“Meanwhile, the older son was in the fields working. When he returned home, he heard music and dancing in the house,
Parallel translations
- WEB “Now his elder son was in the field. As he came near to the house, he heard music and dancing.
- KJV Now his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard musick and dancing.
- BSB Meanwhile the older son was in the field, and as he approached the house, he heard music and dancing.
- NKJV “Now his older son was in the field. And as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing.
- NASB “Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.
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 elder son returns from the field to hear music and dancing, unaware of the cause. The parable's second movement begins.
Overview
The focus shifts to the dutiful elder brother, who represents the grumbling Pharisees. His ignorance of the celebration and his location 'in the field' working hint at a relationship based on labor rather than love. His reaction will expose a different kind of lostness.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Ps 150:4Praise him with tambourine and dancing! Praise him with stringed instruments and flute!
- Jer 31:4I will build you again, and you will be built, O virgin of Israel. You will again be adorned with your tambourines, and will go out in the dances of those who make merry.
- Ps 149:3Let them praise his name in the dance! Let them sing praises to him with tambourine and harp!
- 2 Sam 6:14David danced before Yahweh with all his might; and David was clothed in a linen ephod.
- Luke 7:32They are like children who sit in the marketplace, and call to one another, saying, ‘We piped to you, and you didn’t dance. We mourned, and you didn’t weep.’
- Luke 15:11–12He said, “A certain man had two sons.
- Ps 126:1A Song of Ascents. When Yahweh brought back those who returned to Zion, we were like those who dream.
- Eccl 3:4a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
- Exod 15:20Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a tambourine in her hand; and all the women went out after her with tambourines and with dances.
- Ps 30:11You have turned my mourning into dancing for me. You have removed my sackcloth, and clothed me with gladness,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 15:25 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.