Commentary on the Four Gospel Books
The Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ
G109 The Parable of the Unjust Judge,
The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector,
Let the Little Children Come to the Lord
Luke 18:1–17; Matthew 19:13–15; Mark 10:13–16

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All New Testament verses quoted in this article are from the English Majority Text Version, and Old Testament verses are from the King James Version, unless otherwise noted.

Luke 18:1-17

1 Then He spoke a parable to them, that one must always pray and not lose heart,

2 saying: “A certain judge was in a certain city, who did not fear *God nor have regard for men.

3 Now there was a widow in that city; and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give justice to me against my adversary.’

4 And he did not want to for a time; but afterward he said within himself, ‘although I do not fear *God, nor have regard for man,

5 yet because this widow bothers me I will give justice to her, lest she wear me out by forever coming to me.’ “

6 Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said.

7 And *God, shall He not execute justice for His own elect, who cry out day and night to Him, and yet He is patient with them?

8 I tell you that He will execute justice for them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?”

9 Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised the others:

10 Two men went up to the temple to pray, the one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘*God, I thank You that I am not like other men–swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.

12 I fast twice a week, I tithe on all things, as many as I acquire.’

13 And the tax collector, standing far away, would not so much as lift his eyes towards heaven, but beat on his chest, saying, ‘*God, be merciful to me a sinner!’

14 I say to you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, and he who humbles himself shall be exalted.”

15 And they were bringing infants to Him, that He might touch them; but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them.

16 But Jesus, summoning them, said, “Allow the little children to come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of *God.

17 Assuredly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of *God as a little child will by no means enter into it.”

Matthew 19:13-15

13 Then little children were brought to Him, that He might put His hands on them and pray; but the disciples rebuked them.

14 But Jesus said, “Allow the little children to come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”

15 And having put His hands on them, He departed from there.

Mark 10:13-16

13 And they were bringing to Him little children, that He might touch them; but the disciples were rebuking those who brought them.

14 But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and said to them, “Allow the little children come to Me, do not hinder them; for of such is the kingdom of *God.

15 Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of *God as a little child will by no means enter it.”

16 And taking them in His arms, laying His hands on them, He blessed them.

In this lesson, we learn two more parables of the Lord Jesus and the Lord’s command concerning allowing the little children to come to Him.

Luke 18:1-3

1 Then He spoke a parable to them, that one must always pray and not lose heart,

2 saying: “A certain judge was in a certain city, who did not fear *God nor have regard for men.

3 Now there was a widow in that city; and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give justice to me against my adversary.’

Following His teaching to the disciples about His coming to take the Church out of the world, the Lord Jesus told them a parable about perseverance in prayer.

The Lord Jesus knew that a period of time would be needed for the Church to grow before He comes to take the Church out of the world. During the Church age, God’s people must endure much suffering and injustice. This serves both as a testing of their faith and as their participation in the sufferings of Christ. However, the God is always the One who watches over them. He protects them, cares for them, and disciplines them so that they may become more and more like the Christ. Therefore, God’s people must persevere in prayer so that the God may grant them what they rightly ask for.

The Lord Jesus told His disciples a parable about an unjust judge. The unjust judge did not fulfill his duty, but because of the rightful persistence of a widow, he was compelled to grant her justice.

We can understand that a judge is someone who has the responsibility to render judgments according to what is right and according to the law for the people, without partiality for any reason. A person may show partiality due to prejudice—disliking one person and favoring another. A person may show partiality in order to cover up or benefit a relative. A person may show partiality because of pressure from superiors. A person may also show partiality because of taking bribes.

The unjust judge in the parable was likely someone who accepted bribes in his rulings. His character of neither fearing the God nor respecting anyone reflects the nature of someone who works only for money. Therefore, even if a person brought forth a righteous complaint and sought judgment, they would have to bribe the judge to be heard.

Luke 18:4-5

4 And he did not want to for a time; but afterward he said within himself, ‘although I do not fear *God, nor have regard for man,

5 yet because this widow bothers me I will give justice to her, lest she wear me out by forever coming to me.’ “

We can understand that it was very likely the widow had a just cause but had no money to offer as a bribe, so her complaint was not heard by the judge. Nevertheless, she continued to plead persistently. Because her cause was just, the judge could not dismiss her case. Her persistent pleading became a nuisance to the judge. To be rid of the widow’s continual disturbance, the judge was compelled to grant her justice.

We can imagine that the widow came daily to the court, pleading with the judge to grant her justice. Perhaps it was not only her daily pleas that troubled the judge but also the gossip among the people, which became another form of disturbance.

The disturbance was not only her daily pleading and the public gossip but also the accusations—however faint—within his conscience. Though the judge openly admitted that “I do not fear *God, nor have regard for man,” he could not silence the voice of conscience within. Perhaps that was the very thing that disturbed him the most.

Luke 18:6-7

6 Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said.

7 And *God, shall He not execute justice for His own elect, who cry out day and night to Him, and yet He is patient with them?

The Lord Jesus advised His disciples to listen to what the unjust judge said so that they might understand this: even an unjust judge, because of being troubled, responded to the widow’s persistent plea. How much more, then, will the God—who is righteous—be willing to respond to the prayers of His people!

God’s people are those whom the God Himself has chosen to be His people, even before the foundation of the world.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him in love.” (Ephesians 1:3-4).

Therefore, they are surely always protected, cared for, provided with all their needs, and blessed with every grace by Him.

Among the prayers of God’s people, in addition to requests for deliverance from adversity, provision for all needs, and the granting of various gifts, there are also prayers for forgiveness after times of stumbling into sin.

The God is One who is rich in patience toward His people, and He is eager to respond to their prayers. Psalm 18 is a magnificent song about how the God answers the cries of His people. Verse 6 is a particularly memorable one.

“In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.” (Psalms 18:6).

The fact that God’s people cry out to the God day and night is not only for themselves but also on behalf of others, according to the Lord’s teaching in 1 Timothy 2:1–2.

The God will hear and respond to every prayer that is pleasing to Him. Although there are times when His answer does not come in the timing or manner we expect, it always comes according to His holy will—because that is always what is best for us.

Luke 18:8

8 I tell you that He will execute justice for them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?”

When God’s people cry out to the God because of being treated unjustly by the world, He will quickly bring about justice for them. However, this is often not recognized by mankind, because the judgment is carried out immediately, while the punishment is stored up to be executed on the day of final judgment (Revelation 20:11–15).

Throughout the history of the Church, countless of God’s people have suffered persecution for their faith and cried out to the God, yet they were still killed. The God’s action to ″execute justice for them speedily″ often does not include immediate deliverance from adversity. Though there are times when He does bring about immediate deliverance, as recorded many times in the Bible, every adversity is permitted by Him to test and refine them, ultimately bringing benefit to them—as written in Romans 8:28.

God’s people must firmly believe that the God always hastens to ″execute justice for them.″

The latter part of verse 8 is the Lord Jesus’ prophecy concerning the scarcity of true faith at the time when He comes to take the Church out of the world.

We already know that the Lord Jesus will come before the End Time to take the Church out of the world. That will be a time when people are still eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, and working as usual—just as in the days before the Great Flood that destroyed the entire world, or before the fire and brimstone destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. Regrettably, according to the Lord’s prophecy, there will not be many people living at the time of His coming who have faith. It may be that the majority of those whom the Lord Jesus will take out of the world at that time are saints who have died and will be resurrected.

After the End Time, which lasts for seven years, the Lord Jesus will return to the earth. By then, at least half of the world’s population will have been killed by various disasters, plagues, and wars during the End Time. Every mountain and every island will be gone, and all the great cities of the world will have collapsed. Yet, at that time, there will also be many who believe in the Gospel, who do not submit to the AntiChrist, and who do not receive his mark. They will be the citizens of the Heavenly Kingdom manifested on earth during the one thousand years that follow.

This prophecy of the Lord Jesus is worthy of our remembrance and self-examination—do we truly have faith?

A person who has faith in the Lord is one who obeys the commandments of God and believes in the atoning death of the Lord Jesus Christ. That person lives according to God’s Word, reflecting God’s love, holiness, and righteousness through their life. That person loves God above all things, loves others as themselves, and loves fellow believers as the Lord loves them.

Luke 18:9-10

9 Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised the others:

10 Two men went up to the temple to pray, the one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

Next, the Lord Jesus taught His disciples through another parable about self-righteousness and looking down on others. In the parable, He presented two men representing two prominent and opposing social classes of that time in Jewish society. One was a Pharisee, representing those who claimed to be righteous and devoted their lives to serving the Lord. The other was a tax collector, who worked collecting taxes for the Roman government and represented those most hated and despised by the Jewish people.

First, tax collectors often cheated in collecting taxes for their own gain. Second, they abused the authority of the Roman government to exploit their fellow citizens. The Jewish people at that time regarded tax collectors as the lowest class in society.

Both the Pharisee and the tax collector were descendants of Abraham, having a covenant with the God. They both worshipped the God, so they went to the Temple to pray.

Luke 18:11-12

11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘*God, I thank You that I am not like other men–swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.

12 I fast twice a week, I tithe on all things, as many as I acquire.’

The Pharisee stood praying to the God, but his prayer was ″with himself,″ implying that he was boasting about himself and praising himself. In other words, the Pharisee used the name of the Lord to brag about himself to the Lord, while at the same time humiliating his brother—who was also a descendant of Abraham—before the God.

The first part of verse 12 has sparked much debate regarding its translation. If translated literally from the original Greek Bible text, it reads: ″I fast twice on the Sabbath day.″ Some English translations have rendered it similarly.

1. Julia Smith Translation: “I fast twice of the Sabbath; I pay tithes of all I possess.”

2. Literal Translation of the Holy Bible (LITV): “I fast twice on the sabbath; I tithe all things, as many as I get.”

3. Modern King James Version (MKJV): “I fast twice on the Sabbath; I give tithes of all that I possess.”

4. Worrell New Testament: “I fast twice on the Sabbath; I give a tenth of all that I acquire.”

These translations reflect the understanding that the Pharisee in Luke 18:12 was speaking about fasting twice on the Sabbath day, not twice each week.

It is unclear when Bible translators and interpreters began to hold that the Greek word “σάββατον” (sabbaton – G4521) /sab’-bat-on/ carries both the meanings of “Sabbath” and “week.” However, in reality, at that time, the Greek language had a specific word for “week,” which was “ἑβδομάς” /heb-domas/. This word was used in the Septuagint, notably in Daniel 10:2. God’s people at that time read and studied the Scriptures from the Septuagint. Therefore, it is certain that Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were familiar with the Greek noun for “week.” If they had intended to speak of a week, they would not have used the noun “σάββατον” /sab’-bat-on/.

The New Testament does not contain the word “ἑβδομάς” /heb-domas/ because there is no place that refers specifically to a week.

All occurrences of the noun “σάββατον” /sab’-bat-on/ in the New Testament, if translated correctly, must be rendered as “Sabbath.”

Modern Greek dictionaries have been influenced by earlier Bible translations and interpretations that assert “σάββατον” /sab’-bat-on/ means both “Sabbath” and “week.” However, in Greek literature from the time when the New Testament was written, “σάββατον” /sab’-bat-on/ was never used to refer to a week.

Although the Jewish people did not fast on the Sabbath—since it was a day of rest, joy, and communal feasting—the Pharisees deliberately fasted, not eating two meals on the Sabbath, to appear extremely devoted to the Lord, dedicating the entire Sabbath day to fellowship with God rather than to eating and celebration.

Contrary to the Jewish tradition of viewing the Sabbath as a time of joy and feasting, the Pharisee deliberately fasted to display an exaggerated sense of piety. This perfectly aligns with his boastful nature.

In orthodox Jewish tradition (Mishnah, Talmud, Rabbinic texts), the Sabbath is a day of joy, and eating is an integral part of keeping the Sabbath. On the Sabbath, three meals are to be eaten. The Pharisee in the parable chose to eat only one meal. It is possible that he fasted from morning until evening and ate just one main meal in the evening. Perhaps he ate the evening meal after sunset on Friday; then fasted from breakfast and lunch on Saturday; and resumed eating the evening meal after sunset, marking the end of Saturday.

From a grammatical standpoint, Luke 18:12a can only be understood as: ″I fast twice on the Sabbath day.″ It cannot be understood as ″I fast twice each week.″

In verse 12, besides boasting about fasting twice on the Sabbath day, the Pharisee also boasted, ″I give tithes of all that I possess.″ But the Lord Jesus spoke about the tithing of the Pharisees as follows:

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you pay tithes of mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the more important things of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These things you should have done, and not have neglected the others.” (Matthew 23:23).

No matter how zealously a person offers to the Lord, if they do not respect justice, lack mercy, and are not faithful, it is all in vain. For the God ″desired mercy, and not sacrifice″ (Hosea 6:6). Offerings only have meaning when accompanied by a life of righteousness and love.

Luke 18:13

13 And the tax collector, standing far away, would not so much as lift his eyes towards heaven, but beat on his chest, saying, ‘*God, be merciful to me a sinner!’

In the time of the Lord Jesus, when the Jewish people went to the Temple to pray, they were not allowed to enter all areas within the Temple. The structure of the Jerusalem Temple at that time (commonly called the Second Temple) included many sections, with strict divisions based on gender, nationality, and religious status. Jewish men, when praying, would stand in the area called the ″Court of the Israelites.″

The main sections of the Temple from the outside inward were:

1. Court of the Gentiles, where non-Jews were allowed to enter.

2. Court of Women, where Jewish women were allowed to enter. Jewish men were also permitted in this court.

3. Court of Israelites, reserved only for Jewish men. This was where they usually stood to pray.

4. Court of the Priests, where the priests performed their rituals.

5. The Holy Place and the Holy of Holies, these two areas were reserved exclusively for the priests. Only the high priest was permitted to enter the Holy of Holies once a year.

Perhaps the Pharisee proudly stood in the Court of Israelites while praying. He may have stood near the altar where those with sincere faith often prayed publicly.

According to Jewish law, the tax collector was a Jew but despised for working for the Romans. Therefore, although he was a Jew, he dared only to stand at a distance—possibly in the Court of Women or near the Court of Israelites—depending on his level of fear or feeling of unworthiness.

The attitude of ″would not so much as lift his eyes towards heaven″ expresses a deep sense of guilt for sin. The action of ″beat on his chest″ shows sincere repentance. The prayer, ″*God, be merciful to me a sinner!″ is a wonderful prayer, fitting his situation and pleasing to the Lord.

The tax collector was completely humble, fully aware of his condition, and only pleaded for the mercy of the God.

Luke 18:14

14 I say to you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, and he who humbles himself shall be exalted.”

Because the Temple in Jerusalem and even the city of Jerusalem itself were situated on a hill, the people of Israel used the expression ″going up″ to refer to traveling to the Temple or to Jerusalem. Conversely, they used the expression ″going down″ to refer to leaving the Temple to return home or leaving Jerusalem to go elsewhere.

The tax collector was justified, which means that he was forgiven and accepted by the God because of his humility. The Pharisee, however, was not forgiven because he was proud and did not ask for the mercy of the God.

″Everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled″ means that anyone who boasts and is proud will be brought low by the God.

″Who humbles himself shall be exalted″ means that anyone who is humble and lowers themselves will be lifted up by the God.

The Lord’s teaching is clear:

“But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”” (James 4:6).

“Be humbled before the Lord, and He will exalt you.” (James 4:10).

It is the Lord Jesus Himself who calls those who come to Him to learn from His gentleness and humility (Matthew 11:29).

Luke 18:15

15 And they were bringing infants to Him, that He might touch them; but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them.

Matthew 19:13

13 Then little children were brought to Him, that He might put His hands on them and pray; but the disciples rebuked them.

Mark 10:13

13 And they were bringing to Him little children, that He might touch them; but the disciples were rebuking those who brought them.

Matthew 19:13-15 and Mark 10:13-16 record the same event as Luke 18:15-17. Each writer emphasizes certain details that the others do not include.

Luke emphasizes that the children brought by the people to the Lord were ″infants.″ Meanwhile, Matthew and Mark use the term ″little children,″ which is a noun that includes infants up to mature children under 20 years old (according to biblical standards).

Luke and Mark state that the purpose of those bringing the children was so that the Lord Jesus might touch them. Meanwhile, Matthew explicitly says ″He might put His hands on them and pray.″ The purpose of being touched by the Lord was to have Him lay His hands on them and bless them. The prayer mentioned here is a request to the God to grant a blessing. However, it does not exclude the belief of the people at that time that the laying on of hands by the Lord Jesus on their children could heal all diseases, grant them good health, and prevent evil spirits from troubling them.

When the Lord’s disciples saw the people bringing children to Him, even infants, they were afraid that the Lord would be disturbed and rebuked those who did so.

Luke 18:16

16 But Jesus, summoning them, said, “Allow the little children to come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of *God.

Matthew 19:14

14 But Jesus said, “Allow the little children to come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”

Mark 10:14

14 But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and said to them, “Allow the little children come to Me, do not hinder them; for of such is the kingdom of *God.

Mark’s account adds the detail that ″But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant.″ It is very likely that at that time, the Lord Jesus was busy with some children while the crowd outside continued to bring more children, so the disciples went out, stopped them, and rebuked them.

When the Lord Jesus saw the disciples’ actions, He was not pleased because they did not sympathize with the faith and longing of the people. The disciples also did not realize that children are extremely valuable before the God because they are not yet aware of sin, nor have they chosen to sin in rebellion against the God. They deserve to be received and blessed by the Lord Jesus. Therefore, the Lord Jesus called the disciples and told them to allow the children to come to Him and not to hinder them.

The Lord Jesus also spoke an additional truth that the disciples likely did not expect: ″For of such is the kingdom of *God.″

We need to remember that the Lord Jesus was speaking about the infants being brought by the people. They completely lacked sufficient understanding to distinguish between good and evil (Deuteronomy 1:39). They have the following characteristics:

1. Simple faith and absolute trust. Children fully trust their parents without doubt. The Lord desires us to have simple faith, not complicated by reasoning. That is why He told His disciples to become like children to enter the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 18:3).

2. Humility and lack of pride. Children are not arrogant, boastful, or competitive about status; they do not have pride that separates them from the God. Therefore, the Lord told His disciples to be humble like children to be great in the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 18:4).

3. Complete dependence. Children know they need care and protection. We need to recognize dependence on the God in everything, not relying on our own strength or the ways of the world.

4. Purity and honesty. Children are often straightforward, without deceit, and without complicated schemes or bad motives.

5. Willingness to receive. Children readily accept what is taught. They are willing to believe the Gospel without adult prejudices and are not hindered by complex theories.

6. Quick forgiveness. Children easily forgive and forget injuries, not holding on to long-term resentment.

7. Simple joy. Children can be joyful over small things and find happiness in the simplicity of both physical and spiritual life.

The Lord does not call us to become ″children″ in intellectual terms (1 Corinthians 14:20), but in spiritual attitude. This means having simple faith, humility, and complete dependence on the God. The Kingdom of Heaven requires us to remove the barriers of pride, prejudice, and complex reasoning to come to the God simply, like little children.

Luke 18:17

17 Assuredly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of *God as a little child will by no means enter into it.”

Matthew 19:15

15 And having put His hands on them, He departed from there.

Mark 10:15-16

15 Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of *God as a little child will by no means enter it.”

16 And taking them in His arms, laying His hands on them, He blessed them.

″Receive the kingdom of *God as a little child″ means simply trusting every word taught by the Lord Jesus. It means being humble, understanding that entry into the Kingdom of Heaven is a gift from the God, not because of one’s own ability. It involves fully entrusting one’s life to the providence and mercy of the God.

Those who do not enter the Kingdom of Heaven are those who do not simply trust every word taught by the Lord Jesus. They strive to do good works in order to be considered worthy.

Matthew records that after laying hands on the children, the Lord Jesus departed from that place.

Mark records in detail: The Lord was ″taking them in His arms, laying His hands on them, He blessed them.″ The Lord Jesus holding the children helps us understand why Luke chose to use the term ″infants.″

The Lord Jesus laid His hands on the children to bless them. His laying on of hands expressed His acceptance of them. The blessing met the hopes of the parents and was also a wonderful gift from Him to those children. Surely, the blessing of the Lord Jesus on the children that day brought them many blessings throughout their lives.

We conclude this lesson here.

May the Holy Spirit guide us into all the truths of God’s Word (John 16:13). May the Word of God sanctify us (John 17:17). May the Faithful *God of Peace Himself sanctify our spirit, soul, and body entirely, without blame (1 Thessalonians 5:23), at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, our Beloved Savior. Amen!

Timothy Christian Huynh
Priscilla Christian Huynh
06/07/2025

Note:

About Using “*God”, “the God” and “holy spirit”

Wherever the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts of the Bible use a definite article with a noun to denote GOD, we translate it into English as *God or “the God” to refer to God the Father. We understand that “God,” without a definite article, was used as a collective noun for all and any of the three Persons of the Godhead. And “God,” with a definite article, was used to refer to God the Father.

In the Greek manuscripts of the New Testament, the term “holy spirit” (πνευματι αγιω) without the definite article “the” (το) is used to denote the power of God, which is given by God the Holy Spirit. “The Holy Spirit” (το πνευματι το αγιω) is God, and “holy spirit” (πνευματι αγιω) is the power that comes from God.