Luke 18:15
And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them.
Original Language Analysis
Historical Context
First-century Jewish culture valued children but didn't grant them religious status until maturity. Children couldn't fulfill Torah commandments, participate in synagogue readings, or count toward a prayer minyan (quorum). Rabbis taught adults, not infants. Parents sought rabbinical blessings on children (like Jacob blessing Ephraim and Manasseh, Genesis 48), but the disciples thought Jesus too important to 'waste time' on those without religious standing. Jesus's response revolutionizes the kingdom's entrance requirements.
Questions for Reflection
- What does the disciples' rebuke reveal about their misunderstanding of kingdom entrance requirements?
- How do infants illustrate the kind of humble dependence required to receive God's kingdom?
- In what ways might you be acting like the disciples, thinking some people unworthy of Jesus's attention?
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Analysis & Commentary
And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them—parents brought brephe (βρέφη), 'babies' or 'infants,' to Jesus hina autōn haptētai (ἵνα αὐτῶν ἅπτηται)—'that he might touch them' for blessing. The disciples epetimōn autois (ἐπετίμων αὐτοῖς)—'rebuked them,' thinking infants unworthy of the Master's time.
This follows immediately after the Pharisee and tax collector parable. The disciples still think in terms of merit—who deserves Jesus's attention? Infants have zero religious credentials, no works to present, nothing but need. Yet Jesus welcomes them, illustrating that entrance to God's kingdom requires childlike dependence, not adult achievement. The disciples' rebuke reveals they haven't grasped Jesus's teaching about humility and grace.