The Parable of the Unjust Judge (also known as the Parable of the Importunate Widow), is one of the parables of Jesus

Parables of Jesus

The parables of Jesus can be found in all the Canonical gospels as well as in some of the non-canonical gospels but are located mainly within the three synoptic gospels. They represent a key part of the teachings of Jesus, forming approximately one third of his recorded teachings...

 which appears in only one of the Canonical gospels of the New Testament

New Testament

The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....

. According to the Gospel of Luke

Gospel of Luke

The Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...

 , a judge

Judge

A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...

 who is both irreligious and lacking compassion eventually agrees to do justice to a poor widow because she is so persistent in her demands.

This important parable demonstrates the need to pray

Prayer in Christianity

Prayer has been an essential part of Christianity since its earliest days. Prayer is an integral element of the Christian faith and permeates all forms of Christian worship...

 and never give up. It is found immediately prior to the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican

Pharisee and the Publican

The parable of the Pharisee and the Publican , is a parable of Jesus that appears in only one of the Canonical gospels of the New Testament. According to , a Pharisee, obsessed by his own virtue, is contrasted with a tax collector who humbly asks God for mercy.This parable demonstrates the need to...

 (also on prayer) and is similar in to the parable of the Friend at Night.

Narrative

Luke reports the parable as follows:

Interpretation

The framing material of the parable explains that it demonstrates the need to always pray

Prayer in Christianity

Prayer has been an essential part of Christianity since its earliest days. Prayer is an integral element of the Christian faith and permeates all forms of Christian worship...

 and never give up, for if even an unjust judge will eventually listen, God is much quicker to do so. The parable of the Friend at Night has a similar meaning.

Joel B. Green

Joel B. Green

Joel B. Green, Ph.D. is Associate Dean for the Center for Advanced Theological Studies and Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California, United States, and the author of numerous books, most of which are related to the New Testament.He is an...

 sees in this parable an injunction not to lose heart, in the light of the eschatological

Christian eschatology

Christian eschatology is a major branch of study within Christian theology. Eschatology, from two Greek words meaning last and study , is the study of the end of things, whether the end of an individual life, the end of the age, or the end of the world...

 tone of , and also an echo of Sirach

Sirach

The Book of the All-Virtuous Wisdom of Jesus ben Sira , commonly called the Wisdom of Sirach or simply Sirach, and also known as Ecclesiasticus or Siracides , is a work from the early 2nd century B.C. written by the Jewish scribe Jesus ben Sirach of Jerusalem...

35:

For he is a God of justice, who knows no favorites. Though not unduly partial toward the weak, yet he hears the cry of the oppressed. He is not deaf to the wail of the orphan, nor to the widow when she pours out her complaint; Do not the tears that stream down her cheek cry out against him that causes them to fall? He who serves God willingly is heard; his petition reaches the heavens. The prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds; it does not rest till it reaches its goal, nor will it withdraw till the Most High responds, judges justly and affirms the right.