“And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;”
My Notes
What Does Luke 18:1 Mean?
Luke introduces a parable with a rare editorial note explaining its purpose: Jesus told this parable specifically to teach that people ought always to pray and not faint. The parable is prescriptive — it is designed to produce a specific behavior: persistent prayer.
The word "faint" (enkakeo) means to lose heart, to become weary, to give up from exhaustion. Jesus knows that prayer is the discipline most easily abandoned when results are not visible.
The parable that follows (the persistent widow and the unjust judge) makes an argument from lesser to greater: if an unjust judge eventually responds to persistence, how much more will a righteous God respond to the persistent prayers of his children?
The verse establishes a foundational principle: prayer is not a one-time event. It is an ongoing practice that persists through silence, delay, and the temptation to give up.
Reflection Questions
- 1.What prayer have you stopped praying because you got tired of waiting?
- 2.How do you sustain prayer when there is no visible answer?
- 3.What is the difference between persistent prayer and demanding prayer?
- 4.How does the image of the persistent widow encourage your own prayer life?
Devotional
Men ought always to pray, and not to faint. Always. Not when you feel like it. Not when the answers are coming quickly. Always.
The word 'faint' describes the temptation that stalks every prayer life: giving up. Not because you stopped believing in God, but because the silence wore you down. Because you prayed and prayed and nothing seemed to change.
Jesus tells this parable because he knows. He knows the silence feels like absence. He knows the delay feels like denial. He knows the temptation to stop knocking at a door that does not seem to open.
And his instruction is: do not stop. The parable that follows features a woman who wore down an unjust judge through sheer persistence. If persistent asking works on an unjust judge, how much more will it work on a God who is just and loves you?
What prayer have you stopped praying? What request have you abandoned because the silence lasted too long? Jesus says: pick it back up. Always pray. Do not faint.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
A parable - See the notes at Mat 13:3. To this end - To show this. Always - At all times. That is, we must not neglect…
Men ought always to pray - Therefore the plain meaning and moral of the parable are evident; viz. that as afflictions…
This parable has its key hanging at the door; the drift and design of it are prefixed. Christ spoke it with this intent,…
Luk 9:51 to Luk 18:31. Rejected by the Samaritans. A lesson of Tolerance.
This section forms a great episode in St…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture