English Standard Version
Luke 17:10
10So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.'"
Luke 17:10 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.
- New International Version (NIV)So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’ ”
- New King James Version (NKJV)So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’ ”
- New Living Translation (NLT)In the same way, when you obey me you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.’”
Context of Luke 17:10
8Will he not rather say to him, 'Prepare supper for me, and dress properly, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you will eat and drink'? 9Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded? So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.'" 11On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. 12And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance
Read all of Luke 17Luke 17:10 word by word
οὕτως καὶ ὑμεῖς, ὅταν ποιήσητε πάντα τὰ διαταχθέντα ὑμῖν, λέγετε ὅτι δοῦλοι ἀχρεῖοί ἐσμεν· ὃ ὠφείλομεν ποιῆσαι πεποιήκαμεν.¶Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Soοὕτωςhoutō · thus(-ly)G3779
- likewiseκαίkai · andG2532
- yeσύsu · youG4771
- whenὅτανhotan · when(-ever)G3752
- ye shall have doneποιέωpoieō · to do/make: doG4160
- allπᾶςpas · allG3956
- those things whichὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- are commandedδιατάσσωdiatassō · to directG1299
- sayλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
- We areεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
- unprofitableἀχρεῖοςachreios · worthlessG888
- servantsδοῦλοςdoulos · slaveG1401
- ·ὅτιhoti · that/since: thatG3754
- that whichὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
- was our dutyὀφείλωopheilō opheileō · to oweG3784
Cross-references for Luke 17:10
- 1 Chronicles 29:14"But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you.
- Job 22:2"Can a man be profitable to God? Surely he who is wise is profitable to himself.
- Job 35:6If you have sinned, what do you accomplish against him? And if your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to him?
- Psalms 16:2I say to the Lord, "You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you."
- Psalms 35:6Let their way be dark and slippery, with the angel of the Lord pursuing them!
- Proverbs 16:2All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirit.
- Isaiah 6:5And I said: "Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!"
- Isaiah 64:6We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
- Matthew 25:30And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'
- Romans 3:12All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one."
- Romans 11:35"Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?"
- 1 Corinthians 9:16For if I preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!
- 1 Corinthians 15:9For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.
- Philippians 3:8Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ
- Philemon 1:11(Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful to you and to me.)
- 1 Peter 5:5Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."
Commentaries on Luke 17:10
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 10We are unprofitable servants - This text has often been produced to prove that no man can live without committing sin against God. But let it be observed, the text says unprofitable servants, not sinful servants. If this text could be fairly construed to countenance sinful imperfection, it would be easy to demonstrate that there is not one of the spirits of just men made perfect, in paradise, nor a ministering angel at the throne of God, but is sinfully…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 10Are unprofitable servants - We have conferred no favor. We have “merited” nothing. We have not “benefited” God, or laid him under “obligation.” If he rewards us, it will be matter of unmerited favor. This is true in relation to Christians in the following respects: 1.Our services are not “profitable” to God Job 22:2; he “needs” not our aid, and his essential happiness will not be increased by our efforts. 2.The grace to do his will comes from him only…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7-10In Greco-Roman culture, servants were expected to serve their masters faithfully. Faith (17:5–6) includes obeying Christ and submitting to his commands.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 7-107-10. say unto him by and by--The "by and by" (or rather "directly") should be joined not to the saying but the going: "Go directly." The connection here is: "But when your faith has been so increased as both to avoid and forgive offenses, and do things impossible to all but faith, be not puffed up as though you had laid the Lord under any obligations to you."Read the comment
Topics related to Luke 17:10
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Luke 17
- 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
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- 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
English Standard Version — © 2001 Crossway Bibles
Commentaries