Luke 18:1

The Parable of the Persistent Widow

1 Then He spoke a parable to them, that men ^aalways ought to pray and not lose heart,

2 saying: “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor¹ regard man.

3 Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying,¹ ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’

4 And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man,

5 ^ayet because this widow troubles me I will¹ avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’ ”

6 Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said.

7 And ^ashall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?

8 I tell you ^athat He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?”

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector

9 Also He spoke this parable to some ^awho trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:

10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

11 The Pharisee ^astood and prayed thus with himself, ^b‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.

12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’

13 And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’

14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; ^afor everyone who exalts himself will be¹ humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Jesus Blesses Little Children

15 ^aThen they also brought infants to Him that He might touch them; but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them.

16 But Jesus called them to Him and said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for ^aof such is the kingdom of God.

17 ^aAssuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.”

Jesus Counsels the Rich Young Ruler

18 ^aNow a certain ruler asked Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

19 So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but ^aOne, that is, God.

20 You know the commandments: ^a‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not bear false witness,’ ^b‘Honor your father and your mother.’ ”

21 And he said, “All ^athese things I have kept from my youth.”

22 So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, “You still lack one thing. ^aSell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

23 But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich.

With God All Things Are Possible

24 And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, He said, ^a“How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!

25 For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

26 And those who heard it said, “Who then can be saved?”

27 But He said, ^a“The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.”

28 ^aThen Peter said, “See, we have left¹ all and followed You.”

29 So He said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, ^athere is no one who has left house or parents or brothers or wife or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God,

30 ^awho shall not receive many times more in this present time, and in the age to come eternal life.”

Jesus a Third Time Predicts His Death and Resurrection

31 ^aThen He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things ^bthat are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be¹ accomplished.

32 For ^aHe will be delivered to the Gentiles and will be mocked and insulted and spit upon.

Commentaries:

Forerunner Commentary
What is the Forerunner Commentary?

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What Does Luke 18:1 Mean?

The Parable of the Persistent Widow encourages people to pray and not lose heart if answers seem delayed. God may be testing us, teaching patience, or working a purpose we cannot see, always acting on His timetable for our good. Contrasting the unrighteous judge with God's never-ending love, if the callous judge answered the widow's persistence, God will surely vindicate His elect. Losing heart comes from defilement, doubt, danger, distractions, and delay, all of which must be resisted. "Always" does not mean praying every minute, but being faithful to regular times, praying in good and bad times, and remaining continually ready. This parable especially concerns the last days, when the faithful remnant must persevere and endure in prayer, watching and praying always.

Luke 18:1

Concerning our habits of prayer, "always" does not mean we should pray every single minute of the day. If this were so, the faith involved in prayer would be a dead one, as we would never have time to do the works required with it (James 2:17-18, 20, 26). "Always" means that we should be faithful to our regular times of prayer. Concerning the time of prayer, "always" includes the fact that we should pray in both good and bad times. Sadly, some pray only in a crisis, and others forget to offer a prayer of thanksgiving when God has intervened to solve a problem or provide a blessing (I Thessalonians 5:17-18). Regarding the spirit of prayer, "always" means we should be continually ready to pray, praying whenever a crisis hits or a need arises. Because they reveal our priorities, good habits of prayer show dedication to God and strengthen our relationship with Him.

Martin G. Collins
Parable of the Persistent Widow

Luke 18:1-8

Luke 18:1-8 contains the Parable of the Persistent Widow. Luke prefaces Jesus' narration of the story of the widow's pestering of the unjust judge with the comment that our Lord gave this parable specifically to encourage people "to pray and not lose heart." The basic subject of this passage of Scripture deals with the question: Will a person ultimately cave in, downcast and discouraged, because of the difficulties and trials he faces throughout his Christian life, forsaking all the truth and opportunities God has given him?

Christ's parable teaches us that we are to continue to pray and not falter or become dejected if our prayers do not seem to be answered right away. We are to come to understand that if a request is not granted immediately, God may be testing us, teaching us patience, or working out a purpose we cannot see. We must understand that He works on His timetable—not ours—and that He always works out what is best for us and for our particular situation (Romans 8:28). Our job, then, is to persevere in our faith in God, always trusting Him in what we ask of Him.

In the parable, we see the widow coming before the unrighteous judge with her complaint, though Christ never informs us about its specifics. We do not need to know the details; it could be any grievance. The callous judge has no pity in him, but the widow is so persistent that the judge reasons within himself that he had better avenge her lest she wear him out with her incessant visits. The phrase "weary me" literally implies striking blows and giving the recipient a pair of black eyes! This was one persistent woman!

If a reader of this parable is not careful, he could judge God as being comparable to the unjust judge, that is, that He will not answer our requests promptly unless we bother Him with constant pleas for help. Actually, Jesus is contrasting the faithfulness of our loving God to the cynical, self-serving, unrighteous judge. The latter is not in any way a good man, but a godless one who is just trying to shield himself from being annoyed.

Jesus is trying to get us to realize God's never-ending love and faithfulness to His children. We are to see that all that God is, the judge is not. God is always willing to hear us and to answer our prayers if according to His will. He always hears the cries of His own elect or chosen ones. Indeed, God will avenge or vindicate His people.

The point is that, if the unjust judge—who could not have cared less for the widow—at length responded to her cry merely to rid himself of her aggravating requests, then shall not God—who loves His chosen people and gave His Son for us—answer our prayers when we are under trial or in need?

John O. Reid
Will Christ Find Faith?

Luke 18:1-8

The Parable of the Persistent Widow (Luke 18:1-8) teaches the necessity of patient, persistent, and persevering prayer, much like the Parable of the Persistent Friend (Luke 11:5-13). A mention of prayer precedes both parables. Though delivered in different situations, they both show the absolute, immeasurable contrast between God and men, and provide evidence that God yields to the saints' pleading and urging. Both parables depict a person granting a request because of his selfish motives. The Persistent Friend's persevering prayer is for necessities, while the Persistent Widow's is for protection. Both parables conclude that God will not fail us as friends and acquaintances often do.

The Parable of the Persistent Widow is especially linked with the final crisis of the last days and the painful circumstances the faithful remnant will face. Prayer will be a major resource for them. Since vengeance is God's alone, they know He will judge their oppressors, but as they wait for deliverance, persevering prayer will be their refreshment and supply of patience. The parable is preceded by Jesus' exhortation on the Christian duty to pray, dedication in prayer, and resisting the temptation to discontinue prayer. It concludes by indicating that prayer is a matter of faith.

Martin G. Collins
Parable of the Persistent Widow

Luke 18:1

"Not lose heart" or "faint" (KJV) means to grow weary, to give in to evil, to turn coward. We must resist the human tendency of growing weary in prayer. We have a duty as the elect of God to pray. There are several major causes of losing heart: defilement, doubt, danger, distractions, and delay.

» The defilement of sin kills interest in spiritual exercises like prayer. Sin does not promote a good prayer life—in fact, it will stop it dead. "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear" (Psalm 66:18).

» Praying with doubt is faithless, making the prayer useless. Doubting the inspiration of Scripture and the power of God hinders prayer (I Timothy 2:8). As prayer and faith go hand in hand, so do unbelief and not praying.

» Prayer must sometimes be done at dangerous times. Danger weeds out the coward from the courageous. Daniel faced real danger in praying, but kept on praying, even though it led to the lion's den (Daniel 6). Today, our dangers are varied, but the danger of embarrassment often affects people more than danger of physical harm.

» Satan is a master of causing distractions, especially during prayer time. Probably every saint has experienced his mind wandering, causing him to think about everything except what he should be praying about.

» Few things cause us to lose heart in praying more than delays in answers to our requests. Jesus uses the Parable of the Persistent Widow to teach us that, though answers often appear to take a long time in coming, we should persevere and not grow weary in praying to God.

Martin G. Collins
Parable of the Persistent Widow

Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Luke 18:1:

2 Kings 4:27-31
Isaiah 14:12-15
Mark 7:26
Luke 11:11-13
Luke 18:1-8
Luke 18:1-8

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Luke 18:2 >>

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The Parable of the Persistent Widow

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector

Jesus Blesses Little Children

Jesus Counsels the Rich Young Ruler

With God All Things Are Possible

Jesus a Third Time Predicts His Death and Resurrection

What Does Luke 18:1 Mean?

A Verse and a Thought,Every Morning

A Verse and a Thought,
Every Morning