Luke Chapter 11

(Luke 11:1 NASB)  And it came about that while He was praying in a certain place, after He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John also taught his disciples.”

Luke 11:1:      Yeshua’s habit of praying to the Father did not escape the notice of His disciples.  Apparently John taught his disciples what to pray and now His disciples want to know what is proper to ask the Father.

 

(Luke 11:2 NASB)  And He said to them, “When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come.

Luke 11:2:      This prayer is short, as our prayers usually should be (Ecc. 5:2, Hosea 14:1-3).
The things in this prayer come from several places in the Tanakh.  Yeshua says to call Him “Father” (Psalm 89:26, Isa. 63:16).
“Hallowed be Thy Name.”  The Greek word for “hallowed” is hagiazw.  It means to “keep holy.”  Hallowed – G37. hagiazw,  from G40; to make holy, consecrate, sanctify:– hallowed(2), keep holy(1), sanctified(16), sanctifies(2), sanctify(7).  This is also in the tanakh (Psalm 72:18-19, Ezek. 36:23).
“Thy Kingdom come.”  This is in keeping with the theme of the Gospel of the Kingdom which is spoken of by virtually all the prophets.
The NASB omits “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  However, it is contained in the Matthew account (Matt. 6:9-11).

 
(Luke 11:3 NASB)  ‘Give us each day our daily bread.

Luke 11:3:      This is not really speaking of our daily sustenance which comes from Elohim.  Yeshua tells us not to worry about those things (Matt. 6:31-33).
So, what does He mean by “daily bread?”  Our daily bread is the Word of Elohim (Deut. 8:3, John 6:32-35).  Why did Yeshua say that He is the “Bread of Life?”  Because He is the Word of the Father made flesh.

 

(Luke 11:4 NASB)  ‘And forgive us our sins, For we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.'”

Luke 11:4:      If we want to be forgiven of our debts (transgressions) to Him against His Torah, we must forgive those who have debts (transgressions) against us.  What is forgiveness?  It is treating others in a fashion that says unequivocally they do not owe you anything.
It is true that forgiveness only comes through confession and repentence.  Forgiveness is a gift from the Father.  It is not something we earn, nor is it automatic because we have said some magic words or have a special feeling in our hearts.
The Tanakh states that we are to forgive others and cleanse ourselves from rebellion against His Torah if we want our prayers heard (Prov. 21:13, Isa. 1:15-17, 58:6-11).
Keep in mind that in this prayer we are saying that we do not want forgiveness to any greater degree than what we forgive others.
The prayer ends there.  Some later manuscripts include “For Thine is the Kingdom and the Power and the glory forever,” in the Matthew version.  But it is not in any of the manuscripts in Luke.  It should probably be omitted in Matthew also.

 

(Luke 11:5 NASB)  And He said to them, “Suppose one of you shall have a friend, and shall go to him at midnight, and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves;
(Luke 11:6 NASB)  for a friend of mine has come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’;
(Luke 11:7 NASB)  and from inside he shall answer and say, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been shut and my children and I are in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’

Luke 11:7:      Yeshua is giving an example of how even a friend will not help someone if they are greatly inconvenienced.

 

(Luke 11:8 NASB)  “I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will get up and give him as much as he needs.

Luke 11:8:      The Greek word for “persistence” can also mean “shamelessness.”  This could be meaning that the man in the house does not want to shame himself by not responding.  He sees that the neighbors persistence shows that it means a lot to Him and he wants to keep His name good.

 

(Luke 11:9 NASB)  “And I say to you, ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you.
(Luke 11:10 NASB)  “For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it shall be opened.

Luke 11:10:      Yeshua repeated this to His disciples at His last Passover.  However, He also mentioned that obedience was necessary (John 15:7).  The Apostle John interpreted this to mean that if we obey His commandments, we will receive what we ask for (1 John 3:21-22).
We are told in the Tanakh that He will answer our prayers if we are obedient to Him (Psalm 50:15-17, Jer. 33:1-3, Isa. 55:6-7).

 

(Luke 11:11 NASB)  “Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he?
(Luke 11:12 NASB)  “Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he?
(Luke 11:13 NASB)  “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”

Luke 11:13:      We have been told to pray for righteousness and holiness in our lives.  If we do, then we will be given the Spirit (Breath) of the Father to those who ask Him.
Yeshua tells us that our heavenly Father knows how to provide for us (Isa. 49:15, Prov. 1:23, Ezek. 36:27, 31).  He will provide His Spirit in abundance to His people that ask for it (Joel 2:28-32).

 

(Luke 11:14 NASB)  And He was casting out a demon, and it was dumb; and it came about that when the demon had gone out, the dumb man spoke; and the multitudes marveled.

Luke 11:14:      Apparently this man had a demon in him that prevented him from speaking.  It was cast out and the man spoke.  This was prophesied with the coming of the kingdom (Isa. 35:4-6).  This marveled the multitudes, which consequently infuriated the Pharisees.

 

(Luke 11:15 NASB)  But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.”
(Luke 11:16 NASB)  And others, to test Him, were demanding of Him a sign from heaven.
(Luke 11:17 NASB)  But He knew their thoughts, and said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and a house divided against itself falls.
(Luke 11:18 NASB)  “And if Satan also is divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul.

Luke 11:18:      Yeshua used impeccable logic.  Why would Satan cast out his own from the people?  He would be destroying his own kingdom.

 

(Luke 11:19 NASB)  “And if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? Consequently they shall be your judges.

Luke 11:19:      The term “Beelzebul” is a reference to Baal meaning “lord of life.”  It was a god of the Ekronites (2 Kings 1:2).  For the Jews, it apparently became a reference to Satan.
There is a reference to the others in Israel (probably the disciples and the seventy) who cast out demons.  There were others also (Luke 9:49-50).  Yeshua said they will be their judges.

 

(Luke 11:20 NASB)  “But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

Luke 11:20:      “By the finger of Elohim…”  This is a reference to Yeshua being the “Prophet like Moses” because this was a reference used toward Moses (Exodus 8:19).  The magicians of Pharoah had to admit that the work of Moses was the handiwork of Elohim.  Now the Pharisees must admit the same about Yeshua.

 

(Luke 11:21 NASB)  “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own homestead, his possessions are undisturbed;
(Luke 11:22 NASB)  but when someone stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away from him all his armor on which he had relied, and distributes his plunder.

Luke 11:22:      The strong man fully armed is a reference to Satan.  Yeshua is saying that he is stronger than Satan.

 

(Luke 11:23 NASB)  “He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me, scatters.

Luke 11:23:      Yeshua is saying that if they are not with Him, they are against Him.  There is no neutrality.
Earlier, Yeshua said that if they are not against you, they are for you (Luke 9:50).  But that is referring to those who are doing the work of the Father, not those who are against us or are trying to be neutral.

 

(Luke 11:24 NASB)  “When the unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and not finding any, it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’

Luke 11:24:      When speaking of an unclean spirit, He is apparently speaking of a demon.  I do not know much about demon possession.  It could mean a spirit that controls attitudes and evil desires.

 

(Luke 11:25 NASB)  “And when it comes, it finds it swept and put in order.
(Luke 11:26 NASB)  “Then it goes and takes along seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and live there; and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first.”

Luke 11:26:      Just because an evil intent or attitude is removed from a man (which could be demonic), that does not mean the man is righteous.  The Spirit of the Father must inhabit that person, or else that demon could return and bring others (2 Peter 2:20-22).

 

(Luke 11:27 NASB)  And it came about while He said these things, one of the women in the crowd raised her voice, and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts at which You nursed.”
(Luke 11:28 NASB)  But He said, “On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God, and observe it.”

Luke 11:28:      Yeshua is reiterating that it is not bloodline that contains the blessings of the Father.  It is those who hear the Word of Elohim (Torah) and observe it (Luke 8:20-21, Psalm 1:1-3, 112:1, 119:1-6, 128:1, Isa. 48:17-18, James 1:21-25).

 

(Luke 11:29 NASB)  And as the crowds were increasing, He began to say, “This generation is a wicked generation; it seeks for a sign, and yet no sign shall be given to it but the sign of Jonah.
(Luke 11:30 NASB)  “For just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so shall the Son of Man be to this generation.

Luke 11:30:      Jonah was a sign of judgment to the Ninevites.  Keep in mind that he was in the belly of a whale or fish for three days and nights.  Apparently Elohim resurrected him as a sign to the Ninevites.  He probably lost his hair and his skin was likely very splotchy and discolored.  His very appearance likely gave credence to his message (Jonah 3:1-10).

 

(Luke 11:31 NASB)  “The Queen of the South shall rise up with the men of this generation at the judgment and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.

Luke 11:31:      Yeshua is speaking of the Queen of Sheba, who visited Solomon to learn of his wisdom and to bring him gifts (2 Chron. 9:1-2, 8-9).

 

(Luke 11:32 NASB)  “The men of Nineveh shall stand up with this generation at the judgment and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.

Luke 11:32:      The men of Ninevah repented at the Words of Elohim given through His prophet, Jonah.  The Queen of Sheba embraced the wisdom of Elohim given to Solomon.
Yeshua is greater than both Solomon and Jonah and their Words from the Father.  Yeshua is the message of repentance made flesh and was standing right in front of them.

 

(Luke 11:33 NASB)  “No one, after lighting a lamp, puts it away in a cellar, nor under a peck-measure, but on the lampstand, in order that those who enter may see the light.

Luke 11:33:      The lamp spoken of by Yeshua is His message of “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.”  Specifically, that light is the Torah of Elohim (Psalm 119:105, 43:3, Prov. 6:23, Psalm 19:8, 119:18).

 

(Luke 11:34 NASB)  “The lamp of your body is your eye; when your eye is clear, your whole body also is full of light; but when it is bad, your body also is full of darkness.

Luke 11:34:      The lamp of our body is our eye.  When our eyes are clear, we perceive light.  When we see His Word clearly through eyes that He blesses us with, then we have that light (Psalm 19:8, Psalm 119:18).
However, the Father does not want everyone to see His Word and follow it (Isa. 29:10-14).

 

(Luke 11:35 NASB)  “Then watch out that the light in you may not be darkness.
(Luke 11:36 NASB)  “If therefore your whole body is full of light, with no dark part in it, it shall be wholly illumined, as when the lamp illumines you with its rays.”

Luke 11:36:      If we have the light if His Spirit within us, we do not practice sin against His Torah, because it is our love and our life (Psalm 119:97-105, 1 John 1:5-7, 1 John 2:7-11).

 

(Luke 11:37 NASB)  Now when He had spoken, a Pharisee asked Him to have lunch with him; and He went in, and reclined at the table.
(Luke 11:38 NASB)  And when the Pharisee saw it, he was surprised that He had not first ceremonially washed before the meal.

Luke 11:38:      This washing has nothing to do with hygiene.  It is ceremonial tradition in Judaism that allegedly cleanses ones hands from any spiritual defilement.  That practice is still prevalent in Judaism and even in some Messianic practices.

 

(Luke 11:39 NASB)  But the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and of the platter; but inside of you, you are full of robbery and wickedness.
(Luke 11:40 NASB)  “You foolish ones, did not He who made the outside make the inside also?

Luke 11:40:      The Pharisaic tradition also consists of ceremonially washing the dishes and other things.  Yeshua is telling the Pharisees that they honor their worthless traditions, but they ignore the Torah of the Father, which is built upon love for Him and for one another (Jer. 4:14, Prov. 30:12).

 

(Luke 11:41 NASB)  “But give that which is within as charity, and then all things are clean for you.

Luke 11:41:      Yeshua says that instead of robbery and wickedness, they should be giving to those in need, as commanded in Torah (Deut. 15:7-15, Psalm 41:1-3, 112:9, Pron. 14:31, 19:17, Isa. 58:7-11).

 

(Luke 11:42 NASB)  “But woe to you Pharisees! For you pay tithe of mint and rue and every kind of garden herb, and yet disregard justice and the love of God; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.

Luke 11:42:      Yeshua says they should still be honoring all of Elohim’s Torah and not just the commands that empower them.  They were disregarding justice and the love of Elohim.

 

(Luke 11:43 NASB)  “Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the front seats in the synagogues, and the respectful greetings in the market places.
(Luke 11:44 NASB)  “Woe to you! For you are like concealed tombs, and the people who walk over them are unaware of it.”

Luke 11:44:      The Pharisees love the attention and importance placed upon them by the people.  They loved their power and ego-centric lives.  But Yeshua says they are like concealed tombs and the people who walk over them are unaware.  To touch a body or to walk on a tomb makes a man unclean for seven days (Num 19:16).
Their teachings and examples were making the people unknowingly filthy and unclean.

 

(Luke 11:45 NASB)  And one of the lawyers said to Him in reply, “Teacher, when You say this, You insult us too.”
(Luke 11:46 NASB)  But He said, “Woe to you lawyers as well! For you weigh men down with burdens hard to bear, while you yourselves will not even touch the burdens with one of your fingers.

Luke 11:46:      They were burdening the people with traditional laws that the lawyers themselves ignored (Isa. 10:1-2).  They were putting an oppressive yoke upon the people.  But Yeshua said His burden of Torah is easy and light (Matt 11:28-20).

 

(Luke 11:47 NASB)  “Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and it was your fathers who killed them.
(Luke 11:48 NASB)  “Consequently, you are witnesses and approve the deeds of your fathers; because it was they who killed them, and you build their tombs.

Luke 11:48:      They honor the prophets of old with monuments and tombs, but it was their fathers who did not listen to them and who killed them (2 Chron. 36:15-16).

 

(Luke 11:49 NASB)  “For this reason also the wisdom of God said, ‘I will send to them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and some they will persecute,
(Luke 11:50 NASB)  in order that the blood of all the prophets, shed since the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation,

Luke 11:50:      The blood of all the prophets whom their fathers persecuted and killed is going to go against those Pharisees because they falsely use the prophets messages for their own power and gain.

(Luke 11:51 NASB)  from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the house of God; yes, I tell you, it shall be charged against this generation.’

Luke 11:51:      Zechariah’s murder is recorded in 2 Chronicles, which is the last book in the Hebrew Bible (2 Chron: 24:20-22).  Therefore the death of the prophets from the period between Abel and Zechariah will be charged against them because they took away the key of knowledge from the people.

 

(Luke 11:52 NASB)  “Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge; you did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered.”

Luke 11:52:      They were to be teaching the Word of the Father, His Torah, but they were distorting it to the people.  His Torah and the fear of Yahweh is the key to knowledge (Mal. 2:7-8, Prov. 1:7, 15:33, 3:5-7, Psalm 103:17).

 

(Luke 11:53 NASB)  And when He left there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to be very hostile and to question Him closely on many subjects,
(Luke 11:54 NASB)  plotting against Him, to catch Him in something He might say.

Luke 11:54:      The Pharisees and lawyers were evil in thought, words, and works.  They were plotting against Yeshua and wanted to kill Him.  This was prophesied (Psalm 56:5-6).