How did the father of the prodigal son feel inside?

[contemplative]

And the younger son said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country (Luke 15:12-13)

I need to know nothing more than how the father in this story felt at this point. What do you think the father of the prodigal son felt inside?

 

[LSK]

Mildly disgusted and slightly amused?

 

[Orionthehunter]

contemplative:

And the younger son said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country (Luke 15:12-13)

I need to know nothing more than how the father in this story felt at this point. What do you think the father of the prodigal son felt inside?

I imagine it is the same way I feel when I hear of a Catholic who has left the faith. And when he saw his son far off, the joy he felt is the same I feel when I hear of a person who has come home to the Church.

 

[Darrel]

contemplative:

And the younger son said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country (Luke 15:12-13)

I need to know nothing more than how the father in this story felt at this point. What do you think the father of the prodigal son felt inside?

I think the father was deeply hurt. Imagine your son asking for his inheritence before you are dead.

-D

 

[contemplative]

Darrel:

I think the father was deeply hurt. Imagine your son asking for his inheritence before you are dead.

-D

Doesn’t that suggest pride on the father’s part.

 

[Eileen_T]

Darrel:

I think the father was deeply hurt. Imagine your son asking for his inheritence before you are dead. -D

I agree. Hurt and rejection.

contemplative:

Doesn’t that suggest pride on the father’s part.

Why pride? The son is saying, Dad, I can’t wait to stick around until you are dead, give me the money now so I can get out of this place and away from you and do my own thing.

The father could have said no but he didn’t. Do you think he said “Sure son, here’s the money, take it and go. And if you don’t come back, have a good life.” Okay, I’m a mother, not a father, but I think I’d be a little hurt.

 

[contemplative]

Eileen T:

I agree. Hurt and rejection.

I too agree.

The son is saying, Dad, I can’t wait to stick around until you are dead, give me the money now so I can get out of this place and away from you and do my own thing.

True

The father could have said no but he didn’t.

True again

Do you think he said “Sure son, here’s the money, take it and go. And if you don’t come back, have a good life.”

I don’t know. What do you suppose the father’s heart was saying or feeling? That is the question I originally asked. In as many words and details possible what do you suppose was in the heart of the father at this time?

Why pride?

Darrel was kind of suggesting something more worldly. Maybe he did not mean to.

 

[Steven_Merten]

Hello contemplative,

Here is how the father of the prodigal son felt.

Please visit Repentance To Service

NAB ISA 1:2
Hear, O heavens, and listen, O earth, for the LORD speaks: Sons have I raised and reared, but they have disowned me! An ox knows its owner, and an ***, its master’s manager; But Israel does not know, my people has not understood. Ah! sinful nation, people laden with wickedness, evil race, corrupt children! They have forsaken the LORD, spurned the Holy One of Israel, apostatized.NAB JER 10:20

My tent is ruined, all its cords are severed. My sons have left me, they are no more: no one to pitch my tent, no one to raise its curtains.NAB JER 2:19

Your own wickedness chastises you, your own infidelities punish you. Know then, and see, how evil and bitter is your forsaking the LORD, your God, And showing no fear of me, says the LORD, the God of hosts. Long ago you broke your yoke, you tore off your bonds. I will not serve, you said. On every high hill, under every green tree, you gave yourself to harlotry. I had planted you, a choice vine of fully tested stock; How could you turn out obnoxious to me, a spurious vine? (HOS 9:15)NAB BAR 4:11

With joy I fostered them; but with mourning and lament I let them go. Let no one gloat over me, a widow, bereft of many: For the sins of my children I am left desolate, because they turned from the law of God, and did not acknowledge his statutes; In the ways of God’s commandments they did not walk, nor did they tread the disciplined paths of his justice.

 

[Darrel]

contemplative:

Doesn’t that suggest pride on the father’s part.

Not exactly,

The thing I see here is that the son wanted his portion of the fathers wealth for the sheer sake of blowing it. So asking for it before dad dies is hurtful. Feeling hurt realy is not prideful in this case imho. The father gave him his money, so for the sake of the parabel I think Jesus is showing the fault of the son for such a request. This is further reinforced by the fact that he goes off and does all sorts of bad things with the money. The father welcomes him back with open arms showing the mercy of the father, not pride. Dont we believe that we hurt God when we sin?

-D

 

[contemplative]

Hello contemplative,

Here is how the father of the prodigal son felt.

Please visit Repentance To Service

What good is love if it is not given unrestrictively? So the father did not stop the son from leaving his life-giving home.

So the father felt love when this happened.

And the younger son said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country

(Luke 15:12-13)

Love means letting go…giving freedom. It must be a bittersweet love that lets go in such extreme circumstances.

 

[SMHW]

Darrel:

I think the father was deeply hurt. Imagine your son asking for his inheritence before you are dead.

-D

I’ve heard it said that a father of that time sometimes turned over the inheritance share to sons while he was still alive… almost a retirement thing. But this father wasn’t at that point yet.

But I think the father would still have been deeply hurt and worried.

 

[Steven_Merten]

contemplative:

Love means letting go…giving freedom. It must be a bittersweet love that lets go in such extreme circumstances.

Hello contemplative,

What you state is the liberals false god definition of love. Here is the Father and Jesus definition of love. It is Jesus and the Father’s teaching on true love for God and fellow man that will set you free; not the liberals false god definition of love.

INT 1JO 5:3

This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.INT JOH 14:15

"If you love me, you will obey what I command."

**INT JOH 14:23 **

Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.”

NAB JOH 15:9

“As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Live on in my love. You will live in my love if you keep my commandments, even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and live in his love. All this I tell you that my joy may be yours and your joy may be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I have loved you. There is no greater love than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.”

**NAB JOH 15:22 **

“If I had not come to them and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin; now, however, their sin cannot be excused. To hate me is to hate my Father. Had I not performed such works among them as no one has ever done before, they would not be guilty of sin; but as it is, they have seen, and they go on hating me and my Father.”

**NAB JOH 15:9 **

“As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Live on in my love. You will live in my love if you keep my commandments, even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and live in his love.”

**NAB JOH 14:21 **

“He who obeys the commandments he has from me is the man who loves me; and he who loves me will be loved by my Father. I too will love him and reveal myself to him.”

 

[SPOKENWORD]

contemplative:

And the younger son said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country (Luke 15:12-13)

I need to know nothing more than how the father in this story felt at this point. What do you think the father of the prodigal son felt inside?

I believe the Father was brokenhearted,that his loved one choose to walk away and do it his way. No different then our Heavenly Father felt,I,m sure. Praise God for the rest of the story, for our Loving Father always welcomes His children with open arms when they repent and ask for forgiveness. God Bless

 

[contemplative]

SMHW:

But I think the father would still have been deeply hurt and worried.

This works well with the story of the lost sheep.

so it fits in here as well.

deeply hurt and concerned

I wonder now what comfort there is for the father in the parable.

I wonder now what comfort there is for the Father in Heaven.

 

[Steven_Merten]

contemplative:

This works well with the story of the lost sheep.

so it fits in here as well.

deeply hurt and concerned

I wonder now what comfort there is for the father in the parable.

I wonder now what comfort there is for the Father in Heaven.

Hello contemplative,

Repentance To Service

NAB LUK 15:25

Meanwhile the elder son was out on the land. As he neared the house on his way home, he heard the sound of music and dancing. He called one of the servants and asked him the reason for the dancing and the music. The servant answered, Your brother is home, and your father has killed the fatted calf because he has him back in good health. The son grew angry at this and would not go in; but his father came out and began to plead with him… He said to his father in reply: For years now I have slaved for you. I never disobeyed one of your orders. yet you never gave me so much as a kid goat to celebrate with my friends. Then, when this son of yours returns after having gone through your property with loose women, you kill the fatted calf for him.

NAB EZE 18:23

Do I indeed derive any pleasure from the death of the wicked? says the Lord GOD. Do I not rather rejoice when he turns from his evil way that he may live? And if the virtuous man turns from the path of virtue to do evil, the same kind of abominable things that the wicked man does, can he do this and still live? None of his virtuous deeds shall be remembered, because he has broken faith and committed sin; because of this, he shall die. You say, “The Lord’s way is not fair!” Hear now, house of Israel: Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair?

NAB LUK 15:20

“While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him and was deeply moved. He ran out to meet him, threw his arms around his neck, and kissed him.” NAB SIR 17:19 Appeal for a Return to God.

But to the penitent he provides a way back, he encourages those who are losing hope! Return to the LORD and give up sin, pray to him and make your offenses few. Turn again to the Most High and away from sin, hate intensely what he loathes; Who in the nether world can glorify the Most High in place of the living who offer their praise? No more can the dead give praise than those who have never lived; they glorify the LORD who are alive and well. How great the mercy of the LORD, his forgiveness of those who return to him!
NAB JER 3:12

Return, rebel Israel, says the LORD, I will not remain angry with you; For I am merciful, says the LORD, I will not continue my wrath forever. Only know your guilt: how you rebelled against the LORD, your God, How you ran hither and yon to strangers (under every green tree) and would not listen to my voice, says the LORD. Return, rebellious children, says the LORD, for I am you Master: I will take you, one from a city, two from a clan, and bring you to Zion.
NAB JOE 2:12

Yet even now, says the LORD, return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, and weeping, and mourning; Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the LORD, your God. For gracious and merciful is he, slow to anger, rich in kindness, and relenting in punishment.NAB NEH 1:7

Grievously have we offended you, not keeping the commandments, the statutes, and the ordinances which you committed to your servant Moses. But remember, I pray, the promise which you gave through Moses, your servant, when you said: Should you prove faithless, I will scatter you among the nations; but should you return to me and carefully keep my commandments, even though your outcasts have been driven to the farthest corner of the world, I will gather them from there, and bring them back to the place which I have chosen as the dwelling place for my name. They are your servants, your people, whom you freed by your great might and your strong hand, O LORD, may your ear be attentive to my prayer and that of all your willing servants who revere your name. Grant success to your servant this day, and let him find favor with this man for I was cupbearer to the king.

 

[contemplative]

So there is no comfort for the in-between time? There is comfort for the father only after the repentance of the son? This sounds so bleak…the in-between time.

 

[NotWorthy]

Yes, there is joy for the father who got back his son. Several points:

1. . “And he arose and came to his father” (Lk. 15:20). Notice that Jesus says the prodigal “arose” and returned to his father. The word here for “arose” is the same word used later to describe Jesus’ Resurrection. The significance is clear; Repentance and returning to the Father lead to a “resurrection”.
2. The father’s words to the older son are intended by Jesus to address the Pharisees who stand outside the banquet murmuring. Jesus tells the story of the prodigal son in the hope that the Pharisees will come in and join the celebration. The story functions both as an explanation of Jesus’ table fellowship (with sinners, who represent the lost son), and as an invitation to the Pharisees to join Jesus and the prodigals at the family table.

Notworthy

 

[Orionthehunter]

NotWorthy:

Yes, there is joy for the father who got back his son. Several points:

1. . “And he arose and came to his father” (Lk. 15:20). Notice that Jesus says the prodigal “arose” and returned to his father. The word here for “arose” is the same word used later to describe Jesus’ Resurrection. The significance is clear; Repentance and returning to the Father lead to a “resurrection”.
2. The father’s words to the older son are intended by Jesus to address the Pharisees who stand outside the banquet murmuring. Jesus tells the story of the prodigal son in the hope that the Pharisees will come in and join the celebration. The story functions both as an explanation of Jesus’ table fellowship (with sinners, who represent the lost son), and as an invitation to the Pharisees to join Jesus and the prodigals at the family table.

Notworthy

The interpretation that I’ve always been told about the words to the older son was an admonishment to the older son for not reacting joyfully to the return of the one who is lost. It is a lesson for those who have always been faithful to the Church to not react jealously that the younger son’s reward in heaven is just as valued as one who never left.

 

[Eileen_T]

contemplative:

So there is no comfort for the in-between time? There is comfort for the father only after the repentance of the son? This sounds so bleak…the in-between time.

As a parent (of six) I pretty much know my children, and I imagine this father would know what his son was like.

He would have an idea of what his son was probably going to do, live a life of debauchery, and he would be concerned about him while he was away.

I have a son who left home and travelled around the country, not keeping in close communication. This kid was a worry even before he left home and when I finally had to rescue him, when he was safe under my roof, I cried not only in relief but for his future. (He has changed and is now a good citizen. DG)

The “in-between time” was bleak for me and there is better communication than there was back then… no mail service or telephones etc. Yep, he would have grieved for his son and feared for his safety.

 

[NotWorthy]

Orionthehunter:

The interpretation that I’ve always been told about the words to the older son was an admonishment to the older son for not reacting joyfully to the return of the one who is lost. It is a lesson for those who have always been faithful to the Church to not react jealously that the younger son’s reward in heaven is just as valued as one who never left.

Given the context of the story, the point of the parables comes into stark focus. Jesus’ table fellowship with sinners and tax collectors is a celebration of the lost being found, the spiritually dead being resurrected. The return of the lost is celebrated, not only on earth, but also in heaven. Jesus makes this clear when He says, “I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine persons who need no repentance” (Lk. 15:7).

This is said just a few verses earlier.

Notworthy