Luke 14:1;7-14 - No Quid Pro Quo in the Kingdom
Luke 14:1On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the sabbath, they were watching him closely.7When he noticed how the guests chose the places of honor, he told them a parable. 8“When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not sit down at the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited by your host; 9and the host who invited both of you may come and say to you, ‘Give this person your place,’ and then in disgrace you would start to take the lowest place. 10But when you are invited, go and sit down at the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at the table with you. 11For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” 12He said also to the one who had invited him, “When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, in case they may invite you in return, and you would be repaid. 13But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. 14And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
Background: Many commentators dismiss the two linked teachings in today’s lesson as a simple glimpse into social relations and mores in Jesus Day. I’m not so sure about that. What we have before us in these two brief vignettes is a powerful look into the values of Jesus and urgent instruction about how to live in the Kingdom of God. In Luke, Jesus spends much of his time and offers some of his most profound teaching around tables. In part it was the being at table with others that was the teaching. Jesus ate with everybody. In the ancient world to eat with someone was a vote of confidence in that person. To eat with someone was to validate that one. In many instances, we see Jesus eat with tax collectors, various sinners and even prostitutes. In doing so, he erased the social boundaries between them. In a society that was organized on a shame/honor continuum, the erasing of these boundaries was stark and startling. It was not just being graciousness. To erase those boundaries had profound effects on a person’s life. To be shamed did damage to one’s whole family, livelihood and prospects. To be honored gave one an edge in the same way. Here, Jesus is eating with an unnamed Pharisee. Pharisees were a dominant religio-political party. They were sticklers for the Law, bright, ducated, dedicated and faithful. They were, in their own way, the liberals of their day, with the Sadducees being the more conservative party. Jesus had friends among the Pharisees, but he also had fierce opponents who believed that he was a threat to everything they held most dear. We don’t know if this particular Pharisee was a friend or an opponent but there are some clues in the text. It doesn’t matter, though. To Jesus the host was just a host, like Zacchaeus the tax collector or any other.
Rules of Etiquette: For a supper or banquet, seating was a sign of prestige. The most esteemed guest was seated near the head of the table and the others were arranged in descending order of honor. To be asked to move after being seated would have been both embarrassing and devasting for a person’s family and business if word spread of the disgrace.
Word Study
V. 1 – eat a meal on the sabbath – depending on a person’s financial ability, sabbath meals were always special. Food was prepared ahead of time and some was set apart for poorer households so that everyone could have something special on that day. Formal prayers were said around the table. The fact that the host was a leader of the Pharisees indicates that this was probably an elaborate banquet with extended family and friends.
Watching him closely – this word gives us an important glimpse into the possible motive of Jesus’ invitation. The word means to keep watch or to observe. It usually implies to watch with a sinister motive. They are intently looking for flaws in Jesus.
Vs. 7 – guests – this word refers to specially invited guests. It is most often used of a divine invitation.
Places of honor – the best seats in the house.
Parable – parables are teaching stories that open up new truths within the hearers, if the hearers are open to them.
Vs. 8 – wedding banquet – not only were such banquets time of joy and special meals, they often lasted for days. This imagery is often used of the heavenly banquet of the kingdom of God. It is an image of the joy and intimacy of God.
Vs. 9 – disgrace – see commentary above.
Take – to occupy, to hold fast, often used in a spiritual sense, to take possession of something to hold it.
Lowest – I would translate this word ‘last.’ It is the Greek word eschaton. It is the word used to describe end times or last things of this world.
Vs. 12 – luncheon – this is a word for banquet.
Vs. 14 – blessed – Makarios – This is a wonderful word that means possessing the characteristics of a deity. It is often used to describe someone who is in the world, but independent of its rules and hierarchies.
Righteous – from the Greek dikalos – which means to act justly.
Questions for Personal Reflection
1. In our day we talk a lot about privilege. We usually mean by that, an unearned benefit. Sometimes we can become blind to our privilege and begin to think it is inherent to us. It was a bit similar in the ancient world. When people got a special place of honor, they often came to believe they deserved it. When they were dishonored they came to believe they deserved that too. How do you see that dynamic at work in our society?
2. Jesus was well known for, and harshly criticized for, sharing table fellowship with everybody. How do we model Christ in that way? What does it really mean to ‘share table’ with everyone?
3. At the core of this text is an exploration of true humility? When you hear that word, what does it mean to you? Is it positive or negative? How so?
4. In what ways do you see our society as shaped by a shame/honor continuum? What brings shame? What brings honor? How do you think Jesus we see this today>