Lukas 14:7

On Seeking Seats of Honor

14:7 Then ¹  when Jesus ²  noticed how the guests ³  chose the places of honor, ⁴  he told them a parable. He said to them,

Lukas 6:39

6:39 He also told them a parable: “Someone who is blind cannot lead another who is blind, can he? ⁵  Won’t they both fall ⁶  into a pit?

Lukas 14:28

14:28 For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn’t sit down ⁷  first and compute the cost ⁸  to see if he has enough money to complete it?

[14:7]  ¹ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[14:7]  ² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[14:7]  ³ tn Grk “those who were invited.”

[14:7]  ⁴ tn Or “the best places.” The “places of honor” at the meal would be those closest to the host.

[6:39]  ⁵ tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here it is “can he?”).

[6:39]  ⁶ sn The picture of a blind man leading a blind man is a warning to watch who one follows: Won’t they both fall into a pit? The sermon has been about religious choices and reacting graciously to those who oppose the followers of Jesus. Here Jesus’ point was to be careful who you follow and where they are taking you.

[14:28]  ⁷ tn The participle καθίσας (kaqisas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[14:28]  ⁸ tn The first illustration involves checking to see if enough funds exist to build a watchtower. Both ψηφίζω (yhfizw, “compute”) and δαπάνη (dapanh, “cost”) are economic terms.