Luke 14:31 BSB — MannaFest

Luke 14:31

Or what king on his way to war with another king will not first sit down and consider whether he can engage with ten thousand men the one coming against him with twenty thousand?

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

Or what king, as he goeth to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and take counsel whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?

KJV

Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?

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Commentary

1 voice

Cyril of Alexandria

Commentary on the Gospel of Luke, Sermon 105 (444)

"Or what king, He says, wishing to make war with another king, does not consider with himself, whether with his ten thousand he can prevail over one who is more mighty than himself?" And what does this mean? "Our wrestle is not against blood and flesh, but against governments; against empires; against the worldholders of this darkness; against wicked spirits in the heavenly regions."

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

Note, First, Those that persist in sin make war against God, the most unnatural, unjustifiable war; they rebel against their lawful sovereign, whose government is perfectly just and good. Secondly, The proudest and most daring sinner is no equal match for God; the disproportion of strength is much greater than that here supposed between ten thousand and twenty thousand.

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

J.C. Ryle

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.

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

27 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
ἢ	ē	Or	G2228 →
τίς	tis	what	G5101 →
βασιλεὺς	basileus	king	G935 →
πορευόμενος	poreuomenos	proceeding	G4198 →
ἑτέρῳ	heterō	with another	G2087 →
βασιλεῖ	basilei	king	G935 →
συμβαλεῖν	sumbalein	to engage	G4820 →
εἰς	eis	in	G1519 →
πόλεμον	polemon	war	G4171 →
οὐχὶ	ouchi	not	G3780 →
καθίσας	kathisas	having sat down	G2523 →
πρῶτον	prōton	first	G4413 →
βουλεύσεται	bouleusetai	will take counsel	G1011 →
εἰ	ei	whether	G1487 →
δυνατός	dunatos	able	G1415 →
ἐστιν	estin	he is	G1510 →
ἐν	en	with	G1722 →
δέκα	deka	ten	G1176 →
χιλιάσιν	chiliasin	thousand	G5505 →
ὑπαντῆσαι	hupantēsai	to meet	G5221 →
τῷ	tō	the [one]	G3588 →
μετὰ	meta	with	G3326 →
εἴκοσι	eikosi	twenty	G1501 →
χιλιάδων	chiliadōn	thousand	G5505 →
ἐρχομένῳ	erchomenō	coming	G2064 →
ἐπ᾽	ep᾽	against	G1909 →
αὐτόν;	auton	him?	G846 →

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 walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

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
Proverbs 25:8
do not bring hastily to court. Otherwise, what will you do in the end when your neighbor puts you to shame?
leads to
- Matthew 5:25
  Reconcile quickly with your adversary, while you are still on the way to court. Otherwise, he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and…
- Proverbs 17:14
  To start a quarrel is to release a flood; so abandon the dispute before it breaks out.
- Proverbs 18:6
  A fool’s lips bring him strife, and his mouth invites a beating.
- Proverbs 30:33
  For as the churning of milk yields butter, and the twisting of the nose draws blood, so the stirring of anger brings forth strife.”
Through
Proverbs 20:18
Set plans by consultation, and wage war under sound guidance.
leads to
- Proverbs 15:22
  Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.
- Proverbs 24:6
  Only with sound guidance should you wage war, and victory lies in a multitude of counselors.
- Judges 1:1–2
  After the death of Joshua, the Israelites inquired of the LORD, “Who will be the first to go up and fight for us against the Canaanites?”
Through
1 Kings 20:11
And the king of Israel replied, “Tell him: ‘The one putting on his armor should not boast like one taking it off.’”
leads to
- Proverbs 27:1
  Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.

Featured studies on this passage

Christ and the Rich Young Ruler — Heinrich Hofmann, 1889

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About Luke

The Return of the Prodigal Son — Gustave Doré (engraving, public domain)

Luke: the study guide →Read chapter 14 →The featured study →

Continue: Luke 14 →

01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

05Featured studies on this passage

06About Luke

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

Featured studies on this passage

About Luke