Luke 12:40

“Be ready” — a commentary on Luke 12:40

“Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”

The immediate context: grace that grounds vigilance

• The tone of Luke 12[i] is both tender and urgent. Jesus assures His disciples: “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32). The call to readiness in verse 40 flows from this prior gift: vigilance is not anxious striving but grateful, trusting obedience rooted in God’s generous purpose.
• Luke 12:33–38 pictures servants ready for their Lord. Girded waists, lamps burning, alert hearts—this is active, hopeful waiting. The Master astonishingly serves the servants, a foretaste of Christ’s self-giving and a pattern that reshapes our posture of watchfulness as joyful service rather than fearful austerity.

Exegesis of Luke 12:40

• “Therefore” ties v.40 to the prior images (vv.35–39): readiness is the logical response to both the Master’s goodness and the thief-in-the-night unpredictability.
• “You also be ready” is a standing imperative. Readiness is not a mood but a settled, ongoing posture of faith, repentance, and obedience.
• “The Son of Man” invokes Danielic authority (Daniel 7:13–14[ii]): the coming Judge-King. Jesus claims eschatological lordship—He doesn’t merely arrive; He asserts divine right to assess and reward.
• “Is coming … at an hour you do not expect” shuts the door on date-setting and complacency. The unknown timing is a mercy—it purifies motives, tests love, and keeps disciples attentive without presumption (cf. the thief analogy in v.39).

Theological threads

• Sovereign grace precedes faithful readiness. The kingdom is given (12:32) before we are commanded to be ready (12:40). Monergistic grace births synergistic obedience; justification grounds sanctification.
• Perseverance and watchfulness. The saints persevere because God preserves; yet God preserves His people by means of warnings and commands. Readiness is both evidence and instrument of perseverance.
• Stewardship under Christ’s lordship. The faithful manager (12:42–48) models readiness as wise, accountable stewardship, not idle waiting. Degrees of responsibility imply degrees of accountability before the Judge (12:47–48).
• Already/Not yet. We receive the kingdom now (12:32) yet await its consummation in the Son of Man’s return (12:40). Hope energises holiness.

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Readiness in Luke 12: a practical map

Passage	Emphasis	What readiness looks like today
12:1–12	Fear God, not man; confess Christ	Courageous witness; integrity over image
12:13–21	Rich fool warned	Resist greed; invest beyond the grave
12:22–31	Do not be anxious	Seek the kingdom; practice contentment
12:32–34	Father gives the kingdom	Generous almsgiving; treasure in heaven
12:35–38	Lamps burning; Master serves	Diligent, hopeful service; expect Christ
12:39–40	Thief imagery; unexpected hour	No date-setting; constant vigilance
12:41–48	Faithful/faithless manager	Accountable leadership; wise stewardship

Notes on emphasis drawn from standard lectionary and sermon treatments that highlight Luke’s movement from promise (12:32) to watchful obedience (12:35–40).

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The teaching of Luke 12:40 (NKJV)

• Core command: “Be ready.”
• Ground: The Son of Man—Jesus the Danielic King—will certainly come.
• Manner: Readiness is continual, not occasional; faithful, not fearful.
• Timing: His coming is deliberately unpredictable.
• Implication: Avoid complacency and speculation; embrace watchful, grace-fuelled obedience in ordinary life now.

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Applying Luke 12:40 to modern Christian living

• Live from assurance, not anxiety. Start at 12:32: the Father delights to give the kingdom. Let assurance power vigilance; let grace fuel grit.
• Practise ordinary faithfulness. Readiness looks like prayerful habits, repentance, sacrificial love, and vocational integrity. It is consistent, not flashy.
• Steward what you’ve been given. Time, money, gifts—deploy them for the Master’s interests. Give alms; prioritise kingdom investment over accumulation (12:33–34).
• Witness with courage. Confess Christ faithfully (12:8–9). Readiness includes a clear, gentle testimony under pressure.
• Refuse both apathy and alarmism. No cynicism (“He delays”) and no date-setting (“We know the hour”). Stay steady, hopeful, and busy doing your Master’s will.
• Lead accountably. If you shepherd others—family, church, workplace—lead as one who will give an account (12:42–48). Readiness includes ethical leadership and care for the vulnerable.

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Common missteps to avoid

• Speculation over sanctification. Chasing timelines substitutes for holiness; Jesus forbids it (12:39–40).
• Panic-driven piety. Fear-based activism burns out; gospel assurance sustains vigilance (12:32).
• Passive waiting. Biblical waiting works—hands to the plough, lamps lit, eyes up (12:35–38).

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A pastoral word to the heart

Readiness is not living on edge; it is living in step—with the Father’s generosity, the Son’s lordship, and the Spirit’s sanctifying presence. It is un-dramatic faithfulness—prayer before hurry, generosity before self, truth before convenience—so that when He comes, He finds you doing what love has already made your joy.

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In one line

Be ready—grounded in grace, steadfast in ordinary obedience, and joyfully alert for the Son who comes when we least expect.

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[i] Luke 12

New King James Version

Beware of Hypocrisy

12 In the meantime, when an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together, so that they trampled one another, He began to say to His disciples first of all, “Beware of the [a]leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known. 3 Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.

Jesus Teaches the Fear of God

4 “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 5 But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!

6 “Are not five sparrows sold for two [b]copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. 7 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

Confess Christ Before Men

8 “Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God. 9 But he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God.

10 “And anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but to him who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven.

11 “Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say. 12 For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

The Parable of the Rich Fool

13 Then one from the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”

14 But He said to him, “Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?” 15 And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of [c]covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”

16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.” ’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’

21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

Do Not Worry

22 Then He said to His disciples, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on. 23 Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing. 24 Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds? 25 And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? 26 If you then are not able to do the least, why [d]are you anxious for the rest? 27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not [e]arrayed like one of these. 28 If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith?

29 “And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind. 30 For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things. 31 But seek [f]the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you.

32 “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell what you have and give alms; provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

The Faithful Servant and the Evil Servant

35 “Let your waist be girded and your lamps burning; 36 and you yourselves be like men who wait for their master, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes and knocks they may open to him immediately. 37 Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them. 38 And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. 39 But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would [g]have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. 40 Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”

41 Then Peter said to Him, “Lord, do You speak this parable only to us, or to all people?”

42 And the Lord said, “Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food [h]in due season? 43 Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. 44 Truly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has. 45 But if that servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and be drunk, 46 the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. 47 And that servant who knew his master’s will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. 48 But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.

Christ Brings Division

49 “I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! 50 But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished! 51 Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division. 52 For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two, and two against three. 53 Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”

Discern the Time

54 Then He also said to the multitudes, “Whenever you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it is. 55 And when you see the south wind blow, you say, ‘There will be hot weather’; and there is. 56 Hypocrites! You can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it you do not discern this time?

Make Peace with Your Adversary

57 “Yes, and why, even of yourselves, do you not judge what is right? 58 When you go with your adversary to the magistrate, make every effort along the way to settle with him, lest he drag you to the judge, the judge deliver you to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. 59 I tell you, you shall not depart from there till you have paid the very last mite.”

Footnotes

Luke 12:1 yeast

Luke 12:6 Gr. assarion, a coin worth about 1⁄16 of a denarius

Luke 12:15 NU all covetousness

Luke 12:26 do you worry

Luke 12:27 clothed

Luke 12:31 NU His kingdom, and these things

Luke 12:39 NU not have allowed

Luke 12:42 at the right time

[ii] 13 “I was watching in the night visions,
And behold, One like the Son of Man,
Coming with the clouds of heaven!
He came to the Ancient of Days,
And they brought Him near before Him.
14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom,
That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
Which shall not pass away,
And His kingdom the one
Which shall not be destroyed.