Luke 11:11-13 11And what father among you, when the son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent? 12Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
Jesus finishes up his teaching on prayer with another illustration. He uses a form of rabbinic argumentation called Qal wahomer, which means from the lesser to the greater; what is true in a lesser situation will be even more true in a greater situation. In this short saying, the gift of an earthly father (verses 11-12) is compared to the gift of the heavenly Father (verse 13). A son might ask his father for fish to eat. Fish were a basic food item in area around the Sea of Galilee. Jesus and his disciples likely fished often during their travels across the lack. Some of his disciples had been fishermen by trade. A fish and a snake can look close to appearance, with the scales. However, the two are not easily mistaken since a snake is on land and a fish is in the water. Snakes are generally repulsive to most people, and the poisonous ones create fear. The obvious answer to the first situation is that no father would do such a thing and give his son a snake. Fathers are more careful than that.
A curled up scorpion can look like an egg. It might be possible for the careless person to think that the oblong object is an egg, possibly edible, when it was actually a scorpion that might spring to life and sting. No father would point to such an object and tell his son to go fetch it for dinner. Earthly fathers love their sons and want to do what is best for them. Jesus mentioned snakes and scorpions in 10:19 as two creatures that create fear and challenge when traveling across the trails and roads of Israel.
Verse 13 is the “how much more” application of verse 12. Earthly fathers seek to do what is best for their children. We do not want to put them in danger or give them gifts that will hurt them. We have a deep and sacrificial love for our children and watch out for their well-being. Jesus makes the comparison even more dramatic by describing the fathers as evil. Even the worst father will give nice gifts to his children. There is an innate love fathers have for their children.
The loving, earthly, weak, and evil father is compared to the awesome, loving, gracious, and good heavenly Father. The good gifts are compared to the greatest gift of the Holy Spirit. Luke’s theology stands out in this verse. The Holy Spirit is highlighted in Luke’s writing, particularly the book of Acts. Jesus came preaching the kingdom and proclaiming the special gift of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit brings God’s kingdom to us in power and presence. Jesus does not elaborate on this promise here, but John records more of his teachings in chapters 14-16. The greatest gift we can ask God is for his presence to be with us. The Holy Spirit is the very presence of the Father and Son with us. Luke, as the author of the two volumes Luke-Acts, plants a seed in the heart of Theophilus that will be explained more in later stories.
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