# Luke 10.25-28

<!-- type: passage | created: 2026-05-06 | updated: 2026-05-06 -->

**Book:** [Luke](/codex/luke-the-evangelist/) · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

## Immediate context (±2 verses)

**ASV** ([ASV](/codex/asv/))
> 23. And turning to the disciples, he said privately, <span class="rl-speech">Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see:</span> 24. <span class="rl-speech">for I say unto you, that many prophets and kings desired to see the things which ye see, and saw them not; and to hear the things which ye hear, and heard them not.</span>
>
> **25. And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and made trial of him, saying, Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 26. And he said unto him, <span class="rl-speech">What is written in the law? how readest thou?</span> 27. And he answering said, <span class="rl-speech">Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.</span> 28. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.**
>
> 29. But he, desiring to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbor? 30. Jesus made answer and said, <span class="rl-speech">A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho; and he fell among robbers, who both stripped him and beat him, and departed, leaving him half dead.</span> (Luke 10:23-30, ASV)

**WEB** ([WEB](/codex/web/))
> 23. Turning to the disciples, he said privately, <span class="rl-speech">“Blessed are the eyes which see the things that you see,</span> 24. <span class="rl-speech">for I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see the things which you see, and didn’t see them, and to hear the things which you hear, and didn’t hear them.”</span>
>
> **25. Behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26. He said to him, <span class="rl-speech">“What is written in the law? How do you read it?”</span> 27. He answered, <span class="rl-speech">“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”</span> 28. He said to him, <span class="rl-speech">“You have answered correctly. Do this, and you will live.”</span>**
>
> 29. But he, desiring to justify himself, asked Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?” 30. Jesus answered, <span class="rl-speech">“A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who both stripped him and beat him, and departed, leaving him half dead.</span> (Luke 10:23-30, WEB)

**KJV** ([KJV](/codex/kjv/))
> 23. And he turned him unto his disciples, and said privately, <span class="rl-speech">Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see:</span> 24. <span class="rl-speech">For I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.</span>
>
> **25. And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 26. He said unto him, <span class="rl-speech">What is written in the law? how readest thou?</span> 27. And he answering said, <span class="rl-speech">Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.</span> 28. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.**
>
> 29. But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour? 30. And Jesus answering said, <span class="rl-speech">A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.</span> (Luke 10:23-30, KJV)

**YLT** ([YLT](/codex/ylt/))
> 23. And having turned unto the disciples, he said, <span class="rl-speech">by themselves, 'Happy the eyes that are perceiving what ye perceive;</span> 24. <span class="rl-speech">for I say to you, that many prophets and kings did wish to see what ye perceive, and did not see, and to hear what ye hear, and did not hear.'</span>
>
> **25. And lo, a certain lawyer stood up, trying him, and saying, 'Teacher, what having done, life age-during shall I inherit?' 26. And he said unto him, <span class="rl-speech">'In the law what hath been written? how dost thou read?'</span> 27. And he answering said, <span class="rl-speech">'Thou shalt love the Lord thy God out of all thy heart, and out of all thy soul, and out of all thy strength, and out of all thy understanding, and thy neighbour as thyself.'</span> 28. And he said to him, <span class="rl-speech">'Rightly thou didst answer; this do, and thou shalt live.'</span>**
>
> 29. And he, willing to declare himself righteous, said unto Jesus, 'And who is my neighbour?' 30. and Jesus having taken up [the word], said, 'A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and having stripped him and inflicted blows, they went away, leaving [him] half dead. (Luke 10:23-30, YLT)

## Setting

- **Speaker:** Luke the physician (traditionally) / narrator + Jesus's direct teaching
- **Audience:** Theophilus + Gentile Christian audience (companion to Acts)
- **Location:** first-century Palestine (events); composition possibly Caesarea or Rome
- **Time period:** events c. 4 BC, AD 30/33; composed c. AD 60-80

## Theological reading

## Key words

- [G0166 - aionios](/codex/g0166-aionios/), *aionios* (Strong's G166). Also appears in: [Matthew 19](/codex/matthew-19/), [Matthew 25.46](/codex/matthew-25-46/), [Mark 3.20-30](/codex/mark-3-20-30/).
- [G2198 - zao](/codex/g2198-zao/), *zao* (Strong's G2198). Also appears in: [Matthew 16.16](/codex/matthew-16-16/), [Matthew 26.57-68](/codex/matthew-26-57-68/), [Mark 12](/codex/mark-12/).
- [G2222 - zoe](/codex/g2222-zoe/), *zoe* (Strong's G2222). Also appears in: [Matthew 7.13-14](/codex/matthew-7-13-14/), [Matthew 19](/codex/matthew-19/), [Matthew 25.46](/codex/matthew-25-46/).
- [G2316 - theos](/codex/g2316-theos/), *theos* (Strong's G2316). Also appears in: [Matthew 1.23](/codex/matthew-1-23/), [Matthew 3.16](/codex/matthew-3-16/), [Matthew 5.9](/codex/matthew-5-9/).
- [G2588 - kardia](/codex/g2588-kardia/), *kardia* (Strong's G2588). Also appears in: [Matthew 5.28](/codex/matthew-5-28/), [Matthew 6.21](/codex/matthew-6-21/), [Matthew 9.4](/codex/matthew-9-4/).
- [G2962 - kyrios](/codex/g2962-kyrios/), *kyrios* (Strong's G2962). Also appears in: [Matthew 1.20](/codex/matthew-1-20/), [Matthew 1](/codex/matthew-1/), [Matthew 6.24](/codex/matthew-6-24/).
- [G3551 - nomos](/codex/g3551-nomos/), *nomos* (Strong's G3551). Also appears in: [Matthew 5.17](/codex/matthew-5-17/), [Matthew 5.17-18](/codex/matthew-5-17-18/), [Matthew 22.37-40](/codex/matthew-22-37-40/).
- [G4314 - pros](/codex/g4314-pros/), *pros* (Strong's G4314). Also appears in: [Matthew 3.13](/codex/matthew-3-13/), [Matthew 5.28](/codex/matthew-5-28/), [Matthew 11.28](/codex/matthew-11-28/).
- [G5590 - psyche](/codex/g5590-psyche/), *psyche* (Strong's G5590). Also appears in: [Matthew 6.25-26](/codex/matthew-6-25-26/), [Matthew 10.28](/codex/matthew-10-28/), [Matthew 10.37-39](/codex/matthew-10-37-39/).

## Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the **most literal English translations available** (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the **public domain in the United States**, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

- **[ASV](/codex/asv/)** (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
- **[WEB](/codex/web/)** (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
- **[KJV](/codex/kjv/)** (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
- **[YLT](/codex/ylt/)** (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See [Bibles](/codex/bibles/) for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.

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## Quoted in

**Arguments and defeaters:**

- [Argument from the Hospitality-Stranger Convergence](/codex/argument-from-the-hospitality-stranger-convergence/), via [Luke 10.25-37](/codex/luke-10-25-37/)
- [Atheism Cannot Justify Compassion](/codex/atheism-cannot-justify-compassion/), via [Luke 10.25-37](/codex/luke-10-25-37/)
- [Ritual Purity Laws Objection Defeater](/codex/ritual-purity-laws-objection-defeater/), via [Luke 10.27](/codex/luke-10-27/)
- [Sabbath Breaking Stoning Objection Defeater](/codex/sabbath-breaking-stoning-objection-defeater/)

**Concepts:**

- [Jesus Said](/codex/jesus-said/), via [Luke 10](/codex/luke-10/)
- [Mission Geography (Acts 1-8)](/codex/mission-geography-acts-1-8/), via [Luke 10.25-37](/codex/luke-10-25-37/)

**Lexicon:**

- [G0025 - agapao](/codex/g0025-agapao/), via [Luke 10.27](/codex/luke-10-27/)
- [H3820 - lev](/codex/h3820-lev/), via [Luke 10.27](/codex/luke-10-27/)
- [H3824 - lebab](/codex/h3824-lebab/), via [Luke 10.27](/codex/luke-10-27/)

**Passages:**

- [Matthew 19](/codex/matthew-19/)
- [Matthew 7.13-14](/codex/matthew-7-13-14/)

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