Luke 12:37
New International Version
It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.

New Living Translation
The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat!

English Standard Version
Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them.

Berean Standard Bible
Blessed are those servants whom the master finds on watch when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve and will have them recline at the table, and he himself will come and wait on them.

Berean Literal Bible
Blessed are those servants whom, having come, the master will find watching. Truly I say to you that he will gird himself and will make them recline, and having come up, will serve them.

King James Bible
Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them.

New King James Version
Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them.

New American Standard Bible
Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will prepare himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and he will come up and serve them.

NASB 1995
“Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them.

NASB 1977
“Blessed are those slaves whom the master shall find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them.

Legacy Standard Bible
Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find awake when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them.

Amplified Bible
Blessed (happy, prosperous, to be admired) are those servants whom the master finds awake and watching when he arrives. I assure you and most solemnly say to you, he will prepare himself to serve, and will have them recline at the table, and will come and wait on them.

Christian Standard Bible
Blessed will be those servants the master finds alert when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will get ready, have them recline at the table, then come and serve them.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Those slaves the master will find alert when he comes will be blessed. I assure you: He will get ready, have them recline at the table, then come and serve them.

American Standard Version
Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them sit down to meat, and shall come and serve them.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
“Blessings to those servants whom, when their Lord will come, he shall find while they are watching. Amen, I say to you, that he shall gird his waist and he shall make them recline and he shall go through and shall wait on them.”

Contemporary English Version
Servants are fortunate if their master finds them awake and ready when he comes! I promise you he will get ready and let his servants sit down so he can serve them.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Blessed are those servants, whom the Lord when he cometh, shall find watching. Amen I say to you, that he will gird himself, and make them sit down to meat, and passing will minister unto them.

English Revised Version
Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them sit down to meat, and shall come and serve them.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. I can guarantee this truth: He will change his clothes, make them sit down at the table, and serve them.

Good News Translation
How happy are those servants whose master finds them awake and ready when he returns! I tell you, he will take off his coat, have them sit down, and will wait on them.

International Standard Version
How blessed are those servants whom the master finds watching for him when he comes! I tell all of you with certainty, he himself will put on an apron, make them sit down at the table, and go around and serve them.

Literal Standard Version
Blessed those servants, whom the lord, having come, will find watching; truly I say to you that he will gird himself, and will cause them to recline, and having come near, will minister to them;

Majority Standard Bible
Blessed are those servants whom the master finds on watch when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve and will have them recline at the table, and he himself will come and wait on them.

New American Bible
Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival. Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself, have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them.

NET Bible
Blessed are those slaves whom their master finds alert when he returns! I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, have them take their place at the table, and will come and wait on them!

New Revised Standard Version
Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them.

New Heart English Bible
Blessed are those servants, whom the lord will find watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, that he will dress himself, and make them recline, and will come and serve them.

Webster's Bible Translation
Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say to you, that he will gird himself, and make them to sit down to eat, and will come forth and serve them.

Weymouth New Testament
Blessed are those servants, whom their Master when He comes shall find on the watch. I tell you in solemn truth, that He will tie an apron round Him, and will bid them recline at table while He comes and waits on them.

World English Bible
Blessed are those servants whom the lord will find watching when he comes. Most certainly I tell you that he will dress himself, make them recline, and will come and serve them.

Young's Literal Translation
'Happy those servants, whom the lord, having come, shall find watching; verily I say to you, that he will gird himself, and will cause them to recline (at meat), and having come near, will minister to them;

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Be Ready for Service
36Then you will be like servants waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks, they can open the door for him at once. 37Blessed are those servants whom the master finds on watch when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve and will have them recline at the table, and he himself will come and wait on them. 38Even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night and finds them alert, those servants will be blessed.…

Cross References
Matthew 24:42
Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day on which your Lord will come.

Luke 12:36
Then you will be like servants waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks, they can open the door for him at once.

Luke 17:8
Instead, won't he tell him, 'Prepare my meal and dress yourself to serve me while I eat and drink; and afterward you may eat and drink'?

Luke 22:27
For who is greater, the one who reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines? But I am among you as one who serves.

John 12:26
If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, My servant will be as well. If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.

John 13:4
So He got up from the supper, laid aside His outer garments, and wrapped a towel around His waist.

Revelation 16:15
"Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who remains awake and clothed, so that he will not go naked and let his shame be exposed."


Treasury of Scripture

Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he comes shall find watching: truly I say to you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them.

Blessed.

Luke 12:43
Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.

Luke 21:36
Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

Matthew 24:45-47
Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? …

that.

Isaiah 62:5
For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.

Jeremiah 32:41
Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul.

Zephaniah 3:17
The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.

Jump to Previous
Alert Bid Blessed Dress Eat Find Finds Forth Gird Good Master Meat Recline Round Servants Serve Sit Slaves Solemn Table Tie Truth Verily Wait Waits Watching
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Alert Bid Blessed Dress Eat Find Finds Forth Gird Good Master Meat Recline Round Servants Serve Sit Slaves Solemn Table Tie Truth Verily Wait Waits Watching
Luke 12
1. Jesus preaches to his apostles to avoid hypocrisy
13. and warns against covetousness, by the parable of the man who set up greater barns.
22. We must not worry about earthly things,
31. but seek the kingdom of God;
33. give alms;
35. be ready at a knock to open to our Lord whensoever he comes.
41. Jesus' disciples are to see to their charges,
49. and look for persecution.
54. The people must take this time of grace;
57. because it is a fearful thing to die without reconciliation.














(37) He shall gird himself.--The words give a new significance to the act of our Lord in John 13:4. Their real fulfilment is to be found, it need hardly be said, in the far-off completion of the Kingdom, or in the ever-recurring experiences which are the foretastes of that Kingdom; but the office which He then assumed must have reminded the disciples of the words which are recorded here, and may well have been intended to be at once a symbol and an earnest of what should be hereafter. In the promise of Revelation 3:20 ("I will sup with him and he with Me") we have a recurrence to the same imagery. The passage should be borne in mind as balancing the seeming harshness of the Master in Luke 17:8.

To sit down.--Literally, to lie down, or recline.

Will come forth . . .--Better, and as He passes on will minister unto them. The Greek verb expresses, not the "coming out" as from another chamber, but the passing from one to another, as when He washed the disciples' feet, in John 13:5.

Verse 37. - Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. The title "blessed," when used by our Lord, is ever a very lofty one, and implies some rare and precious virtue in the one to whom this title to honor is given. It seems as though the house-master of the parable scarcely expected such true devotion from his servants; so he hastens to reward a rare virtue with equally rare blessedness and honor. He raises the slaves to a position of equality with their master. These true faithful ones are no longer his servants; they are his friends. He even deigns himself to minister to their wants. A similar lofty promise is made in less homely language. The final glorious gift to the faithful conqueror in the world's hard battle appears in the last of the epistles to the seven Churches: "To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne" (Revelation 3:21).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
Blessed [are]
μακάριοι (makarioi)
Adjective - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3107: Happy, blessed, to be envied. A prolonged form of the poetical makar; supremely blest; by extension, fortunate, well off.

those
ἐκεῖνοι (ekeinoi)
Demonstrative Pronoun - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 1565: That, that one there, yonder. From ekei; that one (neuter) thing); often intensified by the article prefixed.

servants
δοῦλοι (douloi)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 1401: (a) (as adj.) enslaved, (b) (as noun) a (male) slave. From deo; a slave.

whom
οὓς (hous)
Personal / Relative Pronoun - Accusative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3739: Who, which, what, that.

the
(ho)
Article - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

master
κύριος (kyrios)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2962: Lord, master, sir; the Lord. From kuros; supreme in authority, i.e. controller; by implication, Master.

finds
εὑρήσει (heurēsei)
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 2147: A prolonged form of a primary heuro, which heureo is used for it in all the tenses except the present and imperfect to find.

on watch
γρηγοροῦντας (grēgorountas)
Verb - Present Participle Active - Accusative Masculine Plural
Strong's 1127: (a) I am awake (in the night), watch, (b) I am watchful, on the alert, vigilant. From egeiro; to keep awake, i.e. Watch.

when he returns.
ἐλθὼν (elthōn)
Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2064: To come, go.

Truly
ἀμὴν (amēn)
Hebrew Word
Strong's 281: Of Hebrew origin; properly, firm, i.e. trustworthy; adverbially, surely.

I tell
λέγω (legō)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular
Strong's 3004: (a) I say, speak; I mean, mention, tell, (b) I call, name, especially in the pass., (c) I tell, command.

you,
ὑμῖν (hymin)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Dative 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 4771: You. The person pronoun of the second person singular; thou.

he will dress himself to serve
περιζώσεται (perizōsetai)
Verb - Future Indicative Middle - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 4024: From peri and zonnumi; to gird all around, i.e. to fasten on one's belt.

and
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

will have them recline at the table,
ἀνακλινεῖ (anaklinei)
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 347: To lay upon, lean against, lay down, make to recline; pass: I lie back, recline. From ana and klino; to lean back.

and
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

he [himself] will come
παρελθὼν (parelthōn)
Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3928: From para and erchomai; to come near or aside, i.e. To approach, go by, perish or neglect, avert.

[and] wait on
διακονήσει (diakonēsei)
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1247: From diakonos; to be an attendant, i.e. Wait upon (figuratively) teacher; technically, to act as a Christian deacon.

them.
αὐτοῖς (autois)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Dative Masculine 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.


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NT Gospels: Luke 12:37 Blessed are those servants whom the lord (Luke Lu Lk)
Luke 12:36
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