1Now one Sabbath when Jesus went to dine at the house of a leader of the Pharisees, they were watching him closely.

2There right in front of him was a man suffering from dropsy.

3So Jesus asked the experts in religious law and the Pharisees, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?”

4But they remained silent. So Jesus took hold of the man, healed him, and sent him away.

5Then he said to them, “Which of you, if you have a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on a Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out?”

6But they could not reply to this.

On Seeking Seats of Honor

7Then when Jesus noticed how the guests chose the places of honor, he told them a parable. He said to them,

8“When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, because a person more distinguished than you may have been invited by your host.

9So the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this man your place.’ Then, ashamed, you will begin to move to the least important place.

10But when you are invited, go and take the least important place, so that when your host approaches he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up here to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who share the meal with you.

11For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

12He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you host a dinner or a banquet, don’t invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors so you can be invited by them in return and get repaid.

13But when you host an elaborate meal, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.

14Then you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

The Parable of the Great Banquet

15When one of those at the meal with Jesus heard this, he said to him, “Blessed is everyone who will feast in the kingdom of God!”

16But Jesus said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet and invited many guests.

17At the time for the banquet he sent his slave to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, because everything is now ready.’

18But one after another they all began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please excuse me.’

19Another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going out to examine them. Please excuse me.’

20Another said, ‘I just got married, and I cannot come.’

21So the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the master of the household was furious and said to his slave, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and alleys of the city, and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’

22Then the slave said, ‘Sir, what you instructed has been done, and there is still room.’

23So the master said to his slave, ‘Go out to the highways and country roads and urge people to come in, so that my house will be filled.

24For I tell you, not one of those individuals who were invited will taste my banquet!’”

Counting the Cost

25Now large crowds were accompanying Jesus, and turning to them he said,

26“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

27Whoever does not carry his own cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

28For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn’t sit down first and compute the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it?

29Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish the tower, all who see it will begin to make fun of him.

30They will say, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish!’

31Or what king, going out to confront another king in battle, will not sit down first and determine whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand?

32If he cannot succeed, he will send a representative while the other is still a long way off and ask for terms of peace.

33In the same way therefore not one of you can be my disciple if he does not renounce all his own possessions.

34“Salt is good, but if salt loses its flavor, how can its flavor be restored?

35It is of no value for the soil or for the manure pile; it is to be thrown out. The one who has ears to hear had better listen!”