Luke 14:25
Large crowds were now traveling with Jesus, and He turned and said to them,
BSB
ASV
Now there went with him great multitudes: and he turned, and said unto them,
KJV
And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them,
(in Hom. 37. in Ev.) The mind is kindled, when it hears of heavenly rewards, and already desires to be there, where it hopes to enjoy them without ceasing; but great rewards cannot be reached except by great labours. Therefore it is said, And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned to them, and said, &c.
Those that undertake to follow Christ must count upon the worst, and prepare accordingly. He tells them what the worst is that they must count upon, much the same with what he had gone through before them and for them. He takes it for granted that they had a mind to be his disciples, that they might be qualified for preferment in his kingdom.
1816–1900
Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: Luke (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition) (1858)
We learn, firstly, from this passage — that true Christians must be ready, if need be, to give up everything for Christ's sake. This is a lesson which is taught in very remarkable language. Our Lord says, "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters — yes, even his own life — he cannot be My disciple!" This expression must doubtless be interpreted with some qualification . We must never explain any text of Scripture in such a manner as to make it contradict another.
Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.
The walk5
Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.
Through
Luke 12:1In the meantime, a crowd of many thousands had gathered, so that they were trampling one another. Jesus began to speak first to His disciples: “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is…
leads to
Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander.
Get rid of the old leaven, that you may be a new unleavened batch, as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.
But the wisdom from above is first of all pure, then peace-loving, gentle, accommodating, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, and sincere.
You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and sky. Why don’t you know how to interpret the present time?
“Watch out!” Jesus told them. “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
