Luke 15:11–16

The Parable of the Compassionate Father

15:11 Then33 Jesus34 said, “A man had two sons. 15:12 The35 younger of them said to his36 father, ‘Father, give me the share of the estate37 that will belong38 to me.’ So39 he divided his40 assets between them.41 15:13 After42 a few days,43 the younger son gathered together all he had and left on a journey to a distant country, and there he squandered44 his wealth45 with a wild lifestyle. 15:14 Then46 after he had spent everything, a severe famine took place in that country, and he began to be in need. 15:15 So he went and worked for47 one of the citizens of that country, who48 sent him to his fields to feed pigs.49 15:16 He50 was longing to eat51 the carob pods52 the pigs were eating, but53 no one gave him anything.

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33	tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
34	tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
35	tn Grk “And the.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
36	tn Grk “the”; in context the article is used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).
37	tn L&N 57.19 notes that in nonbiblical contexts in which the word οὐσία (ousia) occurs, it refers to considerable possessions or wealth, thus “estate.”
38	tn L&N 57.3, “to belong to or come to belong to, with the possible implication of by right or by inheritance.”
39	tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the father’s response to the younger son’s request.
40	tn Grk “the”; in context the article is used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).
41	sn He divided his assets between them. There was advice against doing this in the OT Apocrypha (Sir 33:20). The younger son would get half of what the older son received (Deut 21:17).
42	tn Grk “And after.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
43	tn Grk “after not many days.”
44	tn Or “wasted.” This verb is graphic; it means to scatter (L&N 57.151).
45	tn Or “estate” (the same word has been translated “estate” in v. 12).
46	tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the sequence of events in the parable. Greek style often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” but English style generally does not.
47	tn Grk “joined himself to” (in this case an idiom for beginning to work for someone).
48	tn Grk “and he.” Here the conjunction καί (kai) and the personal pronoun have been translated by a relative pronoun to improve the English style.
49	sn To a Jew, being sent to the field to feed pigs would be an insult, since pigs were considered unclean animals (Lev 11:7).
50	tn Grk “And he.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
51	tn Or “would gladly have eaten”; Grk “was longing to be filled with.”
52	tn This term refers to the edible pods from a carob tree (BDAG 540 s.v. κεράτιον). They were bean-like in nature and were commonly used for fattening pigs, although they were also used for food by poor people (L&N 3.46).
53	tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

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