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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "//www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="//www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" /><title>Luke 15:15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed the pigs.</title><link rel="canonical" href="https://biblehub.com/luke/15-15.htm" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/new9.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><meta property="og:image" content="https://biblehub.com/visuals/9/42_Luk_15_15.jpg" /><meta property="og:title" content="Luke 15:15 - The Parable of the Prodigal Son" /><meta property="og:site_name" content="Bible Hub" /><meta property="og:description" content="So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed the pigs." /><script type="application/javascript" src="https://scripts.webcontentassessor.com/scripts/8a2459b64f9cac8122fc7f2eac4409c8555fac9383016db59c4c26e3d5b8b157"></script><script src='https://qd.admetricspro.com/js/biblehub/biblehub-layout-loader-revcatch.js'></script><script id='HyDgbd_1s' src='https://prebidads.revcatch.com/ads.js' type='text/javascript' async></script><script>(function(w,d,b,s,i){var cts=d.createElement(s);cts.async=true;cts.id='catchscript'; 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and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. <a href="/nkjv/luke/15.htm">New King James Version</a> Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. <a href="/nasb_/luke/15.htm">New American Standard Bible</a> So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed pigs. <a href="/nasb/luke/15.htm">NASB 1995</a> &#8220So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. <a href="/nasb77/luke/15.htm">NASB 1977 </a> “And he went and attached himself to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. <a href="/lsb/luke/15.htm">Legacy Standard Bible </a> So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. <a href="/amp/luke/15.htm">Amplified Bible</a> So he went and forced himself on one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. <a href="/csb/luke/15.htm">Christian Standard Bible</a> Then he went to work for one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. <a href="/hcsb/luke/15.htm">Holman Christian Standard Bible</a> Then he went to work for one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. <a href="/asv/luke/15.htm">American Standard Version</a> And he went and joined himself to one of the citizens of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. <a href="/cev/luke/15.htm">Contemporary English Version</a> He went to work for a man in that country, and the man sent him out to take care of his pigs. <a href="/erv/luke/15.htm">English Revised Version</a> And he went and joined himself to one of the citizens of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. <a href="/gwt/luke/15.htm">GOD'S WORD® Translation</a> So he got a job from someone in that country and was sent to feed pigs in the fields. <a href="/gnt/luke/15.htm">Good News Translation</a> So he went to work for one of the citizens of that country, who sent him out to his farm to take care of the pigs. <a href="/isv/luke/15.htm">International Standard Version</a> So he went out to work for one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. <a href="/msb/luke/15.htm">Majority Standard Bible</a> So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. <a href="/net/luke/15.htm">NET Bible</a> So he went and worked for one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. <a href="/nheb/luke/15.htm">New Heart English Bible</a> He went and joined himself to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed pigs. <a href="/wbt/luke/15.htm">Webster's Bible Translation</a> And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. <a href="/wey/luke/15.htm">Weymouth New Testament</a> So he went and hired himself to one of the inhabitants of that country, who sent him on to his farm to tend swine; <a href="/web/luke/15.htm">World English Bible</a> He went and joined himself to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed pigs. <div class="vheading2">Literal Translations</div><a href="/lsv/luke/15.htm">Literal Standard Version</a> and having gone on, he joined himself to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into the fields to feed pigs, <a href="/blb/luke/15.htm">Berean Literal Bible</a> And having gone, he joined himself to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed pigs. <a href="/ylt/luke/15.htm">Young's Literal Translation</a> and having gone on, he joined himself to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him to the fields to feed swine, <a href="/slt/luke/15.htm">Smith's Literal Translation</a> And having gone, he was joined to one of the citizens of that country; and he sent him into the fields to feed swine.<div class="vheading2">Catholic Translations</div><a href="/drb/luke/15.htm">Douay-Rheims Bible</a> And he went and cleaved to one of the citizens of that country. And he sent him into his farm to feed swine. <a href="/cpdv/luke/15.htm">Catholic Public Domain Version</a> And he went and attached himself to one of the citizens of that region. And he sent him to his farm, in order to feed the swine. <a href="/nabre/luke/15.htm">New American Bible</a> So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens who sent him to his farm to tend the swine. <a href="/nrsvce/luke/15.htm">New Revised Standard Version</a> So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs.<div class="vheading2">Translations from Aramaic</div><a href="/lamsa/luke/15.htm">Lamsa Bible</a> So he went and got acquainted with one of the men of the city of that country; and he sent him to the field to feed the swine. <a href="/aramaic-plain-english/luke/15.htm">Aramaic Bible in Plain English</a> And he joined himself to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him to a field to herd pigs.<div class="vheading2">NT Translations</div><a href="/anderson/luke/15.htm">Anderson New Testament</a> And he went and attached himself to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed swine. <a href="/godbey/luke/15.htm">Godbey New Testament</a> <FR>And having gone he joined himself to one of the citizens of that country: and he sent him into his fields to feed swine:<Fr> <a href="/haweis/luke/15.htm">Haweis New Testament</a> And he went and connected himself with one of the citizens of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. <a href="/mace/luke/15.htm">Mace New Testament</a> and he was reduced to want, which forc'd him to make his application to one of the inhabitants there, who sent him to his farm to look after his swine. <a href="/wey/luke/15.htm">Weymouth New Testament</a> So he went and hired himself to one of the inhabitants of that country, who sent him on to his farm to tend swine; <a href="/worrell/luke/15.htm">Worrell New Testament</a> <FR>And, going his way, he attached himself to one of the citizens of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.<Fr> <a href="/worsley/luke/15.htm">Worsley New Testament</a> <FR>And he went and let himself to one of the people of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed swine.<Fr> <a href="/parallel/luke/15-15.htm">Additional Translations ...</a></div></div></div><div id="centbox"><div class="padcent"><a name="audio" id="audio"></a><div class="vheadingv">Audio Bible</div><iframe width="100%" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3-5_0Jtd9Lc?start=6261" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe> <div class="vheadingv">Context</div><a href="/bsb/luke/15.htm">The Parable of the Prodigal Son</a> …14After he had spent all he had, a severe famine swept through that country, and he began to be in need. 15<a href="/greek/2532.htm" title="2532: kai (Conj) -- And, even, also, namely. ">So</a> <a href="/greek/4198.htm" title="4198: poreutheis (V-APP-NMS) -- To travel, journey, go, die. ">he went</a> <a href="/greek/2853.htm" title="2853: ekollēthē (V-AIP-3S) -- From kolla; to glue, i.e. to stick.">and hired himself out</a> <a href="/greek/1520.htm" title="1520: heni (Adj-DMS) -- One. (including the neuter Hen); a primary numeral; one.">to a</a> <a href="/greek/3588.htm" title="3588: tōn (Art-GMP) -- The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the."></a> <a href="/greek/4177.htm" title="4177: politōn (N-GMP) -- A citizen, fellow-citizen. From polis; a townsman.">citizen</a> <a href="/greek/1565.htm" title="1565: ekeinēs (DPro-GFS) -- That, that one there, yonder. From ekei; that one (neuter) thing); often intensified by the article prefixed.">of that</a> <a href="/greek/3588.htm" title="3588: tēs (Art-GFS) -- The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the."></a> <a href="/greek/5561.htm" title="5561: chōras (N-GFS) -- Feminine of a derivative of the base of chasma through the idea of empty expanse; room, i.e. A space of territory.">country,</a> <a href="/greek/2532.htm" title="2532: kai (Conj) -- And, even, also, namely. ">who</a> <a href="/greek/3992.htm" title="3992: epempsen (V-AIA-3S) -- To send, transmit, permit to go, put forth. ">sent</a> <a href="/greek/846.htm" title="846: auton (PPro-AM3S) -- He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.">him</a> <a href="/greek/1519.htm" title="1519: eis (Prep) -- A primary preposition; to or into, of place, time, or purpose; also in adverbial phrases.">into</a> <a href="/greek/846.htm" title="846: autou (PPro-GM3S) -- He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.">his</a> <a href="/greek/3588.htm" title="3588: tous (Art-AMP) -- The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the."></a> <a href="/greek/68.htm" title="68: agrous (N-AMP) -- From ago; a field; genitive case, the country; specially, a farm, i.e. Hamlet.">fields</a> <a href="/greek/1006.htm" title="1006: boskein (V-PNA) -- To feed, pasture. A prolonged form of a primary verb; to pasture; by extension to, fodder; reflexively, to graze.">to feed</a> <a href="/greek/5519.htm" title="5519: choirous (N-AMP) -- A swine, hog, sow. Of uncertain derivation; a hog.">the pigs.</a> 16He longed to fill his belly with the pods the pigs were eating, but no one would give him a thing.…<div class="cred"><a href="//berean.bible">Berean Standard Bible</a> · <a href="//berean.bible/downloads.htm">Download</a></div> <a name="crossref" id="crossref"></a><div class="vheading">Cross References</div><div id="crf"><a href="/matthew/8-28.htm">Matthew 8:28-34</a> When Jesus arrived on the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, He was met by two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. / “What do You want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have You come here to torture us before the appointed time?” / In the distance a large herd of pigs was feeding. ... <a href="/mark/5-1.htm">Mark 5:1-20</a> On the other side of the sea, they arrived in the region of the Gerasenes. / As soon as Jesus got out of the boat, He was met by a man with an unclean spirit, who was coming from the tombs. / This man had been living in the tombs and could no longer be restrained, even with chains. ... <a href="/john/10-11.htm">John 10:11-13</a> I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. / The hired hand is not the shepherd, and the sheep are not his own. When he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf pounces on them and scatters the flock. / The man runs away because he is a hired servant and is unconcerned for the sheep. <a href="/2_peter/2-22.htm">2 Peter 2:22</a> Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,” and, “A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud.” <a href="/romans/1-24.htm">Romans 1:24-28</a> Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts to impurity for the dishonoring of their bodies with one another. / They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is forever worthy of praise! Amen. / For this reason God gave them over to dishonorable passions. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. ... <a href="/philippians/3-19.htm">Philippians 3:19</a> Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and their glory is in their shame. Their minds are set on earthly things. <a href="/1_corinthians/6-9.htm">1 Corinthians 6:9-11</a> Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts, / nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. / And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. <a href="/ephesians/2-12.htm">Ephesians 2:12</a> remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. <a href="/galatians/5-19.htm">Galatians 5:19-21</a> The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; / idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions, / and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. <a href="/james/4-4.htm">James 4:4</a> You adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be a friend of the world renders himself an enemy of God. <a href="/isaiah/65-1.htm">Isaiah 65:1-2</a> “I revealed Myself to those who did not ask for Me; I was found by those who did not seek Me. To a nation that did not call My name, I said, ‘Here I am! Here I am!’ / All day long I have held out My hands to an obstinate people who walk in the wrong path, who follow their own imaginations, <a href="/jeremiah/2-13.htm">Jeremiah 2:13</a> “For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and they have dug their own cisterns—broken cisterns that cannot hold water. <a href="/hosea/8-8.htm">Hosea 8:8-9</a> Israel is swallowed up! Now they are among the nations like a worthless vessel. / For they have gone up to Assyria like a wild donkey on its own. Ephraim has hired lovers. <a href="/ezekiel/34-4.htm">Ezekiel 34:4-6</a> You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bound up the injured, brought back the strays, or searched for the lost. Instead, you have ruled them with violence and cruelty. / They were scattered for lack of a shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild beasts. / My flock went astray on all the mountains and every high hill. They were scattered over the face of all the earth, with no one to search for them or seek them out.’ <a href="/isaiah/1-4.htm">Isaiah 1:4</a> Alas, O sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children who act corruptly! They have forsaken the LORD; they have despised the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on Him.</div> <a name="tsk" id="tsk"><div class="vheading">Treasury of Scripture</div>And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.he went.<a href="/luke/15-13.htm">Luke 15:13</a> And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living.<a href="/exodus/10-3.htm">Exodus 10:3</a> And Moses and Aaron came in unto Pharaoh, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, How long wilt thou refuse to humble thyself before me? let my people go, that they may serve me.<a href="/2_chronicles/28-22.htm">2 Chronicles 28:22</a> And in the time of his distress did he trespass yet more against the LORD: this is that king Ahaz.to feed.<a href="/luke/8-32.htm">Luke 8:32-34</a> And there was there an herd of many swine feeding on the mountain: and they besought him that he would suffer them to enter into them. And he suffered them… <a href="/ezekiel/16-52.htm">Ezekiel 16:52,63</a> Thou also, which hast judged thy sisters, bear thine own shame for thy sins that thou hast committed more abominable than they: they are more righteous than thou: yea, be thou confounded also, and bear thy shame, in that thou hast justified thy sisters… <a href="/nahum/3-6.htm">Nahum 3:6</a> And I will cast abominable filth upon thee, and make thee vile, and will set thee as a gazingstock.<div class="vheading">Jump to Previous</div><a href="/hebrews/8-11.htm">Citizen</a> <a href="/ezekiel/33-17.htm">Citizens</a> <a href="/luke/15-14.htm">Country</a> <a href="/matthew/22-5.htm">Farm</a> <a href="/mark/8-4.htm">Feed</a> <a href="/luke/14-23.htm">Fields</a> <a href="/luke/15-8.htm">Hands</a> <a href="/mark/1-20.htm">Hired</a> <a href="/mark/1-5.htm">Inhabitants</a> <a href="/mark/10-9.htm">Joined</a> <a href="/luke/8-34.htm">Pigs</a> <a href="/luke/8-33.htm">Swine</a> <a href="/micah/7-14.htm">Tend</a><div class="vheading2">Jump to Next</div><a href="/acts/21-39.htm">Citizen</a> <a href="/luke/19-14.htm">Citizens</a> <a href="/luke/19-12.htm">Country</a> <a href="/luke/15-25.htm">Farm</a> <a href="/john/21-15.htm">Feed</a> <a href="/luke/16-3.htm">Fields</a> <a href="/luke/18-15.htm">Hands</a> <a href="/luke/15-17.htm">Hired</a> <a href="/acts/1-19.htm">Inhabitants</a> <a href="/luke/24-15.htm">Joined</a> <a href="/luke/15-16.htm">Pigs</a> <a href="/luke/15-16.htm">Swine</a> <a href="/john/21-15.htm">Tend</a><div class="vheading2">Luke 15</div>1. <a href="/luke/15-1.htm">The parable of the lost sheep;</a> 8. <a href="/luke/15-8.htm">of the piece of silver;</a> 11. <a href="/luke/15-11.htm">of the prodigal son.</a> </div></div><div id="mdd"><div align="center"><div class="bot2"><table align="center" width="100%"><tr><td><div align="center"> <script id="3d27ed63fc4348d5b062c4527ae09445"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=51ce25d5-1a8c-424a-8695-4bd48c750f35&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script> <script id="b817b7107f1d4a7997da1b3c33457e03"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=cb0edd8b-b416-47eb-8c6d-3cc96561f7e8&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script>  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-2'> </div>  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-0' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div>  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-3'> </div>  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-1' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div>  <div align="center" id='div-gpt-ad-1531425649696-0'> </div> <ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:inline-block;width:200px;height:200px" data-ad-client="ca-pub-3753401421161123" data-ad-slot="3592799687"></ins> <script> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); </script> </div> </td></tr></table></div></div></div><div id="combox"><div class="padcom"><a name="study" id="study"></a><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top"><a href="/study/luke/15.htm">Study Bible</a></td><td width="1%" valign="top"><a href="/study/luke/" title="Book Summary and Study">Book ◦</a> <a href="/study/chapters/luke/15.htm" title="Chapter summary and Study">Chapter </a></tr></table></div>So he went and hired himself out This phrase indicates a significant shift in the prodigal son's circumstances. In the cultural context of the time, hiring oneself out was often a last resort for those in desperate need. The act of hiring oneself out suggests a loss of status and independence, highlighting the son's fall from wealth to poverty. This mirrors the spiritual journey of those who turn away from God, emphasizing the consequences of sin and the need for repentance.to a citizen of that country The mention of a "citizen of that country" underscores the son's alienation from his own people and heritage. In Jewish culture, associating with Gentiles was often seen as undesirable, and this detail highlights the depth of the son's estrangement. It also reflects the broader biblical theme of exile and separation from God, as seen in the experiences of Israel in the Old Testament.who sent him into his fields Being sent into the fields signifies a menial and degrading task, especially for someone of Jewish heritage. Fields were often associated with hard labor and servitude, contrasting sharply with the son's previous life of ease. This imagery is reminiscent of the Israelites' bondage in Egypt, serving as a metaphor for the bondage of sin.to feed the pigs Feeding pigs would have been particularly abhorrent to a Jewish audience, as pigs were considered unclean animals according to Levitical law (<a href="/leviticus/11-7.htm">Leviticus 11:7</a>). This task symbolizes the depth of the son's degradation and the spiritual impurity he has reached. It serves as a powerful illustration of the consequences of turning away from God and the depths to which sin can lead. The imagery of uncleanness also foreshadows the need for redemption and cleansing, themes central to the message of Jesus Christ.<div class="vheading2">Persons / Places / Events</div>1. <a href="/topical/t/the_prodigal_son.htm">The Prodigal Son</a> A young man who, after squandering his inheritance, finds himself in dire need and hires himself out to a foreigner. 2. <a href="/topical/c/citizen_of_that_country.htm">Citizen of that Country</a> A resident of the foreign land where the prodigal son finds himself. This person employs the son to feed pigs, a task considered degrading for a Jew. 3. <a href="/topical/t/the_foreign_country.htm">The Foreign Country</a> Represents a place far from the father's house, symbolizing spiritual and physical separation from God. 4. <a href="/topical/t/the_pigs.htm">The Pigs</a> Unclean animals according to Jewish law, symbolizing the depth of the prodigal son's fall into sin and desperation. 5. <a href="/topical/t/the_fields.htm">The Fields</a> The setting where the prodigal son works, representing the harsh reality of his choices and the consequences of his rebellion.<div class="vheading2">Teaching Points</div><a href="/topical/t/the_consequences_of_sin.htm">The Consequences of Sin</a> Sin leads to spiritual and physical degradation. The prodigal son's fall into feeding pigs illustrates the depths to which sin can take us. <a href="/topical/s/separation_from_god.htm">Separation from God</a> The foreign country symbolizes separation from God, reminding us of the dangers of straying from His presence. <a href="/topical/t/the_need_for_repentance.htm">The Need for Repentance</a> The prodigal son's situation highlights the necessity of recognizing our sin and turning back to God. <a href="/topical/g/god's_grace_and_redemption.htm">God's Grace and Redemption</a> Despite the depths of our sin, God's grace is sufficient to redeem and restore us when we repent. <a href="/topical/c/cultural_and_spiritual_implications.htm">Cultural and Spiritual Implications</a> Understanding the cultural context of feeding pigs helps us grasp the severity of the prodigal son's situation and the hope found in returning to God.<a name="commentary" id="commentary"></a><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/ellicott/luke/15.htm">Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers</a></div>(15) Joined himself.--Literally clave to, or, attached himself to. The verb is the same as that used of the husband cleaving to his wife in <a href="/matthew/19-5.htm" title="And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall join to his wife: and they two shall be one flesh?">Matthew 19:5</a>, and thus expresses the absolute dependence of the famished man upon one who was ready to help him.To a citizen.--Literally, to one of the citizens. In the outer story of the parable, this would emphasise the misery into which the man had fallen. The son of Abraham had to depend upon the bounty of an alien. In the two lines of interpretation, the "citizen" is one who all along has been of the world, worldly, living for no higher end than gain or pleasure. The prodigal is as one who, called to a higher life, has forfeited its blessedness, and now depends for such joy as he is capable of on those who are more completely identified with evil. It is, perhaps, natural that as we diverge more widely from the primary scope of the parable, its application in detail should become more difficult; and looking at the parable, as giving an outline of the history of the human race, one fails to see who answers to the "citizen." Not the Tempter, the great author of the world's evil, for the citizen is one of many. Nor is it the part of the citizen here to tempt to evil, but rather to be half-unconsciously God's instrument in punishing it--half-unconsciously, again, the means of preserving the evil-doer from perishing, and so of making a subsequent deliverance possible. It is truer to facts, therefore, to see in the "citizen" the representative of the wisdom and knowledge, maxims of worldly prudence or principles of ethics without religion, which for a time sustain the soul, and "still the hungry edge of appetite," and keep it from sinking utterly, while yet they leave it in its wretchedness and do not satisfy its cravings.To feed swine.--We feel at once the shudder that would pass through the hearers of the parable as they listened to these words. Could there be for an Israelite a greater depth of debasement? In the inner teaching of the parable, this perhaps implies a state in which the man's will and energies have but the one work of ministering to his baser appetites. Such, in the long-run, is the outcome of the wisdom described in the previous note as answering to the "citizen."<div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/pulpit/luke/15.htm">Pulpit Commentary</a></div>Verse 15. - And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country. "That citizen," says St. Bernard, quoted by Archbishop Trench, "I cannot understand as other than one of the malignant spirits, who in that they sin with an irremediable obstinacy, and have passed into a permanent disposition of malice and wickedness, are no longer guests and strangers, but citizens and abiders in the land of sin." This is a true picture of the state of such a lost soul, which in despair has yielded itself up to the evil one and his angels and their awful prompt-tugs and suggestions; but the heathen citizen is well represented by the ordinary sordid man of the world, who engages in any infamous calling, and in the carrying on of which he employs his poor degraded ruined brothers and sisters. To feed swine. What a shudder must have passed through the auditory when the Master reached this climax of the prodigal's degradation I For a young Israelite noble, delicately nurtured and trained in the worship of the chosen people, to be reduced to the position of a herdsman of those unclean creatures for which they entertained such a loathing and abhorrence that they would not even name them, but spoke of a pig as the other thing! <a href="/commentaries/luke/15-15.htm">Parallel Commentaries ...</a> <a name="lexicon" id="lexicon"></a><div class="vheading">Greek</div>[So] καὶ (kai) Conjunction <a href="/greek/strongs_2532.htm">Strong's 2532: </a> And, even, also, namely. he went πορευθεὶς (poreutheis) Verb - Aorist Participle Passive - Nominative Masculine Singular <a href="/greek/strongs_4198.htm">Strong's 4198: </a> To travel, journey, go, die. [and] hired himself out ἐκολλήθη (ekollēthē) Verb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person Singular <a href="/greek/strongs_2853.htm">Strong's 2853: </a> From kolla; to glue, i.e. to stick. to a ἑνὶ (heni) Adjective - Dative Masculine Singular <a href="/greek/strongs_1520.htm">Strong's 1520: </a> One. (including the neuter Hen); a primary numeral; one. citizen πολιτῶν (politōn) Noun - Genitive Masculine Plural <a href="/greek/strongs_4177.htm">Strong's 4177: </a> A citizen, fellow-citizen. From polis; a townsman. of that ἐκείνης (ekeinēs) Demonstrative Pronoun - Genitive Feminine Singular <a href="/greek/strongs_1565.htm">Strong's 1565: </a> That, that one there, yonder. From ekei; that one (neuter) thing); often intensified by the article prefixed. country, χώρας (chōras) Noun - Genitive Feminine Singular <a href="/greek/strongs_5561.htm">Strong's 5561: </a> Feminine of a derivative of the base of chasma through the idea of empty expanse; room, i.e. A space of territory. [who] καὶ (kai) Conjunction <a href="/greek/strongs_2532.htm">Strong's 2532: </a> And, even, also, namely. sent ἔπεμψεν (epempsen) Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular <a href="/greek/strongs_3992.htm">Strong's 3992: </a> To send, transmit, permit to go, put forth. him αὐτὸν (auton) Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Accusative Masculine 3rd Person Singular <a href="/greek/strongs_846.htm">Strong's 846: </a> He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons. into εἰς (eis) Preposition <a href="/greek/strongs_1519.htm">Strong's 1519: </a> A primary preposition; to or into, of place, time, or purpose; also in adverbial phrases. his αὐτοῦ (autou) Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular <a href="/greek/strongs_846.htm">Strong's 846: </a> He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons. fields ἀγροὺς (agrous) Noun - Accusative Masculine Plural <a href="/greek/strongs_68.htm">Strong's 68: </a> From ago; a field; genitive case, the country; specially, a farm, i.e. Hamlet. to feed βόσκειν (boskein) Verb - Present Infinitive Active <a href="/greek/strongs_1006.htm">Strong's 1006: </a> To feed, pasture. A prolonged form of a primary verb; to pasture; by extension to, fodder; reflexively, to graze. [the] pigs. χοίρους (choirous) Noun - Accusative Masculine Plural <a href="/greek/strongs_5519.htm">Strong's 5519: </a> A swine, hog, sow. Of uncertain derivation; a hog. <div class="vheading">Links</div><a href="/niv/luke/15-15.htm">Luke 15:15 NIV</a> <a href="/nlt/luke/15-15.htm">Luke 15:15 NLT</a> <a href="/esv/luke/15-15.htm">Luke 15:15 ESV</a> <a href="/nasb/luke/15-15.htm">Luke 15:15 NASB</a> <a href="/kjv/luke/15-15.htm">Luke 15:15 KJV</a> <a href="//bibleapps.com/luke/15-15.htm">Luke 15:15 BibleApps.com</a> <a href="//bibliaparalela.com/luke/15-15.htm">Luke 15:15 Biblia Paralela</a> <a href="//holybible.com.cn/luke/15-15.htm">Luke 15:15 Chinese Bible</a> <a href="//saintebible.com/luke/15-15.htm">Luke 15:15 French Bible</a> <a href="/catholic/luke/15-15.htm">Luke 15:15 Catholic Bible</a> <a href="/luke/15-15.htm">NT Gospels: Luke 15:15 He went and joined himself to one (Luke Lu Lk) </a></div></div></td></tr></table></div><div id="left"><a href="/luke/15-14.htm" onmouseover='lft.src="/leftgif.png"' onmouseout='lft.src="/left.png"' title="Luke 15:14"><img src="/left.png" name="lft" border="0" alt="Luke 15:14" /></a></div><div id="right"><a href="/luke/15-16.htm" onmouseover='rght.src="/rightgif.png"' onmouseout='rght.src="/right.png"' title="Luke 15:16"><img src="/right.png" name="rght" border="0" alt="Luke 15:16" /></a></div><div id="botleft"><a href="#" onmouseover='botleft.src="/botleftgif.png"' onmouseout='botleft.src="/botleft.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botleft.png" name="botleft" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="botright"><a href="#" onmouseover='botright.src="/botrightgif.png"' onmouseout='botright.src="/botright.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botright.png" name="botright" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="bot"><iframe width="100%" height="1500" scrolling="no" src="/botmenubhnew2.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></div></td></tr></table></div></body></html>