Open English Translation LUKE Chapter 11

11 One time Yeshua was at a place praying, and when he finished some of his followers asked him, “Master, Yohan-the-immerser taught his apprentices how to pray. You teach us as well.”

2 So Yeshua told them, “Whenever you all pray, say this:

Father, may may all people honour you as their holy God.

May you reign as king over the earth.

3 Every day give us the food that we need.

4 Forgive us for our sins because we’ve forgiven those who owed something to us.

Don’t bring us into situations where we’re tempted.”

5 Then he told them, “Imagine you had a friend and went to them at midnight and asked, ‘Friend, lend me some bread 6 because a travelling friend of mine arrived at my place, and I haven’t got anything to give him to eat.’ 7 And the one in the other house might reply, ‘Don’t bother me now because the house is locked and the kids are asleep beside me here in the bed. I can’t get up and get anything for you.’ 8 I’m telling all of you that even if that friend wouldn’t get up and give them anything because of their friendship, then the friend will certainly get up and give them some food if they persist in knocking. 9 So this is what I’m telling you: Keep submitting your requests and it’ll be given to you all, keep searching and you’ll all find what you’re looking for, keep knocking and the door will be opened for you all, 10 because everyone who requests will receive, and everyone who searches will find, and everyone who knocks will find opened doors. 11 How many of you fathers, if your child asked you for some fish, you’d give them a snake instead? 12 Or the child would ask for an egg and you’d pass them a scorpion? 13 So if you all know how to give good things to your children despite your being evil, how much more the father in heaven will give the holy spirit to those who ask him.”

14 Then Yeshua drove out a demon that caused muteness, and after the demon departed, the man was able to speak. The crowds were amazed, 15 [ref]but yet some of them said, “He’s driving out demons because he’s Beelzebul the leader of the demons.”

16 [ref]Others who wanted to test who he was, asked Yeshua to send a sign from heaven, 17 but he knew their thoughts and told them, “Any kingdom that’s divided against itself is doomed, and any household that’s divided will self-destruct. 18 So if Satan was fighting against himself, how could his kingdom even remain? Yes, I know that you’re all saying that I must be Beelzebul in order to drive out demons, 19 but if I have Beelzebul’s power over demons, then whose power do your apprentices use to drive out demons? 20 However if I’m driving out demons with power that comes from God, then that means that God’s kingdom is right in the middle of you all.

21 “Whenever a strong landowner arms himself and guards his nice home, everything remains there peacefully, 22 but when someone stronger than him arrives and overpowers him, he’ll even take the body armour that the landowner put his trust in, and then relieve him of all his goods.

23 [ref]“Anyone who doesn’t follow me is against me, and anyone who doesn’t gather with us, wants to scatter us.

24 “Whenever an evil spirit leaves a person, it roams through inhospitable places looking for somewhere to rest, and when it doesn’t find a home, it says, ‘Ah, I’ll return to the home that I recently left.’ 25 Then when it gets back there, it finds the home swept out and tidied up, 26 so it goes and finds seven other spirits more evil than itself. They all move in and live there, so the result is that the person ends up worse in the end than they were at the beginning.”

27 While Yeshua was teaching these things, a women in the crowd shouted out, “Blessed is the mother who bore you and the one who raised you.”

28 “Actually,” Yeshua replied, “the ones who will be blessed are all those who listen to God’s message and put it into practice.”

29 [ref]The crowds had grown even larger, but Yeshua told them, “This generation is evil because they’re requesting a miracle and the only miracle that will be given to them will be the miracle of Yonah. 30 [ref]In the same way that Yonah became a sign to the citizens of Ninevah, so too humanity’s child will also be to this generation. 31 [ref]The queen from the south will come back to life on judgement day along with the people from this generation, and she’ll condemn them, because she travelled a long distance to hear Solomon’s wisdom, and now, someone’s here who’s greater than Solomon. 32 [ref]The people of Ninevah will stand up on judgement day along with the people from this generation and they’ll condemn this generation because those from Ninevah turned from their disobedience after Yonah’s preaching, and now, someone’s here who’s greater than Yonah.

33 [ref]“No one lights a lamp and then hides it somewhere or puts it under a basket, but rather they put it on a lampstand so that everyone entering the room can see the light from it. 34 Your eyes are like the lamp for your body. Whenever your eyes are healthy, your entire body will be bright, but when your eyes are evil, your body is also dark, 35 so take care in case the light in you has gone dark. 36 Therefore if your whole body is bright without any dark areas, it will be bright all over, like when a lamp shines on you to illuminate you.”

37 When Yeshua had a break from speaking, a member of the Pharisee party invited him over for breakfast, so he went into the house and sat down, 38 and the man was very surprised that he didn’t observe the handwashing ceremony before he ate. 39 But the master said to his host, “Yes, all of you in the Pharisee party clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but your insides are full of theft and wickedness. 40 How stupid! Didn’t God who made the outside part, also make what’s inside? 41 However, if you sacrificially give what’s inside, then everything would then become clean for you.

42 [ref]“But you Pharisees won’t end well, because you give a tenth of your herbs and vegetables, yet you all ignore giving justice and loving God, both of which need to be done and cannot be ignored.

43 “You Pharisees won’t end well, because you all love the best seats in the meeting halls and the honoured greetings in the marketplaces. 44 You all won’t end well, because you’re like unmarked graves that people walk all over without even realising—the people simply don’t know that you’re dead inside.”

45 One of the experts in religious rules there answered him back, “Teacher, you’re insulting us as well when you say that.”

46 “Well, you law experts won’t end well,” Yeshua responded, “because you put unbearably heavy burdens onto the shoulders of the people, yet you wouldn’t move your little fingers to touch those burdens yourselves. 47 You all won’t end well, because you all build fancy tombs for the prophets that your own ancestors executed. 48 Because of that, you’re all actually admitting and agreeing to what your ancestors did, because they killed them and then you build their tombs. 49 That’s why God in his wisdom said, ‘I’ll send prophets and missionaries to them, which they will then persecute and kill’ 50 so that the blood of those prophets which was spilt from the creation of the world onwards would then be charged to this generation. 51 [ref]This goes all the way back to to the blood of Abel, right up to the blood of Zechariah who was recently killed between the altar and the temple sanctuary. Yes, I’m telling all of you, those crimes will be charged to this generation.

52 “You religious law experts won’t end well, because you took away the key to knowledge—not only did you not enter yourselves, but you also forbade others from entering.”

53 Once Yeshua left that house, the religious teachers and the Pharisee party started strongly resenting him, and started a plan of asking him more questions 54 in the hope of catching an answer that could be used to condemn him.