Whether he comes in the second watch, or even in the third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.
Parallel translations
- WEB They will be blessed if he comes in the second or third watch, and finds them so.
- KJV And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.
- BSB Even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night and finds them alert, those servants will be blessed.
- NKJV And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.
- NLT He may come in the middle of the night or just before dawn. But whenever he comes, he will reward the servants who are ready.
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
Servants are blessed if found ready, whether the master comes in the second or third watch. Faithfulness must endure even through a long, late delay.
Overview
The master may come at an unexpected, late hour of the night, testing the servants' perseverance in watchfulness. Blessing belongs to those who remain ready regardless of how long they must wait. This encourages believers to sustained faithfulness, since the timing of Christ's return is unknown and may seem delayed.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- 1 Th 5:4–5But you, brothers, aren’t in darkness, that the day should overtake you like a thief.
- Matt 25:6But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Behold! The bridegroom is coming! Come out to meet him!’
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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 12:38 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.