At that time some people who were present there told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices. 2 He said to them in reply, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were greater sinners than all other Galileans? 3 By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did! 4 Or those eighteen people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem? 5 By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!”
6 And he told them this parable: “There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard, and when he came in search of fruit on it but found none, 7 he said to the gardener, ‘For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none. [So] cut it down. Why should it exhaust the soil?’ 8 He said to him in reply, ‘Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; 9 it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down.’”
Still traveling toward Jerusalem, Jesus uses two recent tragedies and a short parable to call his listeners to a clear response.
Some in the crowd report that Pilate killed Galileans while they were offering sacrifices. Pilate’s soldiers killed some Galilean pilgrims while they were in Jerusalem offering sacrifices. Because the killings happened during worship, people said their blood was “mingled” with the sacrificial blood. Jesus rejects the idea that their violent deaths prove they were “greater sinners” (vv. 1-2). He corrects a common mistake: suffering is not a simple measure of guilt. Then he gives the central warning: “If you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!” (v. 3). Repent means to turn back to God with mind and life, not only feelings. Jesus isn’t asking us to guess why others suffer; he’s telling us to turn back to God now.
He adds another example: eighteen people died when the tower in Siloam collapsed (vv. 4-5). Again, Jesus denies that the victims were “more guilty” than others in Jerusalem. The lesson is the same as before: rather than guessing why others died, each person should examine his or her life before God. The danger is not sudden death but unrepentant life.
To show God’s patience and our responsibility, Jesus tells a parable. A man looks for figs on a tree planted in his orchard and finds none for three years (v. 6). In Scripture, fruit is a simple sign of life. Where there is healthy growth, fruit appears; where there is only appearance, fruit is missing (cf. Lk. 3:8-9). Jesus teaches the same elsewhere: “Every tree is known by its own fruit” (Lk. 6:44); “By their fruits you will know them” (Mt. 7:16-20); and “Whoever remains in me… bears much fruit,” while fruitlessness brings removal (Jn. 15:2, 5-6; cf. Mk. 11:12-14, 20-21). The owner orders the tree cut down—“Why should it exhaust the soil?”—but the gardener asks for one more year to cultivate and fertilize (vv. 7-8). This short delay shows mercy without removing accountability.
The parable ends open: “It may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down” (v. 9). God’s patience is real, but it has a purpose: time to turn, be renewed, and bear fruit (cf. Rom. 2:4; 2 Pt. 3:9). The open ending moves the focus to the listener. The question is not how others died, but whether we will use the time we are given to live as God desires.
The Bible’s larger story helps these verses. Israel was often pictured as a vineyard or fig tree meant to yield just deeds and faithful worship; when fruit was missing, judgment followed (Isa. 5:1-7; Jer. 8:13; Mic. 7:1). Jesus draws on this pattern to say that God is patient and just. The gardener’s care recalls his own ministry—teaching, healing, and calling people to turn to God—so that lives begin to show the fruit of repentance.
A brief patristic window underscores this reading. Origen (c. 184–253) saw the fig tree as the soul entrusted to God’s care, spared for a time so that it might finally bear fruit. St. Augustine (354–430) taught that God delays judgment to give space for conversion, but an unfruitful life cannot presume on endless delay. St. Gregory the Great (c. 540–604) read the gardener’s intercession as a picture of Christ’s patient work in us, which calls for a changed life rather than excuses. Their shared emphasis is simple: God’s patience is mercy aimed at transformation, not permission to remain unchanged.
In this light, Jesus’ words are both a warning and a gift. He stops us from reading tragedy as a scoreboard of guilt and turns our attention to what matters: returning to God and bearing the kind of fruit that shows real life has taken root.
Lord Jesus, teach us to turn to you with an undivided heart. Cultivate what is barren in us, and make our lives bear good fruit.
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Sources and References:
- The Holy Bible, New American Bible, Revised Edition (2011): Lk. 13:1-9; cf. Lk. 3:8-9; Isa. 5:1-7; Jer. 8:13; Mic. 7:1; Rom. 2:4; 2 Pt. 3:9.
- Bernard Orchard et al., A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture (1953).
- Faculty of the University of Navarre, The Navarre Bible: Luke (2008).
- José Enrique Aguilar Chiu et al., eds., The Paulist Biblical Commentary (2018).
- Raymond E. Brown et al., The New Jerome Biblical Commentary (1990).
- Origen (c. 184–253); St. Augustine (354–430); St. Gregory the Great (c. 540–604).
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