The Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Unjust Judge in Luke 18:1-8 is commonly misunderstood. The wrong interpretation is, “Be persistent in prayer until God gives you what you want.” The correct interpretation is if an unjust judge can be persuaded to give justice to a woman he has no regard for, then how much more will God, who is just, give justice to his elect whom he loves.

Table of contentsAlways Praying Without Losing Heart“Ought Always to Pray” Involves a Disposition Toward GodWe Can “Lose Heart” When Praying Because It Is Hard WorkWhat the Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Unjust Judge TeachesThe Judge with no Regard for JusticeThe Persistent Widow Who Wants JusticeParables Don't Give all the DetailsGod's View of WidowsThe Widow Only Had Her PersistenceThe Point of the Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Unjust JudgeThe Widow Represents Us…to an ExtentThe Incorrect Interpretation of the Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Unjust JudgeThe Correct Interpretation of the Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Unjust JudgeWhen Will God Provide this Justice?There Have Always Been "Widows" Wanting JusticeDo We Have Faith Like the Widow?The Parable of the Persistent Widow Makes Us Wonder, "Why the Delay?"Footnotes

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The Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Unjust Judge in Luke 18:1-8 teaches God, who is just, give justice to his elect, whom he loves.

The chapter breaks in Scripture are helpful, but they were added by man. One of the dangers with them is they can cause us to think, “This is a new chapter, so it must not be related to the previous chapter.” But it’s the opposite with The Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Unjust Judge. We need to keep the previous chapter in mind to interpret the parable correctly. Everything Jesus taught in Luke 18:1-8 flows from his teaching at the end of Luke 17 on his Second Coming.

The second half of Luke 18:8 says, "when the Son of Man comes." This is the context. The parable is related to Jesus’s Second Coming. Robert Stein wrote, “The parable serves as a concluding illustration to Luke 17:22-37 [about Jesus’s Second Coming].”181 John MacArthur’s sermon on The Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Unjust Judge is titled, “Persistent Prayer for the Lord’s Return.”

Always Praying Without Losing Heart

Jesus knew that as his disciples waited for his return, they could become discouraged, lose heart, and begin to doubt, so...

Luke 18:1 And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.

It’s a theme in Scripture that we ought always to pray:

Romans 12:12 says, "be constant in prayer"

Ephesians 6:18 says, "praying at all times"

Colossians 4:2 says, "continue steadfastly in prayer"

1 Thessalonians 5:17 says, "pray without ceasing"

When I was Catholic, there was only one way to pray: kneeling with your eyes closed, head bowed, and hands folded. I remember one time when someone wanted to pray with me and I thought we couldn’t pray, because we couldn’t kneel.

When I became a Christian I learned that we didn’t have to pray this way, but I read verses like this one that we ought always to pray, and I was confused. I thought, “How could I pray all the time? I won’t have time for anything else, such as eating, working, or even sleeping, because I can’t pray while I sleep.” To be honest, if you’re like me, and you have trouble sleeping, you pray because you know it will help you fall back to sleep.

“Ought Always to Pray” Involves a Disposition Toward God

We are not expected to – literally – pray all the time. There’s a place for concentrated prayer times, but praying all the time refers to a receptive disposition toward God.

Let me give you an example that I believe illustrates this. When we lived in California, one of my good friends, Pat Mundy, was a cop. One time I was with him, and he noticed someone he said, “didn’t look right.” I asked him why he noticed this person, and he said, “As a cop you’re always looking around at people and situations, seeing if things seem off. Even though I am off duty, I can never really be off duty.”

This is the same for Christians. Even when we are, “Off duty,” which is to say not praying, we are never really “off duty,” in the sense that we haven’t flipped off a switch and started ignoring God. We are not out of communion with him.

Instead, have a receptive disposition toward God. We are still sensitive to him and what he wants from us. We are always ready to seek him in whatever situation we face.

in 1 Samuel 3:4-9 God repeatedly called out to Samuel, but Samuel thought it was Eli. Samuel kept going to Eli, but Eli told Samuel it was not him and he should go back to bed. On the third time Eli recognized God was calling to Samuel, which he shared with the boy, and then told him how to respond if it happened again:

1 Samuel 3:10 The Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “SPEAK, FOR YOUR SERVANT HEARS.”

We don’t hear from God audibly like Samuel did, but we hear from him through his Word. Even when we are not praying, we should have a disposition that says, “Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.” We are going about our daily lives, doing the things God wants us to do. We are at our jobs, going to school, spending time with family, talking with friends, having a meal, and we are always receptive to God and sensitive to his will for our lives.

We Can “Lose Heart” When Praying Because It Is Hard Work

In Luke 18:1 Jesus also mentioned one of the most common temptations when praying: "[losing] heart." We know that one of the main reasons we give up doing anything is because it is difficult. We lose heart, which means we become discouraged, which is how it is translated in some Bibles, such as the NASB. And it is very easy to lose heart when praying because prayer is difficult. Every time we pray, it is a spiritual battle.

Romans 15:30 I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me IN YOUR PRAYERS TO GOD ON MY BEHALF,

The Greek word for strive is agōnizomai, which is related to the English word agony. It means, “To enter a contest: contend in the gymnastic games; fight.” Paul asked his readers to join him in doing something difficult. Even agonizing. We might expect him to ask them to strive together with him in giving financially until it hurts, resisting temptation, or in being persecuted for Christ. Instead, he asked them to agonize, of all things, in prayer for him.

Colossians 4:12 Epaphras…a servant of Christ Jesus…ALWAYS STRUGGLING ON YOUR BEHALF IN HIS PRAYERS, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God.

Paul praised Epaphras because he was always struggling in his prayers. Again, the word for struggling is agōnizomai.

My dad taught us numerous prayers when I was growing up Catholic. I recited them all of them, especially before bed. Reciting prayers is NOT hard work. It does not involve striving or agonizing. If there is anything hard about it, it is the boringness. I could zip through all my prayers without ever thinking about what I was saying. I could say an entire rosary with my mind elsewhere. I became a Christian and read Jesus’s words:

Matthew 6:7 When you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.

I had to completely change the way I prayed. Instead of reciting prayers, or as Jesus warned against [heaping] up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, I had to concentrate on what I was saying. And it was hard work to concentrate. My prayers frequently sounded like:

“Father, please help me serve you well…oh wait, when I get home I need to respond to that email…Lord, can you help me become more like Christ…should I train chest or back today?…God, will you please help me teach my students well…That reminds me I still need to mow the lawn. I hate doing that, because of my allergies.”

Praying was and still is hard work for me. It is easy to lose heart and give up. We wonder, "“Will my prayers accomplish anything? Am I wasting my time? “How long do I have to keep praying for this? Should I keep praying for this?”182

What the Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Unjust Judge Teaches

So, Jesus preached The Parable of the Persistent Widow and the Unjust Judge to encourage his disciples, including us, to be persistent and not give up in our prayer lives.

The Judge with no Regard for Justice

Luke 18:2 He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man.

This judge is evil and corrupt. He does not represent God! To say he neither feared God nor respected man is to say he disobeyed the two greatest commandments:

Mark 12:29 Jesus [said], “The most important [commandment is…] 30 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

If he had no regard for God or man he also had no regard for justice:

If he had no regard for man, but he had regard for God, he would still have a regard for justice to please God.

If he had no regard for God, but he had regard for his fellow man, he would have regard for justice for man’s sake. We know atheists crave justice when they feel an injustice has taken place.

But if you have a man with no regard for God or man, he will have no regard for justice, which is the case with this judge.

The Persistent Widow Who Wants Justice

There happens to be a widow in the city who craves justice, which this sets up the confrontation:

Luke 18:3 And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.