Jesus gives a profound warning in Luke 12:58–59:
“As you are going with your adversary to the magistrate, try hard to be reconciled on the way, or your adversary may drag you off to the judge, and the judge turn you over to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.”
At first glance, it seems Jesus is simply giving practical advice about settling legal disputes quickly. But when we study the context and the spiritual implications, we realize He is speaking about something much deeper: final judgment before God.
Many believers assume that the only accuser we have is Satan. Indeed, 1 Peter 5:8 warns us:
“Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
And Revelation 12:10 calls Satan “the accuser of our brothers and sisters,” who accuses them before God day and night. But in Luke 12, Jesus is not speaking about Satan. He is speaking about spiritual accusers—those who will testify against us at the final judgment.
We see an example of this in John 5:45–46, where Jesus says:
“Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me.”
Here, Jesus was talking to the Jews who claimed to follow Moses and the Law, yet rejected Him. He tells them that Moses—whom they claim to follow—will stand as their accuser on the Day of Judgment, because they failed to obey what Moses actually taught. They misunderstood the Law and missed the very One to whom the Law pointed.
This is why Jesus urges His listeners in Luke 12 to “be reconciled with your accuser” before reaching the Judge. The Judge in this parable represents God, and the accuser represents anyone or anything that holds a true testimony against us according to God’s Word—whether it be the Law, the prophets, the apostles, or even the Gospel itself.
Once you stand before God in judgment, there will be no more negotiation, no chance for repentance. Judgment will be final. The “officer” in Jesus’ words represents God’s holy angels, who carry out divine judgment (cf. Matthew 13:41–42). The “prison” is symbolic of eternal separation from God—hell.
Jesus says:
“You will not get out until you have paid the last penny.”
This shows the eternal consequence of rejecting truth. Since no one can repay the debt of sin on their own, that “last penny” can never be paid—meaning the punishment is eternal (see Romans 6:23).
Who Are Our Accusers Today?
Just as Moses was an accuser to the Jews in Jesus’ time, we today have other potential accusers. If we claim to be Christians—followers of Christ—we must live according to the teachings of the apostles and prophets, as the Bible says in Ephesians 2:20:
“Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.”
But many who claim Christ ignore what the apostles taught. The very Scriptures we claim to believe may rise to accuse us on the Last Day. The words of Paul, Peter, John, and others in the New Testament will testify either in our favor or against us—depending on whether we obeyed the Gospel.
This is why Hebrews 12:14 tells us:
“Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.”
Now—while we are still alive and on the way—is the time to be reconciled:
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Reconciled with God through faith in Jesus.
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Reconciled with the truth of Scripture.
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Reconciled with those we’ve wronged.
We must repent, believe the Gospel, and be sealed with the Holy Spirit (see Ephesians 1:13). This is how we prepare ourselves for the Day of Judgment.
Will the Gospel Accuse Us?
Yes—if we ignore it. The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 2:16:
“This will take place on the day when God judges people’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.”
Paul makes it clear that the Gospel itself will be the standard by which God judges humanity. If we have heard it but rejected it, that very Gospel will testify against us.
So, What Should We Do?
The big question is: Are you saved?
Are you certain that if you died today, you would be with the Lord? If not, now is the time to repent. Turn your life over to Jesus and let Him cleanse you. These are the last days. We all know it. We’re living on borrowed time.
Jesus is coming soon. The Rapture could happen at any moment. Now is the time to wake up, take up your cross, and follow Christ. Focus on what matters most—your eternal destiny. Everything else can wait.
Let us lay aside the burdens of this world for a moment, and prioritize our relationship with God. Let us be reconciled with our accusers before it’s too late.
Shalom.