Luke 14:32

If he cannot succeed, ¹  he will send a representative ²  while the other is still a long way off and ask for terms of peace. ³ 

1Ki 20:31-34; 2Ki 10:4,5; Job 40:9; Mt 5:25; Lu 12:58; Ac 12:20; Jas 4:6-10

¹ tn Grk “And if not.” Here δέ (de) has not been translated; “succeed” is implied and has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

² tn Grk “a messenger.”

³ sn This image is slightly different from the former one about the tower (vv. 28-30). The first part of the illustration (sit down first and determine) deals with preparation. The second part of the illustration (ask for terms of peace) has to do with recognizing who is stronger. This could well suggest thinking about what refusing the “stronger one” (God) might mean, and thus constitutes a warning. Achieving peace with God, the more powerful king, is the point of the illustration.