Parable of the Lost Coin
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The Parable of the Lost Coin is a parable told by Jesus in the New Testament of the Christian Bible.
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[edit] Context
This is the second of three parables about loss and redemption that Jesus tells after the Pharisees and religious leaders accuse him of welcoming and eating with sinners. The other two are the Parable of the Lost Sheep and the Parable of the Lost Son (the Prodigal Son).
[edit] Overview
As recounted in Luke 15, a woman with ten silver coins loses one. She then lights a lamp and sweeps her house until she finds it, rejoicing when she does.
From Luke 15:8-10:
- "Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, `Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost.' Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents."
[edit] Interpretation
As with the other parables something precious has been lost or put in peril. In this case, the one coin becomes in a sense more valuable than the other nine. Jesus illustrates that those who are lost or in peril are more important for the moment than those who are not. Since Jesus sees "sinners" as lost or in peril, it makes perfect sense for him to spend more time with them.
