Bible Strands
Luke 10:33
But a Samaritan on a journey came upon him, and when he saw him, he had compassion.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Luke narrates the parable's narrative pivot as a traveler encounters a wounded man on the road between Jerusalem and Jericho. The account shifts focus from the priest and Levite who passed by to introduce the Samaritan's arrival.
The words — Σαμαρίτης (Samaritēs) identifies the man's ethnic and religious group, while ὁδεύων (hodeuōn) literally denotes one who is traveling or journeying. These terms establish the figure as a foreigner actively moving along the route rather than a stationary observer.
The thread — The narrative motif of a journeying foreigner intervening for a Judean appears in Luke 7:13 and echoes the intercessory pattern in 1 Kings 8:50. Jeremiah 38:7 similarly records a non-Israelite official hearing of a prophet's plight and acting upon it.
Why it lands — The text states that the Samaritan saw the man and immediately felt compassion, requiring the reader to recognize that geographical and ethnic boundaries do not dictate moral obligation. It asks the reader to account for the specific actions that follow this initial response without softening the contrast with the religious figures who ignored the victim.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
Cross-references
- 1 Kings 8:50 May You forgive Your people who have sinned against You and all the transgressions they have committed against You, and may You grant them compassion in the eyes of their captors to show them mercy.
- Luke 7:13 When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said, “Do not weep.”
- Jeremiah 38:7 Now Ebed-melech the Cushite, a court official in the royal palace, heard that Jeremiah had been put into the cistern. While the king was sitting at the Gate of Benjamin,
- Proverbs 27:10 Do not forsake your friend or your father’s friend, and do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity; better a neighbor nearby than a brother far away.
- Matthew 18:33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had on you?’
- Matthew 10:5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go onto the road of the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans.
- John 4:9 “You are a Jew,” said the woman. “How can You ask for a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)
- Exodus 2:6 When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the little boy was crying. So she had compassion on him and said, “This is one of the Hebrew children.”
- Jeremiah 39:16 “Go and tell Ebed-melech the Cushite that this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘I am about to fulfill My words against this city for harm and not for good, and on that day they will be fulfilled before your eyes.
- John 8:48 The Jews answered Him, “Are we not right to say that You are a Samaritan and You have a demon?”