And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry:
Parallel translations
- WEB Bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat, and celebrate;
- BSB Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let us feast and celebrate.
- NKJV And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry;
- NASB and bring the fattened calf, slaughter it, and let’s eat and celebrate;
- NLT And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast,
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
The father commands the fattened calf be killed for a feast of celebration over his son's return.
Overview
The fattened calf, reserved for great occasions, signals extravagant joy. Restoration is met not with probation but with rejoicing. This celebration echoes the joy of heaven over a repentant sinner, the festal welcome the gospel extends to all who come home to God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Matt 22:2–14The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,
- Isa 25:6And in this mountain shall the LORD of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined.
- Ps 63:5My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:
- Gen 18:7And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetcht a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man; and he hasted to dress it.
- Isa 65:13–14Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry: behold, my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty: behold, my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed:
- Prov 9:2She hath killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine; she hath also furnished her table.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 15:23 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.