I had planned on doing this over the weekend and publishing it Sunday but some things had come up that I had to deal with. I might be a day late and a dollar short sometimes but surprisingly I am always on time for when it matters most, LOL. I am going to do my best to break down the parable of the “good” Samaritan that at large has been grossly misinterpreted. So here goes nothing! 😁
Our parable starts here in Luke 10:
'The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied with a story: “A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road. “By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. A Temple assistant#10:32 Greek A Levite. walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side. “Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins,#10:35 Greek two denarii. A denarius was equivalent to a laborer’s full day’s wage. telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’ “Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked. The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.” Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.”' Luke 10:29-37 https://my.bible.com/bible/116/LUK.10.29-37
We have three people who saw the man robbed and beaten on the side of the road a priest, a temple assistant (Levite), a despised Samaritan. To understand the “despised” Samaritan you have to understand the racial tension in those days between Jews and Samaritans. Samaritans as a whole were considered mixed race by the religious Jews. Due to the racial tension, a samaritan would be the least likely to stop and help. (This is crucial for the parable with the Samaritan woman at the well to note.) Samaritan doesn’t refer to a people from a specific race or place but it is a Hebrew-Aramaic word Samarim, which means keeper of the law.