e trial of him,
saying, Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 26 And
he said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? 27
And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all
thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and
with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself. 28 And he said
unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.
29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who
is my neighbor? 30 Jesus made answer and said, A certain man was
going down from Jerusalem to Jericho; and he fell among robbers,
who both stripped him and beat him, and departed, leaving him half
dead. 31 And by chance a certain priest was going down that way:
and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 And in
like manner a Levite also, when he came to the place, and saw him,
passed by on other side. 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he
journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he was moved
with compassion, 34 and came to him, and bound up his wounds,
pouring on _them_ oil and wine; and he set him on his own beast,
and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 And on the
morrow he took out two shillings, and gave them to the host, and
said, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, I, when
I come back again, will repay thee. 36 Which of these three,
thinkest thou, proved neighbor unto him that fell among the
robbers? 37 And he said, He that showed mercy on him. And Jesus
said unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

The parable of the Good Samaritan was spoken to a certain lawyer who,
trusting to his knowledge of the Old Testament, and of its subtle
interpretations by the rabbis, came to Jesus hoping to dispute with him
and to defeat him in debate. He asked Jesus this question, "Teacher, what
shall I do to inherit eternal life?" He evidently thought that Jesus would
prescribe some new rites or ceremonies or would in some other way
disparage the Law. He was startled, then, to have Jesus reply, "What is
written in the law?" This answer robbed the enemy of his own weapon. He,
however, made a skillful reply, and declared that the Law is summarized in
the requirement to love God and man. Jesus again replied, "Thou hast
answered right: this do, and thou shalt live." There was no shadow of
evasion or deception in the statement of Jesus.