What Does Luke 18:4 Mean?
And for a time he would not, but afterward he said within himself, Though I hold no awe of God, nor turn toward humankind.
Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.
Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.
King James wording
King James Version
And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;THE KEY
The judge’s refusal lasts only a while, revealing that an unmoved conscience does not make an outcome immovable.
THE MEANING
A request for justice stands before someone who admits that neither God nor another person constrains his decision. Still, his refusal lasts only “for a while”; the verse holds open the possibility of a shift inside the delay.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
The passage undoes the assumption that an eventual answer proves a compassionate heart: the judge responds for his own relief, not out of regard for the widow.
THE ROOT
ἐντρέπομαι
entrepomai
GROWS FROM
τρέπω
trepō
τρέπω means “turn”; ἐντρέπομαι can mean to respect or to be put to shame.
“turn toward humankind” in this verse is entrepomai. The verb’s form carries the image of turning, while its usage includes respect and shame. The judge says no human claim turns him toward accountability.
ALSO GROWS
trepō: Turn, turn about.
τρέπω
The verbal base gives “regard” a sense of orientation beneath its English sound.
entropē: Shame, disgrace; a sense of shame.
ἐντροπή
This related noun shows the inward restraint the judge says he does not feel.
φοβοῦμαι
phoboumai
GROWS FROM
φοβ-
phob-
Fear or dread; in context, fear of God can also carry reverence or awe.
The judge names the absence of fear toward God alongside his lack of regard for people. Neither divine awe nor human concern weighs on his choice.
ALSO GROWS
phobos: Fear, dread.
φόβος
The noun names the fear the judge says does not constrain him.
phoberos: Fearful, awe-inspiring.
φοβερός
This related adjective shows the root’s range from dread to the awe a presence can command.
THE PATTERN
Persistence keeps a plea present even while the one being asked resists.
Yet because this widow wears me down, I will set her straight, lest by her unending coming she strike me under the eye.I say to you, though he does not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his shamelessness he rises and gives him as many as he needs.And he said, Let me go, for the dawn is rising. And Jacob said, I will not let you go unless you bless me.THE THREAD
Yet because this widow wears me down, I will set her straight, lest by her unending coming she strike me under the eye.The next line shows what finally moves the judge: the widow’s repeated approach wears him down, not compassion. The answer comes while his lack of regard remains intact.
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