Luke 12:20

Luke 12:20 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?
• New International Version (NIV)“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
• English Standard Version (ESV)But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?'
• New King James Version (NKJV)But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’

Context of Luke 12:20

18Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my storehouses and build larger ones, and I will store all my grain and my goods there. 19And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many good things stored up, [enough] for many years; rest and relax, eat, drink and be merry (celebrate continually).” ’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own all the things you have prepared?’ 21So it is for the one who continues to store up and hoard possessions for himself, and is not rich [in his relationship] toward God.” 22Jesus said to His disciples, “For this reason I tell you, do not worry about your life, as to what you will eat; or about your body, as to what you will wear.

Luke 12:20 word by word

εἶπεν δὲ αὐτῷ ὁ θεός· ἄφρων, ταύτῃ τῇ νυκτὶ τὴν ψυχήν σου ἀπαιτοῦσιν ἀπὸ σοῦ. ἃ δὲ ἡτοίμασας, τίνι ἔσται;Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Butδέde · thenG1161
• Godὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• saidλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
• unto himαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• foolἄφρωνaphrōn · foolishG878
• thisοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
• nightνύξnux · nightG3571
• thyσύsu · youG4771
• soulψυχήpsuchē · soulG5590
• shall be requiredἀπαιτέωapaiteō · to demandG523
• ofἀπόapo · away fromG575
• whoseτίςtis · which?G5101
• shallεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• those thingsὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
• thou hast providedἑτοιμάζωhetoimazō · to make readyG2090

Cross-references for Luke 12:20

• Luke 16:22Now it happened that the poor man died and his spirit was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom (paradise); and the rich man also died and was buried.
• Exodus 16:9Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to all the congregation of Israel, ‘Approach the Lord, because He has heard your murmurings.’ ”
• 1 Samuel 25:36Then Abigail came to Nabal, and he was holding a feast in his house [for the shearers], like the feast of a king. And Nabal’s mood was joyous because he was very drunk; so she told him nothing at all until the morning light.
• 2 Samuel 13:28Now Absalom commanded his servants, “Notice carefully, when Amnon’s heart is joyous with wine, and when I say to you, ‘Strike Amnon,’ then kill him. Do not be afraid; have I not commanded you myself [and in doing so have I not taken full responsibility for his death]? Be courageous and brave.”
• 1 Kings 16:9His servant Zimri, commander of half his chariots, conspired against Elah. Now Elah was in Tirzah, getting drunk in the house of Arza, who was in charge of the [king’s] household in Tirzah.
• Job 20:20“Because he knew no quietness or calm within him [because of his greed], He does not retain anything he desires.
• Job 27:8For what is the hope of the godless, even though he has gained [in this world], When God takes his life?
• Psalms 73:19How they are destroyed in a moment! They are completely swept away by sudden terrors!
• Psalms 78:30Before they had satisfied their desire, And while their food was in their mouths,
• Daniel 5:1Belshazzar the king [who was a descendant of Nebuchadnezzar] gave a great feast for a thousand of his nobles, and he was drinking his wine in the presence of the thousand [guests].
• Nahum 1:10Like tangled thorn branches [gathered for fuel], And like those drowned in drunkenness, The people of Nineveh are consumed [through fire] Like stubble completely withered and dry [in the day of the Lord’s wrath].
• Matthew 24:48But if that servant is evil and says in his heart, ‘My master is taking his time [he will not return for a long while],’
• 1 Thessalonians 5:3While they are saying, “Peace and safety [all is well and secure!]” then [in a moment unforeseen] destruction will come upon them suddenly like labor pains on a woman with child, and they will absolutely not escape [for there will be no way to escape the judgment of the Lord].
• Luke 11:40You foolish ones [acting without reflection or intelligence]! Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?
• Jeremiah 17:11Like the partridge that hatches eggs which she has not laid, So is he who makes a fortune in ways that are unjust. It will be lost to him before his days are over, And in the end he will be [nothing but] a fool.”
• James 4:14Yet you do not know [the least thing] about what may happen in your life tomorrow. [What is secure in your life?] You are merely a vapor [like a puff of smoke or a wisp of steam from a cooking pot] that is visible for a little while and then vanishes [into thin air].

Commentaries on Luke 12:20

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 20Thou fool! - To imagine that a man's comfort and peace can depend upon temporal things; or to suppose that these can satisfy the wishes of an immortal spirit! This night - How awful was this saying! He had just made the necessary arrangements for the gratification of his sensual appetites; and, in the very night in which he had finally settled all his plans, his soul was called into the eternal world! What a dreadful awakening of a soul, long asleep in…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20Thou fool - If there is any supreme folly, it is this. As though riches could prolong life, or avert for a moment the approach of pain and death. This night … - What an awful sentence to a man who, as he thought, had got just ready to live and enjoy himself! In a single moment all his hopes were blasted, and his soul summoned to the bar of his long-forgotten God. So, many are surprised as suddenly and as unprepared. They are snatched from their pleasures…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 13-21Verses 13-21 Christ's kingdom is spiritual, and not of this world. Christianity does not meddle with politics; it obliges all to do justly, but wordly dominion is not founded in grace. It does not encourage expectations of worldly advantages by religion. The rewards of Christ's disciples are of another nature. Covetousness is a sin we need constantly to be warned against; for happiness and comfort do not depend on the wealth of this world. The things of…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 19-20myself (Literally soul): The man was speaking to himself. You fool! In Scripture, a fool is not someone with low intelligence, but someone who dishonors and disobeys God (Psalm 14:1–5). your life will be required of you: The man believed his soul was secure, but God was not pleased with him.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 20-2120-21. this night, &c.--This sudden cutting short of his career is designed to express not only the folly of building securely upon the future, but of throwing one's whole soul into what may at any moment be gone. "Thy soul shall be required of thee" is put in opposition to his own treatment of it, "I will say to my soul, Soul," &c. whose shall those things be, &c.--Compare Psa 39:6, "He heapeth up riches and knoweth not who shall gather them."Read the comment

Topics related to Luke 12:20

• Commandments
• Confidence
• Covetousness
• Death
• Fool
• Gluttony
• Happiness
• Jesus Continued
• Jesus, the Christ
• Presumption
• Rich, the
• Self-Delusion
• Self-Indulgence
• Sensuality

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Ask
• Beat
• Divide
• Divider
• Forewarn
• Hell
• Hypocrisy
• Teach

Commentaries on Luke 12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings