Luke 9:24-26

9:24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, ¹  but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 9:25 For what does it benefit a person ²  if he gains the whole world but loses or forfeits himself? 9:26 For whoever is ashamed ³  of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person ⁴  when he comes in his glory and in the glory ⁵  of the Father and of the holy angels.

¹ sn The point of the saying whoever wants to save his life will lose it is that if one comes to Jesus then rejection by many will certainly follow. If self-protection is a key motivation, then one will not respond to Jesus and will not be saved. One who is willing to risk rejection will respond and find true life.

² tn Grk “a man,” but ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used in a generic sense here to refer to both men and women.

³ sn How one responds now to Jesus and his teaching is a reflection of how Jesus, as the Son of Man who judges, will respond then in the final judgment.

⁴ tn This pronoun (τοῦτον, touton) is in emphatic position in its own clause in the Greek text: “of that person the Son of Man will be ashamed…”

⁵ tn Grk “in the glory of him and of the Father and of the holy angels.” “Glory” is repeated here in the translation for clarity and smoothness because the literal phrase is unacceptably awkward in contemporary English.