His orthodoxy or His ability. Christ walks calmly through the snare, as if not seeing it.
Luke 10:25ff. This transaction is differentfrom the later narrative of Matthew 22:35ff. (comp. Mark 12:28ff.). The fact that the same passages of the law are quoted cannot outweigh the difference of time and place, of the point of the question, of the person quoting the passages, and of the further course of the conference.
Luke 10:26; Luke 10:26. He came to catechize Christ, and to know him; but Christ will catechize him, and make him know himself. He talks to him as a lawyer, as one conversant in the law: the studies of his profession would inform him; let him practise according to his knowledge, and he should not come short of eternal life.
Saul, a Jew, later called Paul, was born in the predominately Greek city of Tarsus located in Asia Minor.
The moral is that only when we have had the experience of being rescued by grace can we really become like the Samaritan, and like Christ himself, in showing mercy and compassion.
The parable of the Good Samaritan can be found in Luke 10:25-37. In Luke, Jesus presents this parable after a lawyer tries to test Jesus in the beginning of verse 25 by asking him how he can inherit eternal life. The lawyer knows that to inherit eternal life the law states, amongst other things, to love your neighbor.
This is when he told the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), to explain that people should love everyone, including their enemies. It is easy to love friends and family, but it is much more difficult to love those who you may not get along with, or even those who may harm or hurt you.
And the lawyer replied: "He that shewed mercy on him." Then Jesus delivered His final instruction to the lawyer â and to all who have read the parable of the good Samaritan: "Go, and do thou likewise" (see Luke 10:25â37).
Good Samaritan laws are written to encourage bystanders to get involved in these and other emergency situations without fear that they will be sued if their actions inadvertently contribute to a person's injury or death.
Jesus is described as telling the parable in response to a provocative question from a lawyer, "And who is my neighbor?", in the context of the Great Commandment. The conclusion is that the neighbor figure in the parable is the one who shows mercy to the injured fellow manâthat is, the Samaritan.
To be a neighbor, according to Jesus, means to come alongside someone. As Christian Americans, we must remember that we are Christians first, and Americans second. Our nationality should never surpass our faith and its duties. This is what we must keep in mind when we consider our âneighborâ.
In Jesus' story, the first person to see the victim is a priest, but rather than get involved, he passes by on the other side of the road. He is followed by a Levite, a temple-worker. The Levite does the sameâhe passes by. Then along comes a Samaritan.
Samaritan, member of a community, now nearly extinct, that claims to be related by blood to those Israelites of ancient Samaria who were not deported by the Assyrian conquerors of the kingdom of Israel in 722 bce.
The thieves who attack the man represent hostile forces in the world. The priest who passes by the man in need represents the Law, while the Levite represents the prophets; but the Samaritan represents Christ.
For three years the Lord Jesus presented Himself to the lost sheep of the house of Israel as their promised Messiah. He was the Saviour Whom prophets foretold would save His people from their sins..
Heavenly Father, thank You that Jesus died for my sins so that by faith in Him I will not perish by have everlasting life. Keep me from legalistic thinking that I can able to DO something to add to Christ finished work on the cross.
The incident that Mark recorded in Mark 12:28-34 is quite similar to this one, but the differences in the accounts point to two separate situations. In view of the question at stake it is easy to see how people might have asked it of Jesus many different times. Furthermore this particular question was of great concern to the scribes, who studied the law professionally. The fact that the Holy Spirit recorded the same lesson twice in Scripture is a testimony to His greatness as a teacher since great teachers deliberately repeat themselves.
The present section also reminds the reader of Jesusâ allegiance to the Old Testament Scriptures, which He viewed as authoritative. Thus it balances Jesusâ former words about Him revealing the Father ( Luke 10:22) with the importance of Scripture in that process. Copyright Statement. These files are public domain.
Jesus then forced the questioner to answer his own question . The example that he had to follow was not that of the religious purists, but that of the despised foreigner. If a person loves his neighbour as himself, he will act kindly towards anyone that he happens to meet, even enemies ( Luke 10:36-37 ).
A Jewish teacher of the law came to Jesus to test him with a question about eternal life. His question showed that he thought of eternal life as something to be obtained by some special act. Jesusâ reply showed that obtaining eternal life is inseparably linked with the way people live their daily lives.
Many of the more popular modern translations (ASV, ESV, KJV, NKJV, RSV, NRSV) use the English word lawyer to translate the Greek nomikos (νοΟΚκĎĎ, Strongâs 3544), which Vineâs Complete Expository Dictionary defines as âlearned in the law.â The NIV captures this with its translation of the term as âexpert in the law.â
The Sadducees were primarily aristocrats. Most were priests, but not all priests were Sadducees.
So who are we dealing with in Luke 10? We cannot be certain, but the lawyer whose question resulted in the parable was probably a Pharisee. There are several reasons for believing this. The strongest indication is the lawyerâs first question: âwhat must I do to inherit eternal life?â ( Luke 10:25 ).
Luke 10:25 (ASV) And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and made trial of him, saying, Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
Luke 10:25 (BBE) And a certain teacher of the law got up and put him to the test, saying, Master, what have I to do so that I may have eternal life?
Luke 10:25 (CEB) A legal expert stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he said, "what must I do to gain eternal life?"
Luke 10:25 (CJB) An expert in Torah stood up to try and trap him by asking, "Rabbi, what should I do to obtain eternal life?"
Luke 10:25 (CSB) Just then an expert in the law stood up to test Him, saying, "Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
Luke 10:25 (DBY) And behold, a certain lawyer stood up tempting him, and saying, Teacher, having done what, shall I inherit life eternal?
Luke 10:25 (ESV) And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
Notice that the lawyer was testing Jesus (v. 25) and asked what works he must do to have eternal life . The lawyer obviously had faith in God that produced good works consistent with the Law since he quoted the Law to Jesus when Jesus asked him what was written in the Law. Jesus commends him on his answer about loving God ...
Jesus applies peoplesâ own standards to themselves when they seek to be justified before God. If you hold to justification by faith alone , then the standard is not works but faith in Christâs work. If your standard is faith and works, then youâre obligated to keep the Law. However, such a standard can save no one.
Jesus commends him on his answer about loving God and loving oneâs neighbor and then follows up with the story of the Good Samaritan ( Luke 10:30-37) to show that works of love are the fulfillment of Loving Your Neighbor. This is why Jesus said, âDo this and you will live.â. Jesus was pointing the Lawyer to the law and requiring it of him.