from G3700 (ὀπτάνομαι)) · noun — accusative singular masculine
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Psalms 8:1-4 O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.
Proverbs 29:7 The righteous considereth the cause of the poor: but the wicked regardeth not to know it.
Luke 18:4 And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
Jeremiah 22:16-17 He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well with him: was not this to know me? saith the LORD.
Ezekiel 22:6-8 Behold, the princes of Israel, every one were in thee to their power to shed blood.
2 Chronicles 19:3-9 Nevertheless there are good things found in thee, in that thou hast taken away the groves out of the land, and hast prepared thine heart to…
Job 29:7-17 When I went out to the gate through the city, when I prepared my seat in the street!
Micah 3:1-3 And I said, Hear, I pray you, O heads of Jacob, and ye princes of the house of Israel; Is it not for you to know judgment?
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Luke 18:1-8
This parable has its key hanging at the door; the drift and design of it are prefixed. Christ spoke it with this intent, to teach us that men ought always to pray and not to faint, Luk 18:1. It supposes that all God's people are praying people; all God's children keep up both a constant and an occasional correspondence with him, send to him statedly, and upon every emergency. It is our privilege and honour that we may pray. It is our duty; we ought to pray, we sin if we neglect it. It is to be our constant work; we ought always to pray, it is that which the duty of every day requires. We must pray, and never grow weary of praying, nor think of leaving it off till it comes to be swallowed up…
feared not . . . neither regarded--defying the vengeance of God and despising the opinion of men.
widow--weak, desolate, defenseless (Ti1 5:5, which is taken from this).
Adam Clarke on Luke 18:2
A judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man - It is no wonder that our Lord calls this person an unrighteous judge, Luk 18:6. No person is worthy to be put in the sacred office of a judge who does not deeply fear God, and tenderly respect his fellow creatures. Because this person feared not God, he paid no attention to the calls of justice; and because he respected not man, he was unmoved at the complaint of the widow. Even among the heathens this was the character of a man totally abandoned to all evil. So Dion Cassius says of Vitellius, that he neither regarded gods nor men - ουτε των ανθρωπων, ουτε των θεων εφροντιζεν.
John Gill on Luke 18:2
Saying, there was in a city a judge,.... In every city in the land of Israel, there was a sanhedrim, or court of judicature; in Jerusalem was the great sanhedrim, consisting of seventy one; and in every city where there were an hundred and twenty men, or more, there was a lesser sanhedrim, consisting of twenty three; and in a city in which there were not an hundred and twenty men, were three judges; for there was no sanhedrim, or court of judicature, that consisted of less than three (l): but
"although there is no judicature less than three, "it is lawful for one to judge", according to the law, as it is said, Leviticus 19:15 "In righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour"; but accordin…
The Church Fathers
The widow kept asking to be heard by the judge, because she was not admitted; but when her suit was heard, thenceforth she was silent. So that there is a limit both to seeking, and to knocking, and to asking.
The present parable assures us God will bend his ear to those who offer him their prayers, not carelessly nor negligently but with earnestness and constancy. The constant coming of the oppressed widow conquered the unjust judge that did not fear God or have any shame. Even against his will, he granted her request. How will not he who loves mercy and hates iniquity, and who always gives his helping hand to those that love him, accept those who draw near to him day and night and avenge them as his elect?
The Lord also spoke as follows to those who did not believe in Him: "I have come in my Father's name, and ye have not received Me: when another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive," calling Antichrist "the other," because he is alienated from the Lord. This is also the unjust judge, whom the Lord mentioned as one "who feared not God, neither regarded man," to whom the widow fled in her forgetfulness of God,-that is, the earthly Jerusalem,-to be avenged of her adversary. Which also he shall do in the time of his kingdom: he shall remove his kingdom into that [city], and shall sit in the temple of God, leading astray those who worship him, as if he were Christ.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Parables · Importunate widow — Importunate widow
Prayer · Should be offered up: With importunity — Should be offered up: With importunity
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
Luke 18:1-8
Luke 18:1-8
1. And he spake also a parable to them, that they ought always to pray, and not to grow weary: 2. Saying, There was a judge in a city, who neither feared God, nor regarded man. 3. And there was a widow in that city, who came to him, saying, Do me justice on my adversary. 4. And he refused for some time, [322] but afterwards said within himself, Though I neither fear God, nor regard man, 5. Yet because this widow is troublesome to me, [323] I will do her justice, lest by coming perpetually she weary me out. [324] 6. And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith. 7. And will not God avenge his elect, who cry to him night and day, even though he forbear with resp…
a judge . . . who neither feared God nor cared about people: The two most important attributes for a good judge are regard for justice (fear of God), and compassion for people (see 2 Chr 19:6-7). This judge had neither.
