Luke 18:1-14

The Parable of the Persistent Widow

1And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought aalways to pray and not blose heart. 2He said, In a certain city there was a judge who cneither feared God nor respected man. 3And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ 4For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, dThough I neither fear God nor respect man, 5yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’” 6And the Lord said, Hear what the unrighteous judge says. 7And ewill not God give justice to fhis elect, gwho cry to him day and night? h, iWill he delay long over them? 8I tell you, he will give justice to them jspeedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, kwill he find faith on earth?”

The Pharisee and the Tax Collector

9He also told this parable to some lwho trusted min themselves that they were righteous, nand treated others with contempt: 10Two men owent up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11The Pharisee, pstanding by himself, prayed
Or  standing, prayed to himself
rthus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
12 sI fast twice a week; tI give tithes of all that I get.’ 13But the tax collector, ustanding far off, vwould not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but wbeat his breast, saying, ‘God, xbe merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For yeveryone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

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