Luke Chapter 12 verse 38 Holy Bible
And if he shall come in the second watch, and if in the third, and find `them' so blessed are those `servants'.
read chapter 12 in ASV
And if he comes in the second division of the night or in the third, and they are watching for him, happy are those servants.
read chapter 12 in BBE
And if he come in the second watch, and come in the third watch, and find [them] thus, blessed are those [bondmen].
read chapter 12 in DARBY
And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.
read chapter 12 in KJV
read chapter 12 in WBT
They will be blessed if he comes in the second or third watch, and finds them so.
read chapter 12 in WEB
and if he may come in the second watch, and in the third watch he may come, and may find `it' so, happy are those servants.
read chapter 12 in YLT
Pulpit Commentary
Pulpit CommentaryVerse 38. - And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so. Among the Jews at the time of our Lord, the old division of the night into three watches had given place to the ordinary Roman division into four. They were reckoned thus: from six to nine, from nine to midnight, from midnight to three, and from three to six. In this parable the second and third watches are mentioned as necessary for the completeness of the picture; for the banquet would certainly not be over before the end of the first watch, and in the fourth the day would be breaking. The second and third watches, then, represent the still and weary hours of the night, when to watch is indeed a task of difficulty and painfulness; and here again the Lord repeats his high encomium on such devoted conduct in his second "blessed are those servants." It is perfectly clear that in this parable the master's return signifies the coming of Christ. The whole tone, then, is a grave reminder to us, to all impatient ones, that the great event may be long delayed, much longer than most Christian thinkers dream; but it tells us, too. that this long delay involves a test of their loyalty. "The parousia does not come so quickly as impatience, nor yet so late as carelessness, supposes" (Van Oosterzee).
Ellicott's Commentary
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(38) And if he shall come in the second watch.--In Mark 13:35 we have the Roman four-fold division of the night. (See Note there.) Here we find the older Jewish division into three watches. (Judges 7:19, 1Samuel 11:11.)
