Luke 6:27 tells you to love your enemies and to do good to people who hate you. Jesus does not mean a warm feeling toward those who wrong you; he means a settled commitment to act for their good, even when they have given you every reason not to. He speaks these words to his disciples in the Sermon on the Plain, in Luke’s account, addressing “you who hear” him.
“But I tell you who hear: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you…
Luke 6:27 (WEB)
What Luke 6:27 Means
The verse begins with “I tell you who hear,” which marks what follows as a direct instruction to people who have chosen to listen and follow Jesus. The command “love your enemies” uses the Greek word agapaō, a love that expresses itself in action and chosen goodwill rather than in emotion alone. Jesus does not ask you to like the person who hurts you or to pretend the hurt did not happen.
The second clause, “do good to those who hate you,” makes the love concrete. You are asked to look for real ways to benefit the person who opposes you: to refrain from retaliation, to be fair, to meet a need when you can. The verse does not promise that your enemy will change, that reconciliation will follow, or that you will feel peaceful at once. It describes the shape your behavior should take, and it leaves the outcome in God’s hands.
The Context of Luke 6:27
Luke’s Gospel was written by a companion of Paul, traditionally identified as the physician Luke, and addressed to a Gentile reader named Theophilus. The Sermon on the Plain in chapter 6 is Luke’s parallel to the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew, and it opens with a series of blessings and woes that contrast God’s reversal of fortunes with the comfort of the wealthy and well-spoken.
The verses just before and after Luke 6:27 show what loving enemies looks like. Jesus moves straight from the command to love into specifics: blessing those who curse you, praying for those who mistreat you, turning the other cheek, giving to anyone who asks. Read this way, the verse is not a vague ideal but the first line of a practical pattern of costly, non-retaliating kindness.
Key Phrases in Luke 6:27
Romans 12:20
Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in doing so, you will heap coals of fire on his head.”
(WEB)
Paul echoes Jesus’ call to kindness toward enemies, describing concrete acts of care for a hungry or thirsty adversary. The verse shows the same pattern of responding to hostility with practical good rather than retaliation.
Matthew 5:44
But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you…
(WEB)
This is Matthew’s version of Jesus’ teaching on loving enemies, found in the Sermon on the Mount. Reading it alongside Luke 6:27 shows the same command recorded in two Gospels, reinforcing its centrality to Jesus’ teaching.
A Short Prayer From Luke 6:27
Lord Jesus, you asked your disciples to love their enemies and to do good to those who hate them, and you did this yourself on the cross. I confess that my heart often resists this command, and I would rather hold on to my hurt than let it go. Give me a willingness to act for the good of people who have wronged me. Help me speak honestly, refuse to take revenge, and pray sincerely for those who oppose me. Shape my love into the kind of goodness that reflects your own. Amen.
