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Hello again. I have so much to share this week, so let’s get to it!
Last Week’s Work
WRITING TYPES
At first, I thought this text is narrative, since that’s the overall type (per Luke 1:1-3, it’s an orderly account of the things that have been accomplished…). But from the literal context of this story, the author reports the speaker (Jesus per Luke 14:2) told … this parable. Until now, I didn’t notice Luke refers to the remainder of this chapter as just one parable! That means, I think, all three stories about a lost sheep (vv4-7), a lost coin (vv8-10), and a lost son (vv11-32) were meant to convey a single lesson. Therefore, I believe all of Luke 15 is instructional text, to be interpreted metaphorically.
LITERAL CONTEXT
Our goal in Step 4 is to correctly understand the message the original author intended for his original audience, and Luke literally identifies all of them! He wrote to someone named Theophilus (Greek for friend of God per blb.org). But the author of the parable is Jesus (Luke 14:2) who spoke it directly to grumbling Pharisees and scribes (Luke 15:2-3). Above, I theorized chapter 15 was intended to be one lesson, so I think this passage should be interpreted with the stories of the lost sheep and lost coin. In those tales, an owner loses one of many (one hundred sheep, ten coins), works hard to locate it, and celebrates when it’s found. While the prodigal’s father doesn’t go searching for him as the others did their lost items, I think, based on v20, his father was looking for him when he returned.
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
According to the ESV Global Study Bible, Luke wrote this book about AD 62. He was a physician and traveling companion of Paul. The writing is addressed directly to Theophilus, and shared with other mostly Gentile Christians. From biblehub.com I learned the original audience for the parable, the Pharisees, were a group of Jewish men who were strict observers of Hebrew law and tradition. They often opposed Jesus’s teachings, especially on purity and righteousness. Scribes were experts who taught and interpreted Jewish law, who also disagreed with Jesus over the law.
INTERLINEAR RESEARCH
I felt most directed to research the conditions dead, alive, lost, and especially found in vv24 and 32:
- Dead (G3498 nekros). According to the HELPS Word-studies section of biblehub.com, this means what lacks life, it’s figuratively dead and unresponsive to life-giving influences, inoperative to the things of God. The same word is used in both verses.
- Alive (G326 anezēsen). Per Strong’s, this word in v24 refers to resurrection, or recovering life literally or figuratively. Thayer’s indicates it’s about being restored to a correct life or returningto a better moral state. This is how the father described the prodigal to his servants. Interestingly, this word isn’t the same as the one he used with the older son (v32), see last bullet, below.
- Lost (G622 apollumi). The Topical Lexicon indicates this meant helplessness. Referring to all three stories in Luke 15, it emphasizes (1) sinners’ inability to help themselves, (2) the sacrifices the seekers made to recover what was lost, and (3) their joy when the lost are restored. Strong’s mentions its use in Luke 15:4 (and similarly in Matthew 18:12) as metaphorically referring to the concern that Israel has been neglected by its religious leaders (the audience here!) and could lose eternal salvation.
- Found (G2147 heurethē). From the Topical Lexicon, Luke 15 illustrates salvation doesn’t originate in any human achievement, but by God’s initiative: His grace is what leads to redemption.
- Alive (G2198 ezēsen). In v32, the HELPS Word-studies section of biblehub.com defines this as to live, experience God’s gift of life, and Thayer’s explains it as moving out of moral death into new life, dedicated and acceptable to God. As I researched this, I remembered Jesus’s statement to Nicodemus about being born again to Nicodemus (a Pharisee per John 3:1) from earlier this year (John 3:1-21)!
Dig-In Challenges
This week, let’s wrap up the second half of the Refine step by examining cross-references, other translations, and, if you want, checking out one or more commentaries on this passage.
- Pray, of course.
- REFINE: Then consult a concordance or online cross-reference study tool (I’ll be starting at this blb.org page) to find and read through the available cross-references for the verse(s) you’re most interested in and log what the Spirit shows you.
NOTE: to locate your focus verse(s), follow the above link, then use the Previous or Next buttons below the verse text to go to the appropriate verse(s). - REFINE: Next, compare at least a few other translations of your focuses verses and write about what you find in your study journal. I’ll be comparing ESV, AMP, NIV, and GNT using this biblehub.com page. You can compare your own verses from that link by entering them in the Enter Reference or Keyword box at the top of the page and clicking the spyglass icon there.
- REFINE: Last, I plan to “check” my work against a few commentaries. If you already have a favorite study Bible or commentary, feel free to review it, too. If you don’t, I recommend a couple of websites to explore. If you’re new to the Bible and Bible study, I’d start at bibleref.com, where you can find information about the whole book and this passage. If you’re looking for something with more detail, try checking the commentary section of StudyLight.org. There, you can access verse-by-verse commentaries of Luke 15 by clicking the box for your focus verse, then clicking the name of the commentary listed immediately under the text of the verse you chose. I recommend you click through to more than one commentary before you decide for yourself what works best.
Hope you’ll join me next week!