Luke 15:4 (GNV)

Passage

What man of you hauing an hundreth sheepe, if hee lose one of them, doeth not leaue ninetie and nine in the wildernesse, and goe after that which is lost, vntill he finde it?

Nearby Context

Luke 15:2 Therefore the Pharises and Scribes murmured, saying, Hee receiueth sinners, and eateth with them.

Luke 15:3 Then spake hee this parable to them, saying,

Luke 15:4 What man of you hauing an hundreth sheepe, if hee lose one of them, doeth not leaue ninetie and nine in the wildernesse, and goe after that which is lost, vntill he finde it?

Luke 15:5 And when he hath found it, he laieth it on his shoulders with ioye.

Luke 15:6 And when he commeth home, he calleth together his friendes and neighbours, saying vnto them, Reioyce with mee: for I haue founde my sheepe which was lost.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "sheep", "hauing", "hundreth", "sheepe", "lose", "doeth", "leaue", and "ninetie". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "sheep" and "hauing", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Then spake hee this parable to them..." into verse 5's "And when he hath found it he...", so "sheep" and "hauing" 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 "sheep" and "hauing" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.