^18:1Then¹ Jesus² told them a parable to show them they should always³ pray and not lose heart.⁴^18:2He said,⁵ “In a certain city⁶ there was a judge⁷ who neither feared God nor respected people.⁸^18:3There was also a widow⁹ in that city¹⁰ who kept coming¹¹ to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ ^18:4For¹² a while he refused, but later on¹³ he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor have regard for people,¹⁴^18:5yet because this widow keeps on bothering me, I will give her justice, or in the end she will wear me out¹⁵ by her unending pleas.’ ”¹⁶^18:6And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unrighteous judge says!¹⁷^18:7Won’t¹⁸ God give justice to his chosen ones, who cry out¹⁹ to him day and night?²⁰ Will he delay²¹ long to help them? ^18:8I tell you, he will give them justice speedily.²² Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith²³ on earth?”

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Luke 18:1: And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.

Footnotes

1 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
2 Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
3 Or “should pray at all times” (L&N 67.88).
4 This is one of the few parables that comes with an explanation at the start: … they should always pray and not lose heart. It is part of Luke’s goal in encouraging Theophilus (1:4).
5 Grk “lose heart, saying.” This is a continuation of the previous sentence in the Greek text, but a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the pronominal subject “He.”
6 Or “town.”
7 The judge here is apparently portrayed as a civil judge who often handled financial cases.
8 Grk “man,” but the singular ἄνθρωπος (anthrōpos) is used as a generic in comparison to God.
9 This widow was not necessarily old, since many people lived only into their thirties in the 1st century.
10 Or “town.”
11 This is an iterative imperfect; the widow did this on numerous occasions.
12 Grk “And for.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
13 Grk “after these things.”
14 Grk “man,” but the singular ἄνθρωπος (anthrōpos) is used as a generic in comparison to God.
15 The term ὑπωπιάζω (hupōpiazō) in this context means “to wear someone out by continual annoying” (L&N 25.245).
16 Grk “by her continual coming,” but the point of annoyance to the judge is her constant pleas for justice (v. 3).
17 Listen to what the unrighteous judge says! The point of the parable is that the judge’s lack of compassion was overcome by the widow’s persistence.
18 Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
19 The prayers have to do with the righteous who cry out to him to receive justice. The context assumes the righteous are persecuted.
20 The emphatic particles in this sentence indicate that God will indeed give justice to the righteous.
21 The issue of delay has produced a whole host of views for this verse. (1) Does this assume provision to endure in the meantime? Or (2) does it mean God restricts the level of persecution until he comes? Either view is possible.
22 Some argue this should be translated “suddenly.” When vindication comes it will be quick. But the more natural meaning is “soon.” God will not forget his elect and will respond to them. It may be that this verse has a prophetic perspective. In light of the eternity that comes, vindication is soon.
23 Will he find faith on earth? The Son of Man is looking for those who continue to believe in him, despite the wait.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’ ” And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says. And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’

“For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’ ”

And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Now he told them a parable on the need for them to pray always and not give up. “There was a judge in a certain town who didn’t fear God or respect people. And a widow in that town kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’

“For a while he was unwilling, but later he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or respect people, yet because this widow keeps pestering me, I will give her justice, so that she doesn’t wear me out by her persistent coming.’ ”

Then the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. Will not God grant justice to his elect who cry out to him day and night? Will he delay helping them? I tell you that he will swiftly grant them justice. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

NLTNew Living Translation

One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up. “There was a judge in a certain city,” he said, “who neither feared God nor cared about people. A widow of that city came to him repeatedly, saying, ‘Give me justice in this dispute with my enemy.’ The judge ignored her for a while, but finally he said to himself, ‘I don’t fear God or care about people, but this woman is driving me crazy. I’m going to see that she gets justice, because she is wearing me out with her constant requests!’ ”

Then the Lord said, “Learn a lesson from this unjust judge. Even he rendered a just decision in the end. So don’t you think God will surely give justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will grant justice to them quickly! But when the Son of Man returns, how many will he find on the earth who have faith?”

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And he told them a parable to show that they must always pray and not be discouraged, saying, “There was a certain judge in a certain town who did not fear God and did not respect people. And there was a widow in that town, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary!’ And he was not willing for a time, but after these things he said to himself, ‘Even if I do not fear God or respect people, yet because this widow is causing trouble for me, I will grant her justice, so that she does not wear me down in the end by her coming back!’ ” And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unrighteous judge is saying! And will not God surely see to it that justice is done to his chosen ones who cry out to him day and night, and will he delay toward them? I tell you that he will see to it that justice is done for them soon! Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, then will he find faith on earth?”

KJV 1900King James Version

And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary. And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith. And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?

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