The Meaning of Luke 12:59 Explained

Luke 12:59

KJV: I tell thee, thou shalt not depart thence, till thou hast paid the very last mite.

YLT: I say to thee, thou mayest not come forth thence till even the last mite thou mayest give back.'

Darby: I say unto thee, Thou shalt in no wise come out thence until thou hast paid the very last mite.

ASV: I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou have paid the very last mite.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

I tell  thee,  thou shalt  not  depart  thence,  till  thou hast paid  the very last  mite. 

What does Luke 12:59 Mean?

Context Summary

Luke 12:49-59 - The Great Divider
As Prometheus, in the old Greek fable, brought fire from above in a reed, so Christ brought the fire of the Holy Spirit in the frail lantern of His humanity. But, first, He had to pass through a baptism of tears and blood. He was under pressure to enter it, because impatient to get through with it. Here was the prelude of Calvary. And what was true of our Lord must be true of His Church. Always the sword, always strife, always division, where the gospel begins to ferment like leaven in human hearts.
The signs of the time pointed to a climax of Hebrew history, for which most of His contemporaries were unprepared. The sands in God's hour-glass were running out. This was the great requirement of the hour-get right with God. The warning is applicable to us all, but it was specially spoken of the brief interval which, like the silence that precedes a thunder storm, preceded the fall of Jerusalem. [source]

Chapter Summary: Luke 12

1  Jesus preaches to his apostles to avoid hypocrisy
13  and warns against covetousness, by the parable of the man who set up greater barns
22  We must not worry about earthly things,
31  but seek the kingdom of God;
33  give alms;
35  be ready at a knock to open to our Lord whensoever he comes
41  Jesus' disciples are to see to their charges,
49  and look for persecution
54  The people must take this time of grace;
57  because it is a fearful thing to die without reconciliation

Greek Commentary for Luke 12:59

Till thou have paid [εως αποδωις]
Second aorist active subjunctive of αποδιδωμι — apodidōmi to pay back in full. [source]
The last mite [το εσχατον λεπτον]
From λεπω — lepō to peel off the bark. Very small brass coin, one-eighth of an ounce. In the N.T. only here and Luke 21:2; Mark 12:42 (the poor widow‘s mite) which see note. [source]

What do the individual words in Luke 12:59 mean?

I say to you no not shall you come out from there until even the last lepton you shall have paid
λέγω σοι οὐ μὴ ἐξέλθῃς ἐκεῖθεν ἕως καὶ τὸ ἔσχατον λεπτὸν ἀποδῷς

λέγω  I  say 
Parse: Verb, Present Indicative Active, 1st Person Singular
Root: λέγω 
Sense: to say, to speak.
σοι  to  you 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Dative 2nd Person Singular
Root: σύ  
Sense: you.
οὐ  no 
Parse: Adverb
Root: οὐ  
Sense: no, not; in direct questions expecting an affirmative answer.
ἐξέλθῃς  shall  you  come  out 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: ἐξέρχομαι 
Sense: to go or come forth of.
ἐκεῖθεν  from  there 
Parse: Adverb
Root: ἐκεῖθεν  
Sense: thence, from that place.
ἕως  until 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: ἕως  
Sense: till, until.
καὶ  even 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: καί  
Sense: and, also, even, indeed, but.
ἔσχατον  last 
Parse: Adjective, Accusative Neuter Singular
Root: ἔσχατος  
Sense: extreme.
λεπτὸν  lepton 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Neuter Singular
Root: λεπτός  
Sense: thin, small.
ἀποδῷς  you  shall  have  paid 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: ἀποδίδωμι  
Sense: to deliver, to give away for one’s own profit what is one’s own, to sell.