I tell you, He will promptly carry out justice on their behalf. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?”
Parallel translations
- WEB I tell you that he will avenge them quickly. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
- KJV I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
- NKJV I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?”
- NASB I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”
- NLT I tell you, he will grant justice to them quickly! But when the Son of Man returns, how many will he find on the earth who have faith?”
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
God will bring justice quickly, yet Jesus asks whether the Son of Man will find faith on earth at his coming. The real question is whether we will persevere.
Overview
God's vindication is sure and, in his timing, swift, but Jesus turns the focus to his people's endurance. The closing question warns that the danger is not God's faithfulness but the fading of believers' faith during the long wait. Persevering, prayerful faith is what Christ looks to find when he returns.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Heb 10:23–26Let us hold resolutely to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.
- 2 Pet 3:8–9Beloved, do not let this one thing escape your notice: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.
- Ps 46:5God is within her; she will not be moved. God will help her when morning dawns.
- Matt 24:9–13Then they will deliver you over to be persecuted and killed, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.
- Luke 17:26–30Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man:
- Ps 143:7–9Answer me quickly, O LORD; my spirit fails. Do not hide Your face from me, or I will be like those who descend to the Pit.
- 2 Pet 2:3In their greed, these false teachers will exploit you with deceptive words. The longstanding verdict against them remains in force, and their destruction does not sleep.
- 1 Th 5:1–3Now about the times and seasons, brothers, we do not need to write to you.
- Matt 24:24For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders that would deceive even the elect, if that were possible.
- Jas 5:1–8Come now, you who are rich, weep and wail over the misery to come upon you.
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 18:8 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.