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
Matthew 16:26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
Mark 8:36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
Psalms 49:6-8 They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches;
Luke 12:19-21 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
Luke 4:5-7 And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.
2 Peter 2:15-17 Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness…
Acts 1:25 That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.
1 Corinthians 9:27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castawa…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Luke 9:18-27
In these verses, we have Christ discoursing with his disciples about the great things that pertained to the kingdom of God; and one circumstance of this discourse is taken notice of here which we had not in the other evangelists - that Christ was alone praying, and his disciples with him, when he entered into this discourse, Luk 9:18. Observe, 1. Though Christ had much public work to do, yet he found some time to be alone in private, for converse with himself, with his Father, and with his disciples. 2. When Christ was alone he was praying. It is good for us to improve our solitude for devotion, that, when we are alone, we may not be alone, but may have the Father with us. 3. When Christ was…
PETER'S CONFESSION OF CHRIST--OUR LORD'S FIRST EXPLICIT ANNOUNCEMENT OF HIS APPROACHING DEATH, AND WARNINGS ARISING OUT OF IT. (Luk 9:18-27)
will save--"Is minded to save," bent on saving. The pith of this maxim depends--as often in such weighty sayings (for example, "Let the dead bury the dead," Mat 8:22) --on the double sense attached to the word "life," a lower and a higher, the natural and the spiritual, temporal and eternal. An entire sacrifice of the lower, or a willingness to make it, is indispensable to the preservation of the higher life; and he who cannot bring himself to surrender the one for the sake of the other shall eventually lose both.
Adam Clarke on Luke 9:25
Lose himself - That is, his life or soul. See the parallel places, Mat 16:25 (note); Mar 8:35 (note), and especially the note on the former.
Or be cast away? - Or receive spiritual damage η ζημιωθεις. I have added the word spiritual here, which I conceive to be necessarily implied. Because, if a man received only temporal damage in some respect or other, yet gaining the whole world must amply compensate him. But if he should receive spiritual damage - hurt to his soul in the smallest degree, the possession of the universe could not indemnify him. Earthly goods may repair earthly losses, but they cannot repair any breach that may be made in the peace or holiness of the soul. See on Mat 16:26…
Even though one has wealth and abundance of possessions, yet what profit has he from them when he has lost himself? Treasures profit not the wicked, but the fashion of this world passes away; and like clouds those pleasures recede, and riches fly away from those that possess them. But righteousness delivers from death.
For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world, but loses himself, and suffers damage to himself? When persecution from adversaries is absent, the heart must be guarded more diligently. For in times of peace, it is lawful to live, and also to be ambitious. Thus we often despise all fleeting things, but yet we are still hindered by the habit of human decency, such that the rectitude we keep in mind we are not yet able to express in words. But to this wound too a fitting remedy is added, when the Lord says:
But that incomparable exercise of the passion of Christ, which surpasses the delights and precious things of the world, is alluded to when he adds, What is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world and lose himself, or be a cast away? As if he says, When a man, through his looking after the present delights, gains pleasure, and refuses indeed to suffer, but chooses to live splendidly in his riches, what advantage will he get then, when he has lost his soul? For the fashion of this world passeth away, and pleasant things depart as a shadow. (1 Cor. 7:31. Sap. 5:9.) For the treasures of ungodliness shall not profit, but righteousness snatches a man from death. (Prov. 10:2.)
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
Apostle — A person sent by another; a messenger; envoy. This word is once used as a descriptive designation of Jesus Christ, the Sent of the Father (Heb. 3:1; John 20:21). It is, however, generally used as…
Ambition · 49:11-13; — 49:11-13;
Immortality · 2:11; — 2:11;
Stoicism · Jesus requires self- — Jesus requires self-
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).
John Gill on Luke 9:25
For what is a man advantaged if he gain the whole world,.... Or what profit will it be unto him? all the honours, riches, and enjoyments of it will be of no use and service to him if he himself is lost:
and lose himself; or his own soul; for he that loses his soul, which is his better and immortal part, loses himself:
or be cast away: finally, and eternally, or "suffer loss" of eternal happiness and glory; that is, perishes, and is destroyed with an everlasting destruction; See Gill on Matthew 16:26.
John Calvin on Luke 9:21-25
Luke 9:21-27
Matthew 16:20-28
Mark 8:30-37
Luke 9:21-27
20. Then he charged his disciples [451] not to tell any one that he was Jesus the Christ. 21. From that time Jesus began to make known to his disciples, that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, and the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and be raised again on the third day. 22. And Peter, taking him aside, [452] began to rebuke him, saying, Lord, spare thyself; [453] this shall not happen to thee. 23. But he turning said to Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan, thou art an offense to me; for thou relishest not those things which are of God, but those which are of men. 24. Then Jesus said to his di…
