In Luke 10:30-37 we read of the "Good Samaritan." Who is the "Good Samaritan"? The verses are below so you..

Question

don't need to look them up: "And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.

Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?
37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise."

Who are the "thieves"?

What does it mean to be half dead"?

Answer 1

It could have multiple meanings. The Good Samaritan could be just a Samaritan. Or, an example of one who is considered less than others, yet loves more. Or one who preaches the gospel to a hurtiing soul. The thieves could just be thieves. Or, the thieves could be bad friends, bad choices in life, the enemy's forces, etc. The man who was robbed could be just that, or Everyman. Either way, the lesson, hopefully, should not be lost on us.

Answer 2

Because of the strict purity laws of those days the priest and the Levite couldn’t touch the injured man because they didn’t know if he was dead or alive. If they were to touch a dead man they would have to go through a long process of cleansing. The Samaritan’s first concern was for the man’s well being.

Jesus was saying the Samaritan put the needs of the stranger first. This really is a subversive parable because it shows that a Samaritan, a foreigner who would be looked down on within the purity system of the law understood more about compassion that the priests and the Levites, who were only concerned with the law.

Saying the good Samaritan, he means a good man from Samaria.

Answer 3

What has not been brought out is how the Jews viewed Samaritans. Both dispised each other. Each thought the other as very low down dirty. Yet, this Samaritan had compassion for this Jew who had been robbed by theives along the road.

The point of the story was we should all have love and compassion toward one another even if they are not like us or even we don't care too much for their company either.

Notice a priest and a Levite, two members of the clergy of that time, passed up any chance of dirtying their hands with someone beaten up and in pain. Clearly, they had given up actually doing the will of God by helping their fellow Jew.

Answer 4

the thieves are just that-- theives. they are insignifigant to the story. here is some insight to the story

30. Jesus replied and said, "A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho; and he fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went off leaving him half dead.


Jesus expounds on the law of love. True love is put into action. It is not merely at concept or a feeling. There is a road that goes down from Jerusalem to Jericho. It is 17 miles long and drops about 3,000 feet in those 17 miles. It has long been a hazardous trip due to thieves and robbers. Jesus intentionally leaves the man undescribed. The audience, being Jewish, would naturally assume that he was a Jew. Being in this half dead state he would be unconscious. Since he is stripped, he then is unidentifiable. Historically, a person can be identified in one of two ways: his dress and his speech, i.e. dialect. The man is any person: void of ethnic background, void of stature, void of position

31. "And by chance a certain priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.


The priest was most certainly riding because he was in the upper classes of society.The poor walk. Since, he moves to the other side, probably the priest did not actually see it happen. How can he be sure the wounded man is a neighbor since he cannot be identified? If the person lying there is a non Jew the priest could be risking defilement, especially if the person were actually dead. If he defiles himself he can not collect, distribute, and eat tithes. His family and servants will suffer the consequences with him. Priests were supposed to be ritually clean, exemplars of the law. There would be immediate shame and embarrassment suffered by them at the expense of the people and their peers for such defilement. Having just completed his mandatory two weeks of service, he would then need to return and stand at the Eastern Gate along with the rest of the unclean. Furthermore, in addition to the humiliation involved, the process of restoring ritual purity was time consuming and costly. It required finding, buying, and reducing a red heifer to ashes, and the ritual took a full week. The priest is in a predicament. Moreover, he cannot approach closer than four cubits to a dead man without being defiled, and he will have to overstep that boundary just to ascertain the condition of the wounded man.

32. "And likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.


"Levites were descendants of Levi but not of Aaron, and they assisted the priests (Aaron’s descendants) in the temple."1 The road spoken of here is a long one. It is very likely, according to those who have walked it, that a person traveling it, could see ahead of him a long way. The Levite, who is of a lower social class, may have been walking. He most probably saw the priest ahead of him and could have thought to himself, "If the priest may pass then so should I." Perhaps they might fear for their own safety. What if someone saw them with the naked and wounded person and reported to the officials that the priest and/or Levite committed a crime against the injured person?


33. "But a certain Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion,


The Samaritans were a mixed race between the Jews of captivity and the Samaritan people of the land they were captive in. The relationship between the Jews and Samaritans was one of hostility because of some bad things that happened in the past. According to the Mishna, "He that eats the bread of the Samaritans is like to one that eats the flesh of swine" (Mishna Shebiith 8:10). The Mishna is the oral traditions that developed about the law, containing interpretations and applications to specific questions which the law deals with only in principle. Specifically, it is the collection of these traditions. The Samaritan is not a gentile. He is bound by the same law as the Jews. The Samaritan would not be naturally from that area, so the half dead man would certainly not qualify as his neighbor. "The Samaritan woman therefore *said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)" (John 4:9). "The Jews answered and said to Him, “Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?” 49 Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me,'" (John 8:48-49)


34. "and came to him, and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.


The Samaritan risks defilement. He approaches this unidentifiable man and helps him. Oil and wine were poured out on the high altar before God. Note how the usage is mentioned after the Priest and Levite have failed to do their duty. Blood revenge: "Mosaic legislation established cities of refuge for people under the threat of death from blood vengeance retaliation. This legislation provided an escape valve for a custom it could not eradicate." Often when the guilty cannot be reached, vengeance may be administered to a member of his family. Often the vengeance would reach even to the most distant relations of the offending party. "Irrational minds seeking a focus for their retaliation do not make rational judgments, especially when the person involved is from a hated minority community."


35. "And on the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return, I will repay you.'


The Samaritan forfeits anonymity when he stays overnight and then says he would return. This is an acceptance of the potential threat of blood vengeance. The wounded man has no money. When it is time for him to leave, if he cannot pay the debt he can be arrested, Matthew 18:23-35. The Samaritan knows this and volunteers money (two danarri is two days wages) and whatever else is needed to see to the needs of this unidentified man. Additionally, the Samaritan had no way of insuring the return of his money. Therefore, it is safe to assume he did not expect it to be returned.

Answer 5

The point of the story is that the "good people" the priest and the Levite, didn't help out, and the "evil" person, the Samaritan went out of his way to help the man. People of Samaria were considered wicked by the Jews at that time. Jesus was telling you to help your brothers, love your neighbor, as well as exposing the corruption within the Church. "Half Dead" just meant he was severely beaten.

Answer 6

Something to consider.
Culturally, the Samaritans were a despised and hated people. The Jews believed themselves to be superior and held a great amount of prejudice towards them.
I'm certain Christ chose to make the one to help a Samaritan for a reason. It would certainly blow His hearers' minds away.
So, what was Christ saying here about unreasoning hatred, about prejudice? About love?
The thieves, some people may try to make into something, but they appear to be inconsequential to the meaning behind this section of scripture.

Answer 7

The good Samaritan was a man from Samaria who helped an injured stranger. The theives are the ones who injured the man.

Answer 8

This was a parable (a story used to teach a principle) that Jesus told. The characters were probably not actual people, but characters carefully chosen so the people hearing the parable could identify with them. The message of the parable is the important part.

Answer 9

The Theives are literal. He was robbed, beaten and left for dead. The priest and the Levite ignored his problems, as they were not their problems. The good samaritan was the kind person that did not ignore him, but tended to him and helped him back on his feet.

Answer 10

The "thieves" are anybody who does evil to another. The good Samaritan is anyone who helps another person.