Example One, Two, or Three?

Luke 10:25 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

26 “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”

27 He answered, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’[fn]; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[fn]”

28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii[fn] and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” (NIV)

Luke 10:25-37 is the account of Jesus and the man asking about how to have eternal life. The keywords are Priest, Levite, and Samaritan. The Priest and the Levite did not respond because they would be ceremonially unclean if the man was dead or died in their care. The law is specified in Numbers 19:11-19. The book of Numbers explains the priest is from the bloodline of Aaron. Aaron is the older brother of Moses. The Priests were of the upper Jewish society.[1] The Levites were descendent of the tribe of Levi. Leah was Levi’s mother. They were designated as leaders of community life and worship. Their duties were to assist the Priest by keeping the temple gates and music and hauling the materials within the temple. The Priests were representatives of the people before God.[2] 2 Kings 17:7-40 explains Israel was taken into exile to Assyria. The Samaritans became a racial mixture of Israelites and other ancient Near Eastern people.[3] The full-blooded Jews despised them. Although some Jews were left behind, they became known as Samaritans. In this passage, we learn that the Assyrians replaced the Israelites with people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sephar-vaim.

The original hearers would understand their duty is better than assisting someone in need. The priests and the Levites did not want to be unclean for their duty. The law would render them unclean for seven days for touching a corpse and unclean until evening for looking at a corpse. They would have been arriving to relieve the working shift of priests or Levites. The Samaritan went above the call of caring for another person. He also paid two days' wages to assist with further care for the person.

As we go about our daily lives, we are responsible for offering help when we can. Who can you help today? Can you listen to a friend dealing with concerns? A lonely neighbor who wants to share childhood memories? Sitting with a young adult at the laundry mat doing laundry as darkness approaches?

Bibliography

Constable, Thomas L. “2 Kings.” In The Bible Knowledge Commentary: Old Testament, edited by John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck, 537-588. Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 1984.

Garland, David E. Luke. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011.

Scott, Jr., J. Julius. Jewish Background of the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 1995.

[1] David E. Garland, Luke, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), 452-454. [2] J. Julius Scott, Jr. Jewish Background of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 1995), 67. [3] Thomas L. Constable, “2 Kings,” In The Bible Knowledge Commentary: Old Testament, edited by John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck. (Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 1984), 572.