the role of the lukan parables in terms of the purpose of luke's gospel

although he knows that it is secondary. Derrett has shown, however, that the parable suits vv.
13-14, since it gives a lesson of heirs of the kingdom about the appropriate attitude to wealth
and possessions. 7
The first half of v. 15 functions as a warning against finding life in
possessions, and the second as a maxim. In addition, the parable which is preceded by v. 15,
is a demonstration of v. 15b. For the above reasons, it becomes obvious that vv. 13-14 and v.
15 lie in the original unity with the parable.
Bailey divides vv. 16-21 into five stanzas surrounded by two wisdom sayings such as,
Goods Given (v. 16), The Problem (v. 17), Present Plan (v. 18), Future Plan (v. 19) and Good
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Left (v. 20). I propose, in contrast, four movements as an analysis of structure regarding vv.
16-21: The Bumper Crop (v. 16), The Problem (v. 17), The Solution (vv. 18-19) and The
Interruption of God (v. 20).
3-2. The Analysis of the Parable
The parable, like the parable of the Good Samaritan, is set in the context of the crowd
requesting Jesus to settle the matter of the inheritance between him and his brother. Such
disputes were normally entrusted to Rabbis and other respected teachers, since it is intimately
linked with interpretation of the Hebrew Scriptures. In view of the request of the intervention
and the appellation to Jesus as there seems to be an acknowledgement of his
authority. Here it is not clear whether the elder brother, as opposed to a younger brother, does
not want to divide the inheritance, or the elder brother is withholding the whole inheritance.
In any event, although it was encouraged that brothers should live together without splitting
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their inheritance, if one of them wanted to divide the inheritance, it was allowed. The
petitioner’s motive is exposed as unsound through Jesus’ striking response to the request. He
is probably not seeking an impartial decision, but attempting to use Jesus’ standing for his
own purposes. In any case, Jesus here quickly grasps an opportunity to teach about wealth
and possessions.
The noun in v. 14 is reminiscent of Moses’ incident in Exod 2:14 with the
saying ‘who made you ruler and judge over us?’, where he stops the quarrel between two
Israelites. Even T. Gorringe argues that Jesus here is rejecting the request that Zealots want
7. Derrett, “The Rich Fool: A Parable of Jesus Concerning Inheritance,” in Studies in the New Testament, II
(Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1978), 99-120, here 102-103.
8. Bailey, Through Peasant Eyes: More Lucan Parables, Their Culture and Style, 63-68.
9. D. Daube, “Inheritace in Two Lukan Pericopes,” ZSSR 72 (1955), 326-34; Bailey, Through Peasant Eyes:
More Lucan Parables, Their Culture and Style, 59; Marshall, Luke, 522.
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