EGW → Biblical Foundation
Select an Ellen White book from the sidebar to see each passage mapped to the Bible verses it amplifies, cites, or echoes.
Scripture Index
Ellen White & Bible Cross-Reference
Luke 17:1-2
"Then said he unto the disciples, It is impossible but that offences will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come! It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones."
"The drunkard is capable of better things. He has been entrusted with talents with which to honor God and bless the world; but his fellow men have laid a snare for his soul and built themselves up by his degradation. They have lived in luxury while the poor victims whom they have robbed, lived in poverty and wretchedness. But God will require for this at the hand of him who has helped to speed the drunkard on to ruin. He who rules in the heavens has not lost sight of the first cause or the last effect of drunkenness. He who has a care for the sparrow and clothes the grass of the field, will not pass by those who have been formed in His own image, purchased with His own blood, and pay no heed to their cries. God marks all this wickedness that perpetuates crime and misery. MH 341.2"
The idea of laying a snare for someone's soul and causing them to stumble is reflected in Jesus' warning about causing little ones to sin, suggesting a severe judgment for those who lead others astray.
Luke 17:3
"Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him."
"But sin is not to be lightly regarded. The Lord has commanded us not to suffer wrong upon our brother. He says, “If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him.” Luke 17:3 . Sin is to be called by its right name, and is to be plainly laid out before the wrongdoer. COL 248.2"
Ellen White directly references Luke 17:3 in this passage.
"Too often when wrongs are committed again and again, and the wrongdoer confesses his fault, the injured one becomes weary, and thinks he has forgiven quite enough. But the Saviour has plainly told us how to deal with the erring: “If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.” Luke 17:3 . Do not hold him off as unworthy of your confidence. Consider “thyself, lest thou also be tempted.” Galatians 6:1 . COL 249.1"
Ellen White directly references Luke 17:3 in this passage.
"If your brethren err, you are to forgive them. When they come to you with confession, you should not say, I do not think they are humble enough. I do not think they feel their confession. What right have you to judge them, as if you could read the heart? The word of God says, “If he repent, forgive him. And if he trespasses against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.” Luke 17:3, 4 . And not only seven times, but seventy times seven—just as often as God forgives you. COL 249.2 We ourselves owe everything to God's free grace. Grace in the covenant ordained our adoption. Grace in the Saviour effected our redemption, our regeneration, and our exaltation to heirship with Christ. Let this grace be revealed to others. COL 250.1"
The EGW passage directly quotes Luke 17:3, making it an explicit allusion.
Luke 17:10
"So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do."
"“Before my sickness, I thought that I had faith in the promises of God; yet I find myself surprised at the great change wrought in me, so far exceeding my expectations. I am unworthy of this manifestation of the love of God. I have reason to praise God more earnestly, to walk in greater humility before Him, and to love Him more fervently than ever before. I am placed under renewed obligation to give to the Lord all that there is of me. I must shed upon others the blessed radiance which He has permitted to shine upon me. LS 265.2"
Both passages express a sense of unworthiness after receiving blessings from God and a renewed commitment to service. Luke 17:10 emphasizes humility in service, while the EGW passage focuses on increased love and dedication after experiencing God's love.
"We do not, as followers of Christ, realize our true position. We do not have correct views of our responsibilities as hired servants of Christ. He has advanced us the wages in His suffering life and spilled blood, to bind us in willing servitude to Himself. All the good things we have are a loan from our Saviour. He has made us stewards. Our smallest offerings, our humblest services, presented in faith and love, may be consecrated gifts to win souls to the service of the Master and to promote His glory. The interest and prosperity of Christ's kingdom should be paramount to every other consideration. Those who make their pleasure and selfish interest the chief objects of their lives are not faithful stewards. 3T 397.1"
Both passages touch on the idea of being servants and fulfilling one's duty. While not a direct quote, the underlying theme of servitude and humility connects the two passages.
Luke 17:11-19
"And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan. And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole."
"Christ had the same experience, yet He did not cease His efforts for one suffering soul. Of the ten lepers who were cleansed, only one appreciated the gift, and he was a stranger and a Samaritan. For the sake of that one, Christ healed the ten. If the physician meets with no better success than the Saviour had, let him learn a lesson from the Chief Physician. Of Christ it is written, “He shall not fail nor be discouraged.” “He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied.” Isaiah 42:4 ; 53:11 . MH 134.5"
The EGW passage directly references the story of the ten lepers in Luke 17:11-19, drawing a parallel between Christ's experience and the potential discouragement a physician might face. It also quotes Isaiah 42:4 and 53:11 to encourage perseverance.
Luke 17:15
"And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God,"
"However skilled and faithful a physician may be, there is in his experience much of apparent discouragement and defeat. Often his work fails of accomplishing that which he longs to see accomplished. Though health is restored to his patients, it may be no real benefit to them or to the world. Many recover health, only to repeat the indulgences that invited disease. With the same eagerness as before, they plunge again into the round of self-indulgence and folly. The physician's work for them seems like effort thrown away. MH 134.4"
Both passages highlight the disappointment that can come when those who are healed or helped do not show gratitude or change their ways. The EGW passage speaks of patients returning to unhealthy habits, while Luke 17:15 describes only one leper returning to thank Jesus.
Luke 17:20-22
"And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. And he said unto the disciples, The days will come, when ye shall desire to see one of the days of the Son of man, and ye shall not see it."
"Chapter 55— N ot With Outward Show This chapter is based on Luke 17:20-22 . Some of the Pharisees had come to Jesus demanding “when the kingdom of God should come.” More than three years had passed since John the Baptist gave the message that like a trumpet call had sounded through the land, “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Matthew 3:2 . And as yet these Pharisees saw no indication of the establishment of the kingdom. Many of those who rejected John, and at every step had opposed Jesus, were insinuating that His mission had failed. DA 506"
Ellen White directly references Luke 17:20-22 in this passage.
Luke 17:21
"Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you."
"Jesus answered, “The kingdom of God cometh not with outward show; [margin]: neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.” The kingdom of God begins in the heart. Look not here or there for manifestations of earthly power to mark its coming. DA 506.2"
The EGW passage directly quotes and expands upon Luke 17:21, emphasizing that the kingdom of God is not an external display but an internal reality.
Luke 17:28
"Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;"
"The coming of the bridegroom was at midnight—the darkest hour. So the coming of Christ will take place in the darkest period of this earth's history. The days of Noah and Lot pictured the condition of the world just before the coming of the Son of man. The Scriptures pointing forward to this time declare that Satan will work with all power and “with all deceivableness of unrighteousness.” 2 Thessalonians 2:9, 10 . His working is plainly revealed by the rapidly increasing darkness, the multitudinous errors, heresies, and delusions of these last days. Not only is Satan leading the world captive, but his deceptions are leavening the professed churches of our Lord Jesus Christ. The great apostasy will develop into darkness deep as midnight, impenetrable as sackcloth of hair. To God's people it will be a night of trial, a night of weeping, a night of persecution for the truth's sake. But out of that night of darkness God's light will shine. COL 414.3"
EGW directly references the days of Lot as a parallel to the conditions preceding Christ's return, mirroring the comparison made in Luke 17:28.
"The crisis is stealing gradually upon us. The sun shines in the heavens, passing over its usual round, and the heavens still declare the glory of God. Men are still eating and drinking, planting and building, marrying, and giving in marriage. Merchants are still buying and selling. Men are jostling one against another, contending for the highest place. Pleasure lovers are still crowding to theaters, horse races, gambling hells. The highest excitement prevails, yet probation's hour is fast closing, and every case is about to be eternally decided. Satan sees that his time is short. He has set all his agencies at work that men may be deceived, deluded, occupied and entranced, until the day of probation shall be ended, and the door of mercy be forever shut. DA 636.2"
Both passages describe ordinary activities (eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building) occurring before a major event (destruction of Sodom and the Second Coming).
"So it is today. Men are rushing on in the chase for gain and selfish indulgence as if there were no God, no heaven, and no hereafter. In Noah's day the warning of the flood was sent to startle men in their wickedness and call them to repentance. So the message of Christ's soon coming is designed to arouse men from their absorption in worldly things. It is intended to awaken them to a sense of eternal realities, that they may give heed to the invitation to the Lord's table. COL 228.2"
Both passages discuss people being engrossed in worldly activities before a major event (flood/Christ's coming). EGW expands on the theme introduced in Luke.
Luke 17:32
"Remember Lot’s wife."
Again the solemn command was given to hasten, for the fiery storm would be delayed but little longer. But one of the fugitives ventured to cast a look backward to the doomed city, and she became a monument of God's judgment. If Lot himself had manifested no hesitancy to obey the angels’ warning, but had earnestly fled toward the mountains, without one word of pleading or remonstrance, his wife also would have made her escape. The influence of his example would have saved her from the sin that sealed her doom. But his hesitancy and delay caused her to lightly regard the divine warning. While her body was upon the plain, her heart clung to Sodom, and she perished with it. She rebelled against God because His judgments involved her possessions and her children in the ruin. Although so greatly favored in being called out from the wicked city, she felt that she was severely dealt with, because the wealth that it had taken years to accumulate must be left to destruction. Instead of thankfull…
The EGW passage directly references and expands upon the biblical account of Lot's wife, explicitly mentioning her looking back and becoming a pillar of salt, which is directly related to Luke 17:32.