“Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?”
The full verse · Luke 17:17 · KJV
, Were ? are the ?
Asked by
Jesus: the Son of God and promised Messiah, who had sent ten lepers to the priests, and "as they went, they were cleansed" (Luke 17:14)
Asked to
Disciples: "the disciples" (Luke 17:1, 22), whom Luke places with Jesus before and after this scene; the verse itself names no hearer, only that Jesus spoke ("Jesus answering said") as the one healed Samaritan "fell down on his face at his feet" (Luke 17:16-17)
The Scene
As Jesus passes between Samaria and Galilee, ten lepers cry for mercy; He sends them to the priests, they are cleansed on the way, and one of them, a Samaritan, turns back and falls at His feet giving thanks (Luke 17:11-16).
Why It Was Asked
The purpose behind the questionTen men had been healed, but only one came back. Jesus' first question points to how much mercy was given: all ten were cleansed. His second asks about the missing: where are the rest? Gill puts it simply: "here was one, but where were the rest?" Barnes thinks the nine were probably doing exactly what Jesus said, going to the priest, but they "had no gratitude to God or their Benefactor." Jesus did not forbid thanks; Barnes says "he rather seems to reprove them for not doing it." Matthew Henry sees two lessons in the two questions: "How rich Christ is in doing good" and "How poor we are in our returns."
The Response
What Scripture recordsNo one answers for the nine. Jesus answers His own question in the next breath: "There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger" (Luke 17:18). Then He turns to the man at His feet: "Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole" (Luke 17:19). The nine are not mentioned again. As Barnes puts it, "the others were heard of no more."
Historical Context
The world behind the wordsUnder the Law of Moses, a leper had to live apart: "he shall dwell alone; without the camp shall his habitation be" (Leviticus 13:46). Barnes says the ten stood afar off "as they were required by law," and were not allowed to enter the village. A leper who was healed had to be brought to the priest (Leviticus 14:2), who would examine him and declare him clean. Barnes notes that without the priest's certificate he could not be restored "to the society of his friends, or to the public worship of God."
Jesus sent the ten to the priests before they were healed. Barnes says this "required no small measure of faith on their part," because they had to start walking with no evidence yet to show.
The Bigger Picture
Where this fits in God's storyJesus asked these questions, and they show what He values. He healed all ten without asking for anything first. But He noticed who came back. Gratitude matters to Him.
The text links thanks to Jesus with glory to God. The Samaritan "glorified God" and fell at Jesus' feet "giving him thanks" (Luke 17:15-16), and Jesus calls this returning "to give glory to God" (Luke 17:18). Gill draws the point out: because the nine did not return to give thanks to Christ, "they did not give glory to God." The one who came back also received something the nine never heard: "thy faith hath made thee whole" (Luke 17:19).
Carry the question into prayer and conversation.
Lord, You have been rich in mercy to me; where have I received Your goodness and kept walking without turning back to thank You?
A prayer to carry into the day.
- Why do you think it can be easier to cry out for help (Luke 17:13) than to come back and say thank you?
- Tell about a time you went back to thank God for something specific. What did it do in you?
For you, a small group, a friend, or the dinner table.
Make returning a habit. When God answers a prayer, go back to Him on purpose and thank Him by name for what He did. The ten all lifted up their voices (Luke 17:13); only one turned back and "with a loud voice glorified God" (Luke 17:15).
This does not make obedience unimportant. The nine were probably doing what Jesus told them, as Barnes notes, and the Samaritan was still sent on his way afterward (Luke 17:19). Thanks and obedience belong together. Do what He says, and do not forget to come back and thank Him.
Built from the biblical text and checked against trusted commentaries and lexicons. References & Sources