The passage for today has what is described as a parable. It is a one-sentence parable, more like a saying than a typical parable. It is only one or two sentences long. The passage actually contains four such parables or sayings. While the passage is part of a longer discourse of Jesus addressed to "a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people" (Luke 6:17), this section seems more directly addressed to the disciples.

The first of the parables or sayings deals with an analogy to a blind leader or teacher. The second carries forward somewhat the same theme by speaking about an impediment in the eye that keeps one from seeing clearly. The next two shift the nature of the image to a productive tree and a house on a solid foundation. They continue the theme of the character o…