Luke 12:8-59

8“Now I say to you, everyone who 1confesses Me before people, the Son of Man will also confess him before the angels of God; 9but 2the one who denies Me before people will be denied 3before the angels of God. 104And everyone who 5speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him. 11Now when they bring you before 6the synagogues and the officials and the authorities, do not 7worry about how or what you are to speak in your defense, or what you are to say; 12for 8the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

13Now someone 9in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” 14But He said to him, “1011You there--who appointed Me a judge or arbitrator over the two of you?” 15But He said to them, “12Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one is affluent does his life consist of his possessions.” 16And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive. 17And he began thinking to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ 18And he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and I will store all my grain and my goods there. 19And I will say to 13myself, “14You have many goods stored up for many years to come; relax, eat, drink, and enjoy yourself!”’ 20But God said to him, ‘15You fool! This very night 1617your soul is demanded of you; and 18as for all that you have prepared, who will own it now?’ 21Such is the one who 19stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich in relation to God.”

22And He said to His disciples, “20For this reason I tell you, 21do not worry about your 22life, as to what you are to eat; nor for your body, as to what you are to wear. 23For life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing. 24Consider the 23ravens, that they neither sow nor reap; they have no storeroom nor 24barn, and yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds! 25And which of you by worrying can add a 2526day to his 27life’s span? 26Therefore if you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about the other things? 27Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither labor nor 28spin; but I tell you, not even 29Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. 28Now if God so clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you? 30You of little faith! 29And do not 31seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not 32keep worrying. 30For 33all these things are what the nations of the world 34eagerly seek; and your Father knows that you need these things. 31But 35seek His kingdom, and 36these things will be 37provided to you. 323839Do not be afraid, 40little flock, because 41your Father has chosen to give you the kingdom.

33“42Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves money belts that do not wear out, 43an inexhaustible treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor does a moth destroy. 34For 44where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

35“4546Be prepared, and keep your 47lamps lit. 36You are also to be like people who are waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door for him when he comes and knocks. 37Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find 48on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that 49he will 50prepare himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and he will come up and serve them. 3851Whether he comes in the 52second watch, or even in the 53third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.

39“54But 55be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have allowed his house to be 56broken into. 4057You too, be ready; because the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not think He will.”

41Peter said, “Lord, are You telling this parable to us, or 58to everyone else as well?” 42And 59the Lord said, “60Who then is the faithful and sensible 61steward, whom his master will put in charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time? 43Blessed is that 62slave whom his 63master finds so doing when he comes. 44Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 45But if that slave says in his heart, ‘My master will take a long time to come,’ and he begins to beat the other slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk; 46then the master of that slave will come on a day that he does not expect, and at an hour that he does not know, and will 64cut him in two, and assign 65him a place with the unbelievers. 47And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not get ready or act in accordance with his will, will 66receive many blows, 48but the one who did not 67know it, and committed acts deserving of 68a beating, will receive only a few blows. 69From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.

49“I 70have come to cast fire upon the earth; and 71how I wish it were already kindled! 50But I have a 72baptism 73to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished! 5174Do you think that I came to provide peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division; 52for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three. 53They will be divided, 75father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”

54And He was also saying to the crowds, “76Whenever you see a cloud rising 77in the west, you immediately say, ‘A shower is coming,’ and so it turns out. 55And whenever you feel a 78south wind blowing, you say, ‘It will be a 79hot day,’ and it turns out that way. 56You hypocrites! 80You know how to analyze the appearance of the earth and the sky, but how is it that you do not know how to analyze this present time?

57“And 81why do you not even judge by yourselves what is right? 58For 82when you are going with your accuser to appear before the magistrate, on the way, make an effort to 83settle with him, so that he does not drag you before the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. 59I tell you, you will not get out of there until you have paid up 84the very last 8586lepton.”