Luke 18:1

The content of this chapter deals with two parables on prayer, that of the unjust judge (Luke 18:1-8), that of the Pharisee and the publican (Luke 18:9-14), bringing children to Jesus (Luke 18:15-17), the account of the rich young ruler (Luke 18:18-30), another prophecy of his Passion (Luke 18:31-34), and the healing of the blind man at Jericho (Luke 18:35-43).

THE PARABLE OF THE UNJUST JUDGE

And he spake a parable unto them to the end that they ought always to pray, and not to faint. (Luke 18:1)

Dummelow listed the lessons from this parable, thus:

(1) The duty of continual prayer; (2) the answer to prayer, persisted in, is certain; (3) in the end, God will maintain the cause of his elect against their adversaries; and (4) a warning against the failure of faith in times of seeming abandonment by God.[1]

And he spake a parable ... is literally, "And he spake also a parable ..."[2] This indicates that this is actually a part of the preceding discourse.

Ought always to pray ... This has no reference to a ceaseless bending of the knee, or a continuation without intermission in the utterance of petitions to the Almighty, but to an attitude of unbroken fellowship with God. As Augustine said, "There is another interior prayer without intermission, and that is the longing of thy heart."[3] It was to this that Paul referred: "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

And not to faint ... There is a remarkable analogy in this comparison of spiritual failure to physical fainting. Physically, men can faint from shock, disease, hunger, fear, etc.; and for a development of the application to spiritual things, see my Commentary on Hebrews, Hebrews 12:3.

[1] J. R. Dummelow, Commentary on the Holy Bible (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1937), p. 763.

[2] Charles L. Childers, Beacon Bible Commentary (Kansas City, Missouri: Beacon Hill Press, 1964), p. 576.

[3] Quoted by Richard C. Trench, Notes on the Parables of Our Lord (Old Tappan, New Jersey: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1953), p. 485.