The Good Samaritan
The Good Samaritan appears in Jesus' parable recorded in Luke 10, told in response to a lawyer's question about the command to love one's neighbor. In the story a traveler is robbed, beaten, and left for dead on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho; both a priest and a Levite pass by without offering aid, while a Samaritan stops to bind the man's wounds, transport him to safety, and cover his expenses at an inn. The account underscores that genuine neighborly love is demonstrated through compassionate action rather than defined by ethnic or religious boundaries, directly challenging first-century Jewish-Samaritan hostility. Its enduring significance lies in redefining neighbor as anyone in need and establishing mercy as the practical measure of obedience to God's law.
Biography
- Occupation
- Traveler (parable character)
- Era
- New Testament (c. AD 30)
- Nationality
- Samaritan
Did You Know?
The priest and Levite likely avoided the injured man due to fears of corpse impurity under Numbers 19, which would bar them from temple duties for seven days even if he was only near death.
The Samaritan's use of oil and wine reflects ancient medical practices documented in sources like Hippocrates, where these substances were applied to cleanse and soothe wounds rather than mere symbolism.
Jesus set the parable on the Jerusalem-Jericho road, a 17-mile descent infamous for bandit ambushes, making the bystanders' fear of becoming victims themselves a plausible historical deterrent.
The two denarii paid to the innkeeper equaled roughly two days' wages for a laborer, covering extended care in a pandocheion, a Roman-style public inn where the Samaritan assumed full financial liability.
By casting a Samaritan. Viewed by Jews as ethnically impure heretics after Assyrian intermarriage. As the Torah-obedient hero, the parable directly challenges first-century ethnic boundaries in defining "neighbor."
Key Passages
Parable of the Good Samaritan
Luke 10:30-37
This parable teaches that true neighborly love means showing compassionate help to anyone in need, regardless of differences.
30nd Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.