New Living Translation

English Standard Version

1One Sabbath day Jesus went to eat dinner in the home of a leader of the Pharisees, and the people were watching him closely.

1One Sabbath, when he went to dine at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees, they were watching him carefully.

2There was a man there whose arms and legs were swollen.

2And behold, there was a man before him who had dropsy.

3Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in religious law, “Is it permitted in the law to heal people on the Sabbath day, or not?”

3And Jesus responded to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?”

4When they refused to answer, Jesus touched the sick man and healed him and sent him away.

4But they remained silent. Then he took him and healed him and sent him away.

5Then he turned to them and said, “Which of you doesn’t work on the Sabbath? If your son or your cow falls into a pit, don’t you rush to get him out?”

5And he said to them, “Which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on a Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out?”

6Again they could not answer. Jesus Teaches about Humility

6And they could not reply to these things.

7When Jesus noticed that all who had come to the dinner were trying to sit in the seats of honor near the head of the table, he gave them this advice:

7Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he noticed how they chose the places of honor, saying to them,

8 “When you are invited to a wedding feast, don’t sit in the seat of honor. What if someone who is more distinguished than you has also been invited?

8“When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him,

9 The host will come and say, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then you will be embarrassed, and you will have to take whatever seat is left at the foot of the table!

9and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this person,’ and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place.

10 “Instead, take the lowest place at the foot of the table. Then when your host sees you, he will come and say, ‘Friend, we have a better place for you!’ Then you will be honored in front of all the other guests.

10But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you.

11 For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

11For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

12Then he turned to his host. “When you put on a luncheon or a banquet,” he said, “don’t invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will invite you back, and that will be your only reward.

12He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid.

13 Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.

13But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,

14 Then at the resurrection of the righteous, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you.” Parable of the Great Feast

14and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

15Hearing this, a man sitting at the table with Jesus exclaimed, “What a blessing it will be to attend a banquet in the Kingdom of God!”

15When one of those who reclined at table with him heard these things, he said to him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!”

16Jesus replied with this story: “A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations.

16But he said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet and invited many.

17 When the banquet was ready, he sent his servant to tell the guests, ‘Come, the banquet is ready.’

17And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’

18 But they all began making excuses. One said, ‘I have just bought a field and must inspect it. Please excuse me.’

18But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’

19 Another said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of oxen, and I want to try them out. Please excuse me.’

19And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’

20 Another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’

20And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’

21 “The servant returned and told his master what they had said. His master was furious and said, ‘Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’

21So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’

22 After the servant had done this, he reported, ‘There is still room for more.’

22And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’

23 So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full.

23And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.

24 For none of those I first invited will get even the smallest taste of my banquet.’” The Cost of Being a Disciple

24For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.’”

25A large crowd was following Jesus. He turned around and said to them,

25Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them,

26 “If you want to be my disciple, you must, by comparison, hate everyone else—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.

26“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

27 And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.

27Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.

28 “But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it?

28For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?

29 Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you.

29Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him,

30 They would say, ‘There’s the person who started that building and couldn’t afford to finish it!’

30saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’

31 “Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors to discuss whether his army of 10,000 could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him?

31Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?

32 And if he can’t, he will send a delegation to discuss terms of peace while the enemy is still far away.

32And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.

33 So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own.

33So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

34 “Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again?

34“Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored?

35 Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. It is thrown away. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!”

35It is of no use either for the soil or for the manure pile. It is thrown away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

ESV Text Edition: 2016. The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. All rights reserved.