13 But when you give a feast, send for the poor and the blind and those who are broken in body:
And the servant came back and gave his master an account of these things. Then the master of the house was angry and said to the servant, Go out quickly into the streets of the town and get the poor, the blind, and those who are broken in body.
And all the people went away to take food and drink, and to send food to others, and to be glad, because the words which were said to them had been made clear.
Then he said to them, Go away now, and take the fat for your food and the sweet for your drink, and send some to him for whom nothing is made ready: for this day is holy to our Lord: and let there be no grief in your hearts; for the joy of the Lord is your strong place.
And Jesus got his disciples together and said, I have pity for the people, because they have now been with me three days and have no food: and I will not send them away without food, or they will have no strength for the journey. And the disciples say to him, How may we get enough bread in a waste place, to give food to such a number of people? And Jesus says to them, How much bread have you? And they said, Seven cakes, and some small fishes. Then he gave an order to the people to be seated on the earth, And he took the seven cakes of bread and the fishes; and having given praise, he gave the broken bread to the disciples, and the disciples gave it to the people. And they all took food, and had enough; and they took up of the broken bits, seven baskets full. And there were four thousand men who took food, together with women and children. And when he had sent the people away, he got into the boat, and came into the country of Magadan.
Take care to keep open house: because in this way some have had angels as their guests, without being conscious of it.
But opening his house freely to guests; a lover of what is good, serious-minded, upright, holy, self-controlled;
And if witness is given of her good works; if she has had the care of children, if she has been kind to travellers, washing the feet of the saints, helping those who are in trouble, giving herself to good works.
Giving to the needs of the saints, ready to take people into your houses. Give blessing and not curses to those who are cruel to you. Take part in the joy of those who are glad, and in the grief of those who are sorrowing. Be in harmony with one another. Do not have a high opinion of yourselves, but be in agreement with common people. Do not give yourselves an air of wisdom.
And Peter went with them. And when he had come, they took him into the room: and all the widows were there, weeping and putting before him the coats and clothing which Dorcas had made while she was with them.
And all those who were of the faith kept together, and had all things in common; And exchanging their goods and property for money, they made division of it among them all, as they had need.
But if you give to the poor such things as you are able, then all things are clean to you.
And the Levite, because he has no part or heritage in the land, and the man from a strange country, and the child who has no father, and the widow, who are living among you, will come and take food and have enough; and so the blessing of the Lord your God will be on you in everything you do.
And he came out and saw a great number of people and he had pity on them, and made well those of them who were ill. And when evening had come, the disciples came to him, saying, This place is waste land, and the time is now past; send the people away so that they may go into the towns and get themselves food. But Jesus said to them, There is no need for them to go away; give them food yourselves. And they say to him, We have here but five cakes of bread and two fishes. And he said, Give them to me. And he gave orders for the people to be seated on the grass; and he took the five cakes of bread and the two fishes and, looking up to heaven, he said words of blessing, and made division of the food, and gave it to the disciples, and the disciples gave it to the people. And they all took of the food and had enough: and they took up twelve baskets full of broken bits which were not used. And those who had food were about five thousand men, in addition to women and children.
Is it not to give your bread to those in need, and to let the poor who have no resting-place come into your house? to put a robe on the unclothed one when you see him, and not to keep your eyes shut for fear of seeing his flesh?
Give strong drink to him who is near to destruction, and wine to him whose soul is bitter: Let him have drink, and his need will go from his mind, and the memory of his trouble will be gone.
Give honour to the Lord with your wealth, and with the first-fruits of all your increase: So your store-houses will be full of grain, and your vessels overflowing with new wine.
If I kept back the desire of the poor; if the widow's eye was looking for help to no purpose; If I kept my food for myself, and did not give some of it to the child with no father; (For I was cared for by God as by a father from my earliest days; he was my guide from the body of my mother;) If I saw one near to death for need of clothing, and that the poor had nothing covering him; If his back did not give me a blessing, and the wool of my sheep did not make him warm;
The blessing of him who was near to destruction came on me, and I put a song of joy into the widow's heart.
For Hezekiah, king of Judah, gave to the people for offerings, a thousand oxen and seven thousand sheep; and the rulers gave a thousand oxen and ten thousand sheep; and a great number of priests made themselves holy.
When you have taken out a tenth from the tenth of all your produce in the third year, which is the year when this has to be done, give it to the Levite, and the man from a strange land, and the child without a father, and the widow, so that they may have food in your towns and be full; And say before the Lord your God, I have taken all the holy things out of my house and have given them to the Levite, and the man from a strange land, and him who has no father, and the widow, as you have given me orders: I have kept in mind all your orders, in nothing have I gone against them:
You are to keep the feast with joy, you and your son and your daughter, your man-servant and your woman-servant, and the Levite, and the man from a strange country, and the child without a father, and the widow, who are living among you.
Then you are to be glad before the Lord your God, you and your son and your daughter, your man-servant and your woman-servant, and the Levite who is with you, and the man from a strange country, and the child without a father, and the widow, who are living among you, in the place marked out by the Lord your God as a resting-place for his name.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Luke 14
Commentary on Luke 14 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 14
In this chapter we have,
Luk 14:1-6
In this passage of story we find,
Luk 14:7-14
Our Lord Jesus here sets us an example of profitable edifying discourse at our tables, when we are in company with our friends. We find that when he had none but his disciples, who were his own family, with him at his table, his discourse with them was good, and to the use of edifying; and not only so, but when he was in company with strangers, nay, with enemies that watched him, he took occasion to reprove what he saw amiss in them, and to instruct them. Though the wicked were before him, he did not keep silence from good (as David did, Ps. 39:1, 2), for, notwithstanding the provocation given him, he had not his heart hot within him, nor was his spirit stirred. We must not only not allow any corrupt communication at our tables, such as that of the hypocritical mockers at feasts, but we must go beyond common harmless talk, and should take occasion from God's goodness to us at our tables to speak well of him, and learn to spiritualize common things. The lips of the righteous should then feed many. Our Lord Jesus was among persons of quality, yet, as one that had not respect of persons,
Luk 14:15-24
Here is another discourse of our Saviour's, in which he spiritualizes the feast he was invited to, which is another way of keeping up good discourse in the midst of common actions.
Luk 14:25-35
See how Christ in his doctrine suited himself to those to whom he spoke, and gave every one his portion of meat. To Pharisees he preached humility and charity. He is in these verses directing his discourse to the multitudes that crowded after him, and seemed zealous in following him; and his exhortation to them is to understand the terms of discipleship, before they undertook the profession of it, and to consider what they did. See here,
This parable is another way applicable, and may be taken as designed to teach us to begin speedily to be religious, rather than to begin cautiously; and may mean the same with Mt. 5:25, Agree with thine adversary quickly. Note,