I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Parallel Translations
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I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
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I tell you: this man departed home to his housse iustified moore then the other. For every man that exalteth him selfe shalbe brought low: And he that hubleth him selfe shalbe exalted
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I tell you, this man departed to his house iustified, rather then the other: for euery man that exalteth himselfe, shall be brought lowe, and he that humbleth himselfe, shalbe exalted.
Cross-references (37)
Passages linked to Luke 18:14 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Luke 14:11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”
- Luke 16:15 He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts. For that which is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
- James 4:10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will exalt you.
- Matthew 23:12 Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
- Proverbs 29:23 A man’s pride brings him low, but one of lowly spirit gains honor.
- James 4:6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
- Luke 1:52 He has put down princes from their thrones, and has exalted the lowly.
- Psalms 138:6 For though Yahweh is high, yet he looks after the lowly; but he knows the proud from afar.
- Isaiah 57:15 For the high and lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy, says: “I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also who is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite.
- Matthew 5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.
- Job 25:4 How then can man be just with God? Or how can he who is born of a woman be clean?
- Proverbs 3:34 Surely he mocks the mockers, but he gives grace to the humble.
- 1 Peter 5:5-6 Likewise, you younger ones, be subject to the elder. Yes, all of you clothe yourselves with humility, to subject yourselves to one another; for “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time,
- Exodus 18:11 Now I know that Yahweh is greater than all gods because of the way that they treated people arrogantly.”
- 1 Samuel 1:18 She said, “Let your servant find favor in your sight.” So the woman went her way and ate; and her facial expression wasn’t sad any more.
- Job 22:29 When they cast down, you will say, ‘be lifted up.’ He will save the humble person.
- Proverbs 15:33 The fear of Yahweh teaches wisdom. Before honor is humility.
- Proverbs 16:18-19 Pride goes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall. It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor, than to divide the plunder with the proud.
- Proverbs 18:12 Before destruction the heart of man is proud, but before honor is humility.
- Isaiah 2:11-17 The lofty looks of man will be brought low, the arrogance of men will be bowed down, and Yahweh alone will be exalted in that day. For there will be a day of Yahweh of Armies for all that is proud and arrogant, and for all that is lifted up; and it shall be brought low: for all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, for all the oaks of Bashan, for all the high mountains, for all the hills that are lifted up, for every lofty tower, for every fortified wall, for all the ships of Tarshish, and for all pleasant imagery. The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the arrogance of men shall be brought low; and Yahweh alone shall be exalted in that day.
- Romans 4:5 But to him who doesn’t work, but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.
- Job 9:20 Though I am righteous, my own mouth will condemn me. Though I am blameless, it will prove me perverse.
- Isaiah 45:25 All the offspring of Israel will be justified in Yahweh, and will rejoice!
- Isaiah 53:11 After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light and be satisfied. My righteous servant will justify many by the knowledge of himself; and he will bear their iniquities.
- Daniel 4:37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven; for all his works are truth, and his ways justice; and those who walk in pride he is able to abase.
- Luke 5:24-25 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” (he said to the paralyzed man), “I tell you, arise, take up your cot, and go to your house.” Immediately he rose up before them, and took up that which he was laying on, and departed to his house, glorifying God.
- Romans 3:20 Because by the works of the law, no flesh will be justified in his sight; for through the law comes the knowledge of sin.
- Romans 5:1 Being therefore justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ;
- Romans 8:33 Who could bring a charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who justifies.
- Galatians 2:16 yet knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, even we believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ, and not by the works of the law, because no flesh will be justified by the works of the law.
- James 2:21-25 Wasn’t Abraham our father justified by works, in that he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? You see that faith worked with his works, and by works faith was perfected. So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God. You see then that by works, a man is justified, and not only by faith. In the same way, wasn’t Rahab the prostitute also justified by works, in that she received the messengers and sent them out another way?
- Job 40:9-13 Or do you have an arm like God? Can you thunder with a voice like him? “Now deck yourself with excellency and dignity. Array yourself with honor and majesty. Pour out the fury of your anger. Look at everyone who is proud, and bring him low. Look at everyone who is proud, and humble him. Crush the wicked in their place. Hide them in the dust together. Bind their faces in the hidden place.
- Psalms 143:2 Don’t enter into judgment with your servant, for in your sight no man living is righteous.
- Ecclesiastes 9:7 Go your way—eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart; for God has already accepted your works.
- Habakkuk 2:4 Behold, his soul is puffed up. It is not upright in him, but the righteous will live by his faith.
- Luke 7:47-50 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.” He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” Those who sat at the table with him began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”
- Luke 10:29 But he, desiring to justify himself, asked Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?”
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (14 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 14 I tell you, this man went down to…
14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
Ver. 14. Justified rather than the other] The Pharisee was not at all justified; neither is there more or less in justification. But our Saviour here useth a popular kind of expression.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Justified η εχεινος, we translate, rather than the other;…
Justified η εχεινος, we translate, rather than the other; not that the other was at all justified by God; the other was justified by himself only, and those of his party. The publican was justified by God. It followeth, for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased, & c. It is another of our Saviour’s sentences, often made use of by him, Mat 23:12, and in this Gospel, Luk 14:11. It is applied to the ordinary practice of men, but here to God in the ways of his providence; he resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. The blessed Virgin magnifies God on this account, Luk 1:51,52.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain I tell you that this man,.... The publican that…
I tell you that this man,.... The publican that so freely owned himself to be a sinner, and by his carriage acknowledged he was unworthy of any favour; and who was treated with so much contempt by the Pharisee:
went down to his house; from the temple which was built on a mountain,
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justified, rather than the other: accounted as a righteous person in the sight of God; justified from all his sins, and accepted by him, when the other was abhorred and neglected. The Syriac and Persic versions, and so Beza's most ancient copy, read, "than the Pharisee", who had such an high opinion of himself, and despised others: not that the Pharisee was justified at all, when the publican really was; but the sense is, that if judgment had been to have been made, and sentence passed according to the then conduct and behaviour of both parties, the publican had greatly the advantage, in the sight of God; an humble demeanour being well pleasing and acceptable to him, when pride, and arrogance, boasting of, and trusting in a man's own righteousness, are abhorred by him;
for every one that exalteth himself, shall be abased, and he that humbleth himself, shall be exalted. This was a proverbial expression, often mentioned by Christ on different occasions, and frequently used by the Jews; See Gill on Mat 23:12 to which may be added the following passages;
"whoever is of a haughty spirit, at last shall be made low (y).''
And again,
"whosoever humbleth himself, the holy blessed God will lift him up (z).''
(y) T. Bab. Sota, fol. 5. 1. (z) Zohar in Lev. fol. 39. 1.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain This man went down - From the hill on…
This man went down - From the hill on which the temple stood, justified rather than the other - That is, and not the other.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 14. Went doom to his house justified] His…
Verse 14. Went doom to his house justified] His sin blotted out; and himself accepted.
Rather than the other] Η εκεινος: that is, the other was not accepted, because he exalted himself - he made use of the mercies which he acknowledged he owed to God, to make claims on the Divine approbation, and to monopolize the salvation of the Most High! He was abased, because he vainly trusted that he was righteous, and depended on what he had been enabled to do, and looked not for a change of heart, nor for reconciliation to God. It is a strange perversion of the human mind, to attempt to make God our debtor by the very blessings which his mere mercy has conferred upon us! It was a maxim among the Jews, that whoever brought a sacrifice to the temple returned justified. But our Lord shows that this depended on the state of mind-if they were not humbled under a sense of sin, they were not justified, though they had even offered a sacrifice.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain I tell you - The Pharisees would have said…
I tell you - The Pharisees would have said that the first man here was approved. Jesus assures them that they judged erroneously. God judges of this differently from people.
Justified - Accepted or approved of God. The word “justify” means to declare or treat as righteous. In this case it means that in their prayers the one was approved and the other not; the one went down with the favor of God in answer to his petitions, the other not.
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For every one ... - See the notes at Luk 14:11.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain If any one should ask why the Pharisee is…
If any one should ask why the Pharisee is here condemned for speaking some few words in his own commendation, and why the like sentence was not passed on Job, who praised himself much more; the difference is evident: the former praised himself without any necessity, merely with an intention of indulging his vanity, and extolling himself over the poor publican; the latter, being overwhelmed with misery, and upbraided by his friends, as if, forsaken of God, he suffered his present distress in punishment of his crimes, justifies himself by recounting his virtues for the greater glory of God, and to preserve himself and others in the steady practice of virtue, under similar temptations. (Theophylactus)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain rather than the other--The meaning is, "and not the…
rather than the other--The meaning is, "and not the other"; for the Pharisee was not seeking justification, and felt no need of it. This great law of the Kingdom of God is, in the teaching of Christ, inscribed, as in letters of gold, over its entrance gate. And in how many different forms is it repeated (Psa 138:6; Psa 147:6; Luk 1:53). To be self-emptied, or, "poor in spirit," is the fundamental and indispensable preparation for the reception of the "grace which bringeth salvation": wherever this exists, the "mourning" for it which precedes "comfort" and the earnest "hungerings and thirstings after righteousness" which are rewarded by the "fulness" of it, will, as we see here, be surely found. Such, therefore, and such only, are the justified ones (Job 33:27-28; Psa 34:18; Isa 57:15).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 14. I tell you—With what emphasis and power did…
14. I tell you—With what emphasis and power did this tell you come from this divine I.
Down to his house—Where went the strutting Pharisee? Who knows? But this publican sought a home now illuminate by the beams of God’s smiling face.
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Justified—Not merely pardoned; but held as enjoying the position of one just before God. The Epistle to the Romans is the expansion of this great thought.
Rather than the other—The other was amply justified by and before himself; this man is justified by and before God.
Exalteth himself—Our Lord here repeats one of those great formulas which expresses a fundamental law of the kingdom of God.
Here terminates the great series of the (Peculiaria Lucae) Peculiar Contributions of Luke, or the LUKEAN SECTION. (See p. 101.) Thus far his path has been independent and alone; he is now joined by his brother Evangelists. Henceforth, though often furnishing peculiar paragraphs, he moves abreast with them.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 14. went down to his house justified rather than…
14. went down to his house justified rather than the other] Of the Pharisee it might be said, “His soul which is lifted up is not upright in him but of the Tax-gatherer, “the just shall live by his faith,” Hab_2:4. But the day had not yet come in which the words ‘be merciful’ (hilaskou), and ‘justified’ (dedikaiomenos), possessed the deep full meaning which they were soon to acquire (Heb_2:17; Rom_3:20). The phrase was not unknown to the Talmud, which says that while the Temple stood, when every Israelite had offered sacrifice, ‘his sin was pardoned and he departed justified.’ The reading of our Greek text ἢ ἐκεῖνος is untenable, though it correctly gives the meaning. The best supported reading is ἢ γὰρ ἐκεῖνος, but it seems to have originated by mistake from παρ ἐκεῖνον. Abp Trench quotes Crashaw’s striking epigram:
“Two went to pray: or rather say
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One went to brag, the other to pray;
One stands up close, and treads on high,
Where th’ other dares not send his eye.
One nearer to the altar trod,
The other to the altar’s God.”
every one that exalteth himself] See Luk_14:11. In this Parable, as in that of the Prodigal son, we have the contrast between unrighteousness and self-righteousness.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (14) This man went down to his house, justified…
(14) This man went down to his house, justified rather than the other.—The Greek participle is in the perfect, implying a completed and abiding justification. There is something suggestive in the fact that the “house” is made the test in each case. Home-life is the test of the reality and acceptableness of our worship. The Pharisee, in spite of his self-fratulation, betrayed a conscience ill at ease by irritability, harshness, sitting in judgment upon others. The publican, not in spite of his self-condemnation, but by reason of it, went home with a new sense of peace, showing itself in a new gentleness and cheerfulness.
For every one that exalteth himself.—Comp. Note on Luk_14:11. What had there been said, in its bearing on man’s outward life, and as shown by the judgment of men, is here transferred, the law remaining the same, to the higher regions of the spiritual life and to God’s judgment. In both cases there is a needless variation in the English version, the Greek giving the same verb for both “abased” and “humbleth.”
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The lessons of the parable force themselves upon every reader. The spirit of religious egotism, however, is not easily exorcised, and we need, perhaps, to be reminded that the temper of the Pharisee may learn to veil itself in the language of the publican, men confessing that they are “miserable sinners,” and resting, with a secret self-satisfaction in the confession; or that, conversely, the publican—i.e., the openly non-religious man—may cease to smite upon his breast, and may come to give God thanks that he is not as the Pharisee.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain I tell you, this man went down to his…
I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. And the publican was right; there was mercy even for him, all sin-stained though he was. The words with which the Lord closes his teaching are full of comfort. That prayer he tells us was heard and granted. The "I tell you" of Jesus here means, as Stier well puts it, "I tell you, for I know, I have seen, I have heard all this in many such a case, and in many such prayers." With this example of prayer favourably heard, there is surely no sin-burthened soul on earth who may not take courage in seeking God"s face. One great object of this parable, we may believe, was to suggest some such thoughts, to embolden sorrowful, heart-broken sinners simply to go to God, trusting in his great pitying love. It should not be forgotten that the publican"s prayer was heard in the temple; a silent approval seems given to his having thus sought out the appointed consecrated place of prayer.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain 14. This man went … justified. With his sins…
14. This man went … justified. With his sins forgiven. His prayer was answered; not the proud boasts of the Pharisee. “This parable teaches us the spirit that should pervade our prayers. The first parable encourages us to pray, and faint not. The second reminds us how we ought to pray. Both should be often pondered by every true Christian.”—Ryle.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 18:14 Jesus’ conclusion that only the tax collector went…
18:14 Jesus’ conclusion that only the tax collector went home justified before God would have shocked Jesus’ audience, who regarded Pharisees as righteous and tax collectors as wicked. • those who exalt themselves will be humbled: See 1:52-53; 6:21, 25; 10:15; 14:11; 16:19-31.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.