The passage
      v1-2. Luke sets the scene by describing how the Pharisees and Scribes are offended by Jesus' association with people who are religious outcasts. These "sinners" were not the type of people "righteous" Pharisees and Scribes would want to include in their fellowship. The term "sinner" here describes those who do not keep the religious ceremonies dictated by the rabbis. They are therefore, unclean. "Tax collectors" were regarded as traitors because of their association with the Roman authorities. Jesus "welcomed" (received) them - welcomed their repentance, but not their sin.
      v3-6. First, Jesus relates the parable of the lost sheep, or probably better, let's call it the parable of the seeking shepherd.
      v7. Jesus now applies the parable. What pleases God, what fills him with joy, is the repentance of a broken sinner, the deliberate turning from self to God for mercy, for forgiveness, grace. God is not filled with joy at the compromised goodness of "the seemingly righteous", those who think they do not need to repent, think they "have no need of a physician." As Jesus said, "I have not come to call the `righteous', but sinners to repentance", 11:31,32. So, standing in the sight of God comes only through repentance; only repentance prompts "rejoicing in heaven."
      v8-9. The parable of the lost coin is a replay of the parable of the lost sheep. A woman, who has lost a coin, probably part of a piece of jewelry, searches for the coin, finds it and rejoices. The coin referred to in the parable is a "drachma", a small silver coin amounting to a day's wage for a poor person.
      v10. Jesus now applies the parable in much the same way as he applied the parable of the lost sheep. What is it that pleases God, makes him happy? God is filled with joy when a person, who knows they are cursed in his sight, turns to him and asks for his forgiveness. Repentance brings joy to the Lord. As for "rejoicing in the presence of the angles", this means much the same as "rejoicing in heaven"; it describes God celebrating with the heavenly host.

What pleases God?
      In the school playground we begin to learn the techniques of "how to win friends and influence them." There are two particularly unhealthy moves, commonly used in the playground, which are often developed in later life:
        First, there is the standover tactic: violence - "you be my friend or I'll pinch you." In later life the threat of physical violence is transferred to such things as guilt manipulation, the "put-down", vicious gossip....... A psychological manipulator maintains their friendships by the threat of harm. We tend to keep on the good side of such a person because we know they can do us damage; they can castrate us with a single word; they can destroy our circle of relationships. For such a person, even friendship itself is increasingly warped. Their desire for a meaningful relationship is replaced by the desire for power, control.... They become sad and lonely people.
        Second there is the reward approach: bribery - "you be my friend and I'll give you a lolly". This approach seeks to please others so as to maintain, or develop friendships. In later life, the need to please others to secure friendships makes such a person a "doormat". The "user" quickly ferrets out the "pleaser" and uses them for their own advantage. The "pleaser" becomes the person who does everything for everyone.
      Genuine friendships are not based on the need to manipulate, or to please. Genuine friendships develop out of mutual care and respect.
      It is not hard to improperly picture the Lord as a divine manipulator using a stick and carrot approach with us. Of all the rewards (carrots), his good pleasure, his smile, is the most deceptive. It is often argued that one of the key motivators for godly behavior is his good pleasure, that the desire to please God encourages worthy service.
      The problem is "our righteousness is but filthy rags." The only righteous act capable of God's favour is the sacrifice of Jesus. So, when it comes to human beings, what pleases God is a reliance on the cross. When we turn to God for mercy and put our trust in Jesus for salvation, it is then that our God is filled with joy. Repentance is what prompts a new relationship with the living God; a relationship based on mutual care and respect. God then treats us as he treats his son.
      A believer has no need to try to please God, for our God is already pleased with us, and that completely.

v1
      de "now" - but, and, now. Here transitional.
      hsan ... eggizonteV (eggizw) pres. part. "were [all] gathering around [him]" - there were drawing near. Periphrastic imperfect, which construction always leaves us wondering as to the type of action implied, eg. is it iterative, repeated action, implying that tax collectors and sinners were constantly coming to Jesus? Marshall suggests it depicts a "general circumstance", this is what tended to happen.
      panteV "[were] all [gathering]" - Possibly "were everywhere in the habit of coming to him", Weymouth, or "all the tax collectors ....", as NIV, but the "all" may just mean "very many", TH.
      akouein (akouw) pres. inf. "to hear [him]" - The infinitive expressing purpose, "in order to hear him."

v2
      legonteV (legw) pres. part. "[muttered]" - [were complaining] ... saying. Attendant circumstance participle identifying action accompanying the main verb "grumbled / murmured / complained", so "complained and said", "complained of this, remarking", Phillips, but really pleonastic (redundant), therefore left untranslated as NIV, //. v3, "told [to them] saying."
      oJti "-" - here introducing direct speech, but possibly interrogative.
      ouJtoV "this man" - this one. Usually a contemptuous way to refer to another person.
      prosdecetai (prosdecomai) pres. "welcomes" - receives. So "associates with"; "this man is friendly with sinner", CEV, even worse, he eats with them.

v3
      thn parabolhn "[this] parable" - The singular may imply "parabolic discourse", Marshall, but the voice should not be pushed, cf. 5:36, so "these parables."

v4
      Both parables in v4-10 are teaching parables, illustrative stories which teach a truth, as opposed to kingdom parables, which proclaim the gospel in the form of a riddle, limiting the message to those with eyes to see. "The parable of the seeking shepherd", Ellis, probably better than "lost sheep", is applied in v7, where we are told of "the joy of God over the sinner who repents", Marshall.
      tiV ..... ou "Suppose .... does [he] not" - what ..... [is] not [leaving]. The negated question expects a positive answer; "everyone" would go looking for the lost sheep, obviously, having first secured the other 99.
      ecwn (ecw) pres. part. "has" - [man from you] having [one hundred sheep]. The participle is adjectival, forming part of the opening substantival phrase. "One" = "a man", usually regarded as redundant, so NIV. "Which of you men", Weymouth, but better, "which one of you", NJB.
      apolesaV (apollumi) aor. part. "loses [one of them]" - having lost. The participle is probably conditional, "which one of you with a hundred sheep, if he looses one of them", Moffatt.
      en th/ erhmw/ "in the open country" - Matthew, "hills / mountains." Possibly "in the wilderness / desert", Barclay, although this implies lack of care, better, "In the pasture land", TH. So, "leaves the remaining flock grazing by itself", "leave the other 99 sheep alone", NCV.
      epi + acc. "[go] after" - [goes] to. Probably with the sense of motion toward a place, so, goes out into the country looking for the lost one, "search for", Barclay.
      eJwV + subj. "until [he finds]" - Forming a temporal clause, as NIV.

v5
      euJrwn (euJriskw) aor. part. "when he finds it" - having found. Temporal participle, as NIV.
      cairwn (cairw) pres. part. "[he] joyfully [puts]" - rejoicing. Modal (manner) participle modifying the verb "he puts", as NIV.

v6
      elqwn (ercomai) aor. part. "goes home" - having come, gone. The participle is probably temporal, "and when he gets home", Moffatt, but also possibly attendant circumstance identifying action that accompanies the main verb "puts"; "places it joyfully on his shoulder and returns home", TNT.
      sugkalei (sugkalew) pres. "he calls ...... together" - he calls together. Historic present tense for dramatic effect. Possibly "gathers together for a formal celebration", cf. Jeremias Parables.
      sugcarhte (sugcairw) aor. imp. "rejoice [with me]" - The aorist tense here expressing immediate, urgent action.
      to apolwloV "sheep" - The position is emphatic; "my sheep that was lost", NJB.

v7
      Jesus now applies the parable making the simple point that repentance prompts divine joy, and thus by implication, divine grace and favor.
      legw uJmin "I tell you" - A typical introduction for an application. "Count on it", Peterson.
      ouJtwV adv. "in the same way" - in like manner, in just this way.
      estai (eimi) "there will be more [rejoicing]" - there will be [joy]. The future tense is logical, gnomic, stating what is, rather than what will be, so "there is joy in heaven because of ...." "More", "greater", REB, is supplied, on the assumption that there is at least some joy in heaven for the righteous, see below. Such a translation is possible, but it is not what the text says. "I tell you that in the same way there will be rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents rather than over ninety nine ......" TNT.
      en tw/ ouranw/ (oV) "in heaven" - Typical deference toward God, so also the reference to "angels" in v10. So, it is God, our creator, who rejoices.
      epi + dat. "over" - over, on, at ... The meaning of this preposition is very fluid, but a causal sense seems best; "there is more happiness in heaven because of one sinner who turns to God", CEV.
      metanoounti (metanoew) pres. part. "[one sinner] who repents" - repenting. The participle is adjectival, joy in heaven is because of the repentant sinner. Luke, in his selection of gospel episodes, shows us that repentance is like a change of direction, a turning away, a turning around, a turning to; it is like accepting an invitation, a seeking after divine mercy, forgiveness. Lit. "to change one's mind", cf. 3:3, 8, 5:32.
      h] "than [over]" - than [because of]. Producing a contrast, either "rather than / instead of", or a graded contrast, in which case "more" must be supplied, as NIV and most other translations. See above.
      dikaioiV adj. "righteous persons" - righteous, just. Adjective used as a substantive. Does Jesus mean "self-righteous / seemingly righteous"? It is possible, for the sake the argument, that Jesus means "righteous", in the same sense as Zechariah and Elizabeth "were righteous before God, living blamelessly according to all the commandments and regulations of the Lord", 1:6. If so, are there actually people "who do not need to repent"? Everyone needs to repent! The whole point of this parable is to identify repentance as the key which accesses God's grace. So, it is possible that the phrase is facetious (an ad hominem argument); "those who think they do not need to repent", so Stein. Yet again, possibly not. The statement may just be for argument sake to make the comparison, a comparison improved by exaggeration, so Fitzmyer, Creed. Plummer puts it nicely when he says "the ninety-nine represent a hypothetical class, an ideal which since the Fall has not been reached." So, we could add a qualifier if we wanted to; "of course, no such person exists." The sample sermon takes the line that the "righteous" are the "seemingly righteous", that Jesus is being ironic, but this interpretation is by no means proved.

v8
      The second parable, "the weeping woman", Ellis - nice alliteration, but probably better, "the searching woman", as against the standard, "the lost coin" - simply reinforces the first parable. The interpretation in v10 repeats that of v7. It is possible the whole parable is in the form of a rhetorical question, so Jeremias, Parables. Some have argued that the coins were attached to a braided headdress, possibly a dowry, and that the loss of one of these coins is like losing an integral part of a piece of jewelry.
      h] "or" - cf. 14:31 for a similar introduction to a second parable making the same point as the first. "Or again, making the same point."
      ecousa (exw) pres. part. "has" - [what woman] having [ten drachmas, if she loses ....]. Is the participle here modifying the verb "loses", so possibly modal, even conditional, or is it more properly an attendant circumstance participle identifying an action accompanying the losing? The experts are divided on whether verbal participles commonly attend another verb, or whether they commonly modify, ie. are adverbial. Being within a question, "what woman ....?" and a conditional clause, "if she loses ....", doesn't help. Probably best to escape the dilemma and call it adjectival, "a woman, the one having ..."; "what woman who has ten silver coins, if she loses ...." Weymouth.
      ean + subj. "-" - if. Introducing a conditional clause, 3rd class, where the condition is a possibility.
      ouci aJptei (aJptw) pres. "does she not light [a lamp]" - The syntax forms a question expecting a positive answer. The imagery here is of a mud brick and earth/stone floor single room home, dark due to few windows, and in need of careful sweeping to find anything.
      eJwV + subj. "until she finds" - might find [what (she lost)]. The subjunctive with this preposition forming a temporal clause.

v9
      euJrousa (euJriskw) aor. part. "when she finds" - having found. Temporal participle.
      legousa (legw) pres. part. "and says" - saying. Attendant circumstance participle, expressing action accompanying the main verb "she calls together."
      oJti "-" - because. Here expressing cause/reason; "rejoice with me for I have found", Moffatt.