A.T. Robertson Commentary Luke 5:32

"I am not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance." — Luke 5:32 (ASV)

To repentance (εις μετανοιαν). Alone in Luke not genuine in Mr 2:17; Matthew 9:12. Only sinners would need a call to repentance, a change of mind and life. For the moment Jesus accepts the Pharisaic division between "righteous" and "sinners" to score them and to answer their criticism. At the other times he will show that they only pretend to be "righteous" and are "hypocrites" in reality. But Jesus has here blazed the path for all soul-winners. The selfsatisfied are the hard ones to win and they often resent efforts to win them to Christ.