Luke 6:17-26
Jesus blesses the needy who belong to Him and warns the satisfied who live for the present age.
17 He came down with them, and stood on a level place, with a crowd of his disciples, and a great number of the people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases;
18 as well as those who were troubled by unclean spirits, and they were being healed.
19 All the multitude sought to touch him, for power came out of him and healed them all.
20 He lifted up his eyes to his disciples, and said, “Blessed are you who are poor, God’s Kingdom is yours.
21 Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.
22 Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude and mock you, and throw out your name as evil, for the Son of Man’s sake.
23 Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven, for their fathers did the same thing to the prophets.
24 “But woe to you who are rich! For you have received your consolation.
25 Woe to you, you who are full now, for you will be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep.
26 Woe, when men speak well of you, for their fathers did the same thing to the false prophets.
Jesus blesses the needy who belong to him and warns the satisfied who live for the present age.
Luke presents Jesus descending with the newly appointed apostles to teach disciples before a great crowd, heal the afflicted, and pronounce kingdom blessings and woes that overturn present appearances and expose where true security lies.
This begins the Sermon on the Plain. Luke’s version emphasizes social reversal and concrete realities more directly than Matthew’s parallel.
After praying and appointing the Twelve, Jesus comes down to a level place with a large group of disciples and a great crowd from Judea, Jerusalem, and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon. The people come to hear him and be healed, and power goes out from him to heal them all.
The Lord of the Sabbath Forms a Kingdom People
Jesus, Lord of the Sabbath and teacher of the kingdom, forms a people whose lives are marked by mercy, enemy-love, fruitful hearts, and obedient foundations under His word.