Notes About The Poem

The Book of Luke, Chapter 11: verses 5,6,7, and 8.

5 And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves;

6 For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him?

7 And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee.

8 I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.

 
 
 
 

The Parable of the Midnight Neighbor

The apostle Luke speaks of a friend who visits his neighbor, asking for three loaves of bread so he can offer the breaking of bread and other sustenance with his unexpected late-night visitor.  It becomes a duality newly purposed upon the neighbor who disliked the 12th-hour disturbance at the door; he bade him to leave, but the persistent act went on until the neighbor relented and gave his visitor what was asked.

The irritable spirit failed in its task of non-compliance, and now the act of the hour was not the original sin, upon the unexpected, the visitor, and the neighbor, as righteousness of giving knows not the hour and should not be held accountable by it.  The act of doing the righteous thing was through persistence, lest admitted failure descend upon neighbors for an unknown time, but do right, and there will be peace and harmony for all.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2025

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Etgen-Baker Avatar
November 9, 2025 at 2:57 PM
strength in your message...and I agree with: The act of doing the righteous thing was through persistence, lest admitted failure descend upon neighbors for an unknown time, but do right, and there will be peace and harmony for all.
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