Luke 11

King James Version

Full text for Luke Chapter 11

1¶ And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.

2And he said unto them, ‹When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.›

3‹Give us day by day our daily bread.›

4‹And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.›

5And he said unto them, ‹Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves;›

6‹For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him?›

7‹And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee.›

8‹I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.›

9‹And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.›

10‹For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.›

11‹If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if [he ask] a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?›

12‹Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?›

13‹If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall [your] heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?›

14¶ And he was casting out a devil, and it was dumb. And it came to pass, when the devil was gone out, the dumb spake; and the people wondered.

15But some of them said, He casteth out devils through Beelzebub the chief of the devils.

16And others, tempting [him], sought of him a sign from heaven.

17But he, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, ‹Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and a house [divided] against a house falleth.›

18‹If Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? because ye say that I cast out devils through Beelzebub.›

19‹And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast [them] out? therefore shall they be your judges.›

20‹But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you.›

21‹When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace:›

22‹But when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils.›

23‹He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth.›

24‹When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out.›

25‹And when he cometh, he findeth [it] swept and garnished.›

26‹Then goeth he, and taketh [to him] seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell there: and the last [state] of that man is worse than the first.›

27¶ And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed [is] the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked.

28But he said, ‹Yea rather, blessed [are] they that hear the word of God, and keep it.›

29¶ And when the people were gathered thick together, he began to say, ‹This is an evil generation: they seek a sign; and there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet.›

30‹For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation.›

31‹The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation, and condemn them: for she came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon [is] here.›

32‹The men of Nineve shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas [is] here.›

33‹No man, when he hath lighted a candle, putteth [it] in a secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a candlestick, that they which come in may see the light.›

34‹The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when [thine eye] is evil, thy body also [is] full of darkness.›

35‹Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness.›

36‹If thy whole body therefore [be] full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.›

37¶ And as he spake, a certain Pharisee besought him to dine with him: and he went in, and sat down to meat.

38And when the Pharisee saw [it], he marvelled that he had not first washed before dinner.

39And the Lord said unto him, ‹Now do ye Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness.›

40‹[Ye] fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?›

41‹But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you.›

42‹But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.›

43‹Woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets.›

44‹Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over [them] are not aware [of them].›

45Then answered one of the lawyers, and said unto him, Master, thus saying thou reproachest us also.

46And he said, ‹Woe unto you also, [ye] lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.›

47‹Woe unto you! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.›

48‹Truly ye bear witness that ye allow the deeds of your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and ye build their sepulchres.›

49‹Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and [some] of them they shall slay and persecute:›

50‹That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;›

51‹From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.›

52‹Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.›

53And as he said these things unto them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to urge [him] vehemently, and to provoke him to speak of many things:

54Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him.

AI Analysis

AI Summaries

Short Summary

In Luke 11, Jesus teaches His disciples a model prayer, often called the Lord's Prayer, emphasizing God's hallowed name, kingdom, and provision, alongside forgiveness and deliverance from evil. He then encourages persistent prayer through the parable of the importunate friend and assures that God gives the Holy Spirit to those who ask. Later, Jesus casts out a dumb devil, leading to accusations that He does so by Beelzebub, which He refutes by explaining that a kingdom divided cannot stand. The chapter concludes with Jesus pronouncing woes upon the Pharisees and lawyers for their hypocrisy, external righteousness, and obstruction of true knowledge.

Medium Summary

Luke 11 begins with Jesus teaching His disciples to pray, providing a pattern that includes reverence for God, petitions for His kingdom and will, daily sustenance, forgiveness, and protection from temptation. He illustrates the power of persistent prayer with the parable of a friend seeking bread at midnight, assuring that asking, seeking, and knocking will be rewarded, and that the Heavenly Father readily gives the Holy Spirit to those who ask. Jesus then performs an exorcism, prompting some to accuse Him of casting out devils by Beelzebub, while others demand a sign from heaven. Jesus counters these accusations by arguing that a kingdom divided against itself cannot stand, and warns against spiritual emptiness that can lead to a worse state. He declares that blessed are those who hear and keep the word of God, and condemns the generation seeking signs, offering only the sign of Jonah. The chapter culminates in Jesus' stern rebukes, or 'woes,' against the Pharisees and lawyers for their outward piety masking inward corruption, their love of prominence, and their burdening of others while neglecting justice and the love of God, ultimately hindering access to knowledge.

Long Summary

Luke 11 opens with Jesus, after praying, being asked by a disciple to teach them to pray, much as John taught his disciples. Jesus responds by providing the disciples with a model prayer, encompassing adoration for God's name, a plea for His kingdom and will to be done, a request for daily bread, forgiveness of sins (linked to forgiving others), and deliverance from temptation and evil. To further instruct on prayer, Jesus tells the parable of a friend who, due to importunity, receives bread from a neighbor at midnight, even though the neighbor is reluctant. This parable underscores the importance of persistent asking, seeking, and knocking, with Jesus assuring that God, unlike an earthly father who gives good gifts, will certainly give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him. Subsequently, Jesus casts out a dumb devil, which causes the formerly mute man to speak, astonishing the crowds. However, some accuse Jesus of performing this miracle by the power of Beelzebub, the chief of devils, while others demand a sign from heaven. Jesus, knowing their thoughts, refutes the Beelzebub accusation by explaining that a kingdom or house divided against itself cannot stand, and if Satan casts out Satan, his kingdom would fall. He asserts that if He casts out devils by the 'finger of God,' then the kingdom of God has indeed come upon them. Jesus also warns about an unclean spirit returning to a swept and garnished house with seven other spirits, making the man's last state worse than the first. A woman in the crowd blesses the womb that bore Him, but Jesus declares that those who hear the word of God and keep it are more blessed. He then denounces the 'evil generation' for seeking a sign, stating that only the sign of Jonah will be given, and warns that the Queen of the South and the men of Nineveh will condemn them in judgment. Jesus also uses the metaphors of a candle providing light and the eye as the light of the body to illustrate spiritual perception. The chapter concludes with Jesus dining with a Pharisee and then pronouncing a series of 'woes' against the Pharisees and lawyers. He condemns their focus on outward cleanliness while their inward parts are full of wickedness, their tithing of herbs while neglecting judgment and the love of God, their love of prominent seats, and their being like unseen graves that defile. He further rebukes the lawyers for burdening men with grievous laws they themselves do not touch, and for building sepulchres for prophets whom their fathers killed, thereby affirming their fathers' deeds. Finally, He accuses them of taking away the key of knowledge, neither entering themselves nor allowing others to enter, leading to the scribes and Pharisees vehemently opposing Him.

Core Concepts

  • The Lord's PrayerJesus teaches His disciples a model prayer, emphasizing reverence for God's name, the coming of His kingdom, daily provision, forgiveness of sins, and deliverance from evil. This prayer serves as a pattern for communication with the Heavenly Father.
  • Persistence in PrayerThrough the parable of the importunate friend, Jesus illustrates that persistent and earnest asking, seeking, and knocking will ultimately be rewarded. He assures that God, being a good Father, will give good gifts, specifically the Holy Spirit, to those who ask.
  • Accusation of BeelzebubAfter Jesus casts out a dumb devil, some accuse Him of performing this miracle by the power of Beelzebub, the chief of devils. Jesus refutes this by arguing that a kingdom divided against itself cannot stand, thus exposing the illogic of their accusation.
  • The Sign of JonahJesus declares that no sign will be given to an evil generation except the sign of Jonas the prophet. This refers to His own death and resurrection, paralleling Jonah's three days and nights in the fish, serving as the ultimate sign of His authority.
  • Spiritual Light and DarknessJesus uses the metaphors of a candle and the eye to explain spiritual perception. A 'single' or good eye fills the body with light, while an 'evil' eye leads to darkness, urging heedfulness that the light within one does not become darkness.
  • Hypocrisy of Religious LeadersJesus pronounces 'woes' upon the Pharisees and lawyers for their outward show of righteousness that conceals inward wickedness. They are condemned for meticulously observing minor laws while neglecting justice, the love of God, and for hindering others from entering the kingdom of knowledge.
  • Hindering KnowledgeThe lawyers are specifically rebuked for taking away the 'key of knowledge,' meaning they neither entered into true understanding themselves nor allowed others who sought to enter to do so. This highlights their role in obstructing spiritual truth.