Bible Strands
Luke 12:59
I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the very last penny.”
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Jesus addresses the crowd regarding legal proceedings, immediately following an illustration of reconciling with an adversary before reaching a magistrate and facing imprisonment.
The words — The Greek clause οὐ μὴ ἐξέλθῃς (ou mē exelthēs) literally means "you will by no means come out," establishing an unbreakable condition for release.
The thread — The text's theme of inescapable judicial repayment appears in Matthew 18:34, while its emphasis on absolute divine judgment aligns with Matthew 25:41.
Why it lands — The passage requires immediate action to settle disputes with opponents, presenting imprisonment as a certain outcome for those who delay.
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
I tell thee, thou shalt not depart thence, till thou hast paid the very last mite.
Cross-references
- Mark 12:42 Then one poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amounted to a small fraction of a denarius.
- Matthew 18:34 In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should repay all that he owed.
- Matthew 25:41 Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
- Matthew 25:46 And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
- 2 Thessalonians 1:3 We are obligated to thank God for you all the time, brothers, as is fitting, because your faith is growing more and more, and your love for one another is increasing.
- Luke 16:26 And besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that even those who wish cannot cross from here to you, nor can anyone cross from there to us.’