Luke 12:25 (ASV)

Passage

And which of you by being anxious can add a cubit unto the measure of his life?

Nearby Context

Luke 12:23 For the life is more than the food, and the body than the raiment.

Luke 12:24 Consider the ravens, that they sow not, neither reap; which have no store-chamber nor barn; and God feedeth them: of how much more value are ye than the birds!

Luke 12:25 And which of you by being anxious can add a cubit unto the measure of his life?

Luke 12:26 If then ye are not able to do even that which is least, why are ye anxious concerning the rest?

Luke 12:27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they toil not, neither do they spin; yet I say unto you, Even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "anxious", "cubit", "measure", and "life". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "anxious" and "cubit", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 24's "Consider the ravens that they sow not..." into verse 26's "If then ye are not able to...", so "anxious" and "cubit" belong inside that flow. In Luke context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "anxious" and "cubit" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.