He
went on his way through cities and villages, teaching, and traveling on to Jerusalem. One said to him, “Lord, are they few who are saved?”
Luke 13:22-23
Luke 13 [20.] Again he said, “To what shall I compare God’s Kingdom? It is like yeast, which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, until it was all leavened.”
Luke 13 [22.] He went on his way through cities and villages, teaching, and traveling on to Jerusalem. One said to him, “Lord, are they few who are saved?”
He said to them, “Strive to enter in by the narrow door, for many, I tell you, will seek to enter in, and will not be able. When once the master of the house has risen up, and has shut the door, and you begin to stand outside, and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ then he will answer and tell you, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ He will say, ‘I tell you, I don’t know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity.’ There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the prophets, in God’s Kingdom, and yourselves being thrown outside. They will come from the east, west, north, and south, and will sit down in God’s Kingdom. Behold, there are some who are last who will be first, and there are some who are first who will be last.”
Luke 13 [31.] On that same day, some Pharisees came, saying to him, “Get out of here, and go away, for Herod wants to kill you.”
Meaning:
After the parables of the mustard seed and the yeast, which describe God’s Kingdom growing from small beginnings (Luke 13:18-21), Luke reminds his readers where Jesus is going. Then he records a question from someone in the crowd. The question is about salvation, and Jesus’ answer turns it from a matter of curiosity into a matter of personal urgency.
- “He went on his way through cities and villages, teaching”
Jesus did not only preach in great cities or in the temple. He went to small villages and ordinary people, teaching as he went. His mission was “to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10), and he sought people where they lived.
- “and traveling on to Jerusalem”
From the moment “he intently set his face to go to Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51), Luke repeatedly reminds us of the destination of Jesus’ journey. Later he notes again, “As he was on his way to Jerusalem” (Luke 17:11). Jerusalem was the place where he would suffer, die and rise again. Every lesson along the road is given in the shadow of the cross. Soon after this, Jesus says that “it can’t be that a prophet perish outside of Jerusalem” (Luke 13:33).
- “Lord, are they few who are saved?”
The question was much discussed among Jewish teachers. Some believed that all Israel would share in the age to come; others thought that only a faithful few would be saved. Perhaps the questioner had noticed that, despite the crowds, few people were truly following Jesus. Perhaps he was simply curious about the fate of others.
Jesus does not give a number. He answers, “Strive to enter in by the narrow door, for many, I tell you, will seek to enter in, and will not be able” (Luke 13:24). The real question is not how many others will be saved, but whether the questioner himself will enter. Jesus moves from theory to the heart.
Matthew records similar teaching: “Enter in by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction” (Matthew 7:13). The door is narrow, not because God is unwilling, but because there is only one way of entry: through Jesus himself, received with repentance and faith. God is “not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).
The Significance of Luke 13:22-23
- Personal responsibility
It is easy to discuss salvation in general and avoid one’s own response. Jesus calls each person to make sure of their own place in God’s Kingdom.
- Following Jesus on his road
Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem shows his determination to complete his saving mission. Those who follow him are invited to walk the same road of faithful obedience.
Cross-References:
Luke 13:24: "Strive to enter in by the narrow door," Jesus’ answer to the question.
Matthew 7:14: "How narrow is the gate, and restricted is the way that leads to life! Few are those who find it." The narrow way.
Luke 9:51: "he intently set his face to go to Jerusalem," The journey begins.
2 Peter 3:9: "not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." God’s desire for all.
Conclusion: As Jesus travelled through towns and villages toward Jerusalem, someone asked whether only a few would be saved. Jesus did not satisfy curiosity with numbers. Instead he urged his hearers to strive to enter by the narrow door themselves. The question of salvation is always personal: each one must respond to Jesus while the door is open.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible