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LU KE 1 2
page 934
The Sign of Jonah
29 As the crowd pressed in on Jesus, he said,
“This evil generation keeps asking me to show
them a miraculous sign. But the only sign I will
give them is the sign of Jonah. 30 What happened
to him was a sign to the people of Nineveh that
God had sent him. What happens to the Son of
Man* will be a sign to these people that he was
sent by God.
31 “The queen of Sheba* will stand up against
this generation on judgment day and condemn
it, for she came from a distant land to hear the
wisdom of Solomon. Now someone greater than
Solomon is here—but you refuse to listen. 32 The
people of Nineveh will also stand up against
this generation on judgment day and condemn
it, for they repented of their sins at the preaching of Jonah. Now someone greater than Jonah
is here—but you refuse to repent.
— promises —
from God
“But even more
blessed are all who hear
the word of God and
put it into practice.”
LU K E 11:2 8
Receiving the Light
33 “No one lights a lamp and then hides it or puts
it under a basket.* Instead, a lamp is placed on
a stand, where its light can be seen by all who
enter the house.
34 “Your eye is like a lamp that provides light
for your body. When your eye is healthy, your
whole body is filled with light. But when it is
unhealthy, your body is filled with darkness.
35 Make sure that the light you think you have
is not actually darkness. 36 If you are filled with
light, with no dark corners, then your whole life
will be radiant, as though a floodlight were filling you with light.”
Jesus Criticizes the Religious Leaders
37 As Jesus was speaking, one of the Pharisees
invited him home for a meal. So he went in
and took his place at the table.* 38 His host was
amazed to see that he sat down to eat without
first performing the hand-washing ceremony required by Jewish custom. 39 Then the Lord said
to him, “You Pharisees are so careful to clean
the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside
you are filthy—full of greed and wickedness!
40 Fools! Didn’t God make the inside as well as
the outside? 41 So clean the inside by giving gifts
to the poor, and you will be clean all over.
42 “What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For
you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income
from your herb gardens,* but you ignore justice
and the love of God. You should tithe, yes, but
do not neglect the more important things.
43 “What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For
you love to sit in the seats of honor in the synagogues and receive respectful greetings as you
walk in the marketplaces. 44 Yes, what sorrow
awaits you! For you are like hidden graves in a
field. People walk over them without knowing
the corruption they are stepping on.”
45 “Teacher,” said an expert in religious law,
“you have insulted us, too, in what you just
said.”
46 “Yes,” said Jesus, “what sorrow also awaits
you experts in religious law! For you crush
people with unbearable religious demands, and
you never lift a finger to ease the burden. 47 What
sorrow awaits you! For you build monuments
for the prophets your own ancestors killed long
ago. 48 But in fact, you stand as witnesses who
agree with what your ancestors did. They killed
the prophets, and you join in their crime by
building the monuments! 49 This is what God
in his wisdom said about you:* ‘I will send
prophets and apostles to them, but they will
kill some and persecute the others.’
50 “As a result, this generation will be held responsible for the murder of all God’s prophets
from the creation of the world—51 from the murder of Abel to the murder of Zechariah, who
was killed between the altar and the sanctuary.
Yes, it will certainly be charged against this
generation.
52 “What sorrow awaits you experts in religious law! For you remove the key to knowledge from the people. You don’t enter the
Kingdom yourselves, and you prevent others
from entering.”
53 As Jesus was leaving, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees became hostile
and tried to provoke him with many questions.
54 They wanted to trap him into saying something they could use against him.
A Warning against Hypocrisy
Meanwhile, the crowds grew until thousands were milling about and stepping
on each other. Jesus turned first to his disciples
and warned them, “Beware of the yeast of the
Pharisees—their hypocrisy. 2 The time is coming when everything that is covered up will
be revealed, and all that is secret will be made
known to all. 3 Whatever you have said in the
dark will be heard in the light, and what you
have whispered behind closed doors will be
shouted from the housetops for all to hear!
12
11:30 “Son of Man” is a title Jesus used for himself. 11:31 Greek
The queen of the south. 11:33 Some manuscripts do not include
or puts it under a basket. 11:37 Or and reclined. 11:42 Greek
tithe the mint, the rue, and every herb. 11:49 Greek Therefore, the
wisdom of God said.