Luke 13:28

Luk 13:28-30. There shall be weeping, &c. — Here he repeats what he had said when he commended the centurion’s faith. See on Mat 8:11-12. As if he said, How little soever you may now regard it, the awful word, Depart from me, &c., will wound you to the heart, and throw you into agonies of everlasting despair, attended with the bitterest weeping and gnashing of teeth — For madness and rage; when you shall see Abraham, &c. — Your holy ancestors; and all the prophets — Of the succeeding ages; in the kingdom of God — Actually possessed of God’s kingdom of glory; and shall find yourselves thrust out — Rejected and excluded with just contempt and indignation. And they shall come from the east, &c. — From the most distant heathen lands; and shall sit down in the kingdom of God — In rejoicing and admiring multitudes, to partake of the heavenly banquet with your pious ancestors, while you are utterly and for ever excluded from it. Here, therefore, as well as in Matthew, our Lord plainly affirms that many others, besides Jews, shall be saved. And there are last — There are many who are now last in point of religious advantages, that shall then be first in honour and happiness; and there are first, &c. — Many who now appear first in the enjoyment of privileges, which, on account of the abuse thereof, shall be last — Shall appear as the most infamous and miserable of mankind. See on Mat 19:30; Mat 20:16.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

13:28 The expression weeping and gnashing of teeth portrays rejection and suffering. • Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were the three great founding patriarchs of the nation of Israel.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Luk 13:28. Ἐκεῖ, there) in that place, to which ye shall be commanded to depart. [See that thou dost in due time reflect on that a “terror of the Lord,” lest hereafter thou shouldest in actual fact be forced to know it by bitter experience.—V. g.]—ὄψησθε) when ye shall see, but not taste [their blessedness]. A sight full of misery. See ch. Luk 16:23. The ungodly, on the contrary, shall be a festive sight to the saints:[132] Isa 66:23-24.—Ἀβραὰμ, Abraham) The patriarchs and all the prophets looked to Christ; and whosoever do not follow their faith, shall not recline at the heavenly feast with them.—πάντας, all) All the prophets were saints. The Jews used to boast themselves of these, though their fathers had rejected them. There is here, as also in Luk 13:29, a softening down of the apprehension which the ‘fewness’ of the saved might create: see Luk 13:23.—βασιλείᾳ, the kingdom) Luk 13:29.—ἐκβαλλομένους, persons who are being cast out) The Present. The weeping shall forthwith begin.

[132] “They shall go forth and look upon the carcasses of the men that have transgressed against Me, for their worm shall not die,” etc. Their will shall be so entirely one with God’s, that they shall rejoice in the destruction and punishment of God’s enemies; Rev 14:10, at the end, Luk 11:17-18, Luk 15:3-4, Luk 18:20.—ED. and TRANSL.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Luk_13:28-29. Comp. on Mat_8:11 f. The words of Jesus.

ἐκεῖ] there, in the place to which ye shall thus be turned away. For the most part it is understood temporally, ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ καιρῷ Euthymius Zigabenus. Rarely thus in the classical writers (Soph. Phil. 394; Bornemann, Schol. p. 90 f.), but never (yet comp. ἐκεῖθεν, Act_13:21) in the New Testament; and here the context points definitely by ἀπόστητε ἀπʼ ἐμοῦ to the well-known locality, as, moreover, the standing type of this formula sanctioned by use (Mat_13:42; Mat_13:50; Mat_22:13; Mat_24:51; Mat_25:30) with ἐκεῖ leads one to think only of that locality.

ὅταν ὄψησθε] What contrasts! They saw the patriarchs and prophets established in the kingdom, but in themselves experience the sense of being cast out, and instead of them come heathens from the east and west, etc. On the subjunctive form ὄψησθε, see Buttmann, Neut. Gr. p. 31 [E. T. 36].

Ἀβρ. κ. Ἰσ. κ. Ἰακώβ] Comp. Mat_8:11. The Marcionite reading πάντας τοὺς δικαίους is an intentional removal of the patriarchs (Volkmar, comp, Zeller, Apostelg. p. 17). It was not original, so that the canonical reading cannot be said to have been introduced in accordance with Matt. l.c., or in opposition to Marcions views (Hilgenfeld, Baur).

ἐκβαλλομ. ἔξω] agrees with the figure, although the persons concerned are not admitted at all; for they are members of the family, and as such, i.e. as originally belonging to the theocratic community of the patriarchs and prophets, they are by their rejection practically ἐκβαλλόμενοι ἔξω. The present tense is justifiable, since the ὁρᾶν κ.τ.λ. at the time of the ἔσται ἡ κλαυθμός will be already past. Hence: if ye shall have seen yourselves as such, become (not are) the cast out. After they shall have seen this measure carried out, they shall be in hell, where there shall be weeping, etc.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Luk 13:28-30 . Concluding reflections .

Luk 13:28 . ἐκεῖ , there; then , according to Euthy. Zig. ( τότε , ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ καιρῷ ). Kuinoel also takes it as an adverb of time in accordance with Hebraistic usage, and Bornemann cites instances from Greek authors of the same use of adverbs of place as adverbs of time. But there is not only verbally correct, but graphic: there, outside the door of the house where patriarchs and prophets feast, shall the excluded weep and gnash their teeth, all the more because they think they have a right, as belonging to the chosen race, to be within.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Vers. 28-30. “There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. 29. And they shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God. 30. And, behold, there are last which shall be first, and there are first which shall be last.”

Wailings express despair, gnashings of teeth rage. The souls of the condemned oscillate between those two feelings. The article before the two substantives has the force of setting aside all former similar impressions as comparatively insignificant. Messianic blessedness is represented in Luk 13:28, according to a figure familiar among the Jews (Luk 14:15), under the image of a banquet presided over by the patriarchs. From Luk 13:29 it follows that the believing Gentiles are admitted as well as the faithful posterity of Abraham. Thus there are really many persons saved.

The words and behold (Luk 13:30) refer to the surprise produced by this entire reversal of position. The last here are not those who, within the confines of the kingdom, occupy the last place; they are, as the context proves, those who are excluded from it; they are in the last place, absolutely speaking. The first are all the saved. The first proposition evidently applies to the Gentiles who are admitted (Luk 13:29), the second to the Jews who are rejected (Luk 13:27-28).

Sayings similar to those of Luk 13:25-27 are found in Matthew 7, at the end of the Sermon on the Mount, also in Mat 25:10-12 and Mat 25:30. There is nothing to prevent us from regarding them as uttered on a different occasion. Those of Luk 13:28-29 appear in Mat 8:11-12, immediately after the cure of the centurion’s son. But they are not so well accounted for there as in the context of Luke. The apophthegm of Luk 13:30 forms (Mat 19:30; Mat 20:16) the preface and the conclusion of the parable of the labourers called at different hours. In this context, the last who become the first are manifestly the labourers who, having come later, find themselves privileged to receive the same hire; the first who become the last are those who, having wrought from the beginning of the day, are thereby treated less advantageously. Is this sense natural? Is not the application of those expressions in Luke to the rejected Jews and admitted Gentiles more simple?

The Epistles to the Galatians and to the Romans are the only true commentary on this piece, and on the sayings of Luk 13:28-29 in particular. Now, as the historical truth of the whole passage is certified by the parallel of Matthew, we have a clear proof that the gospel of Paul no way differed in substance from that of Jesus and the Twelve.

2. The Farewell to the Theocracy: Luk 13:31-35.

When the heart is full of some one feeling, everything which tells upon it from without calls forth the expression of it. And so, at the time when the mind of Jesus is specially occupied about the future of His people, it is not surprising that this feeling comes to light with every circumstance which supervenes. There is therefore no reason why this perfectly natural fact should be taken to prove a systematic arrangement originating with Luke.

Frédéric Louis Godet — Commentaries on Luke, John, Romans, and 1 Corinthians — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1870s–1890s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The casting off of the Jews, and the calling of the Gentiles is foretold.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

(See Mat 8:11-12). Also see on Mat 13:42.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 28. Abraham, and Isaac, &c.] See Clarke on Mt 8:12, where the figures and allusions made use of here are particularly explained.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(28, 29) There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.—See Notes on Mat_8:11-12; but notice, as an interesting variation, the addition of the “prophets” to the names of the three patriarchs.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

28. weeping and gnashing of teeth] The signs respectively of anguish and of rage (Act_7:54).

Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob] Marcion, always anxious to disown the Old Testament, altered this into “all the just.”

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And they shall come,.... From all parts the world, from every nation under the heavens; meaning the Gentiles, and which will be a greater aggravation of the punishment of the Jews, and cause still more rage and madness: these shall

come from the east and from the west; from the rising of the sun, to the going down of the same, Isa 45:6

and from the north, and from the south; from the most distant parts of the world inhabited by men; see Isa 43:5. God has his chosen ones, and Christ has a people in all parts of the world; and therefore his Gospel must be preached to all nations, for the gathering of them in, which will be done in the latter day; and in the resurrection morn, as these will be raised in the several places where they will have been buried, they will come from thence, and make one body, and will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air, and will be for ever with him:

and shall sit down in the kingdom of God; in Christ's kingdom, in the new heavens, and new earth, as persons that sit down at a table, to partake of a feast; see Luk 22:30 and in the ultimate glory, where they shall have rest, peace, and joy, for evermore. The Ethiopic version renders it, "they shall rejoice in the kingdom of God"; they shall partake of the joys of heaven; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away; and the Persic version, "and they shall take a repose, and sit and rest"; they shall rest from all their labour, and be in perfect ease and peace; See Gill on Mat 8:11.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

28 There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out.

Ver. 28. See Mat 8:12; Mat 13:42; Mat 24:51.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

See the notes at Mat 8:11-12.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

We have the same Mat 8:11,12, only he saith only from the east and west: See Poole on "Mat 8:11-12".

Weeping and gnashing of teeth, are usual expressions by which the pains of the damned are expressed, especially by the evangelist Matthew, Mat 8:12; Mat 13:42,50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30. One cause of this vexation of spirit, expressed under this notion, is the Jews’ sight of the rest and happiness that their relations, nay, some to whom they upon earth were enemies, should enjoy in heaven; nay, which some which were heathens should enjoy there; whereas they, who took themselves to be the only church, and to have the same right to the kingdom of heaven that children have to the inheritances of their fathers, should be cast out, as having no portion there.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. No less than six times is this terrible formula, which expresses the intensest form of anguish, found in St. Matthew"s Gospel. St. Luke only gives us the account of one occasion on which they were spoken. They indicate, as far as merely earthly words and symbols can, the utter misery of those unhappy ones who find themselves shut out from the kingdom in the world to come. "Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob." In his revision of St. Luke"s Gospel, Marcion, the famous Gnostic heretic, in place of these names, which he strikes out, inserts "all the just." He did this with a view to lower the value of the Old Testament records.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Matt. viii, 11.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

28, 29. Ye shall see Abraham. See notes on Matt. 8:11, 12.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

Connecting Statement:

Jesus continues to talk about entering into God's kingdom. This is the end of this conversation.

crying and the grinding of teeth

These actions are symbolic acts, indicating great regret and sadness. AT: "crying and grinding of teeth because of their great regret" (See: Symbolic Action)

when you see

Jesus continues to speak to the crowd as if they will not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

but you are thrown out

"but you yourselves will have been thrown outside." This can be stated in active form. AT: "but God will have forced you outside" (See: Active or Passive)

from the east, west, north, and south

This means "from every direction." (See: Merism)

be seated at a table in the kingdom of God

It was common to speak of the joy in God's kingdom as a feast. AT: "they will feast in the kingdom of God" (See: Metaphor)

will be first ... will be last

Being first represents being important or honored. AT: "will be the most important ... will be the least important" or "God will honor ... God will shame" (See: Metaphor)

translationWords

Abraham

Isaac

Jacob

prophet

kingdom of God

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

28. ἐκεῖ. This is explained by Euthymius to mean then (ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ καιρῷ), just as in Act 13:21 κἀκεῖθεν means “and from that time.” It is better however to understand it to mean ‘depart to the place where’ (by brachylogy).

ὁ κλαυθμὸς καὶ ὁ βρυγμὸς τῶν ὀδόντων. The signs respectively of anguish and of rage (Act 7:54).

Ἀβραὰμ καὶ Ἰσαὰκ καὶ Ἰακώβ. Marcion, always anxious to disown the Old Testament, altered this into πάντας τοὺς δικαίους.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

28. Ἐκεῖ ἔσται ὁ κλαυθμός. There is no need to interpret ἐκεῖ of time, a use which is rare in class. Grk. and perhaps does not occur in N.T. Here the meaning is, “There in your exclusion, in your place of banishment.” Note the articles with κλαυθμός and βρυγμός, “the weeping and the gnashing,” which are indeed such. Elsewhere in N. T. βρυγμός occurs only in Mt. (8:12, 13:42, 50, 22:13, 24:51, 25:30). In LXX Pro 19:12; Ecclus. 51:3; also Aq. Psa 37:9. These two verses (28, 29) occur in Mt. (8:11, 12) in a different connexion and with some difference of wording.

Ἀβραὰμ καὶ Ἰσαὰκ καὶ Ἰακὼβ καὶ πάντας τ. προφήτας. For all, this Marcion seems to have substituted πάντας τοὺς δικαίους. in order to avoid a direct reference to O.T. (Tert. Adv. Marcion, iv. 30). The evidence is wholly against the conjecture that Marcion’s reading was original one, which was altered in order to oppose him and agree with Mat 8:11. In Mt. πάντας τοὺς προφήτας is wanting. Some Lat. texts add dei to prophetas, and many add introire, or intrare or introeuntes before in regno or in regnum.

ὑμᾶς δὲ ἐκβαλλομένους ἔξω. “But yourselves being cast forth without,” in the attempt to enter. They never do enter; but, they would have entered, but for their misconduct, their exclusion is spoken of as “casting out.” Syr-Sin. omits the words.

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.