Luke 14:7

Do you see what the suppers of Christ are like, how they are turned to the profit of souls and not to the stuffing of the belly? For look, He healed the man suffering from dropsy, He taught the Pharisees that doing good on the …

Here he brings home the charge to particular persons; for Christ will give every man his own. He marked how they chose out the chief rooms; every man, as he came in, got as near the best seat as he could. Note, Even in the common actions of life, Christ's eye is upon us, and he marks what we do, not only in our religious assemblies, but at our tables, and makes remarks upon it.

He spake a parable - The ensuing discourse is so termed, because several parts are not to be understood literally. The general scope of it is, Not only at a marriage feast, but on every occasion, he that exalteth himself shall be abased, and he that abaseth himself shall be exalted.

And he put forth a parable to those which were bidden,.... To the dinner at the Pharisee's house, particularly the lawyers, or Scribes and Pharisees: when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms; the uppermost places at the table, which these men loved, coveted, and sought after; See Gill on Mat 23:6. saying unto them; as follows.

A parable - The word parable, here, means rather a “precept, an injunction.” He gave a “rule or precept” about the proper manner of attending a feast, or about the humility which ought to be manifested on such occasions. That were bidden - That were invited by the Pharisee. It seems that he had invited his friends to dine with him on that day. When he marked - When he observed or saw. Chief rooms - The word “rooms” here does not express the meaning of the original.

a parable--showing that His design was not so much to inculcate mere politeness or good manners, as underneath this to teach something deeper (Lu 14:11). chief rooms--principal seats, in the middle part of the couch on which they reclined at meals, esteemed the most honorable.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase

Let us first learn from these verses — the value of humility . This is a lesson which our Lord teaches in two ways. Firstly, He advises those who are bidden to a wedding to "sit down in the lowest place." Secondly, He backs up His advice by declaring a great principle, which frequently fell from His lips, "Whoever exalts himself — shall be abased; and he who humbles himself — shall be exalted." Humility may well be called the queen of the Christian graces.

Let us first learn from these verses — the value of humility . This is a lesson which our Lord teaches in two ways. Firstly, He advises those who are bidden to a wedding to "sit down in the lowest place." Secondly, He backs up His advice by declaring a great principle, which frequently fell from His lips, "Whoever exalts himself — shall be abased; and he who humbles himself — shall be exalted." Humility may well be called the queen of the Christian graces. To know our own sinfulness and weakness, and to feel our need of Christ — is the start of saving religion. Humility is a grace which has always been a distinguishing feature in the character of the holiest saints in every age. Abraham and Moses and Job and David and Daniel and Paul — were all eminently humble men. Above all, humility is a grace within the reach of every true Christian . All do not have money to give away. All do not have time and opportunities for working directly for Christ. All do not have gifts of speech, and knowledge, in order to do good in the world. But all converted men should labor to adorn the doctrine they profess by humility. If they can do nothing else — they can strive to be humble. Do you want to know the root and spring of humility? One word describes it. The root of humility is right knowledge. The person . . . who really knows himself and his own heart, who knows God and his infinite majesty and holiness, who knows Christ and the price at which he was redeemed — that person will never be a proud person. He will count himself, like Jacob, unworthy of the least of all God's mercies. He will say of himself, like Job, "I am vile!" He will cry, like Paul, "I am the chief of sinners!" He will consider others better than himself (Philippians 2:3). Ignorance — nothing but sheer ignorance, ignorance of self, of God, and of Christ — is the real secret of pride.

They chose out the chief rooms - When custom and law have regulated and settled places in public assemblies, a man who is obliged to attend may take the place which belongs to him, without injury to himself or to others: when nothing of this nature is settled, the law of humility, and the love of order, are the only judges of what is proper. To take the highest place when it is not our due is public vanity: obstinately to refuse it when offered is another instance of the same vice; though private and concealed. Humility takes as much care to avoid the ostentation of an affected refusal, as the open seeking of a superior place. See Quesnel. In this parable our Lord only repeats advices which the rabbins had given to their pupils, but were too proud to conform to themselves. Rabbi Akiba said, Go two or three seats lower than the place that belongs to thee, and sit there till they say unto thee, Go up higher; but do not take the uppermost seat, lest they say unto thee, Come down: for it is better that they should say unto thee, Go up, go up; than that they should say, Come down, come down. See Schoettgen.