# The parable of the Good Samaritan: Luke 10:25–37 explained in context > In Luke 10:25–37, a legal expert asks Jesus 'Who is my neighbor?' to define the limits of his obligation. Jesus answers with the parable of the Good Samaritan, turning a boundary-drawing question into a call to become a neighbor to anyone in need through practical mercy. > And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. > — Luke 10:27 (King James Version) > But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour? > — Luke 10:29 (King James Version) > But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, > — Luke 10:33 (King James Version) > 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. > — Luke 10:34 (King James Version) > Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? > — Luke 10:36 (King James Version) > And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise. > — Luke 10:37 (King James Version) ## A conversation that begins as a test of the law The parable of the Good Samaritan appears only in the Gospel of Luke, and its meaning is inseparable from the conversation that frames it. In Luke 10:25, an expert in the Mosaic law stands up to test Jesus by asking what he must do to inherit eternal life. When Jesus turns the question back to him—"What is written in the law? How do you read it?"—the lawyer gives an impeccable summary, combining Deuteronomy 6:5 (love the Lord your God with all your heart) and Leviticus 19:18 (love your neighbor as yourself). Jesus commends his answer and tells him simply to do this and live. ## Four movements inside Luke 10:27–37 ### The question behind the parable (Luke 10:27–29) Luke notes that the lawyer, wanting to justify himself, asks a follow-up question: "And who is my neighbor?" In the debates of the period, "neighbor" was often understood as a fellow member of the covenant community. By asking where the line fell, the lawyer was looking for a boundary—a way to know whom he was obligated to help and whom he could safely pass by. ### The dangerous road from Jerusalem to Jericho (Luke 10:30–32) Jesus sets his story on a real, well-known road. Descending steeply from the Judean hills to the Jordan valley, the rocky route between Jerusalem and Jericho was infamous for ambushes. A traveler is stripped, beaten, and left half dead—stripped even of clothing and accent that might identify his social or ethnic status. First a priest and then a Levite come down the road, see him, and pass by on the other side. Whatever their motives—fear of ambush, haste, or concern over ritual defilement if the man were dead—religious office alone does not move them to stop. ### Compassion that crosses a bitter divide (Luke 10:33–34) In traditional storytelling, after a priest and a Levite fail, a third figure—an ordinary Israelite layperson—would be expected to appear. Instead, Jesus introduces a Samaritan. Centuries of religious and political estrangement stood between Jews and Samaritans; just a chapter earlier, in Luke 9, a Samaritan village had refused to welcome Jesus because he was heading toward Jerusalem. Yet when this Samaritan traveler sees the wounded man, he is moved with compassion. He goes to him, pours oil and wine on his wounds, binds them up, sets him on his own animal, brings him to an inn, and pays for his ongoing care. ### From "Who is my neighbor?" to "Go, and do thou likewise" (Luke 10:36–37) At the close of the story, Jesus asks the lawyer which of the three travelers proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among thieves. Notice that the lawyer cannot even bring himself to say the word "Samaritan," replying simply, "He that showed mercy on him." Jesus' final words dismantle every attempt to draw a circle around our responsibility: a neighbor is not a category we vet in advance, but a role we step into whenever we meet human need with mercy. ## Questions to carry into your reading As you read [Luke 10](/en/bible/luke) and reflect on this parable, ask yourself: - Where are you tempted to ask "Where does my responsibility end?" rather than "How can I show mercy right here?" - What modern equivalents of hurry or caution keep us on the other side of the road when someone nearby is hurting? - Notice the practical details in verse 34 (time, bandages, transportation, and money): what does tangible mercy look like in your week? ## Keep reading Read Luke's other great parable of mercy in [The Prodigal Son](/en/stories/the-prodigal-son), explore passages on [love in the reading room](/en/topics/love), or study [the Beatitudes explained](/en/lessons/the-beatitudes-explained), where Jesus promises that the merciful shall obtain mercy. ## FAQ ### Why was a Samaritan the last person Jesus' listeners expected as the hero? After the priest and the Levite pass by, first-century Jewish listeners would have expected an ordinary Jewish layperson to be the third traveler. Instead, Jesus chooses a Samaritan—a group separated from Judeans by centuries of religious and historical hostility. ### What was the road from Jerusalem to Jericho like? The road dropped more than three thousand feet over roughly seventeen miles through rocky, desert terrain with narrow passes that were notorious hiding places for bandits. ### How does Jesus change the lawyer's question at the end of the parable? The lawyer asked 'Who is my neighbor?'—seeking a category of people he was required to love. In Luke 10:36, Jesus asks 'Which of these three became a neighbor to the man?' shifting the focus from classifying others to showing mercy oneself. ## Sources - [Luke 10 (King James Version)](https://api.getbible.net/v2/kjv/42/10.json)