Luke 15:18 (LSB)

Passage

I will rise up and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before you.

Nearby Context

Luke 15:16 And he was desiring to be fed with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him.

Luke 15:17 But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger!

Luke 15:18 I will rise up and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before you.

Luke 15:19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men.”’

Luke 15:20 So he rose up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "rise", "father", "sinned", "against", "heaven", and "before". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "rise" and "father", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "But when he came to himself he..." into verse 19's "I am no longer worthy to be...", so "rise" and "father" 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 "rise" and "father" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.