What is the parable of the Prodigal Son about?
The parable of the Prodigal Son appears in Luke chapter 15; found only in Luke, it is among the most retold narratives in world literature. The context matters: Jesus tells it, after the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin, as an answer to religious leaders criticizing…
The parable of the Prodigal Son appears in Luke chapter 15; found only in Luke, it is among the most retold narratives in world literature. The context matters: Jesus tells it, after the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin, as an answer to religious leaders criticizing him for eating with sinners; the shared emphasis of all three parables is the joy of the lost being found. In the story, the younger son asks for his share of the inheritance while his father is still alive — a grave insult to the original hearers — and squanders everything in a distant country. When famine comes, he stoops to feeding pigs and longs even for the carob pods they eat. The turning point is given in the phrase "when he came to himself": he remembers that even his father's hired workers have bread enough, memorizes an apology and sets out. The climax is the father's response: he sees his son "while he was still far off," runs, throws his arms around him, cuts short the rehearsed apology, has the best robe brought and begins a feast. The parable does not end there: the older son refuses to enter — resentful precisely because he has kept the rules. The father's words to him open the parable's second edge: "Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. But it was appropriate to celebrate and be glad, for this, your brother, was dead, and is alive again. He was lost, and is found." In a single story the parable holds repentance, forgiveness and two kinds of lostness — the one squandered far away, and the one at home unable to rejoice. The full text can be read on this site on the Luke 15 page.