Lukas 3:1

The Ministry of John the Baptist

3:1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, ¹  when Pontius Pilate ²  was governor of Judea, and Herod ³  was tetrarch ⁴  of Galilee, and his brother Philip ⁵  was tetrarch of the region of Iturea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ⁶  was tetrarch of Abilene,

Lukas 3:19-20

3:19 But when John rebuked Herod ⁷  the tetrarch ⁸  because of Herodias, his brother’s wife, ⁹  and because of all the evil deeds ¹⁰  that he had done, 3:20 Herod added this to them all: He locked up John in prison.

Lukas 9:7-9

Herod’s Confusion about Jesus

9:7 Now Herod ¹¹  the tetrarch ¹²  heard about everything that was happening, and he was thoroughly perplexed, ¹³  because some people were saying that John ¹⁴  had been raised from the dead, 9:8 while others were saying that Elijah ¹⁵  had appeared, and still others that one of the prophets of long ago had risen. ¹⁶  9:9 Herod said, “I had John ¹⁷  beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” So Herod wanted to learn about Jesus. ¹⁸ 

[3:1]  ¹ tn Or “Emperor Tiberius” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[3:1]  sn Tiberius Caesar was the Roman emperor Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus, who ruled from a.d. 14-37.

[3:1]  ² sn The rule of Pontius Pilate is also described by Josephus, J. W. 2.9.2-4 (2.169-177) and Ant. 18.3.1 (18.55-59).

[3:1]  ³ sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great. He ruled from 4 b.c.-a.d. 39, sharing the rule of his father’s realm with his two brothers. One brother, Archelaus (Matt 2:22) was banished in a.d. 6 and died in a.d. 18; the other brother, Herod Philip (mentioned next) died in a.d. 34.

[3:1]  ⁴ sn A tetrarch was a ruler with rank and authority lower than a king, who ruled only with the approval of the Roman authorities. This was roughly equivalent to being governor of a region. Several times in the NT, Herod tetrarch of Galilee is called a king (Matt 14:9, Mark 6:14-29), reflecting popular usage.

[3:1]  ⁵ sn Philip refers to Herod Philip, son of Herod the Great and brother of Herod Antipas. Philip ruled as tetrarch of Iturea and Trachonitis from 4 b.c.-a.d. 34.

[3:1]  ⁶ sn Nothing else is known about Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene.

[3:19]  ⁷ sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas. See the note on Herod Antipas in 3:1.

[3:19]  ⁸ sn See the note on tetrarch in 3:1.

[3:19]  ⁹ tc Several mss (A C K W Ψ 33 565 579 1424 2542 al bo) read τῆς γυναικὸς Φιλίππου τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ (th" gunaiko" Filippou tou adelfou autou, “the wife of his brother Philip”), specifying whose wife Herodias was. The addition of “Philip,” however, is an assimilation to Matt 14:3 and is lacking in the better witnesses.

[3:19]  sn This marriage to his brother’s wife was a violation of OT law (Lev 18:16; 20:21). In addition, both Herod Antipas and Herodias had each left previous marriages to enter into this union.

[3:19]  ¹⁰ tn Or “immoralities.”

[9:7]  ¹¹ sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas. See the note on Herod Antipas in 3:1.

[9:7]  ¹² sn See the note on tetrarch in 3:1.

[9:7]  ¹³ tn Or “was very confused.” See L&N 32.10 where this verse is given as an example of the usage.

[9:7]  ¹⁴ sn John refers to John the Baptist, whom Herod had beheaded (v. 9).

[9:8]  ¹⁵ sn The appearance of Elijah would mean that the end time had come. According to 2 Kgs 2:11, Elijah was still alive. In Mal 4:5 it is said that Elijah would be the precursor of Messiah.

[9:8]  ¹⁶ sn The phrase had risen could be understood to mean “had been resurrected,” but this is only a possible option, not a necessary one, since the phrase could merely mean that a figure had appeared on the scene who mirrored an earlier historical figure. The three options of vv. 7-8 will be repeated in v. 19.

[9:9]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “John I beheaded”; John’s name is in emphatic position in the Greek text. The verb is causative, since Herod would not have personally carried out the execution.

[9:9]  ¹⁸ tn The expression ἐζήτει ἰδεῖν αὐτόν (ezhtei idein auton, “was seeking to see him”) probably indicates that Herod, for curiosity’s sake or more likely for evil purposes, wanted to get to know Jesus, i.e., who he was and what he was doing. See I. H. Marshall, Luke (NIGTC), 357. Herod finally got his wish in Luke 23:6-12, with inconclusive results from his point of view.