The Persistent Widow
This is an essay that I had to write for the Georgia School of Preaching. Enjoy.
“And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; (2) Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: (3) And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary. (4) And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; (5) Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. (6) And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith. (7) And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? (8) I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:1-8).
We will begin our examination of this parable by noticing the context that may not be at once perceived due to the chapter divisions placed in the text. Jesus’ conversation with the apostles actually begins in Luke 17:22 and extends through verse 8 of chapter 18. However, the encounter that sparked the discussion is found in the remarks between our Lord and the Pharisees who demanded “when the kingdom of God should come” (Luke17:20).[i] Jesus responded that the kingdom of God would not come with observation, for God’s kingdom is of the spiritual realm and dwells within [among] the individuals (Luke 17:20-21; John 18:36). Jesus then turns to His disciples and delivers unto them warnings concerning the Destruction of Jerusalem.[ii] One thing to note is that Jesus warns that they would “desire to see one of the days of the Son of man[iii],” but would not see it at the desired time (Romans 13:11). After Jesus finishes His discourse, the disciples ask for the location of where these things would occur. Jesus answers in a figure as He often does, and indicates that the destruction would come upon a place where death (i.e. sin) is found. Undoubtedly, Luke has recorded a version of the warnings given in Matthew 24 (see verse 28 specifically). Therefore, after warning His disciples that they would be longing to see one of the “days of the Son of man,” He teaches them the parable of the persistent widow to encourage them to not faint, but to continue to look with necks outstretched for the relief from the persecutors[iv].
Being careful not to “murder to dissect,”[1] let us notice, and exegete, the elements found in Luke 18:1-5. The characters within this parable are a judge, God, a widow, and an adversary. The widow, tormented by her adversaries, approaches the judge to the point of “troubling him” in order to receive ἄνεσις.[2] Eventually, he concedes and “recompenses tribulation” to those that were troubling the woman (II Thessalonians 1:6). Though persecution had to be endured, vindication was promised, and rewarded, to the woman. The question that comes to the forefront of our minds is, “If an unjust judge is willing to assist a widow in recompensing tribulation, how much more shall God avenge the blood of the martyred saints?” Hear the call of the saints that were under the alter, “And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth” (Revelation 6:10). The Lord answered back, “Rest yet for a little season” (Revelation 6:11). Isn’t it a marvelous thing to witness the love and compassion that God has for His servants?
The interpretation and application of this parable is given by Christ in verses 6-8 of Luke 18. The bearing may be long, but the vindication and reward is sure! Hear the promise of God: “I tell you that he will avenge them speedily!” (Luke 18:8). Imagine for a moment that your house is on fire. You call 911 and the operator says that they will assist you speedily. You wait and wait, but the relief never comes. 10 years later the house is rebuilt and you’re enjoying a nice day when you hear sirens in the distance. Before you can bat an eye, firetrucks and busy firemen are filling your yard. You inquire, “What are you guys doing here? My house burned down years ago! You said you would be here speedily” They reply, “We did get here speedily! We took the fastest trucks we had.” What kind of relief is that?
Jesus promised, “He will avenge them speedily!” When, however, did this vindication come? When did the disciples receive ἄνεσις? From the context alone we can see that it was “when the Son of man” would come (Luke 18:8). This, however, doesn’t answer our question alone. Was this coming speedily? Did they experience that relief? Again, we mustn’t forget the context of which this is in. “Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed” [v] (Luke 17:30). This is limited to, as seen in Luke 21, to the generation in which Jesus was living in. “Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled” (Luke 21:32). Truly the disciples would and did receive vindication and rest from their labors within that generation as we will see in the following paragraph (Revelation 7:13-17).
“Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: (35) That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. (36) Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation” (Matthew 23:34-36).
The avenging of the blood of the martyrs was a promise that Jesus gave to His fellow laborers. Undoubtedly, it is this promise that kept the apostle Paul persevering through extreme persecution and heartbreak (II Corinthians 11:23-28; II Timothy 4:10). Paul’s confidence and expectance of his promised vindication can be heard loud and clear in his heart-filled letters to the Thessalonians.
“Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved, to fill up their sins alway[vi]: for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost” (I Thessalonians 2:16).
“Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you; (7) And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, (8) In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: (9) Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power; (10) When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day” (II Thessalonians 1:6-10).[vii]
Their persistence paid off!
Footnotes/ Endnotes
[1] The Tables Turned by William Wordsworth
[2] ἄνεσις is used in II Thessalonians 1:6-7 to encourage the persecuted Christians at Thessalonica that vindication would come. It literally means “loosening” (i.e. loosening from persecution).
[i] It should be of no surprise to anyone that the Pharisees were making such demands. This is not only due to their attitude of “holier than thou,” but also to the expectation of all the people as well as the boldness of Jesus and John the Baptizer when they spoke of the imminent arrival of the kingdom (Mathew 3:2; Mark 1:15)
[ii] What does the Destruction of Jerusalem have to do with the kingdom of God? When the disciples would see the signs hinting that the Destruction of Jerusalem was near, they would know that “the kingdom of God is nigh at hand” (Luke 21:31). This does not mean that the kingdom of God had not arrived at the day of Pentecost, for we know that it did (Colossians 1:13). Instead it has reference to the full supplanting of the Old Covenant aion by that “which cannot be moved” (Hebrews 12:27-29; Matthew 24:3).
[iii] Notice the plurality of the “days of the Son of man.” This is in comparison to the “days of Noah” and the “days of Lot.”
[iv] Persecution was invariably linked to the events leading to the fall of Jerusalem. See Luke 21:12, 16
[v] The Greek word behind our English world “revealed” is ἀποκαλύπτω. This word is also the word that gives us the title of the last book of the Bible: “Revelation.” ἀποκαλύπτω [G601] compared to ἀποκάλυψις [G602]
[vi] The motif of “filling up the measure of sin” is one that can be seen time and time again: Matthew 23:32; Revelation 2:10; Revelation 6:9-11; Revelation 18:5-6
[vii] Keep in mind that this passage is written to real people who were facing real persecution. In fact, it was the greatest time of persecution ever (Matthew 24:21; Daniel 12:1). The phrase “glory of his power” is a word for word quotation from Isaiah 2:19. Jesus quoted from Isaiah 2:19 in Luke 23:30 and John used it in Revelation 6:16. It is a phrase inextricably tied to the theme of the vindication of the martyrs that would take place at the time that the true sons of God were revealed (Romans 8:18-19; Revelation 10:7).