9 Details of the Prodigal Son that would have astonished Jesus’ audience

We should allow them to astonish us as well ...

In Luke 15:11-32, Jesus tells the Parable of the Prodigal Son and teaches us of God the Father’s love and mercy. However, this tale of a son who demands and squanders his inheritance, only to be welcomed back with open arms by his father, is full of little details that a first-century Jew would have found shocking.

Here are just a few parts of the parable that would have astonished—and even scandalized—those listening to Jesus.

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