a widow (as lacking a husband) · noun — nominative singular feminine
in
ἐνen
G1722
"in · preposition
that
ἐκείνῃekeinē
G1565
that one (or (neuter) thing) · demonstrative pronoun — dative singular feminine
city
πόλειpolei
G4172
a town (properly · noun — dative singular feminine
and
καὶkai
G2532
and · conjunction
she came
ἤρχετοērcheto
G2064
to come or go (in a great variety of applications · verb — imperfect middle or passive deponent indicative, 3rd person singular
unto
πρὸςpros
G4314
a preposition of direction · preposition
him
αὐτὸνauton
G846
the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — accusative singular masculine
saying
λέγουσα·legousa
G3004
properly · verb — present active participle, nominative singular feminine
Avenge
ἐκδίκησόνekdikēson
G1556
to vindicate · verb — aorist active imperative, 2nd person singular
me
μεme
G3165
me · personal pronoun — 1st person accusative singular
of
ἀπὸapo
G575
"off · preposition
mine
μοῦmoû
G3450
of me
adversary
ἀντιδίκουantidikou
G476
an opponent (in a lawsuit) · noun — genitive 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
Isaiah 1:17 Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.
Job 22:9 Thou hast sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless have been broken.
Jeremiah 5:28 They are waxen fat, they shine: yea, they overpass the deeds of the wicked: they judge not the cause, the cause of the fatherless, yet they…
Deuteronomy 27:19 Cursed be he that perverteth the judgment of the stranger, fatherless, and widow. And all the people shall say, Amen.
Job 29:13 The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me: and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy.
Luke 18:7-8 And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
Romans 13:3-4 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt…
2 Samuel 14:5-24 And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, I am indeed a widow woman, and mine husband is dead.
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…
came--kept coming. See Luk 18:5, "her continual coming."
Avenge me--that is, rid me of the oppression of.
Adam Clarke on Luke 18:3
Avenge me of mine adversary - The original, εκδικησον με απο του αντιδικου μου, had better be translated, Do me justice against, or vindicate me from, my adversary. If the woman had come to get revenge, as our common translation intimates, I think our blessed Lord would never have permitted her to have the honor of a place in the sacred records. She desired to have justice, and that only; and by her importunity she got that which the unrighteous judge had no inclination to give, but merely for his own ease.
John Gill on Luke 18:3
And there was a widow in that city,.... Poor and helpless, and none among men to counsel, direct, and assist her, and take her part: now as in the accommodation of this parable, the elect of God answer to this widow; such an one is rather pitched upon to represent the helpless, desolate, and forlorn condition they are in among men in this world, though they are espoused to one husband, Christ; and especially to signify the state and condition of God's elect among the Jews in those sad times, before the destruction of Jerusalem, this parable has respect unto. Christ is the bridegroom of his church and people; he is their husband, the Lord of hosts is his name; and they are espoused as a chast…
The Church Fathers
These things we suffer by our own fault and our own deserving, even as the divine judgment has forewarned us, saying, "If they forsake my law and walk not in my judgments, if they profane my statutes and keep not my commandments, then will I visit their transgressions with the rod, and their iniquities with stripes." It is for this reason that we feel the rods and the stripes, because we neither please God with good deeds nor atone for our sins. Let us of our inmost heart and of our entire mind ask for God's mercy, because He Himself also adds, saying, "Nevertheless my loving-kindness will I not scatter away from them." Let us ask, and we shall receive; and if there be delay and tardiness in our receiving, since we have grievously offended, let us knock, because "to him that knocketh also it shall be opened," if only our prayers, our groanings, and our tears, knock at the door; and with these we must be urgent and persevering, even although prayer be offered with one mind.
The widow may be said to resemble the Church, which appears desolate until the Lord shall come, who now secretly watches over her. But in the following words, And she came unto him, saying, Avenge me, &c. we are told the reason why the elect of God pray that they may be avenged; which we find also said of the martyrs in the Revelations of St. John, (Rev. 6:10.) though at the same time we are very plainly reminded to pray for our enemies and persecutors. This avenging of the righteous then we must understand to be, that the wicked may perish. And they perish in two ways, either by conversion to righteousness, or by punishment having lost the opportunity of conversion. Although, if all men were converted to God, there would still remain the devil to be condemned at the end of the world. And since the righteous are longing for this end to come, they are not unreasonably said to desire vengeance. (ut sup.) If then with the most unjust judge, the perseverance of the suppliant at length prevailed even to the fulfilment of her desire, how much more confident ought they to feel who cease not to pray to God, the Fountain of justice and mercy? And so it follows. And the Lord said, Hear what, &c.
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
Adversary — (Heb. satan), an opponent or foe (1 Kings 5:4; 11:14, 23, 25; Luke 13:17); one that speaks against another, a complainant (Matt. 5:25; Luke 12:58); an enemy (Luke 18:3), and specially the devil (1…
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 widow: God is concerned for widows, orphans, and foreigners—the most vulnerable members of ancient society—and has promised judgment against those who oppress them (Exod 22:22; Deut 10:18; 24:17; 27:19; Ps 68:5; Isa 1:23; 10:2; Jer 22:3; Ezek 22:7; Amos 5:10-13; Zech 7:10; Mal 3:5). • Give me justice: The woman was in the right in this dispute—she was not asking for special favors.
