Lukas 10:36-37

10:36 Which of these three do you think became a neighbor ¹  to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” 10:37 The expert in religious law ²  said, “The one who showed mercy ³  to him.” So ⁴  Jesus said to him, “Go and do ⁵  the same.”

[10:36]  ¹ sn Jesus reversed the question the expert in religious law asked in v. 29 to one of becoming a neighbor by loving. “Do not think about who they are, but who you are,” was his reply.

[10:37]  ² tn Grk “And he”; the referent (the expert in religious law) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[10:37]  ³ sn The neighbor did not do what was required (that is why his response is called mercy) but had compassion and out of kindness went the extra step that shows love. See Mic 6:8. Note how the expert in religious law could not bring himself to admit that the example was a Samaritan, someone who would have been seen as a racial half-breed and one not worthy of respect. So Jesus makes a second point that neighbors may appear in surprising places.

[10:37]  ⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the concluding summary.

[10:37]  ⁵ tn This recalls the verb of the earlier reply in v. 28.