Lukas 8:31

8:31 And they began to beg ¹  him not to order ²  them to depart into the abyss. ³ 

Lukas 10:20

10:20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice that ⁴  the spirits submit to you, but rejoice ⁵  that your names stand written ⁶  in heaven.”

Lukas 11:20

11:20 But if I cast out demons by the finger ⁷  of God, then the kingdom of God ⁸  has already overtaken ⁹  you.

[8:31]  ¹ tn One could also translate the imperfect tense here with a repetitive force like “begged him repeatedly.”

[8:31]  ² tn Or “command.”

[8:31]  ³ tn This word, ἄβυσσος (abusso"), is a term for the place where the dead await the judgment. It also could hold hostile spirits according to Jewish belief (Jub. 5:6-7; 1 En. 10:4-6; 18:11-16).

[10:20]  ⁴ tn Grk “do not rejoice in this, that.” This is awkward in contemporary English and has been simplified to “do not rejoice that.”

[10:20]  ⁵ tn The verb here is a present imperative, so the call is to an attitude of rejoicing.

[10:20]  ⁶ tn The verb here, a perfect tense, stresses a present reality of that which was a completed action, that is, their names were etched in the heavenly stone, as it were.

[11:20]  ⁷ sn The finger of God is a figurative reference to God’s power (L&N 76.3). This phrase was used of God’s activity during the Exodus (Exod 8:19).

[11:20]  ⁸ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.

[11:20]  ⁹ tn The phrase ἔφθασεν ἐφ᾿ ὑμᾶς (efqasen ef’ Juma") is important. Does it mean merely “approach” (which would be reflected in a translation like “has come near to you”) or actually “come upon” (as in the translation given above, “has already overtaken you,” which has the added connotation of suddenness)? The issue here is like the one in 10:9 (see note there on the phrase “come on”). Is the arrival of the kingdom merely anticipated or already in process? Two factors favor arrival over anticipation here. First, the prepositional phrase “upon you” suggests arrival (Dan 4:24, 28 Theodotion). Second, the following illustration in vv. 21-23 looks at the healing as portraying Satan being overrun. So the presence of God’s authority has arrived. See also L&N 13.123 for the translation of φθάνω (fqanw) as “to happen to already, to come upon, to come upon already.”