(New International Version)
25 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
26 “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”
27 He answered, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’ ; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ”
28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead.
31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side.
32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.
33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him.
34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him.
35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
- Who were the Levites? What would Jesus' audience have thought of them?
- Who were the Samaritans? What would Jesus' audience have thought of them?
- How much is two denarii?
- Is the purpose explicitly stated or implied?
- Is the parable responding to a question, request or complaint?
- Does the parable respond to Israel's rejection of Jesus as Messiah?
- Does the parable follow an exhortation or principle?
- Does the parable illustrate a situation?
- What remarkable details are there in the parable?
- Who are the main characters in the parable?
- What structural features of the narrative of the parable do you notice?
- What does the parable spend the most time on?
- What point does the parable conclude with?
- What is the main contrast in the parable?
- What is the central truth of the parable?
- What does this say about the Kingdom of God?
- How can we be like, or unlike, each of the characters in the parable?
- How can we be like, or unlike, Jesus' audience?
- How can we be like, or unlike, Luke's audience (the early church)?
- How might we change the way we live in response to the truuth contained in this parable?