Luke 18:13-17

18:13 The tax collector, however, stood ¹  far off and would not even look up ²  to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, be merciful ³  to me, sinner that I am!’ ⁴  18:14 I tell you that this man went down to his home justified ⁵  rather than the Pharisee. ⁶  For everyone who exalts ⁷  himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Jesus and Little Children

18:15 Now people ⁸  were even bringing their babies ⁹  to him for him to touch. ¹⁰  But when the disciples saw it, they began to scold those who brought them. ¹¹  18:16 But Jesus called for the children, ¹²  saying, “Let the little children come to me and do not try to stop them, for the kingdom of God ¹³  belongs to such as these. ¹⁴  18:17 I tell you the truth, ¹⁵  whoever does not receive ¹⁶  the kingdom of God like a child ¹⁷  will never ¹⁸  enter it.”

[18:13]  ¹ tn Grk “standing”; the Greek participle has been translated as a finite verb.

[18:13]  ² tn Grk “even lift up his eyes” (an idiom).

[18:13]  ³ tn The prayer is a humble call for forgiveness. The term for mercy (ἱλάσκομαι, Jilaskomai) is associated with the concept of a request for atonement (BDAG 473-74 s.v. 1; Ps 51:1, 3; 25:11; 34:6, 18).

[18:13]  ⁴ tn Grk “the sinner.” The tax collector views himself not just as any sinner but as the worst of all sinners. See ExSyn 222-23.

[18:14]  ⁵ sn The prayer that was heard and honored was the one given with humility; in a surprising reversal it was the tax collector who went down to his home justified.

[18:14]  ⁶ tn Grk “the other”; the referent (the Pharisee, v. 10) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:14]  ⁷ sn Everyone who exalts himself. See Luke 14:11. Jesus often called for humility and condemned those who sought honor.

[18:15]  ⁸ tn Grk “they.”

[18:15]  ⁹ tn The term βρέφος (brefos) here can refer to babies or to toddlers (2:12, 16; Acts 7:19; 2 Tim 3:15; 1 Pet 2:2).

[18:15]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “so that he would touch them.” Here the touch is connected with (or conveys) a blessing (cf. Mark 10:16; also BDAG 126 s.v. ἅπτω 2.c).

[18:15]  ¹¹ tn Grk “the disciples began to scold them.” In the translation the referent has been specified as “those who brought them,” since otherwise the statement could be understood to mean that the disciples began scolding the children rather than their parents who brought them.

[18:16]  ¹² tn Grk “summoned them”; the referent (the children) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:16]  ¹³ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.

[18:16]  ¹⁴ sn The kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Children are a picture of those whose simple trust illustrates what faith is all about. The remark illustrates how everyone is important to God, even those whom others regard as insignificant.

[18:17]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[18:17]  ¹⁶ sn On receive see John 1:12.

[18:17]  ¹⁷ sn The point of the comparison receive the kingdom of God like a child has more to do with a child’s trusting spirit and willingness to be dependent and receive from others than any inherent humility the child might possess.

[18:17]  ¹⁸ tn The negation in Greek used here (οὐ μή, ou mh) is very strong.