Luke 12:56 (YLT)

Passage

hypocrites! the face of the earth and of the heaven ye have known to make proof of, but this time--how do ye not make proof of <FI>it<Fi> ?

Nearby Context

Luke 12:54 And he said also to the multitudes, `When ye may see the cloud rising from the west, immediately ye say, A shower doth come, and it is so;

Luke 12:55 and when--a south wind blowing, ye say, that there will be heat, and it is;

Luke 12:56 hypocrites! the face of the earth and of the heaven ye have known to make proof of, but this time--how do ye not make proof of <FI>it<Fi> ?

Luke 12:57 `And why, also, of yourselves, judge ye not what is righteous?

Luke 12:58 for, as thou art going away with thy opponent to the ruler, in the way give diligence to be released from him, lest he may drag thee unto the judge, and the judge may deliver thee to the officer, and the officer may cast thee into prison;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "hypocrites", "face", "earth", "heaven", "known", "make", "proof", and "time--how". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "hypocrites" and "face", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 55's "and when--a south wind blowing ye say..." into verse 57's "And why also of yourselves judge ye...", so "hypocrites" and "face" 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 "hypocrites" and "face" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.