Weymouth New Testament in Modern Speech, Luke

In Short

This text is Richard Francis Weymouth’s early twentieth-century translation of the Gospel of Luke into plain, modern English. Beginning with the miraculous births of John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth, it details Jesus’s public ministry, his parabolic teaching, his boundary-crossing compassion, and his eventual conflict with religious authorities. The narrative culminates in his execution by the Roman state and his unexpected resurrection. The work has endured because Weymouth strips away archaic phrasing, presenting an accessible, highly human portrait of Jesus as a compassionate restorer who intentionally seeks out the marginalized.

The Story

The narrative opens with a formal prologue addressed to Theophilus, promising a carefully researched and connected account of recent events. It immediately moves to the Judean countryside, where the elderly priest Zechariah and his childless wife Elizabeth are promised a son, John, who will prepare the way for God’s Anointed. Soon after, Mary gives birth to Jesus in Bethlehem, laying him in a manger because there is no room at the local inn, while angels announce his birth to nearby shepherds in open fields.

As an adult, Jesus undergoes baptism and endures forty days of fasting and temptation in the desert by the Devil. Returning to Galilee, he begins a public ministry characterized by miraculous healings and provocative social interactions. He heals a palsied man lowered through a roof, calls Levi the tax-gatherer to follow him, and attends a feast with publicans and sinners, insisting that healthy people do not require a physician, but rather the sick.

Jesus gathers twelve apostles and instructs his followers through parables and direct ethical teaching. He explains the parable of the sower, demonstrates authority over nature during a storm on the lake, feeds five thousand men with five loaves and two fish, and undergoes a radiant transfiguration on a mountain alongside Moses and Elijah. Throughout his journey toward Jerusalem, he delivers famous parables—such as the Good Samaritan and the Lost Sheep—to reframe the nature of neighborly love and divine joy over a single repentant sinner. He repeatedly warns his disciples of his impending suffering, death, and resurrection, though they fail to grasp his meaning.

Arriving in Jerusalem, Jesus enters into direct ideological conflict with the ruling elites. He cleanses the Temple space, answers hostile trick questions regarding taxation to Caesar and the resurrection, and delivers the parable of the wicked vine-dressers who murder the vineyard owner’s son. Judas Iscariot confers with the High Priests to betray him. During a final Passover meal with his disciples, Jesus establishes a new covenant in his blood, institutes the memorial biscuit and cup, and teaches that true leadership is expressed through service.

Later that night, Jesus is arrested. He is brought before Pilate and Herod, both of whom find no legal ground for execution. However, yield to frantic outcries from the crowd, Pilate releases the murderer Barabbas and consigns Jesus to be crucified. Carried behind Jesus by Simon of Cyrene, the cross is raised. Following his death and burial, women find his tomb empty. Jesus appears incognito to two disciples on the road to Emmaus—revealing himself in the breaking of bread—and subsequently stands among the Eleven in Jerusalem, eating roasted fish to demonstrate his physical presence. The account concludes with Jesus opening their minds to understand the Scriptures, promising them power from on high, and ascending into Heaven while blessing them.

How It Unfolds

A promised forerunner An angel appears to the aged priest Zechariah inside the Sanctuary, announcing that his wife Elizabeth will bear a son named John. Because Zechariah doubts the message due to his advanced age, he is rendered temporarily mute.

Birth in Bethlehem Joseph travels with his betrothed, Mary, to Bethlehem for a census, where she gives birth to her first-born son and lays him in a manger. Shepherds informed by an angelic choir visit the infant, while Mary quietly treasures these events in her mind.

Temptation in the desert Full of the Holy Spirit, Jesus spends forty days in the wilderness without food, successfully rebuffing three distinct temptations from the Devil using passages from scripture.

Authority and controversy Jesus begins healing the sick and forgiving sins, notably curing a paralyzed man lowered through a roof and calling the tax-gatherer Levi to follow him. When religious leaders complain about his association with sinners, Jesus notes that only the sick require a physician.

Teaching in parables Facing vast crowds, Jesus teaches the parable of the sower to explain how different minds receive God's message. He calms a sudden squall on the lake, feeds thousands with minimal bread and fish, and is transfigured on a mountain before Peter, John, and James.

The journey to Jerusalem Traveling toward the capital, Jesus shares the story of the Good Samaritan to define true neighborliness and tells parables of lost things to emphasize divine mercy. He frequently clashes with Pharisees and expounders of the Law over hypocritical rituals and Sabbath regulations.

Conflict in the capital Upon entering Jerusalem, Jesus confronts religious authorities who try to entrap him with questions about paying taxes to Caesar. He predicts his own death through the parable of the wicked vine-dressers and warns his disciples about impending trials.

Betrayal and trial Judas Iscariot agrees to betray Jesus for money. After sharing a final Passover meal where he instructs his disciples to serve one another, Jesus is arrested, interrogated by the High Priests, and presented to Pilate and Herod, who both find no capital crime.

Execution on the cross Overwhelmed by frantic demands from the crowd, Pilate releases the prisoner Barabbas and hands Jesus over to be crucified. Simon of Cyrene is forced to carry the cross, and Jesus speaks to weeping women on his way to execution.

Resurrection and ascension Disciples meet the risen Jesus on the road to Emmaus, recognizing him during a shared meal, after which he appears to the Eleven in Jerusalem to prove his bodily resurrection. He opens their minds to the Scriptures, promises power from on high, and ascends to Heaven near Bethany.

The People

• Jesus: The central figure who travels through Galilee and Judea teaching, healing, and reinterpreting religious law. He seeks out society's outcasts and insists that his mission is to call sinners to repentance. Knowing he faces rejection and execution by authorities in Jerusalem, he remains committed to his path, ultimately undergoing betrayal and crucifixion before returning to life to commission his followers.
• The Pharisees and Scribes: Religious teachers and legal scholars who frequently challenge Jesus's practices. They prioritize traditional Sabbath observance, ceremonial washings, and strict social separation from publicans. They feel insulted by Jesus's public rebukes, view his claims to forgive sins as blasphemies, and actively plot to entrap him so he can be handed over to the Roman Governor.
• The Apostles (including Peter, John, James, and Levi): A group of followers chosen by Jesus to assist in his ministry. They often lack understanding regarding Jesus's parables and his predictions of his own death, occasionally arguing among themselves over who will be regarded as the greatest. Though they flee or falter during his arrest and trial, they eventually witness his resurrected state and receive his final commission.
• Pontius Pilate: The Roman Governor tasked with trying Jesus. He repeatedly states that he finds no crime deserving death in Jesus and attempts to offer a lesser punishment to satisfy the crowd. However, under intense political pressure and frantic outcries from the populace, he yields to their demands, releasing Barabbas and handing Jesus over to be executed.

In Its Own Voice

"He has gone in to be the guest of a notorious sinner!"

When Jesus chooses to stay at the home of Zacchaeus, a wealthy tax collector in Jericho, the surrounding crowd responds with immediate indignation over his choice of company.

"Were not our hearts," they said to one another, "burning within us while He talked to us on the way and explained the Scriptures to us?"

Following their journey to Emmaus, two disciples reflect on the profound clarity and warmth they experienced while the unrecognized, risen Jesus opened the sacred writings to them along the road.

"See my hands and my feet--it is my very self. Feel me and see, for a spirit has not flesh and bones as you see I have."

Appearing suddenly to his terrified disciples in Jerusalem, Jesus offers concrete physical proof of his resurrection to dispel their alarm and doubts.

What It's Really About

The text addresses the radical upside-down nature of spiritual restoration. It argues that moral standing is not defined by external adherence to legal codes or social status, but by inner posture, humility, and active compassion. A recurring theme is the intentional inclusion of the marginalized—tax collectors, invalid women, Samaritans, and confessed sinners—against the rigid opposition of established religious institutions.

The narrative also explores the cost of commitment and the reality of divine mercy. Through warnings to the self-righteous and parables of lost coins and sheep, the text presents a God who actively seeks out the broken. It frames true leadership as humble service, establishing that self-sacrifice—represented by taking up one's cross—is the only path to genuine life.

Why Read It Today

Readers who appreciate clear, accessible historical literature will find Weymouth's translation refreshing. By removing archaic early-modern English phrasing, the translation reveals the underlying speed and narrative flow of the original Greek text. The reader experiences a vivid human story marked by intense social friction, memorable character vignettes, and profound moral teaching.

The primary friction for a contemporary audience lies in the formal ancient structure, the reliance on detailed ancestral genealogies, and the heavy inclusion of supernatural elements such as angelic visits, demonic temptations, and sudden miracles. Furthermore, the socio-political context—rooted in first-century Judean religious sects, Roman imperial taxation, and ancient legal codes—requires a reader willing to engage with historical cultural settings. Yet, what stays with the reader is the stark clarity of the central figure: a teacher who consistently rejects social elitism, demands radical ethical integrity, and responds to human suffering with direct, unhesitating grace.