28 "Suppose someone wants to build a tower. Won't he sit down first and figure out how much it will cost? Then he will see whether he has enough money to finish it.
29 Suppose he starts building and is not able to finish. Then everyone who sees what he has done will laugh at him.
30 They will say, 'This fellow started to build. But he wasn't able to finish.'
31 "Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. And suppose he has 10,000 men, while the other has 20,000 coming against him. Won't he first sit down and think about whether he can win?
32 "And suppose he decides he can't win. Then he will send some men to ask how peace can be made. He will do this while the other king is still far away.
33 "In the same way, you must give up everything you have. If you don't, you can't be my disciple.
34 "Salt is good. But suppose it loses its saltiness. How can it be made salty again?