Luke 6:27-36
Love Your Enemies
Read the passage
27But to those of you who will listen, I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
28bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.
29If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone takes your cloak, do not withhold your tunic as well.
30Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what is yours, do not demand it back.
31Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.
33If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same.
34And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full.
35But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them, expecting nothing in return. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.
36Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
Jesus speaks to those who hear Him: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who abuse you. He tells them to offer the other cheek, give to those who take from them, and treat others as they want to be treated.
Jesus asks what credit there is in loving people who love you. Even sinners do that. He calls His disciples to love enemies and do good, expecting nothing in return.
He says the Most High is kind to the ungrateful and evil. “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” The standard is not the behavior of the person who hurt us but the character of the Father we claim to know.
The Father's kindness comes before gratitude; he gives even to people who answer him badly. His children are called to show that family likeness. Loving an enemy begins with receiving mercy ourselves, then refusing to make repayment or appreciation the price of doing good.
How We Know
Jesus' command to love enemies has a close parallel in Matthew 5:38-48, including prayer for those who mistreat his disciples. Luke's emphasis on doing good without expecting return and on treating others as one wants to be treated must be read in Luke's own setting.
Questions
1 How does Jesus tell His disciples to treat enemies?
AnswerHe tells them to love, do good, bless, and pray for enemies, including people who hate, curse, or abuse them.
2 Why isn’t loving only those who love us enough?
AnswerLoving people who love us is common even among sinners. Jesus calls His disciples to reflect God's kindness toward the ungrateful and evil.
3 What does “be merciful” reveal about the goal?
AnswerMercy reflects the Father's character. It refuses revenge and seeks good, while still allowing truth, protection, and appropriate boundaries.
4 What might enemy-love look like safely?
AnswerRefuse retaliation, tell the truth, seek protection for the harmed, and pray for the offender's repentance. Forgiveness does not require continued access to abuse.
What This Means for Us
Jesus makes enemy-love concrete: words, prayer, generosity, and the refusal to mirror harm. That is not sentimental approval of wrongdoing. It is freedom from letting another person's evil dictate our character.
Families need wisdom here. Reconciliation requires repentance and safety, while mercy can begin with refusing revenge and asking God to bring truth into the situation.
Prayer
Father, make us merciful as You are merciful. Restrain our desire for revenge, protect people who are being harmed, and give us wisdom to seek repentance and peace without pretending that evil is harmless. Amen.