The Fallible Study Bible

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Luke13:22–30

The Narrow Door

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Luke 13:22–30 — The Narrow Door. Each verse below carries the full apparatus: the Berean Standard Bible, the vocalized original (tap any word), and a parsed breakdown of every term transcribed from the interlinear. Synthesized commentary, canonical threads, and the reading of Christ gather at the end, over the whole unit.

22

Then Jesus traveled throughout the towns and villages, teaching as He made His way toward Jerusalem.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Kai dieporeueto kata poleis kai kōmas didaskōn kai poioumenos poreian eis Hierosolyma

Word by word12 · parsed
ΚαὶKaiThenG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
διεπορεύετοdieporeueto[Jesus] traveledG1279
√ διαπορεύομαι — to travel throughVerbImperfect Indicative Middle or Passive3rd Person Singular
diaporeuomai: to travel through Imperfect middle or passive, third singular. A less common compound (the Verifier counts it in 5 verses, including Acts 16:4 and Romans 15:24): Luke uses it to keep the whole central section moving as one long road.
κατὰkatathroughoutG2596
√ κατά — (prepositionally) down (in place or time), in varied relations (according to the case (genitive, dative or accusative) with which it is joined)Preposition
πόλειςpoleis[the] townsG4172
√ πόλις — a town (properly, with walls, of greater or less size)NounAccusative Feminine Plural
Towns: poleis, walled places; paired with unwalled villages, the phrase means everywhere along the road.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
κώμαςkōmasvillagesG2968
√ κώμη — a hamlet (as if laid down)NounAccusative Feminine Plural
διδάσκωνdidaskōnteachingG1321
√ διδάσκω — to teach (in the same broad application)VerbPresent Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Singular
didaskō: to teach Present participle: teaching is the manner of the travel, not an interruption of it. Barnes draws the lesson that the Lord did not suspend His work for the journey.
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ποιούμενοςpoioumenosas He madeG4160
√ ποιέω — to make or do (in a very wide application, more or less direct)VerbPresent Participle MiddleNominative Masculine Singular
πορείανporeianHis wayG4197
√ πορεία — travel (by land)NounAccusative Feminine Singular
poreia: travel by land Rare in the NT (the Verifier lists it in 2 verses: here and James 1:11). With poioumenos it names a purposeful journey, the deliberate circuit Ellicott sees.
εἰςeistowardG1519
√ εἰς — to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etcPreposition
ἹεροσόλυμαHierosolymaJerusalemG2414
√ Ἱεροσόλυμα — Hierosolyma (iNounAccusative Neuter Plural
Hierosolyma: Jerusalem The goal that frames everything from Luke 9:51, where Jesus resolutely sets out for Jerusalem. Pulpit: these notes of place mark the last solemn progress toward the capital; the question about salvation is asked on the road to the cross.
23

“Lord,” someone asked Him, “will only a few people be saved?” Jesus answered,

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Kyrie de tis Eipen autō ei oligoi hoi sōzomenoi de Ho eipen pros autous

Word by word14 · parsed
ΚύριεKyrieLordG2962
√ κύριος — supreme in authority, iNounVocative Masculine Singular
kyrios: lord, master Vocative. It may be no more than polite address here, but v. 25 will put the same vocative in the mouths of those shut out.
δέdeG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
τιςtissomeoneG5100
√ τὶς — some or any person or objectInterrogative / Indefinite PronounNominative Masculine Singular
ΕἶπενEipenaskedG2036
√ ἔπω — to speak or say (by word or writing)VerbAorist Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
αὐτῷautōHimG846
√ αὐτός — the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438 (ἑαυτοῦ)) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other personsPersonal / Possessive PronounDative Masculine 3rd Person Singular
εἰei[will]G1487
√ εἰ — if, whether, that, etcConjunction
ὀλίγοιoligoionly a fewG3641
√ ὀλίγος — puny (in extent, degree, number, duration or value)AdjectiveNominative Masculine Plural
oligos: few, small The word of Matthew 7:14 (only a few find the way to life); the Verifier records it as one of the two lexemes shared with that verse. Barnes and Ellicott report that the number of the saved was a live dispute (2 Esdras 8:1 reads “the world to come for few”).
οἱhoi[people]G3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Plural
σῳζόμενοιsōzomenoibe savedG4982
√ σώζω — to save, iVerbPresent Participle Middle or PassiveNominative Masculine Plural
sōzō: to save, deliver, make whole Present participle with the article: a class of people currently on the way. The same form describes the church in Acts 2:47 (“those being saved”), so the question is about a present people, not only a final tally.
δὲdeG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
ὉHoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
εἶπενeipen[Jesus] answeredG2036
√ ἔπω — to speak or say (by word or writing)VerbAorist Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
πρὸςprosG4314
√ πρός — a preposition of directionPreposition
αὐτούςautousG846
√ αὐτός — the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438 (ἑαυτοῦ)) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other personsPersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative Masculine 3rd Person Plural
Plural: the answer is turned from one curious person to all who listen.
24

“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Agōnizesthe eiselthein dia tēs stenēs thyras hoti polloi legō hymin zētēsousin eiselthein kai ouk ischysousin

Word by word15 · parsed
ἈγωνίζεσθεAgōnizestheMake every effortG75
√ ἀγωνίζομαι — to struggle, literally (to compete for a prize), figuratively (to contend with an adversary), or genitive case (to endeavor to accomplish something)VerbPresent Imperative Middle or Passive2nd Person Plural
agōnizomai: to contend for a prize, struggle Present imperative, a continuing command. The root of English “agony.” Paul uses it for the athlete's discipline (1 Corinthians 9:25) and for the “good fight of faith” (1 Timothy 6:12). Poole and Maclaren both guard the sense: the struggle is real, yet entry is God's gift; Maclaren puts it, “We are not saved by effort, but we shall not believe without effort.”
εἰσελθεῖνeiseltheinto enterG1525
√ εἰσέρχομαι — to enter (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Infinitive Active
Aorist infinitive: the goal is a single act of entering.
διὰdiathroughG1223
√ διά — through (in very wide applications, local, causal, or occasional)Preposition
τῆςtēstheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Feminine Singular
στενῆςstenēsnarrowG4728
√ στενός — narrow (from obstacles standing close about)AdjectiveGenitive Feminine Singular
stenos: narrow (from obstacles standing close) Very rare: the Verifier counts it in only 3 verses (here, Matthew 7:13, Matthew 7:14). The lexicon's root sense, narrowed by things pressing in, fits Maclaren's picture of the low wicket through which “we must go in one by one.”
θύραςthyrasdoorG2374
√ θύρα — a portal or entrance (the opening or the closure, literally or figuratively)NounGenitive Feminine Singular
thyra: door, entrance Luke's door belongs to a house with a master (v. 25), not a city gate; Jesus elsewhere says, “I am the door” (John 10:9, thyra), a link Cambridge draws (“Christ is the only door”).
ὅτιhotiForG3754
√ ὅτι — demonstrative, that (sometimes redundant)Conjunction
πολλοίpolloimanyG4183
√ πολύς — (singular) much (in any respect) or (plural) manyAdjectiveNominative Masculine Plural
λέγωlegōI tellG3004
√ λέγω — properly, to "lay" forth, iVerbPresent Indicative Active1st Person Singular
“I tell you”: the formula of authoritative disclosure.
ὑμῖνhyminyouG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounDative 2nd Person Plural
ζητήσουσινzētēsousinwill tryG2212
√ ζητέω — to seek (literally or figuratively)VerbFuture Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
zēteō: to seek Future indicative. Barnes offers two readings: half-hearted seeking now, or (his preferred) seeking “too late,” after the door is shut in v. 25. Cambridge holds both and adds a third: seeking through other ways than Christ.
εἰσελθεῖνeiseltheinto enterG1525
√ εἰσέρχομαι — to enter (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Infinitive Active
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
οὐκoukvvvG3756
√ οὐ — the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverbAdverb
ἰσχύσουσινischysousinwill not be ableG2480
√ ἰσχύω — to have (or exercise) force (literally or figuratively)VerbFuture Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
ischyō: to have force, prevail Future: not a statement about inability in principle (Barnes is explicit on this), but about what will be true at the closed door.
25

After the master of the house gets up and shuts the door, you will stand outside knocking and saying, ‘Lord, open the door for us.’ But he will reply, ‘I do not know where you are from.’

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

aph’ hou an ho oikodespotēs egerthē kai apokleisē tēn thyran kai arxēsthe hestanai exō kai krouein tēn thyran legontes Kyrie anoixon hēmin Kai apokritheis erei hymin Ouk oida pothen hymas este

Word by word31 · parsed
ἀφ’aph’AfterG575
√ ἀπό — "off," iPreposition
οὗhou. . .G3739
√ ὅς — the relatively (sometimes demonstrative) pronoun, who, which, what, thatPersonal / Relative PronounGenitive Masculine Singular
ἂνan. . .G302
√ ἄν — (what-, where-, wither-, who-)soeverParticle
ὁhotheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
οἰκοδεσπότηςoikodespotēsmaster of the houseG3617
√ οἰκοδεσπότης — the head of a familyNounNominative Masculine Singular
oikodespotēs: head of a household The Verifier counts it in 12 verses and notes it again at Luke 14:21, where the master of the house fills his banquet from the streets. Benson and Gill identify the master as Christ Himself.
ἐγερθῇegerthēgets upG1453
√ ἐγείρω — to waken (transitively or intransitively), iVerbAorist Subjunctive Passive3rd Person Singular
egeirō: to rouse, raise Aorist passive subjunctive in an indefinite temporal clause (“whenever he has risen”): the moment is certain, its timing unknown.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἀποκλείσῃapokleisēshutsG608
√ ἀποκλείω — to close fullyVerbAorist Subjunctive Active3rd Person Singular
apokleiō: to close fully Aorist: a single decisive act. Compare the shut door of Matthew 25:10 (cited by Ellicott and Cambridge) and Noah's ark, which the Lord shut (Genesis 7:16).
τὴνtēntheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Feminine Singular
θύρανthyrandoorG2374
√ θύρα — a portal or entrance (the opening or the closure, literally or figuratively)NounAccusative Feminine Singular
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἄρξησθεarxēstheyou willG756
√ ἄρχομαι — to commence (in order of time)VerbAorist Subjunctive Middle2nd Person Plural
ἑστάναιhestanaistandG2476
√ ἵστημι — to stand (transitively or intransitively), used in various applications (literally or figuratively)VerbPerfect Infinitive Active
histēmi: to stand Perfect infinitive: settled in the position of standing outside.
ἔξωexōoutsideG1854
√ ἔξω — out(-side, of doors), literally or figurativelyAdverb
exō: outside Repeated in v. 28 (“thrown outside”): the word frames the whole scene.
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
κρούεινkroueinknockingG2925
√ κρούω — to rapVerbPresent Infinitive Active
krouō: to knock The same verb as “knock and the door will be opened to you” (Luke 11:9). There the knock is answered; here it comes after the door is shut.
τὴνtēn. . .G3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Feminine Singular
θύρανthyran. . .G2374
√ θύρα — a portal or entrance (the opening or the closure, literally or figuratively)NounAccusative Feminine Singular
λέγοντεςlegontes[and] sayingG3004
√ λέγω — properly, to "lay" forth, iVerbPresent Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Plural
ΚύριεKyrieLordG2962
√ κύριος — supreme in authority, iNounVocative Masculine Singular
ἄνοιξονanoixonopen the doorG455
√ ἀνοίγω — to open up (literally or figuratively, in various applications)VerbAorist Imperative Active2nd Person Singular
anoigō: to open Aorist imperative: an urgent, single demand, made too late.
ἡμῖνhēminfor usG1473
√ ἐγώ — I, mePersonal / Possessive PronounDative 1st Person Plural
ΚαὶKaiButG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἀποκριθεὶςapokritheisG611
√ ἀποκρίνομαι — to conclude for oneself, iVerbAorist Participle PassiveNominative Masculine Singular
ἐρεῖereihe will replyG2046
√ ἐρέω — an alternate for G2036 (ἔπω) in certain tensesVerbFuture Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
ὑμῖνhymin. . .G4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounDative 2nd Person Plural
ΟὐκOukvvvG3756
√ οὐ — the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverbAdverb
οἶδαoidaI do not knowG1492
√ εἴδω — used only in certain past tenses, the others being borrowed from the equivalent G3700 (ὀπτάνομαι) and G3708 (ὁράω)VerbPerfect Indicative Active1st Person Singular
oida: to know (perfect form, present sense) Knowledge as recognition and relationship. Cambridge pairs the refusal with 2 Timothy 2:19, “The Lord knoweth them that are His.”
πόθενpothenwhereG4159
√ πόθεν — from which (as interrogative) or what (as relative) place, state, source or causeAdverb
pothen: from where, of what source The question is origin. They claim nearness (v. 26); he denies that they come from his house.
ὑμᾶςhymasyouG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative 2nd Person Plural
ἐστέesteare {from}G1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbPresent Indicative Active2nd Person Plural
26

Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Tote arxesthe legein Ephagomen kai epiomen sou enōpion kai edidaxas en hēmōn tais plateiais

Word by word14 · parsed
ΤότεToteThenG5119
√ τότε — the when, iAdverb
ἄρξεσθεarxestheyou willG756
√ ἄρχομαι — to commence (in order of time)VerbFuture Indicative Middle2nd Person Plural
archomai: to begin Future: the same “begin” as v. 25, a new plea that leads nowhere.
λέγεινlegeinsayG3004
√ λέγω — properly, to "lay" forth, iVerbPresent Infinitive Active
ἘφάγομενEphagomenWe ateG5315
√ φάγω — to eat (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Indicative Active1st Person Plural
phagō: to eat Aorist. Gill reads it both literally (meals with Jesus) and of ordinances; Barnes denies any reference to the sacrament. The text itself states only shared meals.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἐπίομενepiomendrankG4095
√ πίνω — to imbibe (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Indicative Active1st Person Plural
σουsouwith youG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive 2nd Person Singular
ἐνώπιόνenōpion. . .G1799
√ ἐνώπιον — in the face of (literally or figuratively)Preposition
enōpion: before, in the face of A preposition of presence, not of union. Being before the Lord is not the same as being known by Him (v. 27).
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἐδίδαξαςedidaxasyou taughtG1321
√ διδάσκω — to teach (in the same broad application)VerbAorist Indicative Active2nd Person Singular
didaskō: to teach Aorist second singular: the same verb as v. 22. The teaching they cite is the very teaching now going on along this road.
ἐνeninG1722
√ ἐν — "in," at, (up-)on, by, etcPreposition
ἡμῶνhēmōnourG1473
√ ἐγώ — I, mePersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive 1st Person Plural
ταῖςtaisG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleDative Feminine Plural
πλατείαιςplateiaisstreetsG4113
√ πλατεῖα — a wide "plat" or "place", iNounDative Feminine Plural
plateia: wide street, open square Rare (9 verses per Verifier); it recurs at Luke 14:21, where the servant goes into “the streets and alleys” to bring in the poor.
27

And he will answer, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you are from. Depart from me, all you evildoers.’

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Kai erei Legōn hymin Ouk oida pothen hymas este apostēte ap’ emou pantes ergatai adikias

Word by word15 · parsed
ΚαὶKaiAndG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἐρεῖereihe will answerG2046
√ ἐρέω — an alternate for G2036 (ἔπω) in certain tensesVerbFuture Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
ΛέγωνLegōnI tellG3004
√ λέγω — properly, to "lay" forth, iVerbPresent Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Singular
The reduplicated verb of saying underlines that the verdict is repeated and final.
ὑμῖνhyminyouG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounDative 2nd Person Plural
ΟὐκOukvvvG3756
√ οὐ — the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverbAdverb
οἶδαoidaI do not knowG1492
√ εἴδω — used only in certain past tenses, the others being borrowed from the equivalent G3700 (ὀπτάνομαι) and G3708 (ὁράω)VerbPerfect Indicative Active1st Person Singular
oida: to know The second refusal, word for word as v. 25. Repetition shuts the appeal of v. 26.
πόθενpothenwhereG4159
√ πόθεν — from which (as interrogative) or what (as relative) place, state, source or causeAdverb
ὑμᾶςhymasyouG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative 2nd Person Plural
ἐστέesteare {from}G1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbPresent Indicative Active2nd Person Plural
ἀπόστητεapostēteDepartG868
√ ἀφίστημι — to remove, iVerbAorist Imperative Active2nd Person Plural
aphistēmi: to remove, withdraw Aorist imperative. In Luke 8:13 the same verb describes those who “fall away” in time of testing; here the Lord ratifies a distance they already kept.
ἀπ’ap’fromG575
√ ἀπό — "off," iPreposition
ἐμοῦemoumeG1473
√ ἐγώ — I, mePersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive 1st Person Singular
πάντεςpantesall [you]G3956
√ πᾶς — all, any, every, the wholeAdjectiveVocative Masculine Plural
ἐργάταιergataievildoersG2040
√ ἐργάτης — a toilerNounVocative Masculine Plural
ergatēs: worker, toiler The word for laborers in the harvest (Luke 10:2, 7). They did work, but the genitive names what they worked.
ἀδικίαςadikias. . .G93
√ ἀδικία — (legal) injustice (properly, the quality, by implication, the act)NounGenitive Feminine Singular
adikia: injustice, unrighteousness The quality, and by implication the act. Gill reports Syriac and Persic renderings as “of a lie”: a profession without truth.
28

There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves are thrown out.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Ekei estai ho klauthmos kai ho brygmos tōn odontōn hotan opsēsthe Abraam kai Isaak kai Iakōb kai pantas tous prophētas en tē basileia tou Theou de hymas ekballomenous exō

Word by word29 · parsed
ἘκεῖEkeiThereG1563
√ ἐκεῖ — thereAdverb
ἔσταιestaiwill beG1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbFuture Indicative Middle3rd Person Singular
ὁhoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
κλαυθμὸςklauthmosweepingG2805
√ κλαυθμός — lamentationNounNominative Masculine Singular
klauthmos: lamentation Weeping of grief: the loss is understood too late.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ὁhoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
βρυγμὸςbrygmosgnashingG1030
√ βρυγμός — a grating (of the teeth)NounNominative Masculine Singular
brygmos: grinding of teeth Rare (the Verifier counts 7 verses, nearly all in Matthew: 8:12, 13:42, 13:50, 22:13, 24:51, 25:30). Luke has it only here. Cambridge reads it as rage (compare Acts 7:54, where the council gnash their teeth at Stephen).
τῶνtōnofG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Plural
ὀδόντωνodontōnteethG3599
√ ὀδούς — a "tooth"NounGenitive Masculine Plural
ὅτανhotanwhenG3752
√ ὅταν — whenever (implying hypothesis or more or less uncertainty)Conjunction
ὄψησθεopsēstheyou seeG3708
√ ὁράω — by extension, to attend toVerbAorist Subjunctive Middle2nd Person Plural
horaō: to see They will see what they could have entered.
ἈβραὰμAbraamAbrahamG11
√ Ἀβραάμ — Abraham, the Hebrew patriarchNounAccusative Masculine Singular
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob: the fathers whose descent the excluded relied upon (Gill: “regeneration is not of blood”).
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἸσαὰκIsaakIsaacG2464
√ Ἰσαάκ — Isaac (iNounAccusative Masculine Singular
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἸακὼβIakōbJacobG2384
√ Ἰακώβ — Jacob (iNounAccusative Masculine Singular
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
πάνταςpantasallG3956
√ πᾶς — all, any, every, the wholeAdjectiveAccusative Masculine Plural
τοὺςtoustheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Masculine Plural
προφήταςprophētasprophetsG4396
√ προφήτης — a foreteller ("prophet")NounAccusative Masculine Plural
prophētēs: prophet Luke alone adds “all the prophets” (Ellicott notes the variation from Matthew 8:11). The prophets are those Jerusalem kills (Luke 13:33 to 34), now seated within.
ἐνeninG1722
√ ἐν — "in," at, (up-)on, by, etcPreposition
τῇtētheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleDative Feminine Singular
βασιλείᾳbasileiakingdomG932
√ βασιλεία — properly, royalty, iNounDative Feminine Singular
basileia: kingdom, reign The kingdom is pictured as a place with insiders and outsiders, the destination of the narrow door.
τοῦtouG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Singular
ΘεοῦTheouof GodG2316
√ θεός — figuratively, a magistrateNounGenitive Masculine Singular
δὲdebutG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
ὑμᾶςhymasyou yourselvesG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative 2nd Person Plural
ἐκβαλλομένουςekballomenousare thrownG1544
√ ἐκβάλλω — to eject (literally or figuratively)VerbPresent Participle Middle or PassiveAccusative Masculine Plural
ekballō: to throw out The same verb Luke uses for casting out demons (11:20). Those who claimed to belong are expelled like intruders.
ἔξωexōoutG1854
√ ἔξω — out(-side, of doors), literally or figurativelyAdverb
29

People will come from east and west and north and south, and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

kai hēxousin apo anatolōn kai dysmōn kai apo borra kai notou kai anaklithēsontai en tē basileia tou Theou

Word by word18 · parsed
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἥξουσινhēxousin[People] will comeG2240
√ ἥκω — to arrive, iVerbFuture Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
hēkō: to have come, arrive Future: a promise about arrival, not merely travel. It answers the question of v. 23 by widening the number.
ἀπὸapofromG575
√ ἀπό — "off," iPreposition
ἀνατολῶνanatolōneastG395
√ ἀνατολή — a rising of light, iNounGenitive Feminine Plural
anatolē: rising (of sun), east Rare (10 verses per Verifier). In Luke 1:78 the same noun names the Messiah as “the Dawn from on high.”
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
δυσμῶνdysmōnwestG1424
√ δυσμή — the sun-set, iNounGenitive Feminine Plural
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἀπὸapoG575
√ ἀπό — "off," iPreposition
βορρᾶborranorthG1005
√ βοῤῥᾶς — the north (properly, wind)NounGenitive Masculine Singular
borras: north Extremely rare (2 verses per Verifier: here and Revelation 21:13, where the New Jerusalem has gates on the north).
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
νότουnotousouthG3558
√ νότος — the south(-west) windNounGenitive Masculine Singular
notos: south With the other three, the four quarters: Geneva, “From all the corners of the world.” The prophetic gathering of Isaiah 43:5 to 6 and 49:12 stands behind it (Gill, Cambridge, Pulpit).
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἀνακλιθήσονταιanaklithēsontaiwill recline at the tableG347
√ ἀνακλίνω — to lean backVerbFuture Indicative Passive3rd Person Plural
anaklinō: to lean back, recline at a meal Future passive: they are seated by another, the host. The image is the messianic banquet (Isaiah 25:6), already in view at Luke 14:15 (“Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God”).
ἐνeninG1722
√ ἐν — "in," at, (up-)on, by, etcPreposition
τῇtētheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleDative Feminine Singular
βασιλείᾳbasileiakingdomG932
√ βασιλεία — properly, royalty, iNounDative Feminine Singular
τοῦtouG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Singular
ΘεοῦTheouof GodG2316
√ θεός — figuratively, a magistrateNounGenitive Masculine Singular
30

And indeed, some who are last will be first, and some who are first will be last.”

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

kai idou eisin hoi eschatoi esontai prōtoi kai eisin hoi prōtoi esontai eschatoi

Word by word13 · parsed
καὶkaiAndG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἰδοὺidouindeedG2400
√ ἰδού — used as imperative lo!VerbAorist Imperative Active2nd Person Singular
idou: lo, behold An attention marker before a surprising truth.
εἰσὶνeisinsome who areG1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
οἳhoi. . .G3739
√ ὅς — the relatively (sometimes demonstrative) pronoun, who, which, what, thatPersonal / Relative PronounNominative Masculine Plural
ἔσχατοιeschatoilastG2078
√ ἔσχατος — farthest, final (of place or time)AdjectiveNominative Masculine Plural
eschatos: farthest, final In context the last are the far-off (v. 29, from the ends of the earth): Ellicott and Gill read them first as Gentiles, Poole widens it to all who lack privilege.
ἔσονταιesontaiwill beG1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbFuture Indicative Middle3rd Person Plural
πρῶτοιprōtoifirstG4413
√ πρῶτος — foremost (in time, place, order or importance)AdjectiveNominative Masculine Plural
prōtos: foremost Those first in privilege (the fathers' descendants, the hearers of v. 26). Ellicott calls this the first utterance, in time, of “the great law that God’s judgment reverses man’s,” repeated at Matthew 19:30 and 20:16.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
εἰσὶνeisinsome who areG1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
οἳhoi. . .G3739
√ ὅς — the relatively (sometimes demonstrative) pronoun, who, which, what, thatPersonal / Relative PronounNominative Masculine Plural
πρῶτοιprōtoifirstG4413
√ πρῶτος — foremost (in time, place, order or importance)AdjectiveNominative Masculine Plural
ἔσονταιesontaiwill beG1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbFuture Indicative Middle3rd Person Plural
ἔσχατοιeschatoilastG2078
√ ἔσχατος — farthest, final (of place or time)AdjectiveNominative Masculine Plural
The chiasm closes the answer to v. 23: the question “few?” is turned into “which?”

The verse-by-verse work is done. What follows gathers the whole unit. All three layers below are machine-generated (⚙). Weigh them; they have no authority.

⚙

Grand Commentary — the unit, read whole

synthesis · verify

AI synthesis — woven from the public-domain voices above and the original text; generated and fallible.

i. On the road, a question turned back — Luke 13:22 to 24

Luke sets the scene with an imperfect, διεπορεύετο: Jesus was going through town after town, teaching, “making His journey” (ποιούμενος πορείαν) to Jerusalem. Ellicott reads the phrase as “a circuit deliberately planned”; Pulpit as the last solemn progress before the final Passover. On that road someone asks whether the ones being saved (σῳζόμενοι, present participle) are few. Ellicott and Cambridge both note the question was in the air (2 Esdras 8:1, “the world to come for few”), and both judge it speculative. Jesus answers them, plural (JFB, Gill), with an imperative: Ἀγωνίζεσθε, “agonize,” the word of the games (Barnes, Ellicott). The door is στενῆς, narrow, a word found in only three verses of the New Testament. Many will seek (ζητήσουσιν), but seeking is not striving (JFB, Cambridge, Pulpit). Poole and Maclaren guard the other flank: the struggle is real, yet “the eternal life is the gift of God” (Poole), and “we are not saved by effort, but we shall not believe without effort” (Maclaren).

ii. The master rises: the door shut fast — Luke 13:25 to 27

The picture changes, as Pulpit notices, from a narrow door to a householder (οἰκοδεσπότης). JFB sees him sitting while entry is possible; when he is raised (ἐγερθῇ) and shuts the door fully (ἀποκλείσῃ), the hour has passed. Those outside begin to knock and to plead. Their plea (v. 26) is presence, not belonging: they ate ἐνώπιόν, “before” Him, and heard Him in the broad streets (πλατείαις). Ellicott applies this to all who rest on outward communion; Geneva: “It is vain to be in the Church if one is not of the Church.” Twice the answer comes, “I do not know whence (πόθεν) you are.” Gill denies that this is ignorance: the Lord “will not own them.” The verdict, “stand away from me, all workers of unrighteousness,” closely matches Psalm 6:8, as Gill observes (“there seems to be a reference”). JFB marks the claim implied in the scene: the despised traveller will be the “absolute Disposer” of destinies.

iii. The table filled from the four winds — Luke 13:28 to 30

Outside there is the weeping and the gnashing (both nouns with the article): Cambridge reads them as anguish and rage. The pain comes from sight: they see (ὄψησθε) Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and, in Luke alone, “all the prophets” (Ellicott) inside, while they themselves are being thrown out. Pulpit and Cambridge note that Marcion struck the patriarchs' names from his Luke; the text keeps Israel's fathers at the center of the feast. Then strangers arrive from the risings and settings of the sun, from north and south, and are made to recline (ἀνακλιθήσονται) at the banquet. Cambridge and Pulpit hear Isaiah 49:12 and 45:6; Pulpit concludes that the answer “forbids any limitation to the numbers of the saved.” The closing saying (v. 30) is partitive, “there are last who will be first”: Ellicott calls it the first statement in Luke of the law that God's judgment reverses man's, and Henry draws the pastoral lesson: “we shall meet many there whom we little thought to meet.”

Read under Sola Scriptura — this tool’s own fallible reading (⚙)

⚙ Read on its own terms, the passage refuses the question it is asked. “Few?” is a spectator's question; Jesus makes it a participant's, aimed at everyone in the crowd. The text joins two things that later theology often separates: a real command to strive (agōnizesthe, present imperative) and a door that someone else opens and shuts. Effort is required, yet it does not create the door or decide whether the master knows a person. The excluded are not irreligious outsiders but people who ate in His presence and heard His teaching; their fault is presence without belonging, named in v. 27 as working unrighteousness. Scripture's own nearest commentary is Luke 14:15 to 24, where the same householder fills his table from the streets and lanes. We offer this as a fallible reading, to be tested against Matthew 7:13 to 23, John 10:7 to 9 and Ephesians 2:8 to 10: the narrow door is entered by faith that strives, and faith is God's gift.

The question was how many; the answer is whether you. (⚙ interpretive line, not a verse)

⚙

Canonical Threads — out to the whole of Scripture

cross-refs · verify

AI-generated connections. Each carries a verification badge with a recorded basis; contested links are flagged.

The narrow way: Luke's door and Matthew's gate verbal / quotation: confirmed

Luke's στενῆς θύρας and Matthew's narrow gate (Matthew 7:13 to 14) share the rare adjective stenos, and Matthew 7:14 also shares ὀλίγοι, “few.” Ellicott, Barnes, Gill and Cambridge all refer the reader to Matthew 7. The differences matter as much: Luke has a house door and a master, Matthew a gate and a road. Ellicott calls it “general teaching adapted to a special occasion,” which avoids deciding whether the sayings come from one occasion or two.

Matthew 7:13 · Matthew 7:14

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexeme G4728 στενός (in 3 vv) with Matthew 7:13 and 7:14; Matthew 7:14 also shares G3641 ὀλίγος (in 41 vv). A rare-lexeme synoptic parallel, not a citation of one Gospel by another.

Weeping and gnashing of teeth: the fixed formula of exclusion verbal / quotation: confirmed

The phrase ὁ κλαυθμὸς καὶ ὁ βρυγμὸς τῶν ὀδόντων appears six times in Matthew and once in Luke (Pulpit). Matthew 8:11 to 12 is the true parallel: there too the patriarchs feast with comers from east and west while “the sons of the kingdom” are thrown outside. Ellicott, Barnes, Benson and Poole all refer the reader there. The other Matthew uses (13:42, 13:50, 22:13, 24:51, 25:30) attach the formula to the end of a parable of judgment.

Matthew 8:11 · Matthew 8:12 · Matthew 13:42 · Matthew 22:13 · Matthew 25:30

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexemes G1030 βρυγμός (in 7 vv) and G3599 ὀδούς (in 11 vv) with Matthew 8:12, 13:42, 22:13, 25:30; Matthew 8:11 shares G11 Ἀβραάμ (69 vv) and G932 βασιλεία. A rare fixed formula, not a quotation claim.

The shut door and the knocking outside structural / thematic: confirmed

Ellicott and Cambridge both join v. 25 to the ten virgins, where the door is shut, the late-comers plead to be let in, and hear that the bridegroom does not know them (Matthew 25:10 to 12), and to Matthew 7:22 to 23. The pattern is shared: a closing, a plea of acquaintance, a refusal of recognition. The Verifier did not list these verses, so this badge rests on the commentators' cross-references and the obvious shared motif, not on a computed lexeme count.

Matthew 25:10 · Matthew 25:12 · Matthew 7:22 · Matthew 7:23

basis: Shared motif (shut door, Lord Lord, I do not know you) cross-referenced by Ellicott and Cambridge; not among the Verifier candidates, so no lexeme frequency is claimed.

The master of the house and his streets: Luke 13 into Luke 14 structural / thematic: confirmed

The master of the house (οἰκοδεσπότης) and the streets (πλατεῖα) return together at Luke 14:21, where the angry householder sends his servant “into the streets and alleys of the city” to bring in the poor, because the invited refused. Luke 13 shows the door shut on those who heard Him in the streets; Luke 14 shows the table filled from the same streets. Both scenes end with outsiders feasting in the kingdom (13:29; 14:15).

Luke 14:21

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexemes G3617 οἰκοδεσπότης (in 12 vv) and G4113 πλατεῖα (in 9 vv), plus G4172 πόλις (155 vv); a real verbal link within Luke's banquet sequence, read here as structural, not as quotation.

From the four winds: Isaiah's gathering and Revelation's gates structural / thematic: confirmed

Cambridge and Pulpit hear Isaiah 49:12 (comers from afar, from the north and the west) and Isaiah 45:6 in v. 29; Gill adds Isaiah 43:5 to 6. These are Hebrew texts and cannot share Strong's numbers with Luke's Greek, so the link is structural: the prophetic motif of the nations gathered from every quarter to the LORD. At the other end of the canon, Revelation 21:13 gives the New Jerusalem gates on east, north, south and west, using the same Greek compass words, including βορρᾶς, found in only two NT verses. That shared vocabulary is real, but Revelation describes gates, not the gathering itself, so we keep it at the structural tier.

Isaiah 49:12 · Isaiah 45:6 · Isaiah 43:5 · Revelation 21:13

basis: Cross-Testament (Greek and Hebrew) for Isaiah, so no Strong's link is possible: motif cited by Cambridge, Pulpit, Gill. Revelation 21:13 per Verifier shares G1005 βοῤῥᾶς (in 2 vv), G3558 νότος (in 7 vv), G395 ἀνατολή (in 10 vv): a shared compass list, not a quotation.

“Depart from me, all workers of iniquity”: Psalm 6:8 flagged: verify source

Gill notes that Luke's “all” (absent in Matthew 7:23) “agrees with Psalm 6:8 to which there seems to be a reference.” In the Psalm the sufferer, heard by the LORD, sends his enemies away; in Luke the Lord Himself speaks the Psalm's dismissal. Because the Psalm is Hebrew and Luke Greek, Strong's numbers cannot confirm a verbal link, and Luke gives no citation formula. We record it as a probable allusion and flag that its strength depends on comparing the Greek translation of the Psalm, which this brief does not supply.

Psalm 6:8

basis: Cross-Testament allusion proposed by Gill (“seems to be a reference”); no shared Strong's possible across Hebrew and Greek; the Greek Psalter wording is not in the brief, so the allusion is unverified here.

⚙Christ in the Unittypology · verify

AI-generated reading; weigh it against the text.

The Lord of the house and the door Himself ancient/widely-held

⚙ The parable's master is the one now walking the road. Benson: “Christ is the master of the house”; Gill names him “the bridegroom of the church.” JFB stresses the contrast: the despised traveller claims the role of “absolute Disposer of men's eternal destinies.” Cambridge goes further and identifies the door itself: “Christ is the only door,” citing John 10:7 and 14:6, where Jesus calls Himself θύρα. Luke's own wording in v. 25 is “Lord” (Κύριε), the same address used by the questioner in v. 23. This is the widely held reading of the church's commentators.

John 10:7 · John 10:9 · John 14:6 · Matthew 7:22

The patriarchs' banquet opened to the nations ancient/widely-held

⚙ v. 29 takes up the prophetic hope of a feast for all peoples (Isaiah 25:6) and the gathering of Isaiah 49:12. Luke places it in the mouth of the one going to Jerusalem, and later records Jesus appointing His apostles to “eat and drink at My table in My kingdom” (Luke 22:30, cited by Gill). Ellicott, Gill, Benson and Pulpit read the comers from the four winds as the Gentiles called through the gospel; Paul's “The Gentiles, which followed not after righteousness, have attained to righteousness” (Romans 9:30, as Cambridge quotes it) states the same reversal. This is the widely held apostolic reading.

Isaiah 25:6 · Luke 22:30 · Romans 9:30 · Ephesians 3:6

The narrow door on the road to the cross novel

⚙ Luke frames the saying with travel to Jerusalem (13:22) and, a few verses later, with Jesus' own words that a prophet must not perish outside Jerusalem (13:33). The tool offers a reading for testing: the door is narrow because it is opened at the place where the prophets die, and the one who is going to be “raised” (Luke's verb egeirō, used of the master in v. 25 and of the resurrection in 24:6) is the one who will finally rise to shut it. The commentators in this brief do not make the verbal connection between v. 25 and the resurrection; it is offered as a novel, tentative observation, not as the meaning of the parable.

Luke 9:51 · Luke 13:33 · Luke 24:6

Apparatus & Provenance

The biblical text is the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain (CC0). Hebrew/Greek text, transliteration, morphology and Strong’s are transcribed from the Berean interlinear (CC0) + Strong’s lexicons (PD); the literal renderings, divergence notes, word notes and all synthesis are this tool’s own work (⚙) — fallible; verify them.

Named voices, quoted verbatim from public-domain works:

  • Albert Barnes, Notes on the Bible (1834)
  • Alexander Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (c. 1905)
  • Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges, — (1880s)
  • Charles Ellicott, Commentary for English Readers (1878)
  • Geneva Study Bible, Marginal Notes (1599)
  • Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory (1871)
  • John Gill, Exposition of the Entire Bible (1746–63)
  • Joseph Benson, Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1810s)
  • Matthew Henry, Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible (1706)
  • Matthew Poole, Annotations upon the Holy Bible (1685)
  • The Pulpit Commentary, Spence & Exell, eds. (1880s)

Text. The interlinear (Berean, following modern critical texts) reads θύρας, “door,” in v. 24; Cambridge records the reading as thuras (א, B, D, L) against pules, “gate,” behind the KJV “strait gate.” In v. 25 the interlinear has a single Κύριε; the Geneva, Gill and JFB comment on “Lord, Lord,” the Received Text reading. Notes here follow the interlinear. Sources. Henry's note for vv. 23 to 30 is a single paragraph repeated under each verse; his v. 22 entry concerns the preceding parables and is not used. Maclaren's sermon is filed under v. 22 but covers the whole unit. Cambridge cites “Isaiah 14:6” at v. 29, apparently a misprint for 45:6 (Pulpit and Gill). Barnes (via Lightfoot) and Gill (via the Mishnah) disagree about which view of the number of the saved was prevalent among the Jews; we report both and decide neither. 2 Esdras is cited by Ellicott, Cambridge and Pulpit as evidence of the debate, with their caution that it may be later than Jesus. Uncertain. The Psalm 6:8 allusion is flagged because cross-language wording cannot be checked from this brief. The resurrection overtone of egeirō in v. 25 is the tool's own tentative observation.

✦ = human, public-domain source, quoted and named. ⚙ = machine synthesis, to be verified. Flagged cross-references are left visible on purpose — the verifier working in the open. “Search the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)