Luke 12:35–59

You Must Be Ready

^35a“Stay dressed for action⁵ and ^bkeep your lamps burning, ³⁶and be like men who are ^cwaiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and ^dknocks. ^37eBlessed are those servants⁶ whom the master finds ^eawake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, ^fhe will dress himself for service and ^ghave them recline at table, and he will come and serve them. ³⁸If he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds them awake, blessed are those servants! ^39hBut know this, that if the master of the house had known at what hour ⁱthe thief was coming, he⁷ would not have left his house to be broken into. ⁴⁰You also must be ^jready, for ^kthe Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”

⁴¹Peter said, “Lord, ^lare you telling this parable for us or for all?” ⁴²And the Lord said, “Who then is ^mthe faithful and ^mwise ⁿmanager, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time? ^43oBlessed is that servant⁸ whom his master will find so doing when he comes. ⁴⁴Truly, I say to you, ^phe will set him over all his possessions. ⁴⁵But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master ^qis delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and ^rget drunk, ⁴⁶the master of that servant will come ^son a day when he does not expect him and ^sat an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and put him with the unfaithful. ^47tAnd that servant who ^uknew his master’s will but ^vdid not get ready ^uor act according to his will, will receive a ^wsevere beating. ^48xBut the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, ^ywill receive a light beating. ^zEveryone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.

Not Peace, but Division

^49a“I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled! ^50bI have a baptism to be baptized with, and how ^cgreat is my distress until it is accomplished! ^51dDo you think that I have come to give peace on earth? ^eNo, I tell you, but rather division. ⁵²For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. ⁵³They will be divided, ^ffather against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”

Interpreting the Time

⁵⁴He also said to the crowds, ^g“When you see ^ha cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens. ⁵⁵And ^gwhen you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be ⁱscorching heat,’ and it happens. ⁵⁶You hypocrites! ^jYou know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?

Settle with Your Accuser

⁵⁷“And why ^kdo you not judge ^lfor yourselves what is right? ^58mAs you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison. ⁵⁹I tell you, ⁿyou will never get out until you have paid the very last ^openny.”⁹