the parables of Jesus: Luke 15: 11-32

the parables of Jesus: Luke 15:11-32 by ric gustafson


This story is well known as the tale of the two sons. Jesus starts this story by saying that a man had two sons. The younger son asked his father for his share of the estate. Both sons got their inheritance early. Then the young man set off for a distant country. It does not say where the young man ended up but in the region known as the Decapolis pig farmers are numerous. And then Jesus explains that the young man squandered his wealth in wild living. At this time, famine swept through the land and there were no crops so their was no jobs. The only job the young man could find was working for a local pig farmer. The young man was so hungry that he considered eating what the pigs were eating.
Then Jesus says that he came to his senses. He had had enough and there was no one to blame except himself. Then Jesus says that he got up and went to his father. Then the son returned and they began to celebrate his return. Then Jesus explains that the older son hears a party and asks what's going on. When he hears that his deadbeat brother had come home, he refuses to come to the celebration. The father pleads for him to come in but he won't. The end of the story explains that the father intended to give him his estate anyway but they are celebrating the return of his son who was lost but now came home.


research help: ' Inverted' by Tom Ellsworth


Peace and God's blessings. Love Ric