Open English Translation LUKE Chapter 14

14 One day Yeshua went to the house of one of the Pharisee party leaders for a meal on a Rest Day and they were watching him closely. 2 Then, look, there was a man there with badly swollen limbs. 3 Yeshua responded to the thoughts of the lawyers and Pharisees by asking, “Is it allowable to heal on the Rest Day or not?”

4 However, they just stayed silent, so he took hold of the man and healed him and sent him away. 5 [ref]Then he asked them, “Which of you if your child or your animal fell into a pit wouldn’t immediately pull them out, even if it was a Rest Day?”

6 But they didn’t have any answer for that.

7 Then he told a parable to all the invited guests after he’d noticed them choosing the best places around the table, telling them, 8 [ref]“Whenever you’re invited to a wedding celebration, don’t go and sit in the best place in case someone more important than you might be called over by the host 9 and then your host might come over to you and ask you to let the other guest sit where you were and then you might end up humiliated at the bottom of the table. 10 Rather, when you’re invited, sit down at the end so that the host might come and tell you, ‘Friend, move up here to a better spot.’ Then you’ll be honoured in front of all the other guests 11 [ref]because the person who thinks a lot of themself will be humbled, and the person who humbles themself will be honoured.”

12 Then Yeshua also spoke to the man who had invited him, “Whenever you host a brunch or dinner, don’t invite your friends or siblings, or your other relatives or your wealthy neighbours, because they can invite you back and so repay you. 13 Instead when you’re celebrating, invite the poor and the crippled, the lame and the blind, 14 and then you’ll be rewarded by God because those people won’t be able to repay you, hence you’ll be repaid instead when those who please God come back to life.”

15 Now one of the people at the meal heard all this and commented, “Blessed is anyone who gets to have a meal in God’s kingdom.”

16 But Yeshua responded, “There was a home-owner who was putting on a large dinner and invited many people. 17 When the meal was ready, he sent out his slave to go and tell everyone who’d been invited, ‘Come over now because the food is ready.’ 18 However they all started giving excuses. The first one said, ‘I bought a field and I need to go and inspect it. Please excuse me.’ 19 Another one said, ‘I’ve bought five pairs of oxen and I need to check them out. Please excuse me.’ 20 Yet another said, ‘I just got married so I can’t really come.’ 21 So when the slave got back, he reported all this to his master. The home-owner got angry and told the slave, ‘Well then, hurry out into the roads and streets of the city and bring back the poor and crippled and blind and lame people.’ 22 When he’d done that, the slave said, ‘Master, I’ve done what you instructed and there’s still room at the table.’ 23 So the master instructed him, ‘Well go along the roads and fences and force them to come so that my house will fill up, 24 because I’m telling you that none of those invited guests will get a taste of this meal of mine.’ ”

25 Large crowds were following Yeshua when he turned and spoke to them, 26 [ref]“If anyone comes to me but doesn’t love me more than they love their parents and their siblings, and their spouse and children, and even their own life, then that person is unable to become my follower. 27 [ref]Anyone who doesn’t give up everything in this life and come after me is unable to become my follower, 28 because none of you would want to build a tower without first counting the cost and figuring out if you’ll have enough to complete it. 29 Otherwise you might lay the foundation and not be able to finish it. Then everyone watching might begin to mock 30 and say, ‘This person started a building project but wasn’t able to finish it.’ 31 Or what king would go off to war against another king, if he hadn’t previously sat down with his generals to figure out if their ten thousand soldiers are powerful enough to fit the other king bringing twenty thousand against him? 32 If they can’t, then while the other army is still far away, the king will send ahead a delegation to try to make peace. 33 So too for every one of you who doesn’t leave behind everything they own, you won’t be able to become a follower of mine.

34 “Salt is good, but if it became tasteless, what could you use to make it salty again? 35 It’d be no use on the soil or for fertiliser—they’d just have to throw it away. Let any person who wants to hear, listen carefully.”