Luke 13:22-30 is a collection of Jesus sayings that the evangelist has put together to explore a specific theme: whether many are to be saved. The sayings are common with those found in certain parts of Matthew. What I am going to do in this article is to see how Matthew uses those sayings and on that basis figure out what the Lucan Jesus is saying.
Outline of Luke 13:22-30
- Introduction v. 22
- The Question v. 23
- The Response
- The Narrow Door
- Many Who Are First Will Be Last...
The selection (Luke 13:22-30) is a question-answer portion in Jesus' trek towards Jerusalem and introduced by the phrase "He passed through towns and villages, teaching as he went and making his way to Jerusalem" This beginning marks a milestone in the journey to Jerusalem and in Jesus' teachings on "The Way."
The question that is proposed is about the quantity of those to be saved. Jesus' answer is about quality. In Jesus' reply, Luke puts together sayings that are paralleled in Matthew. The illustration below shows the Lucan text and its Matthaean parallels (Click on the picture for a bigger look.)
"Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough."
The parallel in Matthew 7:13-14 makes a contrast between the narrow gate and a wide one. Here Jesus is implying that the narrow gate that leads to life is so narrow that if one is on the road, one would easily miss it. It is from this saying that a poem called "The Road Less-Travelled" is based.
In the Lucan saying, there is no contrast between a narrow gate and a wide one. Instead Jesus points out the narrow gate through which all should enter. In this saying the word "agonizesqe" is used and translated in our Bibles as "strive"; another way of translating it is "struggle". The verb in fact connotes struggling in a wrestling match. So many will be entering that narrow gate that one will have to struggle to pass through it. A similar imagery is assumed in Jesus' saying in Luke 16:16: The law and the prophets were until John. From that time the gospel of the Kingdom of God is preached (=the time of Jesus), and everyone is forcing his way into it. Many will try to enter but not all "will be strong enough" to succeed; when the time for entering is up, the master of the house will stand and close the door.
"...then will you stand outside knocking and saying, `Lord, open the door for us.' He will say to you in reply, `I do not know where you are from...'
The Matthaean parallel is in Matthew 7:21-23:
"Not everyone who says to me, `Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, `Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? Did we not drive out demons in your name? Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?' Then I will declare to them solemnly, `I never knew you. Depart (literally, "go far away") from me, you evildoers.'
In Matthew's version, those who will not enter the kingdom of heaven are collaborators in the work of Jesus. In Luke's they are intimates, "those who ate and drank" with Jesus and who heard him speak. And while Matthew uses the word apwcwreite , "go away from me" Luke uses a much stronger word: aposthte a word related to "apostasy".
The saying in Luke, therefore, is directed towards those who were not strong enough to enter into the narrow door. And despite these latter's protestations of familiarity, they will be denied entrance. What follows this is an image of frustration: those who are left out after the period of struggle will be like those who peep into the windows of a banqueting hall to see how much they are missing.
"... And there will be wailing and grinding of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God and you yourselves cast out...
The parallel in Matthew is found in Matthew 8:11-12
I say to you, many will come from the east and the west, and will recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the banquet in the kingdom of heaven, but the children of the kingdom will be driven out into the outer darkness, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.
The immediate context of these verses is the episode of the healing of a centurion's slave (Matthew 8:5-13). Here, the pagan's trust in the word of Jesus becomes for this latter a sign of "great faith" and becomes an occassion for the saying in Matthew 8:11-12. Here, the "children of the kingdom" are the Christians themselves (Jewish Christians?) who will discover to their dismay that because of lack of faith they will find themselves excluded from the banquet that will be participate in by the fathers of Israel.
The expression "wailing and grinding of teeth" is found several times in Matthew: Matthew 8:12 (this passage), 13;42.50, 22:13, 24:51, 25:30:
In Matthew 13:42.50 "wailing and grinding of teeth" will characterize the place where the darnel and the useless fish will be thrown. The phrase is used for those Christians who at the end of time will be separated from those who will enter the kingdom.
In Matthew 22:13 the man who got into the wedding banquet but who did not wear the proper clothing and who would not say anything when asked about it is thrown outside where there is "wailing and grinding of teeth". In Matthew 24:51, the servant who begins to think that his master is delayed in coming and begins to take advantage of his position over the other servants is driven where there is "wailing and grinding of teeth." And finally, in Matthew 25:30, those who were indifferent (what you did not do...) to the "least" (of my brothers) are also thrown to a place where there is "wailing and grinding of teeth."
In sum, in Matthew, it is obvious that the expression "wailing and grinding of teeth" is reserved for those who could have will not enter the joy of the kingdom.
In Luke 13:28 the expression "wailing and grinding of teeth" does not characterize a place, but will be the status of those who will be left out of the banqueting hall. In this part of Jesus' response, those who were not able to enter through the narrow door will wail and grind their teeth in utter frustration because they could have been a participant of the banquet but were found wanting and therefore excluded from it.
It is to be noted also that in this part of Jesus' reply, the man's question about how many will be saved is answered: they will be so many that they will be coming from all parts - north, south, east, west. The expression is an echo of Old Testament prophecies about the return of the exiles which later on was transposed in meaning to something eschatological. In Luke, the object of the movement from all parts is the eschatological banquet, where Abraham, Isaac and Jacob will also be seated.
"For behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last."
In Matthew, the expression appears twice, each with a meaning of its own. In Matthew 19:30 the saying appears at the end of the episode where Jesus teaches about poverty occassioned by the rich young man's sad departure (cf. Matthew 19:16-30). There, it could mean that the "first" of this world (= the rich) will be regarded "last" (in comparison to those who have embraced poverty for the sake of Jesus). In 20:16, however, the expression appears at the conclusion of the parable of the workers in the vineyard (20:1-16). Here, the generosity of the lord of the vineyard becomes an occassion of scandal for those who have worked all day ("first") but who received the same wage as those who came late ("last"). It is this generosity that renders the "first" "last" and vice versa.
In Luke, however, the meaning is different. The "first" -- those for whom the eschatological banquet is reserved -- will be "last", that is, excluded from it, and will be wailing and grinding their teeth instead of drinking and eating at the banqueting hall. This state is explained in the light of other passages in Luke. The privilege of the Christian is such that he has been able to see and hear what many before them have desired to see and hear but did not (Luke 10:23-24). To turn away from that privilege (to apostasize from the Lord) is to choose to be turned away when the moment for the banquet comes (thus, "Depart from me" "apo + isqhmi"). Those who try to enter the narrow gate but are not strong enough are those who could have entered, but because failing in the criteria of discipleship, are excluded.
In the gospel of Luke, the criteria to be met is so serious that one will have to think about them first before applying to enter:
If any one comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.
Which of you wishing to construct a tower does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if there is enough for its completion? Otherwise, after laying the foundation and finding himself unable to finish the work the onlookers should laugh at him and say, `This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish.'
Or what king marching into battle would not first sit down and decide whether with ten thousand troops he can successfully oppose another king advancing upon him with twenty thousand troops? But if not, while he is still far away, he will send a delegation to ask for peace terms.
In the same way, everyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:26-33)
This is the clearest text in Luke where Jesus sets forth the criteria of discipleship (vv. 26-27) followed up with an exhortation to think about the odds of one passing it or not (vv. 28-33). All of Jesus' sayings on poverty for the sake of the Kingdom and the carrying of the cross of discipleship is set before would-be followers as the measuring stick of their entrance into the kingdom. It is for this reason that though many will try to enter into the narrow gate, there will be those who "will not be strong enough." Seen within the context of the journey to Jerusalem -- Jesus' journey to his suffering and death -- Luke 13:22-30 is a warning to those who have known Jesus and who have eaten and drank at his table but who have not been serious in the way of discipleship, to redirect their steps towards Him and be with Him even unto death.
