LukeChapter 12

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¹Meanwhile, a crowd of many thousands had gathered. There were so many that they were stepping on one another. Jesus began to speak first to his disciples. He said, "Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees. I mean their acting like they are good when they are not.a ²Nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered. Nothing is hidden that will not be made known. ³What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight. What you have whispered in back rooms will be shouted from the rooftops. ⁴My friends, I tell you, don't be afraid of those who kill the body. After that they can't do anything more. ⁵But I will show you whom you should fear. Fear the One who has the power to throw you into hell after you have been killed. Yes, I tell you, fear him!b ⁶Aren't five sparrows sold for two small coins? But God does not forget even one of them.c ⁷In fact, he has counted every hair on your head. So don't be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows. ⁸I tell you, whoever says in front of people that they know me, the Son of Man will also say he knows them in front of God's angels. ⁹But whoever says in front of people that they don't know me will be disowned in front of God's angels. ¹⁰Everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But anyone who speaks evil against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. ¹¹People will bring you in front of synagogues, rulers, and leaders. When they do, don't worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say. ¹²For at that time the Holy Spirit will teach you what you should say." ¹³Someone in the crowd said to Jesus, "Teacher, tell my brother to share our family's property with me." ¹⁴But Jesus answered, "Man, who made me a judge over you two? Who gave me the job of dividing your property?" ¹⁵Then he said to them, "Watch out! Guard yourselves against every kind of greed. For a person's life is not about how many things he owns." ¹⁶Then he told them a story. "A rich man had some land that grew a very large crop. ¹⁷He thought to himself, 'What should I do? I have no place to store my crops.' ¹⁸Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I'll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. There I will store all my grain and my other goods. ¹⁹Then I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things stored up for many years. Take it easy. Eat, drink, and have fun!"' ²⁰But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be taken from you. Then who will get all the things you have saved up?' ²¹That is how it will be for anyone who saves up riches for himself but is not rich toward God." ²²Then Jesus said to his disciples, "So I tell you, don't worry about your life and what you will eat. Don't worry about your body and what you will wear. ²³For life is more than food. And the body is more than clothes. ²⁴Think about the ravens. They don't plant or harvest. They don't have a storeroom or a barn. Yet God feeds them. And you are worth so much more than birds! ²⁵Can any of you add even one hour to your life by worrying? ²⁶So if you can't do even a small thing like that, why do you worry about the rest? ²⁷Think about how the lilies grow. They don't work or make cloth. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory was dressed like one of these flowers. ²⁸God dresses the grass in the field like this. It is here today, and tomorrow it is thrown into the fire. If God does that, how much more will he dress you! You have so little faith! ²⁹Don't keep thinking about what you will eat or drink. Don't worry about it. ³⁰For the people of the world who don't know God run after all these things. And your Father knows that you need them.d ³¹Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. ³²Don't be afraid, little flock. Your Father is happy to give you the kingdom. ³³Sell what you own and give to the poor. Get money bags for yourselves that won't wear out. Store up riches in heaven that will never run out. No thief can come near there, and no moth can destroy anything. ³⁴For where your treasure is, there your heart will be too. ³⁵Be dressed and ready to serve. Keep your lamps burning. ³⁶Then you will be like servants waiting for their master to come home from a wedding feast. That way, when he comes and knocks, they can open the door for him right away. ³⁷Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake and watching when he comes back. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve. He will have them sit at the table, and he himself will come and serve them. ³⁸He may come late at night or even in the early morning hours. If he finds them ready, those servants will be blessed.e ³⁹But understand this. Suppose the owner of the house had known what hour the thief was coming. Then he would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁰You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you don't expect him." ⁴¹Peter asked, "Lord, are you telling this story just to us, or to everyone?" ⁴²The Lord answered, "Who then is the faithful and wise manager? The master puts him in charge of his servants, to give them their share of food at the right time. ⁴³Blessed is that servant whose master finds him doing this when he comes back. ⁴⁴I tell you the truth, the master will put him in charge of everything he owns. ⁴⁵But suppose that servant says to himself, 'My master is taking a long time to come back.' Then he begins to beat the other servants, both men and women. He eats and drinks and gets drunk. ⁴⁶The master of that servant will come on a day he doesn't expect. He will come at an hour he doesn't know. Then the master will cut him to pieces. He will send him to the place where unbelievers go. ⁴⁷A servant may know what his master wants but not get ready or do what he was told. That servant will be beaten with many blows. ⁴⁸But another servant may not know and still do things that deserve punishment. He will be beaten with only a few blows. Much will be asked of everyone who has been given much. And even more will be asked of the one who has been trusted with much. ⁴⁹I have come to bring fire on the earth. How I wish it were already burning! ⁵⁰But I have a baptism to go through. And how troubled I am until it is finished! ⁵¹Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you. I came to divide people. ⁵²From now on, five people in one family will be divided. Three will be against two, and two against three. ⁵³They will be divided. Father will be against son, and son against father. Mother will be against daughter, and daughter against mother. Mother-in-law will be against daughter-in-law, and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law." ⁵⁴Then Jesus said to the crowds, "When you see a cloud rising in the west, right away you say, 'It's going to rain.' And it does. ⁵⁵When the south wind blows, you say, 'It's going to be hot.' And it is. ⁵⁶You hypocrites! You know how to understand the signs of the earth and sky. So why don't you know how to understand what is happening right now? ⁵⁷Why don't you decide for yourselves what is right? ⁵⁸Suppose someone is taking you to court. Do your best to make peace with him while you are on the way. If you don't, he may drag you off to the judge. The judge may hand you over to the officer. And the officer may throw you into prison. ⁵⁹I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the very last penny."f