The Epistle of the Prodigal Son
Jesus' Parable of the Prodigal Son and Paul's Epistle to the Romans
A Reading by Lee Magness
Jesus There was a man who had two sons.
Paul For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
Jesus And the younger of them said to his father,
Son “Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.”
Paul For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible
attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the
world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not
honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were
darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images
resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
Jesus And he divided his property between them.
Paul Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among
themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather
than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions.
Jesus Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and
there he squandered his property in reckless living.
Paul And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought
not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of
envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful,
inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God's righteous
decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who
practice them.
Jesus And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need.
Paul Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or
nakedness, or danger, or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,
nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ
Jesus our Lord.
Jesus So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to
feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything.
Paul And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait
eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen
is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit
himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
Jesus But when he came to himself, he said,
Son “How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I
will arise and go to my father,
Paul What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who
died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into
his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the
dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
Son and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be
called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”
Paul For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of
adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are
children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ,
Jesus And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt
compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.
Paul There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Jesus And the son said to him,
Son “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.”
Jesus But the father said to his servants, “Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his
hand, and shoes on his feet.
Paul What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his
own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?
Jesus And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate.
Paul God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have
now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were
enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be
saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now
received reconciliation.
Jesus For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.”
Paul But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If
the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also
give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection
like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing,
so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have
died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will
never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the
life he lives he lives to God.
Jesus And they began to celebrate.
Paul Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Jesus Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and
dancing. And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. And he said to him,
“Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back
safe and sound.” But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, but he
answered his father,
Elder “Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave
me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came, who has
devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!”
Paul But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God and know his will and approve what is
excellent, because you are instructed from the law; and if you are sure that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a
light to those who are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the
embodiment of knowledge and truth— you then who teach others, do you not teach yourself? While you preach
against stealing, do you steal? You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who
abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law.
Jesus And he said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.
Paul What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God's part? By no means! For he says to Moses, “I will have
mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”
But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the
Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is
no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through
the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.
This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to
show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in
Jesus. Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded.
Jesus It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is
found.”
Paul So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore
reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for
unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your
members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under
law but under grace.
Jesus There was a man who had two sons.
Paul For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction
between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone
who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Paul For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
Jesus And the younger of them said to his father,
Son “Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.”
Paul For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible
attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the
world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not
honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were
darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images
resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
Jesus And he divided his property between them.
Paul Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among
themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather
than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions.
Jesus Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and
there he squandered his property in reckless living.
Paul And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought
not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of
envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful,
inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God's righteous
decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who
practice them.
Jesus And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need.
Paul Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or
nakedness, or danger, or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,
nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ
Jesus our Lord.
Jesus So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to
feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything.
Paul And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait
eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen
is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit
himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
Jesus But when he came to himself, he said,
Son “How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I
will arise and go to my father,
Paul What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who
died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into
his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the
dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
Son and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be
called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”
Paul For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of
adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are
children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ,
Jesus And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt
compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.
Paul There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Jesus And the son said to him,
Son “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.”
Jesus But the father said to his servants, “Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his
hand, and shoes on his feet.
Paul What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his
own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?
Jesus And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate.
Paul God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have
now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were
enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be
saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now
received reconciliation.
Jesus For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.”
Paul But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If
the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also
give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection
like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing,
so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have
died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will
never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the
life he lives he lives to God.
Jesus And they began to celebrate.
Paul Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Jesus Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and
dancing. And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. And he said to him,
“Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back
safe and sound.” But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, but he
answered his father,
Elder “Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave
me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came, who has
devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!”
Paul But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God and know his will and approve what is
excellent, because you are instructed from the law; and if you are sure that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a
light to those who are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the
embodiment of knowledge and truth— you then who teach others, do you not teach yourself? While you preach
against stealing, do you steal? You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who
abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law.
Jesus And he said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.
Paul What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God's part? By no means! For he says to Moses, “I will have
mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”
But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the
Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is
no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through
the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.
This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to
show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in
Jesus. Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded.
Jesus It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is
found.”
Paul So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore
reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for
unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your
members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under
law but under grace.
Jesus There was a man who had two sons.
Paul For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction
between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone
who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
