Which of you, wishing to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost to see if he has the resources to complete it?
Parallel translations
- WEB For which of you, desiring to build a tower, doesn’t first sit down and count the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it?
- KJV For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?
- NKJV For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it —
- NASB For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it?
- NLT “But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it?
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 who builds a tower without first counting the cost. Following Him calls for sober, deliberate commitment.
Overview
The builder who sits down to calculate before building illustrates wise forethought. Jesus urges would-be disciples to consider seriously what allegiance to Him entails. Discipleship is not entered thoughtlessly but with clear-eyed reckoning of its demands.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Prov 24:27Complete your outdoor work and prepare your field; after that, you may build your house.
- Matt 10:22You will be hated by everyone because of My name, but the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.
- Josh 24:19–24But Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the LORD, for He is a holy God; He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your rebellion or your sins.
- Luke 14:33In the same way, any one of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be My disciple.
- Matt 20:22–23“You do not know what you are asking,” Jesus replied. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?” “We can,” the brothers answered.
- Matt 8:20Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.”
- Acts 21:13Then Paul answered, “Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”
- 1 Th 3:4–5Indeed, when we were with you, we kept warning you that we would suffer persecution; and as you know, it has come to pass.
- Gen 11:4–9“Come,” they said, “let us build for ourselves a city with a tower that reaches to the heavens, that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of all the earth.”
- 2 Pet 1:13–14I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of my body,
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 14:28 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.