The Good Samaritan Part 2

Luke 10:25-37, Luke 9:54-56 by Jonathon Wright

Last time we talked about the animosity between Jews and Samaritans. Even the Lord’s disciples wanted to call fire down from Heaven like Elijah in the Old Testament upon these overbearing and cantankerous Samaritan neighbors. See Luke 9:54-56. However, Jesus quickly reminded them He came to save lives, not destroy them. John 3:17 plainly states Jesus does not want to condemn the world for their sins but save those who believe in Him. The lawyer wanted to know if he had to love his annoying neighbors. Jesus responds with this parable.

A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Samaria and fell among robbers who stripped him and beat him and left him half-dead on the side of the road. A priest and a Levite came but went out of their way to cross onto the other side of the street to avoid him.

I have read some commentators mention the idea of ceremonial purity as why the priest and Levite did not help this half-dead man. Keep in mind, he may have been a Jew or Samaritan. Jesus does not want to be that specific because He wanted His audience and us to see each other as people. He does not want us to label a person based on their ethnicity before getting to know them. The priest and the Levite, as leaders, were supposed to be loving examples to God’s people. However, Jesus was constantly confronting the religious leaders of His time because of the way they treated people. They were cold and indifferent to this man.

Jesus now talks about the actions of an unknown Samaritan, who had compassion on the wounded man. He gave him wine to ease the pain and oil to soothe the wound. After helping him feel better, the Samaritan placed him on his beast and would have to walk. The specifics of the journey are unknown, but it could have been up to seventeen miles.

When he got into town, he paid a considerable amount of money to take care of his needs for shelter and rest. He even told the innkeeper that he would be back if there were any extra expenses. According to a commentary I read, two denarii could have paid for two months’ lodging. 38 // April 2022

Jesus concludes by asking who was a neighbor to the man. The lawyer responded, “the man who showed mercy.” Do you see how the man no longer saw the Samaritan by his ethnicity but saw his Samaritan neighbor as a person of great value to God? Jesus was calling this man to be a good neighbor. Usually, when we are good to people, they will be good to us. These principles help us have better relationships with our neighbors. We live in a dangerous world much like the time of Jesus, but He still encourages us to be good neighbors today. Let’s continue by the love of God to make our lives and neighborhoods better, one neighbor at a time.

Sources: Morris, Leon. Luke: The Tyndale New Testament Commentary. USA: InterVarsity Press, 1988. Gospel of Luke contributed by Strauss, Mark L. Zondervan Illustrated Bible Background Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, Vol 1. Edited by Clinton B. Arnold. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2002.

About The Author

Jonathon Wright currently lives in Cleveland, Tennessee, and has been a member of the Church of God for about twenty years. He is a graduate of Lee University and Beacon University where he earned a BA and MA in Biblical Studies. He loves studying the Bible and has done so for over thirty years, but only now has God given him a desire and the opportunity to be a writer. He is currently beginning the process of writing a book on Genesis entitled, God’s Good Prophetic Plan: From Beginning to End.