Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Luke 9:59

"And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father." — Luke 9:59 (ASV)

Since it was a religious, social, and family obligation to provide a decent funeral for one’s father, Jesus’ refusal to permit this is a striking example of the radical transfer of loyalty he demanded . “The dead” who are to perform the burial are usually thought to be the spiritually dead who do not follow Jesus but remain at home.