But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” (Luke 10:29)
Why didn’t they stop? Why did they pass by?
One was a priest and one was a Levite, a member of the priestly class. Their high status was that of the holiest, most revered men in their community. It wasn’t that they didn’t see him there, bleeding, perhaps moaning, dying by the side of the road. That is made clear in the story. They saw him and, intentionally passed by on the other side.
Why?
Why did they pass by?
Maybe They Were Afraid
In the 1961 movie, King of Kings, there is, near the beginning of the film, a scene that looks very much like this one, at first.
We are shown a road. It is dusty, sunbaked, and hot. A man is lying at the edge of the road. He is bleeding and moaning, barely able to move. Several R…