Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
Parallel translations
- WEB Now which of these three do you think seemed to be a neighbor to him who fell among the robbers?”
- KJV Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?
- NKJV So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?”
- NASB Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?”
- NLT “Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus asks which of the three proved to be a neighbor. He reframes the lawyer's question from 'who qualifies' to 'who acts as a neighbor.'
Overview
Instead of defining the neighbor to be loved, Jesus asks who behaved as a neighbor. The question shifts the focus from limiting obligation to embodying mercy. It forces the lawyer to commend the despised Samaritan over his own religious peers.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Luke 7:42When they were unable to repay him, he forgave both of them. Which one, then, will love him more?”
- Matt 21:28–31But what do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first one and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’
- Matt 17:25“Yes,” he answered. When Peter entered the house, Jesus preempted him. “What do you think, Simon?” He asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs and taxes: from their own sons, or from others?”
- Matt 22:42“What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is He?” “David’s,” they answered.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 10:36 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.